When you sit by the chalkboard, trying to think up a perfect script for the way a marquee matchup is going to go, your mind naturally goes towards stars making big plays in key moments. Unforgettable shots from the best of the best as heart rates around the nation rise in unison. The thing that fans want the least though is the referees taking over the spotlight. In Friday’s Final Four matchup between UConn women’s basketball and Iowa, those in stripes made the key play down the stretch, creating an eyesore ending for all who chose to indulge.
As Husky point guard Nika Mühl hit a trey with 40 ticks left on the game clock, Connecticut’s deficit fell to just one point. This was the shot-making that every viewer signed up for. Then came a barrage of Huskies at Hawkeyes forward Hannah Steulke, with UConn’s Aaliyah Edwards disrupting and Mühl emerging with a steal. After a UConn timeout, it was all set to come down to one shot with nine seconds left.
Head coach Geno Auriemma ran some offense as the Huskies looked to get star player Paige Bueckers free. Edwards set a screen as time winded down and Bueckers began to line up a shot that had the chance to immortalize her in Husky history. But before she could fire, the sound of a whistle reverberated throughout Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. An illegal screen on Edwards.
Whether or not it was the correct call is tough to determine, but it was a big moment to make it in. Iowa’s Caitlin Clark made the first free throw on an ensuing foul but missed the second. The rebound went straight into the hands of her teammate Sydney Affolter and just like that it was curtains for the Huskies. UConn’s chance to shine on the biggest stage had vanished.
“There’s probably an illegal screen call that you could make on every single possession,” Auriemma said postgame. “I just know there were three or four of them called on us and I don’t think there were any called on them. I guess we just gotta get better on not setting illegal screens.”
Edwards wasn’t terribly appreciative of the call either.
“My point of view, it was pretty clean,” she said.
Even with all the discussion about the officiating, Bueckers wanted to re-shift the focus to the actual game and those who competed.
“I’m just frustrated with the loss,” Bueckers noted. “I mean, we can talk about officiating, but players play, players decide the game.”
It’s not like UConn didn’t have their chances. In a game where the incoming storyline was the head-to-head between National Players of the Year Bueckers and Clark, neither played particularly well. Clark, averaging 32 points and 9 assists, had a putrid first half that saw her manage 6 points on zero threes. Bueckers had her moments here and there but wasn’t amazing with 17 points on as many shots.
These struggles weren’t a product of off days, with the respective defenses making it their goal to frustrate Clark and Bueckers. Mühl spent her game face-guarding Clark and it worked. The two-time Big East Defensive POTY made sure Clark never got comfortable, especially as she continued to try to force the issue. She finished with 21 points on 18 shots but looked far from the player that fans had gotten used to, with few of her signature deep shots finding the bottom of the net.
Mühl reflected postgame on just how difficult it is to defend Clark with all that she does well.
“I feel like just her confidence, and obviously she’s a great player, one of the greatest to play this sport,” Mühl said on what makes Clark so talented. “I feel like she makes everybody around herself better. So, yeah, just overall I would say her confidence and her ability to, you know, involve other players.”
In lieu of the stars being clamped, others stepped up. For Iowa it was Steulke, who was a steady hand all game. She notched 23 points and on just 12 shots, a testament to her efficiency under the bright lights.
The Huskies enjoyed a fantastic night from KK Arnold, who played one of the best games of her young career. After scoring 4 points in the Elite Eight against USC, the freshman was essential to Connecticut’s effort. She connected on timely shots and passed well to the tune of 14 points and 5 assists. Arnold didn’t force anything and played within herself, which should be a nice confidence-booster into her sophomore season.
Along with Edwards’ role in the pivotal play in the contest, she was solid, but not game-changing with 17 points on 15 shots. The Huskies have gotten used to efficiency and scoring from Edwards, but Iowa did a good job neutralizing her, sans a nice stretch towards the end of the third frame. She certainly wasn’t the reason they lost, but wasn’t carrying the team either.
The Huskies played nice defense from the jump, but it felt like they missed countless opportunities to capitalize on the best scorer in the sport’s history playing poorly. They walked out of the first quarter with a five-point lead that felt like it could have been 15, with much left on the table.
Connecticut finally seemed to crack the Hawkeyes’ defense early in the second, with a Bueckers triple improving their lead to 12. Iowa used the quarter’s final five minutes to settle down and trim it to just five.
The rest of the contest was spent with the team’s going back and forth as Iowa steadily gnawed at the Huskies’ advantage. The teams traded buckets, but the Hawkeyes always seemed to sneak in one extra. What was a UConn lead slowly became a tie game and then Iowa found themselves ahead.
Six straight points from Iowa ballooned their lead to nine and, but a free timeout for a review took the wind out of Iowa’s sails. The Huskies used this as an opportunity to get all the way back into things, with a chance to win before the aforementioned controversy.
This loss marks the end of the team’s season, as well as the conclusion of Mühl and Edwards’ careers. Connecticut spent much of the year shorthanded and, in the grand scheme of things, overperformed nicely.
A healthy team awaits in November as they will look to finally get all their talent off the injury list and onto the court.