The Guru Report: Women's Final Four Highlights From Preview Day

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

 

DALLAS, Texas – Thursday is the day for preview press conferences of the teams that have become the Women’s Final Four result in a wide range of questions cover the competition against each other but also other views about the sport and the world in general for media looking for features besides the competition coming Friday night here at the American Airlines Arena.

 

That’s when Virginia Tech, a top seed, meets three-seed LSU at 7 p.m. followed by the widely anticipated match when defending champion and top seed South Carolina, meets second seed Iowa.

 

Fueling the nightcap are the unbeaten Gamecocks (36-0) under Philadelphia-born Dawn Staley, who went wire to wire as No. 1 in the Associated Press women’s poll, now having won 42 straight and are led by Aliyah Boston, who was the consensus national player a year ago.

 

The last barrier to be navigated to reach the championship again is Iowa (30-6), ranked third in the AP final rankings and offering scoring demon Caitlin Clark, who’s been picking up all the accolades here to date, including the Naismith, AP, and United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) in the last two days.

 

In the Elite Eight win over Louisville Clark became the first female or male to connect with a 40-point triple-double, in the process to also likewise became the first to perform a 30-point triple-double.

 

It’s the second trip to the Final Four and first for Iowa since C. Vivian Stringer led the Hawks to the 1993 final four following coaching Cheyney in the very first NCAA women’s championship game in 1982 and before likewise leading Rutgers in 2000 and 2007, becoming the first female or male to do so with three different programs.

 

Virginia Tech (31-4) is making its first appearance under Kenny Brooks, a former James Madison coach from up the road in Harrisonburg who was on the other side of major Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) battles when now-Villanova coach Denise Dillon was guiding Drexel.

 

The Hokies have a talented inside-outside attack featuring Australian Georgia Amoree in the backcourt and Elizabeth Kitlee in the post.

 

LSU (32-2), a past participant, arrives as an unheard of rapid two-year build under Kim Mulkey, who won three NCAA crowns with Baylor, one an unbeaten run featuring Brittney Griner. 

 

Mulkey has said the key, which wasn’t as much a factor when she was hired away to return to her home state, was the rise of the transfer portal that netted former Maryland standsout Angel Reese, and former Texas A&M talent Alexis Morris.

 

Here are highlights of the sessions plus other associate activities alongside the Women’s Final Four.

 

It took the whole session during LSU’s turn, but Mulkey, who took umbrage in the early fall for not offering support for Griner when she was in a Russian prison, said they hadn’t spoken since her return to the states but “I’m glad she’s back. I’m glad she’s safe, she’s sound, I think everybody is.”

 

Staley was previously named the USBWA coach of the year. On Thursday she was announced as the choice of the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) while Indiana’s Teri Moren Teri Moren was named the AP’s winner. On Wednesday Staley was also named the Naismith coach of the year.

 

Asked if she had interest in the Temple men’s job when it opened, though filled on Wednesday where she previously coaches the Owls women’s squad, Staley quickly put the kibosh on, saying she had no interest coaching men.

 

“Besides,” she let out a grin, “it’s cold up there.”

 

Drexel’s Keishana Washington, who’s career closed in a WNIT opener several weeks ago with 2,263 points, making her the all-time leading Canadian scorer within the NCAA, is down here to attend a combine ahead of the WNBA draft on April 10.

 

Washington is listed as second with a 27.7 average to Villanova’s Maddy Siegrist (29.2) and ahead of Iowa’s Clark (27.3).

 

Siegrist, Villanova’s first first-team all-American, is here and continues to be named on other all-America teams, in the first group when three teams of fives are listed, or on ten-member team lists.

 

Several sources have indicated Siegrist drew a very strong vote in the Katrina McClain competition involving five position awards.

 

The winners here will be announced here on Saturday.

 

Kenny Brooks of his Virginia Tech bunch advancing here for the first time noted, we may have a different name, but we were up there most of the season.

 

We won the ACC.

 

We deserved a No. 1 seed.

 

The Hokies have won 15 straight finished fourth in the final AP rankings.

 

Tickets on the secondary market are substantially higher for the Women’s Final Four here than the men’ side in Houston.

 

The women have all the top women’s stars and the name recognition, even without Tennessee, Stanford, or UConn in the field.

 

However, the venue here is smaller.

 

“It’s been building towards this for a long time,” Staley said. “Fortunately for us – not just South Carolina, but us as women’s basketball. We’ve got a lot of star power behind our sport.”

 

“It’s pretty neat that it’s sold out,” Mulkey said. “The cheapest ticket is more expensive than the cheapest ticket in Houston for the men’s Final Four. I thought that was eye-catching.”

 

Smarts continue to show in the women’s game. 

 

The College Sports Communicators Academic All-Americans include three Division I first teamers – Iowa’s Clark; South Carolina’s Boston; and Virginia Tech’s Kitley.

 

Minnesota Duluth, which will play for the Division II title here on Saturday, has Brooke Olsen. while Christopher Newport, playing for the Division III title; has Sondra Fan on the third team.

 

That’s the report.