N.C.A.A. Women’s Tournament: What to Watch in the Elite Eight

The Elite Eight spherical of the N.C.A.A. ladies’s match begins on Sunday, bringing even larger stakes and tight matchups. Within the Greensboro and Spokane areas, two No. 1 seeds will struggle for the Last 4 spots that they imagine are rightfully theirs, and two decrease seeds — one a lot decrease — will attempt to spoil their celebration.

No. 1 seed South Carolina performs No. 10 seed Creighton at 7 p.m. Jap (ESPN) within the Greensboro regional remaining, whereas No. 1 seed Stanford performs No. 2 seed Texas at 9 p.m. Jap (ESPN) within the Spokane area.

The highest general seed, South Carolina, will face one other huge underdog.

In line with ESPN, 3 percent of women’s basketball tournament brackets created utilizing its platform had No. 10 seed Creighton within the Elite Eight. Even that appears excessive, and going farther is a tall order towards South Carolina, a staff whose dominance all season has solely just lately proven indicators of faltering.

The Gamecocks received their spherical of 16 sport on Friday towards fifth-seeded North Carolina with out posting gaudy statistics — at the least not past ahead Aliyah Boston’s 28 factors and 22 rebounds. The Tar Heels stayed inside attain till the top, and South Carolina had its second straight sport by which it didn’t have sufficient separation to be snug till the clock ran out. As an alternative, the Gamecocks wanted Boston to submit numbers far larger than her season averages to outlive, one thing Creighton is probably going contemplating because it places collectively its sport plan.

In an effort to beat No. 3-seeded Iowa State, the Bluejays needed to play spectacular, constant protection. The Cyclones had been one of many highest scoring groups within the nation coming into the sport, however Creighton was in a position to frustrate their greatest offensive weapon, artful Iowa State senior Ashley Joens. She made simply 4 photographs from the sphere. The 6-foot-5 Boston should use her substantial dimension benefit over Creighton — which has no gamers taller than 6-foot-1 — to as soon as once more rating constantly inside, even when the Bluejays can take away lots of her guards’ open seems.

South Carolina may even want to protect the perimeter to be able to clinch their second straight journey to the Last 4, which has been certainly one of their strengths this season. On common, opposing groups make simply 26.6 % of their 3-point photographs towards the Gamecocks. They’ll must match or surpass that common towards Creighton, which has made 9.6 three-point baskets per sport thus far on this match whereas taking comparatively few photographs. Though Creighton is preventing towards the percentages to develop into the primary double-digit seed to make the Last 4, the sport would possibly very properly come right down to the wire.

No. 2 Texas will attempt to replicate their greatest upset of the season.

“That was a reasonably very long time in the past,” mentioned Texas freshman level guard Rori Harmon when requested concerning the Longhorns’ win over the Stanford, the reigning champion, again in November. “It’s utterly totally different now.”

The Cardinal, it will appear, don’t fairly see it that manner. Texas beat them on their house court docket on the very sport the place they have been celebrating their title and awarding gamers their championship rings. Stanford had a 5-point lead going into the fourth quarter of that sport, and nonetheless misplaced — one thing coach Tara VanDerveer introduced up when contemplating the matchup. “I don’t assume anybody on our staff has forgotten about that,” she mentioned after Stanford’s spherical of 16 win.

Sadly for Texas, Stanford appeared as intimidating as ever in its near-total domination of No. 4 seed Maryland. Its weakest quarter, although, was as soon as once more the fourth, by which the Terrapins have been in a position to minimize what had been a 26-point lead down to six. The Longhorns see relentlessness, and particularly relentless protection, as their trademark, and can purpose to as soon as once more fluster the Cardinal late.

The problem will likely be stifling Stanford’s electrical offense, powered by junior Haley Jones and a slew of different shooters with the scale to create open seems from anyplace on the court docket. In the event that they need to pull off the upset, the Longhorns’ submit gamers should play cautious, tight protection to be able to draw Stanford’s Cameron Brink — one of many Cardinal’s most effective scorers — into foul bother, which will be certainly one of her weaknesses.

Even when the Longhorns can gradual Stanford down utilizing the press protection, they are going to possible must struggle to attain themselves. Joanne Allen-Taylor was the main scorer for Texas within the spherical of 16, preventing for pull-up jumpers and drawing fouls. The senior should maintain her power excessive and the ball shifting to be able to discover any offense in any respect towards this skilled Stanford staff.