Phoenix was buzzing with anticipation as two of the nation’s top programs clashed in a semifinal showdown. The UConn Huskies came in with a perfect season on the line, while the South Carolina Gamecocks were hungry to take revenge for their last season’s loss.

What followed was a battle of grit, defense, and clutch moments that ultimately tilted in favor of the Gamecocks as they ended the game with 62-48.

So, here are five takeaways from a game that left the basketball world stunned.

Bricks, Pressure, and Pure Chaos in the First-Half

It was no surprise to anyone that this matchup would be a neck-and-neck game, because two of the best programs in the nation are playing against each other. However, both teams simply struggled to make the shots.

In the first half of this highly anticipated game, South Carolina shot just 10-of-32 (31%) from the field, while UConn went 12-of-30 (40%). But it got even uglier from beyond the arc, as the Huskies shot 1-of-8 (13%), while the Gamecocks just attempted two shots.

The most shocking part? Azzi Fudd of UConn, who is widely considered one of the most dangerous scorers on the floor, managed just 2 points on 1-of-6 shooting, while missing all four of her three-point attempts. Even Sarah Strong made just one three-pointer and missed 70% of her field goal attempts.

On the other end, Joyce Edwards had her moments but still went 3-of-11, constantly battling through traffic and contested looks.

If you caught the game, you know these weren’t just missed shots. It was two elite defenses forcing hesitation, disrupting rhythm, and turning every possession into a grind. So by the time the first half ended, both teams were under 30 points (26–24).

The UConn Huskies Tried to Mount a Comeback, But the Gamecocks Held Strong

Geno Auriemma’s squad finally found its spark in the third quarter of the game.

After falling behind on the scoreboard by double digits (40–30), UConn responded with a quick 9–0 run, and every single point came from deep. It started with Kayleigh Heckel knocking down a 23-foot three, followed by Blanca Quiñonez hitting from 25 feet, and then Fudd with a 25-foot three of her own.

Just like that, a 10-point lead was cut to 40–39.

Overall, the Huskies scored 13 points in the third quarter. While it wasn’t the most points they scored in a quarter, it still was the first time their offense looked comfortable.

But the Gamecocks had no intention of letting their momentum slip.

South Carolina answered with a mix of pull-up jumpers and trips to the free-throw line to pour in 20 points in this quarter (their highest-scoring frame of the game), to push their lead back to 44–39.

It Wasn’t Pretty, But It Was All Ta’Niya Latson

This game was a grind. And in the middle of all that, Latson still ended up being the most impactful player on the floor.

As the Gamecocks took the win home, she finished the game with 16 points, 11 rebounds, and 2 assists. But that stat line doesn’t even tell the full story.

The senior guard kept attacking the paint when nothing else was falling, and most importantly, she lived at the free-throw line. Ta’Niya Latson went a perfect 10-of-10 from the stripe, which quietly became the biggest difference in the game.

While both teams struggled to make shots (South Carolina shot just 38% and UConn 31%), Latson found another way to score. No jumpers? No problem. She just kept driving, absorbing contact, and cashing in easy points.

On top of all that, she came up with a huge defensive play late in the game by blocking a shot and then turning it into points on the other end. While it was far from anything fancy, her simple approach made her the lead scorer of this game.

Fouls and Free Throws Cost the UConn Huskies Their Game

If there was one stretch that truly decided the outcome of this game, it was the final few minutes, and it had nothing to do with which team scored the most points. Then what was it?

It was fouls!

As the Huskies tried to claw their way back in an attempt to secure the game, they kept sending the Gamecocks to the free-throw line. And unlike the rest of the game, this is where things became clean and simple for Dawn Staley’s squad.

South Carolina finished with 18-of-22 from the free-throw line, making 82% of their shots. Whereas, UConn got just 6 attempts, out of which they made 4. That gap is massive in a game where neither team could score consistently.

And the timing made it worse.

Every time the UConn Huskies built even a little momentum, it got shut down by a whistle. So South Carolina didn’t have to run any jaw-dropping offense to break the Huskies 54-win streak. They just walked to the line and added points.

Geno Auriemma Lost His Cool

Way before the game even ended, frustrations took over the Huskies’ head coach.

After the third quarter, Auriemma was fuming with the officiating and the physicality. Especially when Sarah Strong ended up with a torn jersey and the refs refused to acknowledge it, while calls kept piling up against them.

“There were six fouls called that quarter, all of them against us. And they’ve been beating the s— out of our guys down there the entire game,” he said in a mid-game interview. “And I’m not making excuses because we haven’t been able to make a shot. But this is ridiculous. Their coach ran some rage on the sideline and called the referees some names you don’t want to hear. And now we get 6 to 0, and I got a kid with a ripped jersey. And they go, ‘I didn’t see it.’ C’mon, man, this is the national championship.”

Tensions only escalated from there.

In the closing seconds, with just 0.1 left on the clock, things spilled over on the sidelines as Auriemma got into a verbal exchange with Dawn Staley. While the exact details of what led to that moment aren’t clear, given his earlier comments, it’s not hard to connect the dots.

Then, in the final moment, as soon as the buzzers went off and the Gamecocks started celebrating their win, Auriemma didn’t stick around for the handshake line, as he headed straight to the locker room.

With the UConn Huskies stunned and their perfect season snapped, all eyes will be on the South Carolina Gamecocks now. And under Staley, this isn’t exactly a surprise; she’s won six of the last eight matchups against Geno Auriemma’s Huskies. So if this game was any indication, the final matchup is all set to keep fans on their toes, where the Gamecocks will lock horns with the winner of the Texas-UCLA matchup.