My Trip to the Final Four

On April 4, I traveled to Tampa, Florida to attend the 2019 Women’s Final Four. I had the opportunity to watch four outstanding teams battle it out for the National Championship.

               I traveled from Lynchburg, Virginia where I attend Liberty University. I flew on the one hour and nine-minute flight to my connection in Charlotte, North Carolina. Traveling by plane is fun

but not when there are delays and cancellations. That was the problem I had to deal with during my flight to Tampa and back to Lynchburg. I was supposed to fly to Tampa around 10:30 but it got delayed to midnight because of maintenance problems with the plane. I remember texting my family friend about the situation and waiting impatiently to get on my flight. I was relieved when I got on and ended up sleeping most of the way so I could be ready for the Final Four festivities. I was so happy to arrive in Tampa when my plane landed. I was supposed to fly back to Lynchburg on April 8, but my flight got cancelled due to severe weather. On the bright side, I got to stay at an amazing hotel in Tampa and watch one of my high school friends, Braxton Key, lead Virginia to its first National Championship. There may have been a lot of negatives about my traveling experience, but overall some positives did come out of it.

               On the first day of the Women’s Final Four, I started my day at Tourney Town in the Tampa Convention Center. The first thing I did was attend the WBCA All-American team Q & A session at Capital One Court. The team included Bridget Carleton from Iowa State, Teaira McCowan from Mississippi State, Megan Gustafson from Iowa and Alanna Smith from Stanford. Louisville’s Asia Durr was also a part of the team but did not come to the Final Four. Napheesa Collier (UConn), Kalani Brown (Baylor), Sabrina Ionescu (Oregon), Arike Ogunbowale (Notre Dame) and Katie Lou Samuelson (UConn) made the team too, but they were with their teams to get ready for the upcoming Final Four games. Ionescu headlined the All-American Team after winning the 2019 Wade Trophy. I had the opportunity to ask a question to the group during the panel. I was amazed when Gustafson answered my question. What was also amazing is that I ended up asking for a selfie with her at the end of the panel.

               One of my favorite events at Tourney Town was attending the Beyond the Baseline series. It

is a networking series that was started back at the Final Four in 2010. I got to hear from people professionals in the women’s basketball world. I ended up making a lot of connections with different people during the event. Out of all the ones I attended, I would have to say one of my favorites was when LaChina Robinson was hosting her Above the Rim podcast. Coincidentally, one of my questions to two of her guests (Charlie Creme and Michelle Smith) ended up in the recording. I also answered a trivia question that was about the years Stefanie Dolson won a national championship with UConn. The side note about that is I was there when she and the team won the title in 2014. As a reward, I ended up getting an espnW t-shirt. Even better, Dolson ended up waving to me and I gave her a thumbs up.

               Outside of Tourney Town, there was a WBCA exhibit that housed all the information and history about the organization. What I thought was amazing about it was that they displayed the different awards given to teams, coaches and players. The exhibit had the Wade Trophy that’s presented to the best player, the glass ball given to the national championship team and an award that goes to a person in media relations. Maybe the best student worker in Liberty Athletics Communications could be a recipient of that award someday. While I was at the exhibit, I learned about the WBCA membership. What was interesting to learn is that there are non-coaches and fans that are members. I thought of all the connections I could make with coaches through this idea. Definitely something I will consider in the future.

               What really stood out about the event was the free food samples they were giving out. The chefs at Tourney Town made pork and bean nachos. It had juicy pork, black bean salsa and a touch of

queso on top of corn tortilla chips. The best part was that there were stands where fans could try different flavors of Coca-Cola. I am a Coke person myself and I felt like I was in heaven. Coca-Cola recently came out with a new flavor called Orange Vanilla. I did end up trying it, but I was not a fan of it. The only three I would stick to are regular, cherry or vanilla.

               

             While at Tourney Town, my family friend and I took lots of photos including by the locker rooms donated by the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame and the National Championship trophy. The car insurance company Geico brought photo-taking to a whole new level at Tourney Town. They set up stations where fans could take photos with Final Four props. After taking it, people could earn a free koozie or towel. My family friend and I ended up going to two stations to earn these prizes.

Game Time

By 7 p.m., it was time for the games to begin. It was four amazing teams with each matchup being No. 1 versus No. 2. The four teams included my favorite and underdog team UConn, first-timer Oregon, unanimously first seed Baylor and defending National Champion Notre Dame.

Semifinals

No. 2 Oregon vs No. 1 Baylor

http://www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/video?gameId=401124224&wsVar=us~ncw~gamepackage,desktop,en

TAMPA, Fla.- No. 1 Baylor beat No. 2 Oregon 72-67 at Amalie Arena in Tampa on Friday night to advance to the National Championship game for the third time in program history.

 Kalani Brown and Lauren Cox, Baylor’s Twin Towers, were a huge presence for the Lady Bears on the court. Brown led the way with 22 points and seven rebounds while Cox scored 21 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, dished out seven assists and blocked three shots. Her points and rebounds resulted in her ninth double-double of the season.  

 "They don't have 6-7 and 6-5 in the paint," Baylor Head Coach Kim Mulkey said. "I cannot imagine if they did that, they would be shooting that many threes" (Hill, 2019).

Didi Richards also made an impact for Baylor with 15 points.

Oregon was led by Sabrina Ionescu who finished with 18 points, four rebounds and six assists. Satou Sabally scored 16 points and Erin Boley with 14.

Both Baylor and Oregon were neck and neck in the first minutes of the game. The Ducks jumped out to an 11-4 lead in the first five minutes of the game. Boley and Sabally were the only scorers for Oregon during the time frame. A layup by Brown sparked a 6-0 run that brought the Lady Bears back in the lead, 12-11.  Baylor ended up taking a 19-15 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Ionescu started heating up for Oregon in the second quarter after a scoreless first quarter. The 2019 Wade Trophy winner drained 12 points including nine of them from the three-point line. Ionescu’s final three-point shot tied the game at 33-33. She also was fouled by Richards resulting in a trip to the free throw line. Ionescu scored the free throw to give Oregon a 34-33 lead at halftime.

The score was at a Baylor one-point lead going into the final 10 minutes of the game, 56-55. Richards scored three points in the first minute of the fourth quarter to give the Lady Bears a 59-55 lead. Oregon was not ready to quit in the final minutes. Boley tied the game at 61-61 and forced a turnover making an assist to Maite Cazorla for the triple make it a 64-61 Ducks lead. Cox and Brown took control with 5:58 left in the game as they combined for six points to bring Baylor back on top, 67-64.

Sabally drained a triple from downtown tying the game again with 1:40 to go, 67-67. Oregon would be held scoreless for the remainder of the game.

With the dominance of Brown, Cox and Chloe Jackson, Baylor held on to advance to the National Championship game for the first time since 2012.

 "The feeling is unreal," said Brown, "I'm still in shock. I'm overwhelmed. I'm just happy to be a part of this team right now" (Hill, 2019).

Baylor improved to 36-1 on the season and earned a chance to make it back to the top of women’s college basketball.

Oregon concluded its season with a 33-5 record. However, the team was proud for making their first Final Four this season.

"We tried our best; we worked hard," said Oregon Head Coach Kelly Graves. "In the end, they made plays, and we didn't. But I'm really proud of my team, no question about it."

Despite the disappointment of the loss, Ionescu hoped this game will make the Ducks stronger next season.

"We continue to learn," Ionescu said. "We were put in a position we haven't been put before (in reaching the Final Four). But I think this us just going to make us more hungry. It's going to get us ready to want to come back."

References
Hill, Jerry (2019). "Lady Bears Advance to National Title Game." Baylor Athletics. https://baylorbears.com/news/2019/4/5/womens-basketball-lady-bears-advance-to-national-title-game.aspx?path=wbball.

No. 2 UConn vs No. 1 Notre Dame

http://www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/video?gameId=401124224&wsVar=us~ncw~gamepackage,desktop,en

TAMPA, Fla.- No. 1 Notre Dame achieved the goal of defending its title on Friday night with an 81-76 win over No. 2 UConn at Amalie Arena in Tampa.

Arike Ogunbowale was the star of the show finishing with 23 points, six rebounds, one assist and one steal. All the other starters for Notre Dame scored in double digits too. Jessica Shepard finished with 20 points, Brianna Turner with 15, Marina Mabrey had 12 and Jackie Young scored 11. Three of the starters also recorded double doubles in the game. Mabrey had a career-high 12 assists while Shepard and Turner grabbed 13 and 15 rebounds, respectively.

The Fighting Irish struggled in the first half in the game but found their momentum to victory in the final 20 minutes of the game. Notre Dame was proud to overcome obstacles to get back to the national title game.

"That was an amazing second half,” Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw said. "First half I thought we really struggled to score. The second half, we really just caught fire. I think we played our normal game in the third quarter.”

UConn was led by none other than Katie Lou Samuelson. The senior guard racked up 20 points, two rebounds, six assists and one block. Christyn Williams scored 19 points while Megan Walker finished with 14. Napheesa Collier closed out her collegiate career with a double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds.

Even though they fell short, the Huskies played an outstanding game as the underdogs in the Final Four. UConn Head Coach Geno Auriemma was proud of how his team played in the game.

"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," Auriemma said. "We still had a chance. We just weren't good enough tonight to do it. They were better than us tonight."

UConn got off to a great in the beginning of the game. The Huskies led the Fighting Irish 10-4 under the five-minute mark of the first quarter. Notre Dame cut the deficit to four in the final minute making a 16-12 UConn lead.

Shepard gave the Fighting Irish their first lead in the middle of the second quarter, 18-16. There were six lead changes during the final five minutes of the quarter. In the end, it was the Huskies that took a 30-29 halftime lead on a Williams buzzer-beater.

UConn took its largest lead of 64-55 with 7:55 left in the game. With a National Championship appearance on the line, Notre Dame came storming back on a 13-2 run to take a 68-66 in the final minutes. Walker scored a layup to tie the game at 68-68. UConn was back to a 69-68 led after a free throw made by Williams.

Both teams fought until the end, but it was the 2018 National Champions that prevailed. Turner’s block against Collier’s shot lifted the Fighting Irish to get the win. Notre Dame finished it all at the free throw line with two scored by Ogunbowale and three by Turner to take the 81-73 lead. Williams drained a three-pointer, but the Huskies would still come up short.

 Notre Dame would improve to 35-3 and earned a chance to win back-to-back national championships.

UConn finished the season 35-3 and a trip to the Final Four for the 12^th time. The game also marked the end of college careers for Collier and Samuelson.

Championship

No. 1 Notre Dame vs No. 1 Baylor

http://www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/video?gameId=401124226&wsVar=us~ncw~gamepackage,desktop,en

The 2019 National Championship Game was mind blowing with No. 1 Baylor making it back to the top of women’s college basketball on a Chloe Jackson layup.


The Lady Bears clinched their third title program history after holding onto an 82-81 win over No. 1 Notre Dame. This victory came after the team lost Lauren Cox to an injury suffered in the third quarter. Who knew it would be Jackson that would put the icing on the cake in the final seconds.


  "My teammates and my coaches, they believe in me," Jackson said. "They believe in me so much. And for LC (Cox), she got us here, and we had to finish the job for her."


Last season, it was Arike Ogunbowale that scored the three-pointer in the final seconds to lift Notre Dame to a National Title. This season, it was Jackson, the point guard who unexpectedly moved to the starting lineups, that sealed the deal. On top of that, she was named the 2019 Most Outstanding Player. 


Jackson had one of her best games in the Final Four as she led with 26 points. She also added two rebounds and five assists to her championship performance. Other scorers included Kalani Brown who finished with a double-double of 20 points and 13 rebounds. Nalyssa Smith came off the bench for Baylor racking up 14 points. 


Notre Dame was one point short of repeating for the second year in a row. Ogunbowale concluded her college career with a 31-point game. Marina Mabrey finished with 12 points while Brianna Turner had 11. Jessica Shepard finished with another double-double that included 11 points and 10 rebounds. 


"Really frustrated. I'm sad for the seniors that we came that close after getting down 17, clawing our way back," said Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw. "We had so many missed opportunities on both ends of the floor. Defensively, the offensive rebounds we gave up just really lost us the game in the first quarter. We just didn't come out ready.”


The Lady Bears were dominant throughout the entire game until the third quarter. Cox went down on Notre Dame’s end injuring her left knee. She would leave for the rest of the game, motivating Baylor to keep fighting.


During the fourth quarter, the Fighting Irish surged back and tied the game on a Mabrey three-pointer, 74-74. Ogunbowale scored a free throw at the 3:18 mark to give Notre Dame its first lead of the game, 77-76. 


After two ties in the final two minutes, it was Jackson that drove to the basket for the winning layup, 82-80. 


Things took a turn for the worse when Baylor’s Moon Ursin fouled Ogunbowale with two seconds left. With the expectation of doing the same thing she did a year ago, the Fighting Irish guard could not repeat it after scoring one of two free throws. The Lady Bears would go on to win their third national title and their first since 2012.


Baylor Head Coach Kim Mulkey praised her team for the effort especially when they played without Cox.

 "Lauren Cox, she's the heart and soul of our team," Mulkey said, "and I know she's hurt because that kid would have gotten up. I know my kids. But you know what, God is good. He blessed these kids, they fought through it. Nalyssa Smith, Kalani Brown, Chloe Jackson, I can name them all. I just know when you lose a big-time player in the middle of a national championship game, you're not supposed to win."

In addition to Jackson being named the MOP, Brown and Cox were both named to the 2019 All-Tournament Team. Mabrey and Ogunbowale of Notre Dame were also selected.