We are now down to four teams vying for their opportunity to cut down the nets. N.C. State, South Carolina, UConn, and Iowa have made it to the Final Four. Who leaves Cleveland as the 2024 NCAA Women’s National Champion? In the first game, we have the N.C. State Wolfpack taking on the undefeated South Carolina Gamecocks. N.C. State as a school is riding a high right now. The men’s team is also in the Final Four and trying to advance to the championship game on Monday Night. In the other semifinal game, we have the UConn Huskies battling the Iowa Hawkeyes. The big matchup will see Paige Bueckers taking on Caitlin Clark. Iowa’s Regional Final game against LSU set an all-time viewership record with over 12.3 million people watching. Caitlin Clark scored 41 points and dished out 12 assists in their win over LSU.
The first game of the night will see the N.C. State Wolfpack battling the South Carolina Gamecocks. The Wolfpack reached this point by defeating the Stanford Cardinal in the Sweet 16. In the Elite 8, they took down the Texas Longhorns to reach the Final Four. Aziaha James put up 27 points and had seven 3s to catapult the Wolfpack. Four others chipped in with double figures and they will need more of that to defeat South Carolina. The one thing that could hurt this N.C. State team is their lack of rebounding. Texas outrebounded them by 13 and the Gamecocks are a great rebounding team. South Carolina barely edged Indiana in the Sweet 16. The Gamecocks used their smothering defense to take out Oregon State and reach the Final Four. I’m picking the size of the Gamecocks to win this one. Winner: South Carolina
We have the heavily anticipated matchup between the UConn Huskies and Iowa Hawkeyes. These teams have two of the best basketball players in college basketball. Paige Bueckers from UConn will battle Caitlin Clark of the Iowa Hawkeyes. We all know about Caitlin Clark and her historic season and career. Paige Bueckers is every bit as good as Clark, but she’s suffered through multiple ACL injuries. Clark led the Hawkeyes to the victory over LSU in the championship rematch to reach the Final Four. Bueckers and the Huskies took down the top seed in USC and JuJu Watkins to advance to the Final Four. The question is, which supporting cast will show up to help their stars? Clark and Bueckers will score 25 points, but can Aaliyah Edwards have another great game for UConn? I’m going with the Hawkeyes to return to the title game. Winner: Iowa
South Carolina vs. Iowa Championship Game
If my predictions are correct, this will be Iowa taking on the undefeated South Carolina Gamecocks in the championship game. This would mark the second consecutive year that Iowa would reach the championship game. We all know that they fell to LSU in the 2023 NCAA Women’s title game. South Carolina would be trying to cap off an undefeated season with a championship. There would be so much riding on this game. If the Gamecocks were to finish undefeated and hoist the championship Coach Staley would enter greatest coach conversations. For Caitlin Clark, the one thing that’s missing from her resume is the elusive championship. With all the records she’s broken, if Iowa cut down the nets then she’s in the GOAT conversation. Can this Iowa team take down the Gamecocks in the championship? I’m going with the Gamecocks in a close one. Winner and National Champions: South Carolina Gamecocks
