UConn’s women’s basketball team took down Notre Dame with a suffocating defense in the second half to advance to the Final Four. It’s the 25th time in the school’s history, and builds upon the record of the most Final Four appearances for men’s and women’s teams.
Will the Huskies continue their dominance and win back-to-back championships, or is this the last ride of greatness for Geno Auriemma and his Huskies?
As March Madness dwindles to the final teams, the first team to advance to the Final Four, is none other than The University of Connecticut Huskies. They take down Notre Dame and superstar Hannah Hidalgo 70-52, and remain undefeated at 38-0 this season.
Hidalgo ended the game with 22 points and did not have a teammate reach double digits. She also led the game in rebounds with 11, while not sitting the entire contest. She put in a great effort for the sixth-seeded Notre Dame program that defied odds in making it to the Elite Eight.
UConn was led by Sophomore Forward Sarah Strong with a 21-point performance along with five steals and three blocks, as the Huskies defense was too much to handle. Along with a three-point barrage from Freshman Forward Blanca Quiñonez, who shot 4 for 8 from the bench. She ended the game with 20 points, and led the team in rebounds with eight.
UConn is riding a 54-game winning streak after its win today. They’ve tied the early 80s Louisiana Tech’s win streak, where legendary coach Kim Mulkey was the star player.
This now puts UConn in the top five for the longest women’s Division 1 winning streaks. It’s ironically behind three other UConn winning streaks of 70 (2001 – 2003), 90 (2008-2010), and a ridiculous 111 wins that ended in a shocking overtime loss to Mississippi State in the 2017 Final Four.
The head coach of that 2017 Mississippi State team was the 41-year coaching veteran,Vic Schaefer. He has gone on to build a great program with the Texas Longhorns, who are a one seed in this year’s March Madness tournament. They’re eyeing to potentially end this streak if they were to meet in the Championship game.
Iconic coach, Geno Auriemma, in his 41st season, is eyeing his 7th perfect season and winning his 13th NCAA Division 1 Championship, which is the Division 1 record.
UConn is waiting for the winner of the South Carolina and TCU matchup. It seems likely they will face off against South Carolina in a 2025 National Championship rematch. UConn dominated South Carolina, led by star Paige Bueckers, after returning from her ACL injury.
In 2025, UConn came in as a 2-Seed while Guard Azzi Fudd and Strong put on strong performances in that championship game last year. It was the first time in the school’s program that they would win the championship, not coming into the tournament as a one seed.
This championship also ended a lengthy drought for the program as it was their first title since 2016. They are now in the driver’s seat to potentially win back-to-back championships and reclaim their seat as a dominant program in the 2020s that fans witnessed throughout the 2000s and 2010s.
In my youth, I witnessed the dominance of the basketball legend Maya Moore and the dominant teams led by Breanna Stewart. Now we enter into the NIL world of collegiate athletics, and it makes you wonder if we will see the domination of programs diminish.
If UConn goes on to win this years’ National Championship and finish with a perfect season, this will push the legend of Geno and this UConn program into GOAT status that we may never see again.
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