University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
35-2
Notre Dame
35-3
Huskies Fall to Notre Dame in NCAA Final Four
4/6/2019 1:19:00 AM | Women's Basketball
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Katie Lou Samuelson scored 20 points — all in the second half — but the UConn women's basketball team fell in the national semifinals to Notre Dame, 81-76, Friday night at Amalie Arena.
"Obviously you know we're incredibly disappointed that we didn't win the game, but we played a great team and they played really, really well when they had to," head coach Geno Auriemma said. "We still had a chance. We just weren't good enough tonight to do it. They were better than us tonight."
The star matchup between Arike Ogunbowale and Samuelson never got going in the first half. Ogunbowale scored just two points before the break, Samuelson was shut out.
Samuelson was the first to hit in a big way, scoring 15 points in the third quarter. Her three foul shots with a second left gave UConn a 54-52 lead.
The Huskies' lead kept growing before the Irish rallied in front of a sellout crowd of 20,062. Ogunbowale had 14 points in the fourth quarter.
These two teams have had a habit of playing on the game's biggest stage. UConn and Notre Dame have now played seven times in the national semifinals or title game since 2011 — the Irish hold a 4-3 advantage.
There has been a different vibe around UConn this season. Unlike the previous two years, they don't have the burden of a record winning streak or an unbeaten season. Heading into their showdown with rival Irish on Friday night, the Huskies had already lost two games this season and didn't have, as Auriemma put it, "the fear of losing."
The Huskies jumped out to a 13-4 lead behind strong play from Napheesa Collier and a stellar defensive effort as the Irish missed 14 of their first 16 shots. The Irish closed the opening period with an 8-3 burst to only trail by four after one quarter.
The Irish continued its run and took a 22-18 lead on a putback by Ogunbowale. It was her only basket of the first half as she went 1 for 7 from the field.
The teams then traded the lead over the rest of the half with the Christyn Williams' jumper in the lane just before halftime giving the Huskies a 30-29 advantage.
REPLACEMENT OFFICIAL
Official Michol Murray slipped in the first quarter opposite the UConn bench with 4:54 left and after trainers came over to check her knee, they took her back to the locker room in a wheelchair. Standby official Gina Cross took over. It's the first time in the history of the Final Four that the standby official had to enter the game, according to the NCAA. Official Lisa Jones, who refereed the first game, was brought back to serve as the new standby.
TIP-INS
Samuelson and Collier finished their career with 4,743 points which is the highest combo for a pair of classmates in school history. ... This was the 50th meeting between the schools and UConn holds a 37-13 lead in the all-time series. ... Turner passed Ruth Riley's mark of 370 blocks at Notre Dame. With the senior's five blocks in the game, she now has 21 in her NCAA career which ranks for seventh all-time.
