NCAA Texas UCLA Basketball UCLA guard Gabriela Jaquez (11) celebrates after UCLA defeated Texas in a women's NCAA college basketball tournament semifinal game at the Final Four, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.) (Ross D. Franklin/AP)
NCAA South Carolina UConn Basketball South Carolina guard Ta'Niya Latson (00) and South Carolina guard Agot Makeer (44) go for a rebound against UConn during the first half of a woman's NCAA college basketball tournament semifinal game at the Final Four, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.) (Ross D. Franklin/AP)
NCAA Texas UCLA Basketball UCLA forward Angela Dugalic, second from left, embraces UCLA guard Lena Bilic (9) after defeating Texas in a women's NCAA college basketball tournament semifinal game at the Final Four, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.) (Ross D. Franklin/AP)
NCAA South Carolina UConn Basketball South Carolina guard Tessa Johnson (5) shoots over UConn forward Sarah Strong (21) during the second half of a woman's NCAA college basketball tournament semifinal game at the Final Four, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri) (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.) (Rick Scuteri/AP)
PHOENIX (AP) — Dawn Staley and South Carolina are seeking for a fourth national championship in the last nine years when they meet UCLA in the NCAA women's basketball title game Sunday.
The Gamecocks have reached the championship game in four of the past five seasons while the Bruins are playing in their first NCAA title contest.
Both teams played stifling defense in the semifinals of March Madness, with South Carolina knocking off UConn 62-48 to end the Huskies’ 54-game winning streak on Friday night. UCLA was even more stingy on the defensive end in its 51-44 win over Texas.
South Carolina and UCLA have played each other many times over the past few seasons, but this time the stakes couldn't be higher.
The Bruins have been on a mission this season since losing to UConn in the Final Four last year. It was the Bruins’ first-ever trip to the national semifinals of the NCAA Tournament. With most of the key players back from that team along with a couple of new additions, UCLA ran through the regular season, with the only setback a November tournament loss to Texas in Las Vegas.
Cori Close and her team will try to hang a championship banner to go with the one the school won by taking the 1978 AIAW title, which was the postseason tournament for women’s basketball before the NCAA took over in 1982.
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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
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