Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA — Maya Moore is headed to the Final Four with a chance to pad perhaps the most impressive resume in the history of women’s college basketball with yet another championship.
Connecticut’s latest star is already a four-time All-American with 3,000 career points. Nice personal milestones for sure, but far from the biggest prize.
To her and the rest of the Huskies it’s all about cutting down those nets in Indianapolis and locking up a third straight national title.
Moore scored 28 points, including the 3,000th of her career, to lead top-seeded UConn to a 75-40 win Tuesday night against Duke and a fourth straight trip to the Final Four.
“I don’t think about it right now,” Moore said about becoming the seventh Division I player to reach the 3,000-point mark. “Of course it’s really exciting to be at a program where I’ve been able to flourish as an offensive player.”
Coach Geno Auriemma wasn’t surprised by his star’s huge game.
“We did talk in the locker room that this was going to be a big night for Maya,” Auriemma said. “You could just sense it. Too many games leading up to this where things didn’t click for whatever reason. She doesn’t let a lot of big games go by without going off in a couple of them.”
With two more victories, the Huskies will match the record for consecutive NCAA titles set by Tennessee (1996-98) and equaled by UConn (2002-04).
Next up for Auriemma’s current juggernaut is Notre Dame on Sunday in the national semifinals.
The two Big East teams are plenty familiar with each other, having played three times this season already. UConn won all of those matchups including a 73-64 victory in the Big East tournament championship game.
“It’s going to be rough,” Moore said. “We know each other so well and there are not a lot of surprises. It’s going to be a battle to grind it out. We’re representing well for our conference. It should be fun.”
Once again rural Storrs, Conn., is the center of the college basketball world as both the men’s and women’s teams are in the Final Four. It’s the third time in the past seven years that both programs have advanced this far with 2004 culminating in dual titles.
Throw in the football team reaching the BCS as Big East champions for the first time and its the first time ever one school has been in all three events.
“Take that!,” Auriemma said.
BAYLOR
DALLAS — Sydney Carter and Texas A&M finally beat Baylor — when it mattered most.
The Aggies are going to the NCAA Final Four for the first time in school history after a 58-46 victory over the top-seeded Lady Bears on Tuesday night in the Dallas Regional final.
Baylor and All-American Brittney Griner, who played in the Final Four last year in the 6-foot-8 center’s freshman season, will have to settle for the Big 12 regular season and tournament trophies the still-young Bears (34-3) already won this season.
Texas A&M (31-5) had lost eight straight games against its Big 12 rival, including the previous three this season.
The Aggies blew a nine-point lead midway through the second half in Waco last month. They squandered a 12-0 start in the Big 12 championship game just more than three weeks ago.
This time, coach Gary Blair’s team lead from start-to-finish after Carter had a 3-pointer, an assist and a jumper in the game’s first 2 minutes for a 7-0 lead. Carter finished with 22 points.
“Tonight was our night, we didn’t back into it,” Blair said.