On April 3, 2022, as time ran out in the Target Center in Minneapolis, UConn exited the floor with hung heads as South Carolina celebrated clinching its second championship in program history with a 64-49 victory. Now, the Huskies are out to avenge their title game loss on their home turf in Hartford as South Carolina rolls into town.
The Gamecocks have unanimously remained at No. 1 in this season’s AP top 25 rankings and are one of just two teams in DI women’s college basketball that are without a loss on their record. Led by Aliyah Boston, who averages 12.9 points and 10 boards, and Zia Cooke, who averages a team-high 15.1 points, Dawn Staley and the Gamecocks have pummeled opponents this year, beating programs by an average of 35.2, the most in DI women’s basketball. South Carolina’s last two wins against ranked teams, however, have been decided by less than 10 points as the SEC powerhouse beat then-No. 15 UCLA by nine (73-64) and No. 2 Stanford by just five (76-71).
Despite traversing a littany of injuries, including losing Paige Bueckers for the entire season and playing most of the year without Azzi Fudd, UConn sits as a top 5 team and continues to put the world on notice. Forward Aaliyah Edwards has been sensational for the Huskies, averaging 16.8…
