The Ladies’s Last 4 area is ready and the groups nonetheless alive will battle in Phoenix on Friday, April 3 for a spot within the 2026 nationwide championship sport. It’s all No. 1 seeds left on this 12 months’s ladies’s Last 4. The final time that occurred was again within the 2018 NCAA event when Notre Dame took house the trophy.
The primary semifinal matchup is UConn vs. South Carolina, with tip off set for 7 p.m. ET. UCLA takes on Texas within the second sport, set for 9:30 p.m. ET. Each video games will air on ESPN.
The Gamecocks can be seeking to avenge their nationwide championship loss towards UConn final season, once they fell to the Huskies 82-59 in Tampa, Florida.
That is the primary time this season South Carolina will face UConn, as the 2 packages have usually met throughout the common season up to now.
When requested in regards to the variations between final 12 months’s nationwide championship sport and South Carolina’s upcoming semifinals matchup, fifth 12 months senior and star defender Raven Johnson spoke about how this workforce appears totally different and was additionally candid about her recollections from final April.
“I simply keep in mind getting beat by 20, actually,” Johnson mentioned. “We bought new gamers. That is their first time experiencing the Last 4. I feel Coach Staley, and the opposite coaches, are doing a great job of preserving the primary factor the primary factor and preserving us prepared when the second is right here.”
South Carolina can be going through not one, however two Participant of the 12 months finalists in Sarah Robust and Azzi Fudd.
“If you consider UConn you concentrate on the dynasty they’ve, you’ll be able to’t even rely in your hand what number of championships they’ve,” Johnson mentioned. “Inspirations like Diana Taursi, Sue Chook, Sarah Robust too, she’s an inspiration too at her younger age and the issues she’s doing.”
Fudd and Robust have mixed for a complete of 1,352 factors this season. One of many most important keys for South Carolina’s success on Friday evening can be containing UConn’s stars. Nevertheless, the Huskies do stay a properly balanced workforce and have seen sparks from others all through the NCAA event. Freshman ahead Blanca Quiñonez, who has put up double digit factors in every 2026 NCAA event sport to this point, has been an excellent postseason participant for the Huskies. A key for the Gamecocks can be how they’ll keep UConn’s stars and never let different function gamers take over an excessive amount of.
As Johnson identified, the Huskies can be going through a unique workforce then they did a 12 months in the past. Fudd agreed with that sentiment on Thursday in Arizona, stating how it’s a fully totally different scenario this time round.
“This South Carolina workforce is absolutely gifted, Fudd mentioned. “They’re enjoying rather well individually, but in addition as a workforce. Their transition sport, they’re enjoying extra assured and extra collectively. It’s going to be a tricky sport.”
One most important distinction for this South Carolina workforce is the addition of Ta’Niya Latson, a senior guard who transferred from Florida State final season.
“Latson is a very expert guard and actually laborious to protect,” Fudd mentioned. “She does a little bit little bit of every part, so she helps unfold the ground for them and makes issues tough for us on the defensive finish, she provides us extra to fret about.”
General, South Carolina is a well-balanced workforce, with a minimum of 5 gamers averaging double digits factors per sport this season. The Gamecocks even have a bonus in measurement towards the Huskies and rebounds and foul bother can be a most important key for UConn to maintain the sport in management.
“Clearly it is a totally different South Carolina workforce than the one we performed final 12 months,” UConn head coach Geno Auriemma mentioned. “Our two wins towards them final 12 months don’t actually imply something going into (Friday)…They’ve added some actually key items. I feel they’re a a lot better workforce than they have been final 12 months. Actually laborious to arrange for. They’ve shot the ball exceptionally properly this 12 months. They’ve added the dimensions that’s laborious to match up with. Defensively we now have our challenges with them.”
UConn finally leads the head-to-head sequence 11-5. Nevertheless, South Carolina is equally a workforce with depth and expertise too, which ought to make this matchup a must-watch.
Again within the Last 4 once more for the second consecutive season, the Texas Longhorns are in search of a candy ending this time round after falling within the semifinals final 12 months to SEC opponent South Carolina.
Texas and UCLA battled again in November. In that sport, the Longhorns defeated the Bruins 76-65 and have been in a position to management UCLA star Lauren Betts.
Texas is on a 12 sport win-streak since falling to Vanderbilt in convention play again on Feb. 12. Led by stars junior Madison Booker and fifth-year senior Rori Harmon, Texas acknowledged at Thursday’s media day that scout preparation is essential to its success within the semifinals. Like each workforce that has to tackle UCLA, there may be concentrate on the way to include the Bruins’ most important weapon Betts.
“We speak about guarding 30 ft out from the rim, enjoying workforce protection, not essentially simply leaving it as much as our 5 gamers to protect her alone,” Harmon mentioned.
The Longhorns will lean on middle Kyla Oldacre and ahead Breya Cunningham to be disruptive to Betts, who’s averaging 17.2 factors, 8.6 rebounds and two blocks per sport. Together with defensive success, Texas should keep out of foul bother as properly.
“It’s not simply Lauren Betts, they’ve an excellent general workforce and that’s what makes them harmful and that’s why they’re right here and a 1-seed. To make them unsuccessful we now have to place strain on (their guards),” Harmon mentioned. “They’re the very best workforce on offensive effectivity and I’d say we’re fairly good defensively, so we actually have to put strain on that offense.”
On Thursday, Harmon and different teammates defined how the squad has shifted its mentality this season in comparison with final to higher put together for when the lights are the brightest.
“There’s nothing in March you’ll be able to actually do to win video games moreover ensuring your workforce is collected, high-energy and ensuring you might be truly scorching, and that’s the one factor I actually took away from final 12 months,” Booker, the Longhorns’ scoring chief this season, mentioned. “Hopefully this 12 months we’re nonetheless scorching and high-energy, however I feel we’re,” Booker mentioned laughing.
The Bruins, together with their opponent Texas, know what it’s prefer to virtually style a nationwide championship sport, as UCLA fell to the eventual champion UConn final 12 months in Tampa, 85-51.
“I feel what we realized final 12 months has been a motivating issue this complete 12 months within the sense that we now have taken what we realized final 12 months and utilized it to this 12 months,” senior guard Gabriela Jaquez mentioned. “Being right here and having the expertise goes to assist us…It does really feel totally different, I really feel extra calm and I’m extra ready for what’s to return.”
As Texas can have its eyes on Betts, the middle can be in search of a stronger efficiency this time round towards the Longhorns. The senior was held to simply eight factors and 7 rebounds throughout their common season assembly.
“I feel the largest distinction trying again on the movie is simply creating alternatives to get the ball as a lot as I can,” Betts mentioned. “I feel simply creating simpler catches. [Texas] is a very superb defensive workforce. I feel because the guards are getting pressured on the perimeter, simply making an attempt to grow to be so open that they only can’t like not give me the ball. I feel making an attempt to assist out my teammates as a lot as I can. It’s not one particular person versus Texas, it’s a full workforce.”
Undoubtedly, the extent of competitors, expertise and play needs to be very excessive come Friday night in Arizona. As the game continues to develop, sees elevated rankings and income, this 2026 Last 4 could possibly be historic and memorable for a lot of causes.
