UConn to make ninth straight Final Four appearance; Oregon State earns first ever

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — Connecticut is headed back to the Final Four again thanks to its stellar senior class of Breanna Stewart, Morgan Tuck and Moriah Jefferson.

The All-American trio took over when Texas was making a run in the third quarter to help UConn to the 86-65 victory Monday night, sending the Huskies to the national semifinals.

“We’re the seniors, and we’ve got to make big plays in big moments,” said Jefferson, who had 11 points and nine assists. “They were on a run, and we really needed to step up.”

Tuck scored 22 points and Stewart added 21 points and 13 rebounds for UConn, which is headed to the Final Four for the ninth straight time. The Huskies will be trying for a record fourth consecutive national championship.

“Nine times is a lot of Final Fours,” Coach Geno Auriemma said. “That’s a lot. That’s a lot of players over a lot of years. It’s not easy to do.”

The victory, UConn’s 73rd straight overall, was also the school’s 22nd consecutive one in the postseason, breaking a tie with Tennessee for the most in a row. Two more victories would give Auriemma an 11th title, moving him past vaunted UCLA men’s coach John Wooden for most all time in college basketball history.

“We’re really excited to go to the Final Four,” said Stewart, who was selected as the most outstanding player of the regional. “I think that any time you go, it’s a lot of fun, there’s a lot going on. This is our last trip with this team. Last time to be with this team. And I think we’re just going to enjoy it. Especially as seniors. Last time it’s going to be like this.”

This was the second straight year that the Huskies (36-0) ended the Longhorns’ season. UConn beat Texas (31-5) by a then-record 51 points last season in the Sweet 16. Texas made it one step further this season before falling to the Huskies again.

The Huskies will join Final Four newcomers Syracuse and Washington in Indianapolis this weekend.

UConn will play Oregon State in the national semifinals Sunday night.

Oregon State guard Jamie Weisner (15) runs with teammates Deven Hunter (32) and Ruth Hamblin (44) past Baylor guard Alexis Prince (12) as they celebrate their regional final victory and berth in the Final Four.

(LM Otero / Associated Press)

DALLAS — Sydney Wiese scored 18 points, including three free throws in the final 33 seconds and Oregon State advanced to the women’s Final Four for the first time after a 60-57 victory over Baylor on Monday night.

The Bears (36-2) finished their season with a regional final lost for the third consecutive season.

Oregon State (32-4) is going to Indianapolis to face three-time defending national champion Connecticut after eliminating the six-time defending Big 12 champions.

Jamie Weisner, the Pac-12 player of the year who was the regional most outstanding player, had 16 points while Ruth Hamblin had 10 points and 12 rebounds for the Beavers — playing in their first regional final.

Alexis Jones had 19 points for top-seeded Baylor, while Kalani Brown had 12 and Nina Davis 11. Niya Johnson, the senior point guard, had only one assist with seven rebounds in her final chance to get to a Final Four.

With a roster filled with seniors and juniors recruited by Coach Scott Rueck, the Beavers were in a regional final nearly six years after he had to conduct open tryouts to fill his first roster.

Oregon State has won 22 of its last 23 games and has already set a school record for victories this season. They won the Pac-12 tournament and shared the regular-season title, after last season winning the crown outright to end Stanford’s run of 14 championships in a row.

“I don’t know how you put this into words,” Rueck said after getting the championship trophy.

Baylor led only twice, after scoring the game’s first four points and when Davis made a layup with 6:54 left to put Baylor up 51-50.

The game’s only four ties came after that, the first when Weisner made a free throw 24 seconds later.

The Beavers were tough and resilient throughout.