Ohio State ends UConn women's season

Mar. 25—SEATTLE — For the second time in as many trips in the NCAA tournament, the West Coast was where the UConn women's basketball team's season went south.

The Huskies' record streak of NCAA Final Four appearances ended at 14 Saturday as third-seeded Ohio State overcame a slow start to defeat No. 2 UConn 73-61 in a Seattle 3 Regional semifinal at Climate Pledge Arena.

"The first half killed us," UConn point guard Nika Muhl said. "They had too many steals, we made too many turnovers. You can't win a game with that many turnovers.

"We played like we were scared out there. Teams that are good like Ohio State are going to take advantage. And they did."

The last time the Huskies failed to make the Final Four was in their only other appearance in the Pacific time zone in 2007 when they lost in the Elite Eight to LSU in Fresno, California.

Cotie McMahon scored 23 points for Ohio State (28-7), which is in the regional final for the first time since its only Final Four berth in 1993. The Buckeyes will play top-seeded Virginia Tech Monday night at Climate Pledge Arena.

UConn finishes 31-6 with a Big East regular season and tournament championship and a 29th consecutive Sweet 16 appearance but it came up short for the sixth straight NCAA tournament in its bid for a 12th national championship.

"I'm proud of this team and what we accomplished," UConn forward Aaliyah Edwards said. "I just don't think we're just a Sweet 16 team. We're a championship team. We were more than capable to get to that championship game next week and we didn't do it. It wasn't meant to be."

Lou Lopez Senechal finished with 25 points in the final game of her only season with UConn. Former Ohio State player Dorka Juhasz recording a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds in her second and last season with the Huskies.

"There are very few people who can have as much of an impact on a program in so little time," UConn guard Caroline Ducharme said.

The Huskies fell to 27-3 in regional semifinals with the other losses to Iowa State (1999) and Stanford (2005).

The second-longest streak of Final Four appearances all-time behind the Huskies' 14 is five, which includes a UConn run (2000-2004).

"The problem with streaks is the longer they go, you're closer to it ending than you are to the beginning of it," UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. "It's not if it's going to happen. It's just a matter of time when it's going to happen. And it was going to happen sooner rather than later.

"You know, it's an impossibility to do what we have done already. What's the next highest streak, nine or something like that, regionals in a row? There's a big difference between nine and 29, right? And you take that in stride and you say, 'Yeah, it was great while it lasted and it's a credit to all the players that we had and all the times that you have to perform really, really well at this level.' It's incredibly difficult to win in March in the NCAA tournament and because we made it look so routine and so easy, we gave the impression that it's very easy to do. It's a reminder that, no, it's not. It's very difficult to do."

UConn got the start it wanted but it didn't last.

Lopez Senechal scored the first five points and UConn jumped out to a 10-2 lead. A Lopez Senechal trey made it 17-9 but from there it fell apart.

The Huskies went scoreless for 7:09 as the Buckeyes' pressure overwhelmed UConn. Getting the ball over halfcourt was an adventure and Ohio State turned the miscues into points.

"I told my team that we couldn't let them walk it up and execute or they'll pick you apart," Ohio State coach Kevin McGuff said. "Once we started making shots and got our press going we were able to play the way we wanted."

Baskets by Jacy Sheldon, Eboni Walker, and Taylor Thierry closed the first-quarter scoring and Cotie McMahon opened the second quarter with back-to-back 3-pointers. Hoops by Thierry and McMahon and a McMahon free throw made it 17 unanswered points and a nine-point lead for the Buckeyes before Azzi Fudd ended the UConn drought with a layup.

Ohio State led 36-26 at halftime as it forced 18 Huskies' turnovers.

"There was film that I watched at halftime and the amount of things that we did that were mind-boggling were just ... "Even when I saw it, I couldn't believe it," Auriemma said. "I think that the emotions and as one mistake led to another, you could almost see them. They're like in a car wash and they don't know how to get out of it."

Lopez Senechal got the Huskies within 44-39 but Ohio State built its lead back to 10 going to the fourth quarter. Rikki Harris scored seven straight points to give the Buckeyes their biggest lead at 64-46. A 9-0 run for the Huskies cut the gap in half but they would get no closer as McMahon responded with a three-point play.

Sheldon added 17 points for Ohio State.

Fudd scored 14 points for the Huskies. But Edwards struggled, got into foul trouble, and scored only four points to match a season-low. UConn finished with 25 turnovers that the Buckeyes turned into 23 points. Ohio State also had a 14-5 advantage in fast-break points.

"Ohio State did anything they wanted to do," Edwards said. "They got anything that they wanted. They controlled the game."

The Buckeyes are the third Big Ten team in the Elite Eight joining Iowa and Maryland. The Atlantic Coast Conference also has three teams (Louisville, Miami-Florida, Virginia Tech) with the Southeastern Conference having two (South Carolina, LSU).

For coverage of all sports in the JI's 18-town coverage area, plus updates on the UConn women's basketball team and head coach Geno Auriemma, follow Carl Adamec on Twitter: @CarlAdamec, Facebook: Carl Adamec, and Instagram: @CarlAdamec.