Irish slips past South Carolina; UConn dominates Maryland

The #1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish held back a furious comeback by the #1 South Carolina Gamecocks in earning a 66-65 victory to advance to the 2015 NCAA women's national championship.

All-American Jewell Loyd scored 22 points for the Irish, but it was Madison Cable's putback - her only points of the night - that put the game away for good.

For the fourth time in five years, Notre Dame (36-2) advances to the championship game, which will be held this Tuesday night in Tampa, Florida.




The #1 Connecticut Huskies continued to show their dominance by dismantling the #1 Maryland Terrapins, 81-58. It's the second straight season that Maryland fell short in the national semifinals.

Breanna Stewart scored 25 points and Morgan Tuck added 24 points for UConn, who once again are headed to the national championship as the heavy favorites.

The Huskies are 9-0 in title games and a victory over Notre Dame this Tuesday night would tie head coach Gino Auriemma with UCLA men's coach John Wooden for the most all time with ten. It would also be the second three-peat for Connecticut, who won three straight championships from 2002 to 2004.