Women’s Final Four power rankings: Who will win it all? UConn, South Carolina, Texas or UCLA?
· Yahoo Sports
Editor’s note: This article is part of the Bracket Central series, an inside look at the run-up to the men’s & women’s NCAA Tournaments, along with analysis and picks during the tournaments.
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For the second year in a row, UConn, UCLA, Texas and South Carolina — all four No. 1 seeds — are the last teams standing in the Final Four. Last year, UConn blew out the competition, but with all four teams playing at an elite level throughout the season, this year’s games figure to be much closer.
UConn and South Carolina face each other in the first Final Four game on Friday in Phoenix, followed by UCLA and Texas.
UConn and South Carolina both have cut down the national championship nets before, but Texas and UCLA are seeking their first titles since 1986 and 1978, respectively. In three days, we will have a new (or maybe old) national champion.
Here’s how the four remaining teams stack up.
Connecticut Huskies
With freshman Blanca Quiñonez performing at a high level, UConn is even more dangerous. She’s shown flashes of brilliance throughout the season, but in the NCAA Tournament, Quiñonez has been consistently impactful. She’s averaging 17.3 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game. Gameplanning for Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd is hard enough, but Quiñonez makes the UConn attack even more complex. The one thing UConn doesn’t have going for it this season is an experience advantage. All four teams played in last year’s Final Four, so now, they know what to expect. Still, UConn remains the favorite. The Huskies have answered every challenge so far this season.
Texas Longhorns
The Longhorns looked poised to win Vic Schaefer’s first NCAA title in a dominant 77-41 win over Michigan in the Elite Eight. Texas is playing on another level right now. UCLA poses a challenge inside, with Lauren Betts and the emergence of Angela Dugalić as a post presence, but Texas can speed up UCLA's guards, making post-entry passes a challenge. Offensively, Madison Booker continues to be a mismatch. Her length and size pose problems to guards, while her ability to score in the midrange extends post defenders out of their comfort zones. Jordan Lee can also be a difference-maker. After a poor shooting performance against Michigan (2-17), Lee is due for a big game. She’s Texas’ best 3-point shooter, so when she’s on, the rest of the court opens up for her team’s midrange game.
UCLA Bruins
Slow starts have plagued the Bruins in the postseason. They eventually pull away, but starting slow is not an option against Texas, or the other two remaining teams. The Bruins need to establish Betts inside immediately in order to control the flow of their offense. They also haven’t gotten the best performances out of their shooters yet, but knocking down shots will be vital to opening up the paint. If UCLA wants to beat Texas, it needs solid outings from Gianna Kneepkens, Gabriela Jaquez and Kiki Rice from the outside. Experience will certainly help the Bruins this time around. Last year they were clearly just happy to be in the Final Four. This time, they want more, which could fuel the winning performances they need from the guards
South Carolina Gamecocks
The Gamecocks are last on this list only because someone has to be. Getting through the defending champs (UConn) in order to play in the title game adds a layer to their journey that neither Texas nor UCLA has to contend. For the Gamecocks, post play is a major advantage. With Joyce Edwards and Madina Okot playing a high-low game, they become difficult to defend. UConn’s bigs will be in for a challenge in that department. If South Carolina shoots the way it did against Oklahoma in the Sweet 16 (10 of 14 from 3-point range), then not even UConn can stop the Gamecocks.
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