TAMPA, Fla. ― The UConn Huskies are national champions … again.
Head coach Geno Auriemma earned his 12th NCAA women’s basketball championship on Sunday, after an 82-58 rout over No. 1 seed South Carolina, a tremendous feat for his legendary career – the most of any men’s or women’s program in NCAA history.
“I thank all of my former players that are here,’ Auriemma said, with all-time greats like like Breanna Stewart, Maya Moore, Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird in the building. ‘You know when you cut down the nets, and everybody gets a little piece of it? I wish we had enough nets that all of them got a piece of it because that’s how much they mean to us.’
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Auriemma’s former players watched his current players continue the UConn tradition of excellence and winning, spearheaded by generational talent Paige Bueckers, freshman superstar Sarah Strong and the ever-resilient Azzi Fudd.
Now, the women’s March Madness tournament is complete. Let’s review who was victorious and who will need a few months to recover from the sting of losing:
Winner: UConn legend Paige Bueckers
UConn guard Paige Bueckers received her storybook ending on Sunday, earning her first championship before heading to the WNBA. Fittingly, she didn’t need to be anything other than herself to do it. (Bueckers didn’t need the championship to solidify her legacy, but going home with extra hardware isn’t terrible either.) All season, Bueckers’ leadership helped lift the UConn Huskies into the history books. It was a fitting ending to her storied college career.
Her legacy is undeniable and oozes from the Huskies onto the court. On Sunday, Bueckers was one of three Huskies in double figures as UConn steamrolled South Carolina in Tampa. Her final college stat line was 17 points, six rebounds, three assists, one steal and two blocks. Bueckers will catch her breath (after some much-deserved partying) and turn to the 2025 WNBA draft, where she’s expected to be the No. 1 overall pick. She’ll get the chance to leave an impact on the WNBA like so many other stars have done. Her new legacy starts now, and it begins with quite the introduction.
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Loser: South Carolina’s dominance
Head coach Dawn Staley and South Carolina went undefeated last season and only lost four games in the previous two years, an incredible streak that shouldn’t be forgotten. What Staley achieved with such a young squad was remarkable, especially given the field of competitors. However, during the national championship, their dominance ran out.
South Carolina’s all-powerful engine ran out of steam, something that has been building throughout the NCAA tournament. (The Gamecocks had a slew of bad starts, turnovers and jaw-clenching endings.) With Bree Hall, Sania Feagin and possibly Raven Johnson all exiting after the season, it’s plausible to ask: Will South Carolina return to a national championship stage soon? The team’s core, which has been to four Final Fours, is likely gone, leaving a very young team to pick up the pieces. Staley, though more than capable of getting the Gamecocks back to the Final Four, will have an uphill battle.
Winner: UConn guard Azzi Fudd and her electric performance
A healthy Azzi Fudd is a dangerous Azzi Fudd. If fans were waiting for Fudd at her finest, she has arrived. Truthfully, the Huskies guard has been excellent this season, but her March Madness tournament run has been one for ages. Fudd’s been in double digits in nearly every game, save one, and she was the x-factor on Sunday. South Carolina had no answer for her, as she had 21 points by the third quarter and finished with 24.
It’s almost a shame that fans must wait to see Fudd play in the WNBA because she’s returning to UConn. However, a whole season of Azzi Fudd doing magical things on a college basketball court with the Huskies seems fitting. She’ll get the send-off tour she deserves. Fudd also received Most Outstanding Player and made the Final Four tournament, something she should treasure for years to come.
Loser: South Carolina adjusting to UConn’s blistering pace
On Sunday, the fast style of play that UConn unleashed against UCLA in Friday’s semifinal appeared again in the national championship game. South Carolina kept up for parts of the first quarter, but UConn cruised and left the Gamecocks out of sorts. Turnovers and a mountain of missed shots (South Carolina might cringe when it looks at the film, especially in the paint.) doomed the Gamecocks.
UConn also struggled with its own established pace, but as the game went on and the lead grew to 20 at the start of the fourth quarter, the Huskies settled right in, never looking back. They outhustled South Carolina in seemingly every area, a rare sight for a Dawn Staley coached team. It didn’t matter what the Gamecocks came up with Sunday, the Huskies were already three steps ahead.
Winner: UConn freshman phenom Sarah Strong
It’s hard to describe just how talented freshman forward Sarah Strong is. Her patience on the court and calm demeanor say savvy vet, but Strong’s playful smile shows she’s still a young girl having fun while playing basketball, casually destroying opponents along the way. By halftime during the championship game, Strong had 11 rebounds and eventually worked her way up to another double-double, her fourth of the NCAA tournament. (Again, she’s incredible ― strong even. Don’t throw tomatoes for that pun.)
With the help of Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd, the trio had 53 combined points to South Carolina’s 42 into the fourth quarter. Strong was part of the difference on Sunday, reinforcing why she was the country’s best freshman all year. She finished her day with an outstanding 24 points, 15 rebounds, five assists, two steals and three blocks.
Loser: USA TODAY’s Meghan L. Hall and her love for college basketball
USA TODAY journalist Meghan Hall watched a ridiculous amount of basketball before attending the Final Four in Tampa, Florida. There were many late nights – 10 p.m. start times should be permanently banned – and lots of rewinding to ensure she didn’t miss anything. Through it all, she only fell deeper in love with the amazing stars in college basketball, and it’s a shame it all ended on Sunday. (Still, her eardrums are very thankful after listening to a sold-out crowd of 19,777 fans scream for hours.)
That’s it. There are no more games to play. No more stats to analyze.
Please respect her privacy as she grieves that the 2024-25 season is over and the 2025-26 season is more than seven months away. Thankfully, Hall will be around for more basketball, and this won’t be the last time she writes about Paige Bueckers or any other top potential WNBA draft picks in the coming months. Through it all, she’s grateful she witnessed women’s basketball’s incredible impact on the sports world. Women’s basketball isn’t just a moment. It’s a movement. Don’t miss the wave. It’s not stopping anytime soon.
