Notre Dame defeated South Carolina in a thrilling finish, earning their way into the NCAA women's basketball championship game.
Notre Dame entered the semifinals as a postseason veteran, appearing in its fifth straight Final Four. South Carolina (a top seed, like all the other teams in this year's Final Four) was in the semifinals for the first time, but boasted a deep bench.
South Carolina got off to a shaky start, and trailed behind for the vast majority of the game. All-American Jewell Loyd led the Irish, and the game overall, scoring 22 points.
But in a hard-fought finish, the Gamecocks closed the gap, then took the lead — for the first time in the game — with just over a minute remaining.
With seconds of gameplay left, Notre Dame made a layup for a one-point advantage. The Gamecocks' Tiffany Mitchell tried for a game-winning three-pointer but missed, and Notre Dame took home the game, 66-65.
Later Saturday night, when Maryland plays Connecticut, the Terrapins face a daunting task. As NPR's Tom Goldman tells our Newscast unit, the University of Connecticut, the overall top seed for the tournament, stands far above the competition.
"The Huskies have won the last two titles and obliterated opponents in this tournament by an average margin of 41 points a game," he notes.
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