Bueckers named regional MOP
10 rebounds, six assists, three steals and a pair of blocked shots, earning Most Outstanding Player honors, as third-seeded UConn defeated No. 1 Southern California 8073 in the NCAA tournament's Portland Regional 3 final before 10,869 fans at the Moda Center.
It was the third regional Most Outstanding Player honor of Bueckers' distinguished career, coming after a knee injury which sidelined her all of last season. Bueckers went 720 days between NCAA tournaments.
This season the misfortune continued, with six season-ending injuries on the Huskies' roster: Azzi Fudd, Jana El Alfy, Caroline Ducharme, Aubrey Griffin, Amari DeBerry and Ayanna Patterson.
“Although a lot of people didn't believe we were ever going to do this, we did,” said Muhl, a UConn senior guard. “Don't get me wrong, we don't really care what other people think. At the same time, it feels really, really good to prove those people wrong.”
The Huskies advanced to the Final Four, which will be played at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland. UConn (33-5) will meet Iowa (334) in the national semifinals beginning at approximately 9:30 p.m. Friday, joining South Carolina and N.C. State among the four teams to reach the season's final weekend.
With Monday's game featuring the star power of UConn's Bueckers and USC freshman JuJu Watkins, both first team All-Americans, Watkins had 29 points and 10 rebounds and McKenzie Forbes had 24 points for the Trojans (29-6).
Edwards had 24 points and six rebounds for UConn, joining Bueckers on the all-tournament team, and Muhl had eight points and eight assists.
With UConn leading by as many as 12 points at the 4:14 mark of the third quarter on a steal and a layup by Bueckers, Watkins responded with a three-point play and USC tied the score 59-59 on a 3-pointer by Forbes with 7:32 remaining in the fourth.
Auriemma called a timeout, followed by a jump shot by freshman Ice Brady on an assist from Muhl and a drive by Edwards to give the Huskies back their mojo.
After Watkins carved the UConn lead back to 65-64, Bueckers spun and hit a jump shot, sending the Huskies off to the races for an 11-0 run.
Bueckers hit a 3-pointer, Edwards followed with a threepoint play and then it was back to Bueckers, who took off from one foot and lofted an off-balance floater for two points. Muhl finished the run with a free throw, padding UConn's lead at 76-64 with 1:25 to play.
Muhl played with four fouls from the 3:05 mark of the third quarter and freshman KK Arnold also had four.
“When they do win and they do accomplish something that's really difficult to accomplish, you get excited for them,” Auriemma said. “You feel their excitement. Even though you probably don't have it in you to feel that way because I'm tired.
“When it all comes together, it's just a beautiful thing. I was really taken aback by the celebration. That was pretty cool. You can tell it still means a lot, you know?”
There were times, Auriemma said, that he didn't know how much longer the Huskies could last with their thin roster. Even at breakfast Monday morning, he thought they looked lethargic.
“I'm a very realistic person,” the coach said. “I don't try to put unrealistic expectations on players. When I watched them after what's happened, I did think it would take a miracle (to get to the Final Four).
“Yesterday was Easter. Easter is a celebration of miracles, right? And today is April Fool's Day. It's either a miracle or a cruel joke. But we'll get there next week and find out if it's real.”
At halftime, the score was 33-33, but UConn was bordering on foul trouble. Arnold had three fouls at the half and Muhl, Edwards and Ashlynn Shade had two each, with subs Qadence Samuels and Brady finishing the half.
UConn fell behind 15-6 but reeled off nine straight points to tie it, starting with a threepoint play from Bueckers and followed by two field goals from Edwards and two free throws by Bueckers.
USC led 17-15 at the end of one quarter.
The Huskies took their first lead at 21-19 at the 7:00 mark of the second quarter on a basket by Arnold, assisted by Bueckers. Samuels, in the game in place of Shade, drained a 3-pointer to give the Huskies a five-point edge at 24-19.
A Bueckers 3 made it 31-25 UConn, giving the Huskies their biggest lead of the half with 3:28 to play in the second, but USC scored the final six points of the half, knotting the score at 33-all.
“I really want to credit UConn,” USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb said. “I mean, they earned their way to a Final Four. I don't think we gave it to them. I think they earned it.
“Sometimes to have the perspective and think about what another team has been through, I think is really important. With the injuries they've had, with the way that coach Geno adjusted throughout the course of the year, I just credit them a ton.”