South Carolina Crashes UConn Party, Set for UCLA Next

South Carolina stunned unbeaten UConn in the NCAA Women’s Final Four on Friday, and the Gamecocks draw UCLA next for the championship game.

Agot Makeer #44 of the South Carolina Gamecocks shoots the ball against Sarah Strong #55 of the UConn Huskies during the fourth quarter in the Final Four of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament at Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, Ariz., on April 3, 2026. Sarah Stier/Getty Images

UConn looked historically dominant all season amid a 38–0 start, and Huskies star Sarah Strong received the greatest UConn women’s basketball player of all-time talk—before South Carolina (36–3) halted all of that with a stunning 62–48 victory over the Huskies on Friday in Phoenix for the NCAA Women’s Final Four.

UConn’s bid for back-to-back championships for a third consecutive decade has ended for now, and Strong’s legacy arguably can’t rise above the many other greats in Huskies lore who did win consecutive championships.