Last night’s NCAAW games offered a variety of experiences; three blowouts, a good come-from-behind win, and a couple of upsets. Here we go.
The Portland Pilots sailed into Spokane to face No. 16 Gonzaga, who proceeded to torpedo Portland, holding them to 26.3% shooting, and finally drifting into a 90-40 win. Gonzaga’s win streak is now 23, a perfect conference season. I can only assume, which I try never to do, that based on this record, Gonzaga will cut through their conference tournament to a victory like buttah. As I’ve said before, how the Bulldogs fare during the NCAA Tournament will be a real test of how good they are.
That by no means is meant to detract from their accomplishments. It only suggests that they’ve not really been tested, and the national stage is a great place to have that happen. Gonzaga’s senior starters all scored in double figures, and only Emme Shearer hit that mark for Portland. It must be noted that even though Gonzaga has won 30 straight conference games against Portland, the Pilots did beat them in last year’s WCC Tournament.
I am sure that Gonzaga remembers this, as does Portland. Can they find the chink in the armor again? We’ll see soon enough. Portland has one regular season game left versus LMU. Hopefully, they can break their current four-game losing streak and end on a win.
Caitlin Clark and No. 6 Iowa took care of Minnesota
Minnesota welcomed No. 6 Iowa to Williams Arena, where they were systematically taken apart, with Caitlin Clark leading the Gophers 15-5 before someone else scored for the Hawkeyes. Yes, Clark broke a couple of records, scored another triple-double, and again raised the ire of those pundits who feel the need to look for any reason to criticize and diminish what she’s doing and has done.
I can only think that these nay-sayers must feel threatened in some way to go to such lengths to voice what comes off as juvenile rants rather than well-thought-out criticism. This is, to me, veiled hatred, which in itself is irrational, and it is impossible to have a rational discussion with irrational people. But I digress. Clark doesn’t need me to defend her. She is more than capable of doing that for herself. Okay, back to the game.
Usually, productive Kate Martin and Hannah Stuelke were kept in check, and Minnesota’s trio of Grocholski, Battle, and Sanders hit double figures. Iowa won 108-60 but can get no higher than second place in the conference after Ohio State clinched the number spot last night. Perhaps that fueled Iowa some, but whatever the reason, the Iowa steamroller kept rolling.
Minnesota, who started the season on such a high note, needs to figure out how to compete in conference play. Whether or not Mara Braun’s absence is a key factor is up for debate, but looking across the entirety of Division One teams, almost everyone is dealing with or has dealt with numerous injuries. Coach Plitzuweit will have a lot to do in the off-season, as will Coach Bluder. Once the seniors are gone from the Hawkeyes, they will be a different team. Something to look forward to for both squads.
No. 10 UConn picked up the win in NCAAW action over Villanova
No. 10 UConn, in their final home game of the season, faced a determined Villanova team, who no doubt remembered their home loss to UConn back in January by 21 points. This game was essentially the Bueckers-Edwards show, with the pair accounting for 45 of the 67 points. Villanova’s shooting star Lucy Olsen, who averages 23.6 ppg, was held to six points on 2-16 shooting. However, Kaitlyn Orihel emerged as the star of the game for the Wildcats, scoring 15 points, including 3-5 from deep.
She hit crucial buckets at the right time, but other than Zanai Jones, who scored 10, no one else hit double figures. The supporting cast for the Huskies didn’t fare much better. Freshmen Ashlynn Shade and KK Arnold contributed more good defense than offense, particularly Arnold. I don’t think these two get enough credit for their part in UConn’s successes this season. Neither is as flashy as either JuJu Watkins or Hannah Hidalgo, but they came to play, and their energy and determination are relentless.
Both have been named Big East Player of the Week numerous times and for good reasons. Back to the game. There was some rather poor officiating; fouls that weren’t, fouls that should have been, and some real head-scratchers, including Aaliyah Edwards being rammed into by Christina Dalce and no foul called, much to the dismay of Coach Auriemma and the UConn crowd. But Edwards had the smarts to get up and walk away rather than engage in any confrontation which would have only gone wrong.
Turnovers were a story of the Villanova – UConn game
Turnovers were a part of the problem in this game, with Villanova committing 17 to UConn’s 16. 19 fouls were called on the Wildcats, and 13 on the Huskies. The real excitement came when Paige Bueckers was called for her fourth foul halfway through the third quarter. She went to the bench with the Huskies up 42-26, giving Villanova to gain a little ground, and going up to a ten-point deficit at the end of the quarter. Bueckers came back for the fourth and scored the first bucket.
Scoring by Bella Runyon and Kaitlyn Orihel got it to a seven-point UConn lead 51-44 at the 7:46 mark, but then the Huskies did what they do, and Villanova didn’t score again until the 3:35 mark on Brynn McCurry’s layup, making it 61-46 UConn. Then, missed shots, turnovers, and another six points in the last 2:27 finally gave UConn the 67-46 win, the same 21 points with which they beat Villanova in January. Was it pretty? Nope. Did both teams look tired at times? Yup.
Will both coaches address this going into the conference tournament? Yes, indeed. UConn did receive their trophy for winning the regular season conference title. A happy moment to be sure, but questions remain, and answers will be found. We still don’t know about Nika Mühl and Aaliyah Edwards for next season. Personally, I think they would be wise to take one more season, particularly Mühl. The skills are there; she can shoot, she’s a terrific passer, and she has good court vision.
But her discipline still needs honing, and that is critical before going pro. Edwards could go pro unless there is more she wants to accomplish. We’ll know soon enough.
No. 2 Ohio State clinches BIG 10 title with victory over Michigan
No. 2 Ohio State won the BIG 10 regular season title in their win over Michigan 67-51. The first two quarters saw a back-and-forth score, with OSU taking the first 13-9, and then Michigan the second 13-9. The second half saw OSU outscore the Wolverines 45-29. Although Michigan out-rebounded the Buckeyes 35-25, they also committed 29 turnovers to OSU’s 15. For a very brief moment in the second quarter, Michigan went up by two, but that was their only lead of the game.
Leila Phelia led Michigan with 13 points and Jordan Hobbs scored 11. Only one of five bench players scored, Cameron Williams with 8 points. It was much the same for OSU, with only four bench points from Taiyier Parks. Jacy Sheldon led the starters with 22 points, Cotie McMahon added 18, and Celeste Taylor 12. OSU ends their regular season away at Iowa, so we’ll see if they keep that No. 2 AP ranking. Michigan is a home against Purdue.
Ohio State is a damn good team, and I’m eager to see where they end up in the NCAA Tournament bracket.
No. 24 UNLV won close over Boise State in NCAAW play
No. 24 UNLV had their hands full with Boise State, and it took a fourth-quarter surge to get the eventual 63-57 win. This was a tight back-and-forth game. Boise State’s biggest lead was seven, and UNLV’s was 6. Boise State held a slim 49-46 lead going into the fourth quarter, but after Alyssa Christensen made a layup for the Broncos, UNLV went on a 10-2 run, and Boise State never caught up.
In this game, the Boise State bench outscored the UNLV bench 32-27, but the starters for the Lady Rebels outscored the Broncos starters 36-25. Tatum Thompson led Boise State off the bench with 14 points and 7 boards, while starter Mya Hansen scored 12. UNLV’s Desi-Rae Young was the lone player in double figures with 13. UNLV has two games remaining with hopes of holding onto their No. 24 ranking. Boise State also has two games, hoping to close out the regular season on a winning note.
No. 20 Oklahoma wins No. 3 Texas in a battle to the end
No. 3 Texas and No. 20 Oklahoma had one hell of a border battle. Texas pulled out to a first-quarter lead of 21-10. Oklahoma fired back and cut the Longhorn lead to one point, scoring 28-18 in the second. Texas opened the third quarter on a 13-2 run, but the Sooners found the bottom of the basket and managed to cut the Longhorn lead down to six by the end of the third quarter. The fourth quarter was a slugfest, and at 3:20 Lexy Keys made a jumper that put Oklahoma up one, 67-66.
At 1:58, Taylor Jones made a layup, putting Texas up 68-67. At 0:50, Payton Verhulst fouls Madison Booker, who made both free throws and Texas is up 70-67. Booker fouls Skylar Vann at 0:24. Vann makes one of two. At 0:15, Madison Booker turns the ball over. Oklahoma timeout. The Vann misses a jumper but gets her own rebound, and with four seconds left, Lexi Keys nails a three. Game. No one in Norman has any fingernails left.
The Sooners clinched the BIG 12 regular season title and face Kansas in their final game. Texas welcomes BYU for their last game. Will the Longhorns keep that No. 3 ranking? Will Oklahoma move up? Was this an upset? Yes, it was.
Iowa State upsets No. 15 Kansas State in a BIG 12 matchup
Finally, No. 15 Kansas State hosted Iowa State, and as did Michigan and OSU, swapped scores in the first and second quarters, 18-15 KSU in the first and 18-15 ISU in the second. The third quarter was a true back-and-forth affair, with Iowa State eventually taking a four-point lead, 56-52. In the fourth, Kansas State managed to tie the game at 56 all on a Zyanna Walker layup, but they never got any closer, and Iowa State hung on to win what was the highest-scoring quarter of the game, 26-24, winning the game 82-76.
An upset to be sure. How much this affects KSU’s ranking remains to be seen. They face Texas Tech in their final game, and Iowa State welcomes Cincinnati in theirs. For KSU, Ayoka Lee led the scoring with 20 points and 8 boards, with Serena Sundell scoring 15 with 10 assists, and Jaelyn Glenn 15 points and 6 boards. The Cyclones were led by Addy Brown who bagged 24 points and 11 boards, Audi Crooks had 14 points, Hannah Belanger scored 13, and Emily Ryan scored 11 points, with 7 boards and 9 assists.
And that, my friends, as they say, is that.’ — Martin Ruben.
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