In order to beat No. 3-seeded Iowa State, the Bluejays had to play impressive, consistent defense. The Cyclones had been one of the highest scoring teams in the country coming into the game, but Creighton was able to frustrate their best offensive weapon, crafty Iowa State senior Ashley Joens. She made just four shots from the field. The 6-foot-5 Boston will have to use her substantial size advantage over Creighton — which has no players taller than 6-foot-1 — to once again score consistently inside, even if the Bluejays can take away many of her guards’ open looks.
South Carolina will also need to guard the perimeter in order to clinch their second straight trip to the Final Four, which has been one of their strengths this season. On average, opposing teams make just 26.6 percent of their 3-point shots against the Gamecocks. They’ll need to match or surpass that average against Creighton, which has made 9.6 three-point baskets per game so far in this tournament while taking comparatively few shots. Although Creighton is fighting against the odds to become the first double-digit seed to make the Final Four, the game might very well come down to the wire.
No. 2 Texas will try to replicate their biggest upset of the season.
“That was a pretty long time ago,” said Texas freshman point guard Rori Harmon when asked about the Longhorns’ win over the Stanford, the reigning champion, back in November. “It’s completely different now.”
The Cardinal, it would seem, don’t quite see it that way. Texas beat them on their home court at the very game where they were celebrating their title and awarding players their championship rings. Stanford had a 5-point lead going into the fourth quarter of that game, and still lost — something coach Tara VanDerveer brought up when considering the matchup. “I don’t think anyone on our team has forgotten about that,” she said after Stanford’s round of 16 win.
Unfortunately for Texas, Stanford looked as intimidating as ever in its near-total domination of No. 4 seed Maryland. Its weakest quarter, though, was once again the fourth, in which the Terrapins were able to cut what had been a 26-point lead down to 6. The Longhorns see relentlessness, and specifically relentless defense, as their trademark, and will aim to once again fluster the Cardinal late.