The Guru’s March Madness Daily Report: South Carolina Stuns Unbeaten Connecticut While UCLA Holds off Texas in NCAA Semifinals

 By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsgurux

PHOENIX, ARIZ. – Some nights in the long-running history of the NCAA Women’s Final Four dating to the inaugural 1981-82 season have displayed works of art in the national semifinals and championship games while others have been comparable to graffiti.

Friday’s doubleheader before a crowd of 15,856 at the Mortgage Matchup Center was much of the latter as the thrill of victory and agony of defeat were in definitive contrast: South Carolina deflated UConn’s perfect season with a shocking 62-48 upset, the fourth overall No. 4 seed taking down the tourney’s overall No. 1 seed, followed by a grind out second revenge outcome going to UCLA, the  No. 2 overall seed, 51-44, cutting short a near-successful rally by Texas, the overall third No. 1.

The outcomes, punctuated by off court angst between South Carolina’s Dawn Staley and UConn’s Geno Auriemma, two Philly-bred Hall of Fame coaches at the top of their sport, made for high drama watched by many more, nationally, on the ESPN telecast.

The outcome sets the stage for Sunday’s national champion showdown between South Carolina (36-3) and UCLA (36-1) at 3:30 p.m. on ABC-TV.

For the Bruins under Cori Close it’s the first national title game for UCLA since becoming champions in the AIAW era in 1978 paced by Hall of Famer Ann Meyers Drysdale, while South Carolina will be seeking its fourth national since 2017, the first since 2022 after an aggressive defense on UConn all night snapping the Huskies 54-game win streak.

Ta’Niya Latson, a Florida State transfer who led the nation in scoring in 2025 with the Seminoles, had 16 points for the Gamecocks against the Huskies while freshman Agot Makeer had 14 points.

“I thought our players just locked in once we built a little lead,” Staley said in taking the Gamecocks to their third straight title game.

This was the ninth time UConn emerged out of the Elite Eight, still unbeaten on the season heading to the Final Four and third straight time failed to complete the mission.

In 2017 Mississippi State, then coached by now Texas coach Vic Schaefer, ended the Huskies’ record 111-win streak on a buzzer beater in overtime and then a year later, Notre Dame in overtime at the buzzer did likewise.

A year ago in Paige Bueckers’ final season, UConn slammed the Gamecocks in the championship game, but this time was held to the fewest points since 48 in a loss to South Carolina in the 2022 championship.

Sophomore consensus national player of the year Sarah Strong scored 12 points with 12 boards but was held to 4-for-16 from the field and Azzi Fudd in her final game had just eight points, held to 3-for-15.

Auriemma had a heated exchange with Staley leaving the floor after the game ended.

UConn had a 26-24 lead at the half.

“Coach was pretty mad going into the half,” Latson said. “She was yelling ‘Meet the moment! Meet the moment!’ We couldn’t be scared to play on this stage, especially against UConn. I mean, they were undefeated.”

That run included last season’s 82-59 triumph in the title game and began after a late-February loss at Tennessee and also included a regular-season lopsided loss at South Carolina.

“I think our defense is pretty elite,” Makeer said. “I think we all wanted this really bad. We were just ready.”

The Huskies’ 19-for-61 for 31.1% from the floor was their worst shooting night of the season.

UCLA was determined to do better after being blown out by UConn in last season’s national semifinal title game and suffered an early season setback to Texas in November for their only loss coming here.

As Texas )35-4) was rallying late and going for a tie, Lauren Betts slammed a shot from Madison Booker with 20 seconds left to emerge with a 51-44 victory.

“When that play happened, I really have so much confidence that every time she is in a matchup, she’s going to find a way to alter, block, scare somebody from doing that,” Close said of Betts’ defensive play. “I just think she’s spectacular.”

Kiki Rice then hit a pair of foul shots to clinch the outcome for the Bruins (36-1).

“We feel like, in our locker room, we let one get away,” Schaefer said. “I feel like this one will haunt me as the coach probably until the day I die. We couldn’t make a shot tonight and that was my fear the last three days.

Betts was 7-for-10 from the floor for 16 points with 11 boards, while Rice scored 11, and Gabriela Jaquez and Utah transfer Gianna Kneepkens each scored 10 points.

This is UCLA’s second season in the Big Ten after leaving the Pac-12, and the Bruins again won the conference in a blowout of Iowa in the title game.

Close opened her remarks apologizing to the fans “for the rugby match and we turnovers.”

She said after the 96-45 win over Iowa to gain the automatic bid, “You cannot fall in love with pretty offense and think that it’s going to be like this every game.

“I told them there’s going to be a game in the NCAA tournament that you’re going to have to just grind it our and do it with your defense. This was the game we needed that. But the reality is it’s really all about toughness at this point and finding a way to make a winning play, even if it’s a winning play you wouldn’t have predicted or chosen.”

Booker made her first shot for the Longhorns and then missed 17 straight.

The game appeared decided when UCLA went up 13 with 4:36 left in regulation but Texas kept chipping away until Booker’s move to the basket was slammed by Betts.

It was just the third game in Final Four history that the teams combined for less than 100 points.