2021 Women’s NCAA Tournament

[mattyoung18]

Bilas has this try to be funny and root for the cheats everytime he does one of their games while Lobo tonight was yelling at the tv like it was her dear,dear Uconn not getting all the calls.My first time hearing her Bilas impersonation lol!

[mattyoung18]

Listening to Lobo during that stretch she sounded like a die hard South Carolina fan ,screaming at the ref especially when the Stanford player gave a push on that fast break.I never watch women games but she could be the next Bilas with a little more practice.She does root for ucant, unlike Jay for Duke.

Yes the kick then Stanford had a fast break and one of their players nudged a SC player in the back and it went uncalled and Lobo went Bilas in a very disturbing way.

[TywinBlue]

final score: Zona 60 UCan't 59

and Baylor fans are cheering and wondering what if DiDi hadn't pulled her hamstring...

[Saratoga2]

final score: Zona 60 UCan't 59


and Baylor fans are cheering and wondering what if DiDi hadn't pulled her hamstring...

Zona won by 10

[CameronBornAndBred]

Zona won by 10

10 = 1 in UCONN points

[TywinBlue]

Zona won by 10

Sorry
Me at 3:53 am

[duke79]

No mention on these boards about the women's final game last night?? It looked like the Stanford women's team would win easily several times during the game but Arizona hung tough and lost by only one point, after a somewhat botched in-bound play with 6.2 seconds left. It was a sloppy game with lots of turnovers by both teams and quite a few missed, easy shots. Not sure if the players were tired from the Friday games?

[JosephReidBooks]

Arizona hung tough and lost by only one point, after a somewhat botched in-bound play with 6.2 seconds left. It was a sloppy game with lots of turnovers by both teams and quite a few missed, easy shots. Not sure if the players were tired from the Friday games?

I felt really bad for Aari McDonald after that last shot. At various times in the game it seemed she was left on an island to play 1-on-5, but no more so than on that last play. She's fantastic, but Stanford clearly identified shutting her down as their priority.

I also was ticked about the missed call with 2:03 left. Ball clearly goes out of bounds off a Stanford sneaker, yet refs called it Stanford ball and didn't go to the monitor because the rule kicks in at the 2-minute mark. As we know, in a one-point game you can point to all kinds of things as being the difference in the outcome, but I'm not even saying the call would have flipped the result. I just thought it was a really bad look for the refs to get such an obvious call so blatantly wrong at that moment on that stage.

[wsb3]

I felt really bad for Aari McDonald after that last shot. At various times in the game it seemed she was left on an island to play 1-on-5, but no more so than on that last play. She's fantastic, but Stanford clearly identified shutting her down as their priority.

I also was ticked about the missed call with 2:03 left. Ball clearly goes out of bounds off a Stanford sneaker, yet refs called it Stanford ball and didn't go to the monitor because the rule kicks in at the 2-minute mark. As we know, in a one-point game you can point to all kinds of things as being the difference in the outcome, but I'm not even saying the call would have flipped the result. I just thought it was a really bad look for the refs to get such an obvious call so blatantly wrong at that moment on that stage.

Stanford's coach admitted to luck being a big factor in their wins. Three shots at the buzzer in the last 2 games that could have sent them home. Lot of luck in that call as well. a few seconds and enter replay on a call that was not even remotely close. I found myself pulling for Zona because I watched parts of a few games and their coach seems to have built something really special with her players. The first word that comes to mind is they look like they are having so much fun being together. I think it is easy to forget sometimes that we began playing sports initially because it was fun.

[duke79]

I felt really bad for Aari McDonald after that last shot. At various times in the game it seemed she was left on an island to play 1-on-5, but no more so than on that last play. She's fantastic, but Stanford clearly identified shutting her down as their priority.

I also was ticked about the missed call with 2:03 left. Ball clearly goes out of bounds off a Stanford sneaker, yet refs called it Stanford ball and didn't go to the monitor because the rule kicks in at the 2-minute mark. As we know, in a one-point game you can point to all kinds of things as being the difference in the outcome, but I'm not even saying the call would have flipped the result. I just thought it was a really bad look for the refs to get such an obvious call so blatantly wrong at that moment on that stage.

Yea, definitely a bad call by the refs on the ball rolling out of bounds. But, if I remember correctly, Stanford did not score that time down the court and Arizona got the rebound and brought the ball back down the court?

I felt sorry Aari too (loved her Dad in the stands with his "Aari" tee shirt). Both my wife and I couldn't figure out why she kept trying to attack the basket, when Stanford had two, very tall defenders just standing there who were easily able to stop her from getting a decent shot off. And, on that last in-bounds play, if you watched the replay, Aari had one of her teammates wide open on the wing who would have had a relatively easy shot to win but it seems like the play was to have Aari take the shot even though she was being guarded by FOUR Stanford players.

[Stray Gator]

I watched the women's championship game last night, and was left shaking my head at the poor quality of play by both teams relative to what we've previously seen in women's Final Four games. Arizona shot a meager 28% from the floor -- missing at least a dozen layups in the process -- while Stanford committed 21 turnovers.

For a while, I felt sorry for McDonald, who kept missing short and midrange shots that I'm sure she normally converts more consistently. But by midway through the second half, those sympathies dissipated as I came to realize that she continued forcing uncomfortable shots that missed badly, except from three-point range, where she was 4-9, eventually finishing a dismal 5-21 -- which means she only made 1 of 12 shots from inside the arc.

Maybe that was the Arizona coach's plan; maybe the other Arizona players wanted McDonald taking all those shots. But by the end of the game, everyone watching knew that McDonald was going to take that last shot, no matter how well she was defended or how difficult it might be to get a clean look. And it played out exactly as expected, unfortunately for the Wildcats.

[sagegrouse]

Yea, definitely a bad call by the refs on the ball rolling out of bounds. But, if I remember correctly, Stanford did not score that time down the court and Arizona got the rebound and brought the ball back down the court?

I felt sorry Aari too (loved her Dad in the stands with his "Aari" tee shirt). Both my wife and I couldn't figure out why she kept trying to attack the basket, when Stanford had two, very tall defenders just standing there who were easily able to stop her from getting a decent shot off. And, on that last in-bounds play, if you watched the replay, Aari had one of her teammates wide open on the wing who would have had a relatively easy shot to win but it seems like the play was to have Aari take the shot even though she was being guarded by FOUR Stanford players.

Shoot immediately, Aari, and let your teammates put in the rebound.

[Stray Gator]

Shoot immediately, Aari, and let your teammates put in the rebound.

If you watched the game, you could see the fatal flaw in that strategy: Stanford had several players on the court who towered over everyone on the Arizona team, and as a result they were able to reach over the Wildcats to grab the overwhelming majority of the rebounds that came off within an 8-foot radius of the basket. Overall, Stanford outrebounded Arizona by a wide margin -- 47 to 29 -- and Arizona only came away with 5 offensive rebounds in the entire game.

[Phredd3]

If you watched the game, you could see the fatal flaw in that strategy: Stanford had several players on the court who towered over everyone on the Arizona team, and as a result they were able to reach over the Wildcats to grab the overwhelming majority of the rebounds that came off within an 8-foot radius of the basket. Overall, Stanford outrebounded Arizona by a wide margin -- 47 to 29 -- and Arizona only came away with 5 offensive rebounds in the entire game.

Because of foul trouble, Cameron Brink played less than her replacement...and still scored 10 points, grabbed six rebounds, and had three crucial blocks. And she's just a freshman. Anna Wilson and Kiana Williams combined for 71 minutes and are both seniors, but the Hull twins are just juniors and the other three mainstays are even younger, plus Tara has been going deep into her lineup throughout the year, giving most of the roster experience. Even if neither of those two guards return for next season, I would not be surprised to see Stanford making another run next year. That's a good team, even without the luck (which most champions ultimately need, anyway).

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

If you watched the game, you could see the fatal flaw in that strategy: Stanford had several players on the court who towered over everyone on the Arizona team, and as a result they were able to reach over the Wildcats to grab the overwhelming majority of the rebounds that came off within an 8-foot radius of the basket. Overall, Stanford outrebounded Arizona by a wide margin -- 47 to 29 -- and Arizona only came away with 5 offensive rebounds in the entire game.

Stunning to me that the winning team had 18 turnovers.

[Stray Gator]

Stunning to me that the winning team had 18 turnovers.

Actually, Stanford had 21 turnovers, according to the ESPN box score; and honestly, it seemed like there were more than that. To be fair, though, most were forced by aggressive defense from Arizona -- perhaps the advantage of having players who are smaller and quicker. Given Stanford's substantial edge in rebounding and shooting percentage, it was those turnovers that enabled Arizona to keep the score close.

[dudog84]

Stunning to me that the winning team had 18 turnovers.

Yeah, versus 6 TO of the opponent (plus note Stray Gator's correction, so even worse). And the winner shot 2 free throws (to the opponent's 18). I didn't watch, and though a 1-point game sounds exciting, 54 points for the winner (who didn't score in the last 2+ minutes [and had 3 points in the last 6+ minutes!!!]) sounds ugly.

Just win baby! (says Al's ghost)

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Yeah, versus 6 TO of the opponent (plus note Stray Gator's correction, so even worse). And the winner shot 2 free throws (to the opponent's 18). I didn't watch, and though a 1-point game sounds exciting, 54 points for the winner (who didn't score in the last 2+ minutes) sounds ugly.

Just win baby! (says Al's ghost)

It wasn't the prettiest of games. Lots of missed buckets too.

[uh_no]

It wasn't the prettiest of games. Lots of missed buckets too.

Neither team played at the level they did in the semis. I think it speaks to, as I've trumpeted all year, the parity at the top of the game increasing.