After the star-studded Elite Eight captivated the nation, four teams remain in the women's NCAA tournament: No. 1-seeded Iowa, No. 1-seeded South Carolina, No. 3-seeded UConn and No. 3-seeded NC State.
Who are some players to keep an eye on this Friday as the Final Four tips off at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland? Let's break down each team's offensive engine and how they've fared during March Madness thus far.
IOWA HAWKEYES: CAITLIN CLARK
Clark has become a household name, and she saved her best basketball for the biggest stage. College basketball's all-time leading scorer put on a 41-point, 12-assist, 7-rebound master class in Iowa's win over LSU. Through four NCAA tournament games, she's averaging 32.3 points, 10 assists, 7.3 assists, 5 threes and 2 steals while shooting 45.7% from the field, 37% from three-point range and 89.3% from the free throw line. Clark already has a long list of broken records and impressive accolades, but she's determined to eliminate UConn and add a national championship to her résumé.
UCONN HUSKIES: PAIGE BUECKERS
Bueckers has been a star since arriving at UConn in 2021, when she became the first freshman to win player of the year. She was one of the biggest stars in women's college basketball before suffering multiple major knee injuries that required surgery and sidelined her for nearly two years. Now, Bueckers is fully healthy and averaging career highs in points (22), rebounds (5.2) and steals (2.3), while shooting 53.4% from the field, 41.8% from three-point range and 83.4% from the free throw line. She's been incredible during March Madness, averaging 28 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists, 3.3 steals and 2 threes through four games. Bueckers vs. Clark will be must-see TV, especially with a trip to the national championship game at stake.
SOUTH CAROLINA: KAMILLA CARDOSO
Cardoso leads the Gamecocks in scoring (14.1), rebounding (9.4) and blocks (2.5) while shooting an efficient 58.9% from the field. At 6-foot-7, she's physically imposing and creates headaches for opposing coaches on both ends of the court. Cardoso is no stranger to the Final Four, as this is her third consecutive trip with South Carolina and she helped the Gamecocks win the national title in 2022. Through three NCAA tournament games, she's averaged 15.3 points and 8.7 rebounds on 62.5% shooting from the field. Cardoso recently declared for the upcoming WNBA draft, and ESPN's latest mock draft projects that she'll go No. 4 overall.
NC STATE: AZIAHA JAMES
The Wolfpack have five players who average double-digit points, but James leads the way with 16.7 points (while also contributing 4.6 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal). Through four NCAA tournament games, the 5-foot-9 junior is averaging 24.3 points, 4 assists, 4 threes and 3.5 rebounds while shooting lights out from the field (50.8%), three-point range (57.1%) and free throw line (85%).
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