Final Four Diary: Over the hump (Day three)

The Huskies win their first Final Four game in six years to advance to Sunday's championship

Apr 02, 2022

∙ Paid

Welcome to our Final Four Diary, a daily recap of everything that happened at the Final Four in Minneapolis. Everyone has access to the first half of the story, but only premium subscribers get our thoughts, takeaways and more. Subscribe for $6/month or $70/year.

The day of the national semifinal is one of the longest of the year, especially since UConn is almost always the late game. There’s so much anticipation and excitement early on, and as fans arrive from around the country, the buzz starts to build in and around the arena.

But as the afternoon drags on, those feelings turn into anxiety. At a certain point, you get tired of waiting and just want the game to start.

Some of that is relieved when South Carolina-Louisville tips off. My seat is on the floor, one row back from courtside along the baseline. There’s a near-capacity crowd at the Target Center but it’s not all that engaged in the game. The cheers feel muted and there isn’t a ton of energy emanating either from the stands or the floor.

Finally, that wraps up and it’s time for the Huskies.

UConn has often entered the Final Four as the hunted and over the last five tournaments, have made a habit out of poor performances on the biggest stage. But this time, the Huskies have flipped the script. Everyone picked Stanford to win, so there was no pressure on UConn.

That seemed to work out in its favor. In a change from recent years, the Cardinal were rattled early on and didn’t play the way they normally do while the Huskies — despite not bringing their A-game, either — sat in the driver’s seat for most of the contest.

Even when UConn started to struggle in the fourth quarter and let an eight-point lead slip to just two, there was never any panic. The Huskies did just enough to keep themselves ahead and never truly gave Stanford the opening it needed to jump back in front.

It was the opposite of the 2019 Final Four, where UConn led late in the fourth against Notre Dame but couldn’t do anything to stop the comeback.

As the final buzzer sounded, UConn began a jubilant celebration. First, the team took some time to themselves at mid-court before making their way over to the cheerleaders and band. Together, they all piled in for a photo.

After that, the players turned to greet their friends and family in the section across from UConn’s bench. It was a moment of total happiness for everyone involved.

However, there was one message repeated throughout: One more.

Now, the Huskies stand one win away from immortality. All the struggles, injuries and adversity have a chance to pay off in the form of a national championship. One more.

Coverage

Pregame

Postgame

Keep reading with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to UConn WBB Weekly to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.