Villanova women’s basketball was dominated, 90-51, by No.1 University of Connecticut in the Big East Championship on Monday, March 9 in Uncasville, CT.
This is UConn’s (33-0, 20-0 Big East) sixth straight Big East championship and their 12th consecutive conference tournament title. They also set the record for the longest Big East winning streak in conference history with 70 straight victories.
Prior to the championship game, Villanova (25-7, 16-4 Big East) was coming off a four-game win streak, with its last loss coming from the Huskies, 83-69. In their matchup on Feb. 18, Villanova managed to hang on through the first half and were winning heading into the locker room. However, they dropped the game in the final two periods and ultimately lost by 14.
Sophomore guard Jasmine Bascoe led Villanova with 14 points, shooting 5-for-19 from field goal range and 1-for-8 from the three point line. She was the only Wildcat who was in double-digits. Freshman guard Kennedy Henry followed with 9 points and added a team-high 7 rebounds. Sophomore guard Dani Ceseretti contributed 8 points.
Shots were just not falling for the ‘Cats, as they were 18-of-66 (27%) from field goal range, 7-of-37 (19%) from beyond the arc and 8-of-11 (73%) from the free throw line.
They started out cold, going 1-for-10 from the field. All of Villanova’s first quarter points came from the three point line.
“Maybe our start wasn’t as good as we wanted,” Bascoe said. “But there’s no going back in time. We’re just going to adjust, we’re just going to keep playing.”
Things continued to get out of hand, as UConn’s lead only extended through the second period. They ended the half down, 49-23.
“We didn’t make shots,” head coach Denise Dillon said. “We got called for a couple fouls early. It just takes you out of a flow and [UConn] just set the tone from that point moving forward.”
In the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, the Huskies went on a 10-0 to seal the win. They outscored Villanova 19-9 in the final period.
The Wildcats nearly tied for the worst loss in Big East final history, when UConn defeated Boston College by 42 points back in 2002. A three pointer from Kelsey Joens in the last seconds of the game avoided the undesirable title for Villanova.
Senior guard Azzi Fudd led UConn with 19 points, she was followed by sophomore guard Sarah Strong with 18. Strong was named Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.
Heading into March Madness with a record of 25-7, the ‘Cats are likely to receive a tournament bid this coming Sunday. Villanova is currently projected to be a No.8 seed in the Fort Worth region according to Bracketology. An appearance in the tournament would be their first since the 2022-23 season, when the ‘Cats made a run to the Sweet Sixteen as a No. 4 seed.
“Our group did a tremendous job this year,” Dillon said when asked about Villanova’s bid. “We did what we needed to do to build that resume. We took care of business in the Big East as well.”
The NCAA Women’s Selection Show will take place on Sunday, March 15 at 8 p.m. on ESPN. The First Four games will be played from March 18-19, and the championship will take place on April 5 in Phoenix, AZ.
“We don’t want our season to end,” Bascoe said. “We’re ready no matter where we go or who we play. We’re sticking together and playing as hard as we can. We’re going to take this game and use it to instill some grit in us.”
