Candice vs. Candace

TAMPA, Fla. -- The look of astonishment seen Saturday afternoon is long gone.

That’s no surprise. Stanford senior guard Candice Wiggins has a way of expressing herself in the moment.

There were the tears after she scored 41 points and lifted the Cardinal into the Final Four. There was Saturday’s genuine disbelief at being named the nation’s top women’s basketball player. Then came a fist pump to the crowd and a smile full of childlike joy after Stanford beat Connecticut on Sunday to advance to the title game for the first time since 1992.

“A lot of this stuff is brand-new for Candice,” her coach, Tara VanDerveer, said Monday morning, a day before taking on defending champion Tennessee. “She almost acts so surprised about everything.”

That’s precisely how this tournament began, her blank stare into the camera as it was announced on national television that Maryland -- not Stanford, the Pacfic 10 Conference champion -- would be the top-seeded team in the Spokane Regional. The San Diego native seemed to take the slight personally, elevating her game to a level she had not previously shown.

Wiggins became the first woman to score 40 or more points twice in the same NCAA tournament, was named a first-team All-American, then delivered 25 points and a season-high 13 rebounds in Sunday’s 82-73 victory.

“Candice Wiggins has been the best player in this tournament from the very first game,” said Connecticut Coach Geno Auriemma.

Well, maybe not the first, when she scored 13 points on eight field-goal attempts and received the first technical foul of her career in a lopsided victory over Cleveland State.

But then in a second-round rout of Texas El Paso, she made her final collegiate game in Maples Pavilion memorable, scoring a career-high 44 points. After a 14-point performance in the Sweet 16, she roared back with that 41-point effort against Maryland, the team that triggered it all.

Even on her so-so days, the 6-foot Wiggins finds a way to help her team win. In a 60-58 victory over No. 8 California in late February, she was four for 19 from the field, the worst shooting performance of her college career, but scored Stanford’s final two baskets to clinch the Pac-10 title.

“She’s a big ball of energy, never stops moving,” said Tennessee guard Alexis Hornbuckle, who is expected to be the main defender on Wiggins tonight. “She’s going to get handoffs, so I know I have a tough defensive assignment. I can’t rest and I can’t take a possession off.”

Tennessee Coach Pat Summitt said Wiggins also elevates the play of her teammates.

“When you have a player with that kind of energy, it filters throughout your team,” she said.

Teammates say there is much more to Wiggins, the daughter of the late major league player Alan Wiggins, than what is seen on the court.

“She’s a great player, yeah, but people don’t know how great of a person Candice is,” said guard JJ Hones. “I’m trying to imagine not playing with Candice next year, and I’m not ready for our last game.”

Wiggins’ play in the tournament has probably cemented her status as the No. 3 pick in Wednesday’s WNBA draft in nearby Palm Harbor. That’s still too far down the road for Wiggins, however.

“The best part is that we’re still playing and we’re still practicing and, you know, the season is still going on,” Wiggins said. “From the bus ride to the hotel to everything, like, we’re just having a blast.”

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dan.arritt@latimes.com