South Carolina hands UConn first loss, reaches 4th NCAA final in 5 years
PHOENIX — One of the first things South Carolina saw every morning during the offseason was the score of its national championship loss to UConn a year ago. Molly Binetti, South Carolina’s women’s basketball sports performance coach, had the score up on the TVs in the weight room by 6 a. m.
every day, so the Gamecocks would never forget that feeling. It was shown so much that even newcomers like Ta’Niya Latson began to feel the pain. “We saw that in our faces, so even though I didn’t experience that, I had to take on that because I knew that it was just more than just myself,” Latson said.
“It was for the program, for the team and for the coaches. ” Well, in Friday’s national semifinal, the Gamecocks finally got their revenge. South Carolina beat UConn 62-48 to make its third straight national championship game and fourth in five years.
As the final seconds were ticking off, UConn coach Geno Auriemma walked up to South Carolina coach Dawn Staley and the two exchanged words . He walked off the floor after the game and did not shake hands with Staley or anybody from South Carolina, instead leaving for the locker room before any of the players or coaches. After all of the drama, the Gamecocks are heading back to the championship game and will play the winner of No.
1 UCLA and No. 1 Texas. The Gamecocks pulled the upset over top-seeded UConn by stifling a Huskies’ offense that has been scoring at will this season.