UConn are heading to the Elite Eight for the 30th time after defeating North Carolina. Sarah Strong, the All-America sophomore forward, helped knock the Tar Heels out of the women’s NCAA tournament with a 63-42 victory.
Strong Performance Propels UConn
Sarah Strong, who chose UConn over North Carolina, finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds. North Carolina coach Courtney Banghart, who recruited Strong, said, “She’s just such a hard guard. I mean, I love the kid. I love the kid, who she is, her core. I love her family, but I really love her as a basketball player.” Banghart added, “She’s so fun to watch. And she’s a problem, right? She hurt us in off-ball action and non-ball action.”
After Blanca Quiñonez made a layup at the start of the second quarter, Strong then made four consecutive field goals in a two-minute span. UConn outscored fourth-seeded North Carolina 37-13 over the second and third quarters.
“I started looking at … being more aggressive, and I know that probably opens up my teammates,” Strong said. “It gives me confidence to keep doing it, and gives my team confidence to keep shooting and keep playing well.”
Elite Eight Matchup Against Notre Dame
UConn will play the sixth-seeded Fighting Irish in the final to fill the first slot for the Final Four in Phoenix. Notre Dame defeated Vanderbilt 67-64. Hannah Hidalgo had a 31-point triple-double in that game.
The Irish lost 85-47 in a regular-season game at UConn on Jan. 19. It will be the ninth meeting between UConn and Notre Dame in March Madness.
- Their first eight tourney games were all in the Final Four.
- This includes back-to-back national championship games in 2014 and 2015.
- UConn won both of those during its run of four consecutive titles.
Huskies Extend Winning Streak
Indya Nivar scored a career-high 20 points for North Carolina. Azzi Fudd had 10 points for UConn. Quiñonez finished with 16 points off the bench, including the go-ahead basket before Strong’s quick scoring spurt.
UConn coach Geno Auriemma said of Strong, “The hardest job that we as coaches have is getting her to do that for not seven minutes but 27 minutes. To act like that, to think like that, you know, to impose herself on the game like that. It’s a real challenge. … Then when she does it, she makes it look so easy.”
UConn are seeking their 13th national championship and extended their overall winning streak to 53 games.
Strong had 11 points in the second quarter, when UConn outscored the Tar Heels 17-8 to take a 28-20 halftime lead. She finished with two blocked shots and five steals.