NCAAW: No. 2 UConn, Tennessee triumph Women’s Champions Classic

The inaugural Women’s Championship Classic did not disappoint, with the No. 2 UConn Huskies facing off against the No. 22 Louisville Cardinals after the Tennessee Lady Volunteers took on the No. 17 Iowa Hawkeyes.

The Huskies demonstrated that they were a cut above the Cardinals, and the Lady Vols surprised the Brooklyn crowd by upsetting the Hawkeyes. Here’s how it all went down:

How the Huskies won

Paige Bueckers gets the lion’s share of the attention at UConn, but on Saturday, it was all about Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd. The duo is a big reason UConn cruised to victory, beating Lousvile 85-52.

Strong has been described as the future of UConn, but she’s beginning to make an argument that the future is now. The freshman was stupendous versus Louisville, scoring 21 points and shooting 80 percent from the field.

Fudd was equally impressive, scoring 18 points, but had an injury scare in the third quarter when she appeared to injure her knee fighting over a screen. After the win, Geno Auriemma seemed optimistic that “worst-case scenarios” are unlikely, but the team won’t know more until they return to Connecticut and evaluate further.

UConn put this one away from the jump, starting out on a 12-5 run in the opening quarter. The Huskies struggled from deep, shooting 9-for-24 as a team, but made their living in the paint, outscoring the Cardinals 38-16.

Despite Louisville being a top-25 team, they could never threaten UConn. None of the starters were in double figures, and the lead expanded to as many as 46 points as the Huskies never trailed. The win for UConn further solidifies why they are the No. 2 team in the country, and why they remain a favorite to win it all.

How the Lady Vols won

Tennessee has flown under the radar, despite winning all six of their games this season. Beating the Hawkeyes 78-68 will certainly put the basketball world on notice. Talaysia Cooper did the bulk of the damage, ending the night with 23 points, six rebounds and three assists; that was a team-high in points and assists and tied for the team-high in rebounds.

If Iowa ever thought this would be a comfortable win, that notion was put to bed immediately. The Lady Volunteers began the game on an 8-0 run, with Ruby Whitehorn and Cooper doing all of the scoring for Tennessee. The Hawkeyes responded well and took the lead back with 90 seconds left in the first. The rest of the first half was an even contest, with both teams exchanging baskets and ending play tied at 35 after the first two quarters.

Lucy Olsen stayed aggressive for Iowa in the third quarter, scoring eight of her 23 points in the period. Cooper, however, kept being a thorn in the Hawkeyes’ side, ending the third scoring three points to break the draw and give the Lady Vols a 55-52 edge entering the fourth.

With 3:48 left in the game, Iowa led by three, but Tennessee turned it up and closed the contest out. The Lady Vols went on an 11-0 run, and Cooper was involved in every score. She contributed eight points herself and assisted on the Tess Darby 3-pointer that forced the Hawkeyes to call a timeout.

Iowa got a sole point from Kylie Feuerbach off a free throw, and that was all they had left. Tennessee added another three points, making it a 14-1 run to end the game. Tennessee’s dominance is impressive, and with Cooper in charge, they will be a tough team to beat.

Other notable results

There were two other matchups involving top-25 teams on Saturday.

No. 6 USC made its Big Ten debut against Oregon and won 66-53. JuJu Watkins had a productive game, scoring 21 in the win on the road. In other Big Ten action, No. 10 Maryland remained undefeated, beating Purdue, 78-69. Bri McDaniel stepped up big off the bench, scoring 17 points in the victory.