IT’S ALL ARIZONA
McDonald leads Wildcats over UConn & into NCAA title game vs. Stanford
SAN ANTONIO — Aari McDonald scored 26 points and led a smothering defensive effort for Arizona as the Wildcats beat UConn 69-59 Friday night to advance to the women’s NCAA Tournament championship game for the first time in school history.
The Wildcats never trailed against the favored and fabled Huskies, who have made the Final Four 13 consecutive times, but haven’t made the championship game since 2016 when UConn won its 11th title.
Arizona held UConn to a season low in points, but still had to hold on late after leading by 14 late in the third quarter as the Huskies made a late push. At the final buzzer, McDonald threw the ball high in the air and was mobbed by her teammates near center court. She shared a long hug with coach Adia Barnes, who starred as a player at the school in the late 1990s.
The win made Barnes the first coach to lead her alma mater to the championship game since Sonja Hogg guided Louisiana Tech to the first NCAA title in 1982 and was the runner up in 1983.
Arizona (21-5) will play Stanford for the title on Sunday night in an all Pac-12 final.
“We just believed,” McDonald said. “It was that grit. We didn’t want to go home once again, and we’re proving it.”
As she has done throughout the tournament, McDonald did it all for the Wildcats with slashing drives, pinpoint shooting from long range, and a defensive intensity that held UConn’s star freshman Paige Bueckers in check in for long stretches.
STANFORD 66, SOUTH CAROLINA 65
Haley Jones scored 24 points, including the go-ahead jumper with 32 seconds left, to help Stanford beat South Carolina for a trip to the NCAA title game.
It’s Stanford’s first trip to the title game since 2010, which was also in San Antonio. The Cardinal lost to UConn in that contest, 53-47.
The Cardinal (30-2) will play Arizona for the title on Sunday night. Coach Tara VanDerveer will be looking for her third national championship at the school and first since 1992.
Trailing 65-64 with 32 seconds left, Jones hit a jumper from the corner that gave the Cardinal a one-point lead. Aliyah Boston had her shot blocked, but got her own rebound. Then, with 15 seconds left, Destanni Henderson threw a pass that was stolen by Ashten Prechtel.
After an inbounds, Cameron Brink lost the ball at midcourt to Boston, giving South Carolina a chance. Brea Beal missed a driving layup and Boston’s putback at the buzzer also was off the rim, sending the Cardinal onto the court to celebrate.