Yeah, you know watch to what on Monday. The basketball gods have blessed us with what has the chance to become one of the most memorable days in the history of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament.
It begins with the game all wanted to see when the brackets were revealed: a rematch of last year’s national championship game. No. 1-seed Iowa and No. 3-seed LSU meet with a return berth to the Final Four on the line (7 p.m. ET, ESPN). Then, two of the game’s brightest stars—UConn’s Paige Bueckers and USC’s JuJu Watkins—will seek to carry their teams to the Final Four when the No. 3-seed Huskies take on the No. 1-seed Trojans (9 p.m. ET, ESPN).
While there are tons of reasons to watch, here are a few things to watch more closely on Monday night:
Sophomore stars will be key to championship rematch
In last year’s national championship game, an outlier shooting performance from an unheralded hero propelled LSU past Iowa and to the title, with now-graduated guard Jasmine Carson coming off the bench to go 5-for-6 from 3 and score a team-high 22 points. As a team, the Lady Tigers shot almost 65 percent from behind the arc, when, for the regular season, the team shot under 35 percent on low volume. It resulted in a 102-85 rout, and the program’s first national championship.
On Monday night, it’s unlikely No. 3-seed LSU will enjoy such a shooting edge. But, the Lady Tigers still enter the rematch with distinct advantages; LSU can overwhelm Iowa with a combination of size, athleticism and skill. And while junior forward Angel Reese often receives the most attention, it is sophomore guard Flau’jae Johnson who best embodies LSU’s upper hand, especially in a matchup against an Iowa team that seeks to win with precise, quick-decision play.
Johnson can disrupt all of the Hawkeyes’ designs. Throughout the tournament, she has provided the fuel needed to get the Lady Tigers firing on all cylinders, igniting them out of lackluster stretches and sparking shows of dominance. And when the lights get brighter, Johnson gets better. She might have turned in the best game of her career in the Sweet 16, leading LSU with 24 points and 12 rebounds. Expect her eagerly to accept the challenge of defending Iowa senior guard Caitlin Clark on one end, while fearlessly attacking the Hawkeye defense on the other end, using her deep bag of crafty moves and tough shotmaking to crack any junk defenses Iowa attempts to conjure.
Clark’s ability to escape Johnson’s clutches and get the Iowa offense running optimally—through the driving and dishing she displayed in the Sweet 16 and through her signature stepback 3s—is, of course, crucial to Iowa’s ability tilt things in their favor. However, confident, composed play from sophomore forward Hannah Stuelke will be most essential to the Hawkeyes’ success. Stuelke’s esteem and, in turn, effectiveness, can waver, and LSU, led by Reese, will not hesitate to challenge her. She must not only finish strong when Clark dimes her up, but also be ready to keep battling with Reese on the inside, matching the LSU star’s physicality and aggression. Clark believes Stuelke is more than capable.
Caitlin Clark on Hannah Stuelke: “We’ve all seen what Hannah can do. She put up 47 points (vs. Penn State). She can absolutely dominate. In my opinion, she runs the floor better than anybody in the country. But I think that is the biggest thing — is like saying that right to her… pic.twitter.com/lp7ir3N9bf
— Tyler Tachman (@Tyler_T15) March 29, 2024
Other storylines abound in what might be the most anticipated women’s basketball game of all time. Can LSU grad guard Hailey Van Lith rediscover her game? Could Iowa senior guard Molly Davis, who is not expected to play, pull a Willis Reed-style return? Will LSU junior wing Aneesah Morrow or Iowa fifth-year senior guard Kate Martin make more momentum-swinging players? Will the bedazzled blazer of LSU head coach Kim Mulkey or the business-like one of Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder prove more powerful?
Bueckers, Watkins bring own brands of greatness
In 2021, Paige Bueckers, then a freshman, carried UConn to the Final Four. This year, JuJu Watkins, USC’s freshman phenom, is attempting to complete the same feat with the No. 1-seed Trojans. In her way? A now-redshirt junior Bueckers and the No. 3-seed Huskies.
Bueckers and Watkins are tantalizing talents, the centripetal stars of their respective teams. Bueckers usually does it by way of efficiency, even if she was below her high standard in the Sweet 16. She is inclined to amplify the talents of her teammates and tap into her own scoring skill only as a last resort. Watkins, in contrast, understands that she must always seek to be a scorer, with her volume of shots, in combination with her precocious ability to draw fouls, representing the Trojans surest path to victory. Both are undeniably impactful, and both are guaranteed to raise their games on the Elite Eight stage.
“Paige is a different star than maybe any that I’ve ever coached… she doesn’t show it, she doesn’t carry it around with her, she doesn’t talk about it.”
Geno Auriemma speaks on Paige Bueckers ahead of UConn’s Elite Eight matchup with USC: pic.twitter.com/jrHC2TN6ri
— UConn on SNY (@SNYUConn) March 31, 2024
Whose teammates will provide a stronger support system? UConn’s rotation is full of other elite players, headlined by senior forward Aaliyah Edwards. The problem is the Huskies’ rotation is nearly emptied, exhausted by a cascade of season-ending injuries. If Edwards or senior guard Nika Mühl, likely tasked with trying to trouble Watkins, encounter foul trouble, things quickly get tricky for UConn, requiring head coach Geno Auriemma to ask ever more of Bueckers.
USC head coach Lindsay Gottlieb has an eclectic group of players who “know their role” surrounding Watkins, allowing her to blossom. Grad wing McKenzie Forbes, who arrived at Southern Cal from Harvard, has emerged as USC’s secondary option, while two other Ivy League transfers—grad guard Kayla Padilla from Penn and grad forward Kaitlyn Davis from Columbia—have a penchant for making timely plays.
Hilarious moment postgame with USC.
Rayah Marshall asked about the trust she has in JuJu Watkins regardless of the situation:
“i would trust her with my life. When it come down to winning, she’s going to do what she has to do. She’s coming into the huddle after the third… pic.twitter.com/sMLZ1uSBAY
— Brenna Greene (@BrennaGreene_) March 31, 2024
Even against a depleted Husky team, it feels like everything will have to go right for the Trojans to advance to the program’s first Final Four since 1986. Yet, fortune favors the bold, so don’t be surprised if USC finds a way to #FightOn.
Game information
No. 3-seed LSU Lady Tigers (31-5) vs. No. 1-seed Iowa Hawkeyes (32-4)
When: Monday, Apr. 1 at 7 p.m. ET
Where: MVP Arena in Albany, NY
How to watch: ESPN
No. 3-seed UConn Huskies (32-5) vs. No. 1-seed USC Trojans (29-5)
When: Monday, Apr. 1 at 9 p.m. ET
Where: Moda Center in Portland, OR
How to watch: ESPN
