Dawn Staley’s South Carolina crushes Connecticut in national championship game, 64-49

MINNEAPOLIS — From the first week of this season until the last, there was never a doubt that South Carolina was the best team in the country.

On Sunday night, the Gamecocks made it stand up in historic fashion.

Led by star forward Aliyah Boston and an electric performance from guard Destanni Henderson, the Gamecocks crushed Connecticut, 64-49, in the national championship game before a deafening sellout crowd of 18,304 at the Target Center.

“Our team had the fight of champions all season long,” South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said during the trophy presentation as thousands of maroon-and-black-clad, rally-towel-waving Gamecocks fans cheered. “We weren’t going to be denied — we were going to play every possession like it was our last possession. I know our players are super-exhausted, but they were determined to be champions today.”

It’s the second national title for North Philly’s Staley, who commanded from the sideline in a Louis Vuitton varsity jacket that drew raves on social media. And it’s the first time in UConn’s 12 championship games that the Huskies, coached by Norristown’s Geno Auriemma, lost one of them.

“The 11 times that we won, I would say — maybe all 11 but at least 10, we had the better team,” Auriemma said. “I told Dawn after the game, they were the best team in the country all year. They were No. 1 in the country in November when we saw them down in the Bahamas [a 73-57 South Carolina win], and they’re the best team in the country today.”

» READ MORE: This was Dawn Staley and Geno Auriemma's first matchup in a national title game

The tactical battle played out as expected: South Carolina’s dominant post play and fiery defense against UConn’s fleet of great guards. And as so often happens in such matchups, the post-play-and-defense team had the upper hand.

The Gamecocks roared to an 11-2 lead in the first 3 ½ minutes while holding the Huskies to just one made field goal in four attempts. South Carolina took 11 field goals in that span, pulling down five offensive rebounds — three by Boston.

» READ MORE: Aliyah Boston and Paige Bueckers brought true star power to the women's Final Four

It was 22-8 at the end of the first quarter. And if that wasn’t bad enough for UConn, key forward Olivia Nelson-Ododa was on the bench with two fouls.

The Gamecocks contingent in the arena exulted, beating the larger Huskies contingent — with many Minnesotans cheering home-state-heroine Paige Bueckers — for decibel level.

South Carolina’s lead grew as big as 30-12 early in the second quarter before the Huskies’ defense finally got some stops and Bueckers scored her first points of the game.

But the Gamecocks kept pounding, finishing the first half with 20 points in the paint and 16 offensive rebounds — more than UConn’s 13 total boards. And Henderson had a heat check, hitting all three of her three-point attempts.

The score was 35-27 at intermission, close enough to give Huskies fans hope. But when the second half started, South Carolina ensured that momentum wouldn’t continue. The Gamecocks scored the third quarter’s first eight points, grabbed six rebounds, and forced two turnovers.

There was a momentum change when key South Carolina guard Brea Beal was called for her third foul with 3:16 left in the quarter, and UConn hit back-to-back threes. Staley called timeout with her team’s lead down to 43-37. But Henderson hit a free throw, then an acrobatic layup in the lane to make it 46-37 at the end of the third quarter.

That six-point margin was as close as the Huskies got. The Gamecocks, whose previous title under Staley came in 2017, kept dominating the boards, kept hitting shots, and kept being the unstoppable force they’ve been all season.

Henderson was the game’s leading scorer with 26 points, and dished out four assists. Boston had 11 points, 16 rebounds, and 2 blocks, and was named the Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player.

Bueckers led UConn with 14 points, trying valiantly to carry her team to a title at home but unable to do it alone. No other Husky scored in double figures.

As was the case all season, South Carolina was simply unstoppable.

» READ MORE: Dawn Staley, Geno Auriemma and Cheryl Reeve keep Philly at the forefront of women’s hoops