It was a fun ride while it lasted, but Louisville women's basketball came to the end of their National Championship journey Friday night in Minneapolis when South Carolina defeated them 72-59.
South Carolina was led by National Player of the Year Aliyah Boston's 23 points and Brea Beal matched her season high with 12 points. Beal's defensive job on Louisville's Hailey Van Lith was another key to the Gamecocks win, the Cardinals sophomore ended up with just nine points.
The Cards started slowly and South Carolina jumped out to an early 7-0 lead . Louisville head coach Jeff Walz called timeout at the 5:30 mark of the first quarter after the Gamecocks extended the lead to 11-2. Louisville trailed 17-10 after the first quarter but went on a 12-0 run at the beginning of the second to take a 22-19 lead on Kianna Smith’s jumper.
South Carolina went on a run, though, after that and the Gamecocks answered with a 15-6 run of their own and after scoring back-to-back buckets at the end of the half took a 30-28 ballgame to a six-point, 34-28 lead into the break.
USC came out hot to start the second half, hitting their first three shots and they extended their halftime lead to 15 at 51-36 with 5:47 to go in the third quarter, Louisville still had fight in them, though, Smith scored four consecutive points and Mykasa Robinson hit an off-balance jumper in the paint to trim the lead back to 54-48 with under a minute to go in the quarter. But, with four seconds remaining in the third, Emily Engstler was called for her fourth foul on an Aliyah Boston bucket and Boston also converted the free throw to give South Carolina a 57-48 lead going into the final frame.
The Cardinals would not get closer than nine points the rest of the way. South Carolina advances to the title game to face UConn, who knocked off defending national champion Stanford in the second game last night 63-58.
Engstler fouled out midway through the fourth quarter and had a team-high 18 points on 8-17 shooting, while adding nine rebounds and four steals. She had 10 points and seven rebounds at the end of the first half.
Smith had 14 points and consistently hit tough shots to keep the Cardinals in the game, while Cochran finished with 14 points on 6-11 shooting, while adding four rebounds and three steals.
One can't help but be proud of this Louisville team that ends up 30-5 (or 29-5 if you subscribe to the NCAA account of the record). Walz took two transfer portal players, a sophomore center and shooting guard and senior who was in her second year as a starter and built a team that earned a #1 seed in the Wichita Region and disposed of Tennessee and Michigan to advance to the Final Four. Louisville was a squad that bonded on and off the court and a nightmare for opponents to prepare for and scout.
Credit South Carolina for taking Louisville's three-point game away (the Cards were just 1-8 from behind the arc) with an aggressive defense that held Cards guards Van Lith, Hall and Kasa Robinson to just 13 points.
Louisville showed a lot of heart and desire against the taller Gamecocks and never gave up the battle against the #1 team in the nation. Once again, the whistles were unkind to the Cards -- they were whistled for 17 fouls, compared to just 11 for South Carolina -- and the Gamecocks went 12-17 from the free throw line, while Louisville received just seven free throw opportunities, making four of them.
Walz may be losing Kianna Smith, Chelsie Hall and Emily Engstler to the pros and graduation, but, the returnees and a stellar incoming class should give Louisville another strong team in the 2022-23 season that could very well send the Cards to their fifth Final Four appearance in Walz's 16 years as the Cards head coach.
Ultimately, though, basketball comes down to scoring the most points to win a game. South Carolina accomplished that and moves on. This was a Louisville team that was so much fun to watch, see and hear in press conferences and detail during their march to the Final Four. The future of Louisville women's basketball looks very bright.
''I've never been prouder of a group,'' head coach Jeff Walz said. ''They've absolutely been a joy to coach.''
--sonja--
South Carolina was led by National Player of the Year Aliyah Boston's 23 points and Brea Beal matched her season high with 12 points. Beal's defensive job on Louisville's Hailey Van Lith was another key to the Gamecocks win, the Cardinals sophomore ended up with just nine points.
The Cards started slowly and South Carolina jumped out to an early 7-0 lead . Louisville head coach Jeff Walz called timeout at the 5:30 mark of the first quarter after the Gamecocks extended the lead to 11-2. Louisville trailed 17-10 after the first quarter but went on a 12-0 run at the beginning of the second to take a 22-19 lead on Kianna Smith’s jumper.
South Carolina went on a run, though, after that and the Gamecocks answered with a 15-6 run of their own and after scoring back-to-back buckets at the end of the half took a 30-28 ballgame to a six-point, 34-28 lead into the break.
USC came out hot to start the second half, hitting their first three shots and they extended their halftime lead to 15 at 51-36 with 5:47 to go in the third quarter, Louisville still had fight in them, though, Smith scored four consecutive points and Mykasa Robinson hit an off-balance jumper in the paint to trim the lead back to 54-48 with under a minute to go in the quarter. But, with four seconds remaining in the third, Emily Engstler was called for her fourth foul on an Aliyah Boston bucket and Boston also converted the free throw to give South Carolina a 57-48 lead going into the final frame.
The Cardinals would not get closer than nine points the rest of the way. South Carolina advances to the title game to face UConn, who knocked off defending national champion Stanford in the second game last night 63-58.
Engstler fouled out midway through the fourth quarter and had a team-high 18 points on 8-17 shooting, while adding nine rebounds and four steals. She had 10 points and seven rebounds at the end of the first half.
Smith had 14 points and consistently hit tough shots to keep the Cardinals in the game, while Cochran finished with 14 points on 6-11 shooting, while adding four rebounds and three steals.
One can't help but be proud of this Louisville team that ends up 30-5 (or 29-5 if you subscribe to the NCAA account of the record). Walz took two transfer portal players, a sophomore center and shooting guard and senior who was in her second year as a starter and built a team that earned a #1 seed in the Wichita Region and disposed of Tennessee and Michigan to advance to the Final Four. Louisville was a squad that bonded on and off the court and a nightmare for opponents to prepare for and scout.
Credit South Carolina for taking Louisville's three-point game away (the Cards were just 1-8 from behind the arc) with an aggressive defense that held Cards guards Van Lith, Hall and Kasa Robinson to just 13 points.
Louisville showed a lot of heart and desire against the taller Gamecocks and never gave up the battle against the #1 team in the nation. Once again, the whistles were unkind to the Cards -- they were whistled for 17 fouls, compared to just 11 for South Carolina -- and the Gamecocks went 12-17 from the free throw line, while Louisville received just seven free throw opportunities, making four of them.
Walz may be losing Kianna Smith, Chelsie Hall and Emily Engstler to the pros and graduation, but, the returnees and a stellar incoming class should give Louisville another strong team in the 2022-23 season that could very well send the Cards to their fifth Final Four appearance in Walz's 16 years as the Cards head coach.
Ultimately, though, basketball comes down to scoring the most points to win a game. South Carolina accomplished that and moves on. This was a Louisville team that was so much fun to watch, see and hear in press conferences and detail during their march to the Final Four. The future of Louisville women's basketball looks very bright.
''I've never been prouder of a group,'' head coach Jeff Walz said. ''They've absolutely been a joy to coach.''
--sonja--
