The field for the 2023 Women's NCAA Tournament Final Four will officially be set today with two marquee games marking the conclusion of the Elite Eight. No. 1 seeds South Carolina and Virginia Tech are hoping to punch their tickets to Dallas, but fellow top seeds Stanford and Indiana have proven no path is certain by falling faster than virtually anyone could've predicted this tournament.
In the opening game, South Carolina extended its winning streak to 42 games with a win over Maryland to advance to a a third straight Final Four, with a chance to win back-to-back national championships. Aliyah Boston scored 22 points and pulled down 10 rebounds and Zia Cooke did the heavy lifting on the perimeter with 18 points. Maryland got a big night from Diamond Miller in the loss. She led all scorers with 24 points on 9-of-16 shooting and grabbed five boards.
The Gamecocks will take on Iowa in their Final Four matchup, and LSU will take on Seattle 3 Regional No. 1 seed Virginia Tech. The Hokies competed in a fun offensive matchup against Ohio State. Senior center Elizabeth Kitley led Virginia Tech to the program's first ever Final Four with an impressive 25 points and 12 rebounds -- her 56th career double-double, which is the most in school history. It was a real team effort as junior guard Georgia Amoore was also very impactful with 24 points that included four of the Hokies eight 3-pointers.
(All times eastern)
Date: Monday, March 27 | Time: 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.
Location: Greenville, S.C. | Seattle, Wash.
TV: ESPN | Live stream: fuboTV (try for free)
| (1) South Carolina 86, (2) Maryland 75 Greenville 1 | (1) Virginia Tech 84, (3) Ohio State 74 Seattle 3 |
No. 1 seed Virginia Tech played in its first Sweet 16 since 1999 to reach the first Elite Eight in program history. After tonight's win over No. 3 seed Ohio State, the Hokies are heading to their first ever Final Four to take on Kim Mulkey's LSU Tigers.
Ohio State had seven double-digit comebacks this season and the Buckeyes certainly made an effort tonight with three players scoring at least 18 points. However, the Hokies held on to reach the program's first ever Final Four. Elizabeth Kitley led her team to victory with 25 points and 12 rebounds, which became her 56th career double-double — the most in program history. Georgia Amoore had a slow start but finished the game with 24 points. Taylor Soule and Cayla King added 12 points each.
Elizabeth Kitley hits a jumper to give the Hokies their largest lead of the game so far at 67-57 with 8:26 remaining. The senior center currently leads the Virginia Tech offense with 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field. Ohio State calls a timeout.
Georgia Amoore -- who had briefly left the game earlier after taking a hard hit -- had a slow offensive start but has been a key piece for the Hokies' success in the second half. She has 15 points so far, including a buzzer beater 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter. She has three successful shots from beyond the arc tonight.
Virginia Tech holds a five-point lead of 58-53 with 1:49 remaining in the third quarter. They've led by as many as seven, but the Hokies haven't been able to complete shake off a persistent Ohio State team that is shooting at 52.5% from the field. Senior guard Taylor Mikesell still leads all scorers with 19 points.
The Hokies are trying to hold on to this lead to reach their first ever Final Four.
Lots of offense in this game and only a combined four turnovers so far. Virginia Tech is shooting at 55.2% from the field with three players -- Taylor Soule, Elizabeth Kilter and Georgia Amoore -- already in double figures.
Ohio State has also been impressive, shooting at 64.3% from the field. The main reason for that stat? Taylor Mikesell. The senior guard has been on fire, registering 19 points while shooting 5-of-6 from beyond the arc. Cotie McMahon and Jacy Sheldon are also contributing with 10 points each.
Five 3-pointers for Ohio State's Taylor Mikesell so far. She is 5-of-6 from beyond the arc in the first half, and 6-of-7 from the field. She leads all scorers with 19 points.
Ohio State senior guard Taylor Mikesell reaches 14 points shooting 5-of-5 from the field, including 4-of-4 from beyond the arc. The Buckeyes lead 36-31 with 4:43 left in the first half.
Georgia Moore returned to the bench. She checks back into the game with 7:47 remaining in the second quarter. Ohio State still leads 29-26.
Virginia Tech's Georgia Amoore took a hard hit and struggled to get up. She heads to the bench, assisted, then the locker room as the clock reads 8:31 in the second quarter. Ohio State's Eboni Walker received her second foul of the night.
The Hokies started this game 7-of-7 from the field, but their opponents fought back. The Ohio State offense has shot at an impressive 71.4% from the field. Senior guard Taylor Mikesell went 3-of-3 from beyond the arc to lead the Buckeyes with 9 points.
No. 3 Ohio State is taking on No. 1 Virginia Tech in the last Elite Eight matchup of the 2023 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament. The Buckeyes are a very deep team offensively -- eight best scoring offense in the nation (80.2 ppg) -- led by Taylor Mikesell's 17 points per game. They earned their first Elite Eight appearance since 1993 after upsetting the UConn Huskies -- a team that was chasing their 15th consecutive Final Four.
Meanwhile, the Hokies are also having a historic year after winning their first ever ACC Tournament. They have multiple scorers, led by Elizabeth Kitley's 18 points on 55.5% shooting from the field. However, their defense is one of their biggest strengths as they hold opponents to just 56.6 points per game.
The Gamecocks had it all tonight as their defense stayed solid and they shot 40% from beyond the arc. They picked up their 36th win of the season -- setting a new school record -- and are now riding a 42-game winning streak dating back to last year. Aliyah Boston inked her 82nd career double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds, along with five assists and two blocks. It was a true team effort with three other Gamecocks reaching double figures, including Brea Beal's 16 points -- a season high -- while she played a key role in defending the Terrapins.
The Gamecocks officially have a date with Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Final Four.
South Carolina forward Aliyah Boston just registered her 82nd career double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds so far. Gamecocks lead 77-62 with 5:19 remaining in the game.
Maryland senior guard Abby Meyers gets called for a blocking foul and receives her fifth and final foul of the day with 7:17 remaining in the game. She was a key part of the Terrapins offense in the first half with 14 points.
South Carolina has led by as many as 15 points, but the Terrapins have not given up. Lavender Briggs has registered 8 points, including the last five points for Maryland. Diamond Miller is leading Brenda Frese's team with 15 points. The Gamecocks are doing what they do best and have 19 offensive rebounds along with 19 second chance points. Aliyah Boston and Zia Cooke lead their offense with 18 points each.
Abby Meyers, who registered 14 points for Maryland in the first half, picked up her fourth personal foul four minutes into the third quarter. Terrapins Faith Masonius and Shyanne Sellers are also in trouble with three fouls each.
The Gamecocks went on a 9-0 run late in the second quarter to find a double-digit lead. However, Abby Meyers hit a layup with eight seconds remaining to make sure Maryland entered the break with only a single-digit deficit. She is leading all scorers with 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field, including two 3-pointers.
Aliyah Boston leads the Gamecocks with 12 points going 5-of-7 from the field, along with five rebounds, two assists and one block. As a team, South Carolina is outrebounding Maryland 25-13, which is not too shocking as the Gamecocks have the top rebounding margin in the nation (20.2). Brea Beal has been solid on defense, registering two steals and two blocks to go with her five rebounds and five assists.
Maryland freshman guard Bri McDaniel, who has contributed with one steal, leaves the court after taking a hard fall with under five minutes remaining in the second quarter.
After falling behind by six points, the Terrapins turned up their defense and went on a run. They outshot the Gamecocks 50%-33% from the field in the first 10 minutes of this contest. Maryland's Abby Meyers is still leading all scorers with seven points on 3-of-5 shooting from the field, including one 3-pointer.
Maryland head coach Brenda Frese hears all the buzz surrounding the Gamecocks, but she has no doubt her team can compete. She gave the Terrapins an inspiring speech in the locker room ahead of their Elite Eight battle.
"I'm tired of people talking about their defense and their rebounding. You know what? You are going to see what our defense and our rebounding looks like. When you are locked in for 40 minutes, possession by possession, you can't measure the size of someone's heart that we have in this locker room."
South Carolina is not an easy opponent, but the No. 2 seed Terrapins are competing hard against the No. 1 overall seed. Maryland went on a 7-0 run to take a 14-13 lead after the Gamecocks had found a six-point advantage. Senior guard Abby Meyers leads the Terrapins' effort with seven points so far. Still 3:06 remaining in the first quarter.
The Terrapins are the underdogs against South Carolina in today's Elite Eight battle, but they are receiving a lot of support -- including a message from alumn Kristi Toliver, who now plays for the Washington Mystics and works as an assistant coach for the Dallas Mavericks.
Last season's Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year Aliyah Boston led the Gamecocks in most major stats on their way to the 2022 national championship. Her stats now are technically not as impressive as last year, but that's because her team started sharing the responsibilities more, and also because opponents have learned to double and triple team her. She still swept the SEC Player and Defensive Player of the Year awards for the second straight season.
Zia Cooke leads the team with 15.1 points per game, while Boston almost averages a double-double of 12.9 points and 9.8 rebounds per contest. Kamilla Cardoso is not too far behind with 9.7 points and 8.5 boards per game. South Carolina is dangerous not just because of their tough defense that holds opponents to just 50.4 points per game, but also because the roster has multiple players who can step up at any given time.
The No. 2 seed Maryland Terrapins showed the college basketball world they can compete against anybody when they handed Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes their worst loss of the season on Feb. 21 in a 94-68 victory. They haven't been to the Final Four since 2015, but the Terrapins are looking to earn their ticket today by giving the Gamecocks their first loss in over a year.
The Terrapins have the 10th best scoring offense in the nation averaging 79.3 points per game with three players averaging double digits. Unanimous All-Big Ten first-team selection Diamond Miller leads the team with 19.6 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. She is also the team's leader in steals and blocks. Last year, Maryland lost its two top scorers to the transfer portal, but Miller -- who had been dealing with a nagging knee injury and had to get surgery -- decided to stay. She did not play the last two times the Terrapins faced South Carolina, so this will be a new challenge for the Gamecocks.
The South Carolina Gamecocks earned the No. 1 overall seed in this year's NCAA Tournament and are looking to defend their national title. They were a dominating team last season behind Aliyah Boston's impressive stats, but they've only gotten better and deeper since then. Dawn Staley's roster is riding a 41-game streak dating back to last year thanks to an improved offense and a suffocating defense. Some teams have given them a bit of trouble, but the Gamecocks haven't had too many scares and hold the best scoring margin in the nation with a 30 point difference between them and their opponents. The Maryland Terrapins are looking to be the team to finally take them down in today's Elite Eight matchup -- their first since 2015.
