NOW THE UNDERDOG
OSU readies to face Uconn dynasty in NCAA Tournament
For the 2023 NCAA women’s basketball championship, the NCAA is tracking more than 2 million tournament brackets posted to “major” websites. How many more are filled out in office pools and in family contests? Let’s be archly conservative and say another 2 million. Let’s be supremely conservative and add another 2 million, for people who don’t fill out the brackets but read them, nonetheless, with each passing round. We’re up to 6 million brackets. Conservatively.
Among these millions is a special group — the 1,000-plus women and their coaches who invested their heart, sweat and souls to make the field of 64. They definitely read the brackets, eh? And never mind what they tell you about “one game at a time,” because they peek ahead, just like the rest of us.
Full marks for honesty, then, to Ohio State freshman forward Cotie Mcmahon.
She said, “I want to play Uconn so bad. Before the season even started. Uconn.”
Mcmahon may be clairvoyant, as she somehow had a monthslong head start on her bracket. In any case, she has her wish.
Monday evening, third-seeded Ohio State held off a furious, fourth-quarter charge to beat No. 6-seed North Carolina 71-69 in a second-round game at Value City Arena. Later Monday night, some 680 miles away in Storrs, Connecticut, second-seeded Uconn defeated No. 7-seed Baylor 77-58 at Gampel Pavilion.
It’s all set, then. The Buckeyes (27-7) will meet the Huskies (31-5) at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena, home of Oliver Bjorkstrand, in a Sweet 16 game Saturday at 4 p.m. It will be an opportunity for Ohio State coach Kevin Mcguff and his up-tempo team to establish some real street cred.
Since 1992-93, when the great Katie Smith led the Buckeyes to their first and last appearance in the Final Four — they lost to Sheryl Swoopes and Texas Tech in the championship game — Geno Auriemma's Huskies have won 11 national titles in 21 trips to the Final Four.
Put another way: Mcguff has won 14 NCAA tournament games, including some that were later vacated due to recruiting violations by an assistant coach; Auriemma has won 133 tournament games.
Dawn Staley and South Carolina, the defending national champions, are not yet dynastic. Tennessee ruled the world in another decade. Baylor and Notre Dame have had great eras, and Stanford has reappeared. Indeed, more parity is coming to the women's game — but Uconn's legend continues to overshadow the whole of the landscape.
The final buzzer on the OSU-UNC game sounded some 2 hours before Uconn even tipped off Monday night. When Mcguff and the Buckeyes met the media, they couldn't be sure Uconn would get past Baylor. But they probably suspected. Heck, it's a good bet they've had an eye on this Sweet 16 circled since Selection Sunday, March 16.
“If it ends up being them, they have an incredible program and a history of winning at the highest level,” Mcguff said. “And I've watched them some this year, and they've had a season sort of like ours, in that injuries have impacted them. They've had the highest of highs, and they've also had a few lows, mostly because they just haven't had the same team throughout the year.
Fortunately for them, they're getting way more healthy here down the stretch. So, I think if it ends up being them, we'll see the best Uconn team that they have had this season.”
It's them.
Uconn has gone the entire season without point guard Paige Bueckers, the 2021 National Player of the Year. She's rehabbing a knee and remains unavailable. Recently, though, shooting guard Azzi Fudd (knee) returned to the lineup and is nearing full strength. Fudd played 28 minutes in Uconn's 95-52, first-round victory over Vermont Saturday. They need her 3-point shooting.
Ohio State point guard Jacy Sheldon, a senior from Dublin, missed most of the season with a lower-leg injury. Like Fudd, she played her way back into shape during the conference tournament. Monday night, she was at the top of every tournament highlight reel.
The Buckeyes led by as many as 12 points in the fourth quarter, after Sheldon rebounded her own missed 3-point try (who does that?) and quickly fed Taylor Mikesell for a long-range dagger with 7 minutes remaining. One can knock the Buckeyes for letting such a lead slip, or credit a gritty North Carolina team for clawing its way back. In any case, the game was tied 69-all with 9.8 seconds on the clock.
Mcguff's last play went to Sheldon, who cut into the lane and hit a fallaway jumper with 1.8 seconds to go. That was the game-winner, and it sent a crowd of 5,186, which had stood for most of the last quarter, into apoplexy.
“We're playing really, really hard,” Mcguff said. “We're playing with a lot of passion and a lot of energy and a lot of physicality. I still think we can play better.”
Opportunity awaits. The NCAA reports that the last of the 2 million-plus women's brackets it tracks was busted Sunday night, when No. 1 Stanford, the 2021 national champion, was beaten by eighth-seeded Ole Miss. Ah, March. Another No. 1 seed, Indiana, fell to Miami Monday night. Dang, but Indiana has some serious Miami problems.
Do the Buckeyes have any of that upset magic in them? Given that UCONNOSU is a game between a No. 2 and a No. 3 seed, an Ohio State victory wouldn't be considered a major upset, not technically. But millions upon millions understand otherwise.
marace@dispatch.com