BRIDGEPORT, Conn. — You don’t have to detail UConn’s dominance to the Oregon women’s hoops team — not the wins, streaks or NCAA titles. Growing up, many of them watched nationally televised UConn games. Others, like Sabrina Ionescu, even caught the recruiting eye of coach Geno Auriemma.
But now they’re opposite the nation’s top team looking for a shot at advancing to the Final Four. The Ducks and UConn play in the Bridgeport Regional later today (4 p.m. PST on ESPN).
“You know, for any athlete or competitor, this is what you live for,” Lexi Bando, a Eugene native, said. “You want to play at the biggest stage against the best team. It can’t come soon enough.”
Ionescu cited UConn’s culture as a key piece to the program’s storied success. UConn has won 110 consecutive games, and the team’s last loss came at the hands of another Pac-12 team, Stanford, back in December 2014.
“They recruit great kids and kids that want to compete. And kids that want to win,” Ionescu said. “They don’t really have any knuckleheads on their team. They have great culture, great kids and [coach] Geno [Auriemma] is one-of-a-kind.”
The Ducks — looking to become the first double-digit seed to make the Final Four — want to stop UConn from advancing to the program’s 10th consecutive Final Four. UConn made the Elite Eight after dispatching UCLA, 86-71, on Saturday.
The Huskies have four players who average double figures in scoring. Katie Lou Samuelson, who went 10-for-10 from 3-point range during an AAC Tournament game, averages 20.7 points a game. Napheesa Collier (20.4 points, 9.0 boards), Gabby Williams (13.8 points, 8.4 boards) and Kia Nurse (13.0 points) will give the Ducks all they can handle offensively.
UConn ranks second in the nation in 3-point percentage (40.4 percent) while Oregon ranks third (39.0 percent).
“People can play with them for a time, but can they play with them for 40 minutes? And that’s the challenge we have ahead of us,” head coach Kelly Graves said. “We’ve got to play a 40-minute game. Things are going to go wrong.
“We’ve got to lift our heads up and fight through it and continue to fight. This team has shown that kind of resilience.”
UConn and Auriemma aren’t overlooking the Ducks. Not on this stage after what they’ve achieved in NCAA Tournament play.
“They didn’t realize they’re supposed to be, like, nervous,” Auriemma said. “They don’t realize this is supposed to be really hard, you know. You’re not supposed to just walk into the NCAA Tournament and just start beating teams with three freshmen in the starting lineup, and a freshman point guard.”
Samuelson said against the Ducks, defense will be the focus. But she knows that the Ducks have been successful thanks in part to their bold, youthful mentality.
“They’re playing probably more fearless than anyone in the country,” Samuelson said. “That’s why they’ve been so successful to get this far. They’re playing their best basketball.”
Monday will be the third meeting between the two programs but the first in Graves’ career.
“That’s tough to think that we can get to this spot and have a chance to get to a Final Four in our third year with so many young kids,” Graves said. “But it’s here now. So we’re going to seize upon the opportunity.”
Follow Jonathan Hawthorne on Twitter @Jon_Hawthorne
Find all of the Emerald’s coverage from Bridgeport here.