The Final Four will have to wait
until next year for JuJu Watkins.
Considering how good she is
already as a rookie, Watkins will have three more years to do so
with a bright future ahead of her.
But today, experience triumphs
over raw talent as Paige Bueckers and the UConn Huskies overcame
Watkins and the gritty USC Trojans to head back to the Final Four
after crashing out in the Sweet Sixteen the year before.
The star-studded matchup did not
disappoint with each star showing out for their teams. Watkins, the
sensational freshman who became the all-time freshman leading
scorer in NCAA WCBB history, scored 29 points with 10 rebounds, 2
assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks.
However, it was not enough to
deny Bueckers and the Huskies from advancing to their record 23rd
Final Four appearance – the most all-time.
Bueckers recorded a spectacular
performance of her own with an all-around game of 28 points, 10
rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks to lead a depleted
UConn squad plagued by injuries.
UConn only had 7 active players
in the game after losing six different players during the season.
Along with Bueckers, Nika Muhl and Aaliyah Edwards were big all
game long with all three players playing in all 40 minutes. Edwards
backed up Bueckers in scoring with 24 points of her own while Muhl,
the Huskies’ all-time leader in assists, dealt a game-high 8
assists.
Bueckers, who also led UConn to
Final Four appearances in her freshman and sophomore seasons, hit
two big buckets late in the 4th to put the Huskies up for
good.
This was a redemption season for
the 5-foot-11 Bueckers, who notably won the National Player of the
Year award as a freshman and made the title game that season but
was sidelined all last year after tearing the ACL in her left
knee.
“I want to give glory to God
because I was praying last year to get back to this stage,”
Bueckers said after the game. “He (God) gave me so many trials and
tribulations but I just kept on believing – it was to build my
character and test my faith. I’m just so proud, I can’t even take
it into words.”
Now, Bueckers and UConn will
face a familiar foe in the Final Four at the Rocket Mortgage
Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio next week in Caitlin Clark and Iowa.
Clark and Bueckers have some history together as batchmates in the
HS class of 2018, Team USA U19 gold medal teammates, and are
regarded to be the best prospects of women’s basketball in this
generation, as well as being projected as the top overall picks in
the WNBA draft in 2024 and 2025, respectively.
