SPOKANE, Wash. -- The two-seed UConn Huskies defeated the three-seed Oklahoma Sooners 82-59 to advance to the Finals of the Spokane 4 Region. In front of a packed crowd full of Huskies fans, they were able to get the job done in a closely contested game. Fueled by their star power, UConn dominated in the second half to march to their 18th Elite Eight in the last 19 seasons.
The first quarter started slow for both teams, but the Sooners kept it close, trailing 17-12. They started strong with a 7-0 lead early, but the Huskies clawed their way back into the game. Superstar guard and future top WNBA draft pick Paige Bueckers scored 11 of her 40 points in the quarter and added two rebounds. Azzi Fudd contributed to starting the game as well, scoring six points. Oklahoma played well to start, thanks to Raegan Beers (Ray-GUN), who scored five of her 10 points in the quarter. In a game where the Sooners were not expected to win, they showed otherwise as the first half ended.
Before the two teams went to the locker room, Oklahoma grabbed the lead 36-32. Payton Verhulst finished the half with 13 points in 16 minutes, finding her shots in every way. Reyna Scott also helped capture the lead, scoring eight points and dishing out four assists before the break. Although Bueckers didn’t score in the second quarter, the Huskies had other contributions from Ashlynn Shade, who scored eight points. After a rough second quarter, UConn was determined to fight its way closer to victory in the second half.
The Huskies came out of the locker room looking to make a statement, and they did just that. They took the lead 59-46, thanks to a 16-3 run that started with seven minutes left in the period. Like the first quarter, Bueckers came out of the break strong, scoring 10 points in the quarter. UConn also had help regaining the lead from their star freshman, Sarah Strong. She had seven of her 11 points in the third period. Oklahoma struggled to make their shots in the quarter, only making four baskets from the field in 14 attempts (28.6%). Liz Scott did the most for the Sooners in the quarter, scoring five points and adding three rebounds. After taking the lead back to start the second half, the Huskies kept their foot on the gas to capture the win.
UConn finished the job in the closing quarter, where Bueckers completed her masterclass. She has proven year in and year out that she is willing to do whatever is necessary to guide her team closer to a championship. After advancing to the Elite Eight yet again, they are set to face the winner of Kansas State and USC. As the Huskies advance closer to their national championship hopes, they have shown that when they are down, they’ll always find a way to win when it matters.
