The No. 3 Connecticut Huskies will take on the the No. 1 Iowa Hawkeyes in the Final Four of the 2024 NCAA Women’s Tournament on Friday. This national semifinal matchup will take place Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland with tipoff set for 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
The winner will advance to Sunday’s national championship game to face either No. 1 South Carolina or No. 3 NC State.
Game date: Friday, April 5
Game time: 9:30 p.m. ET
TV channel: ESPN
Location: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, Cleveland, OH
Odds from DraftKings Sportsbook
Spread: Iowa -2.5
Total: 162.5
Moneyline: Iowa -148, UConn +124
No. 3 UConn (33-5)
First Round: Defeated No. 14 Jackson State 86-64
Second Round: Defeated No. 6 Syracuse 72-64
Sweet 16: Defeated No. 7 Duke 53-45
Elite Eight: Defeated No. 1 USC 80-73
Her Hoops Stats ratings: 3rd
Leading scorer: Paige Bueckers (22 ppg)
Key stat of tournament: Has held all four tournament opponents to under 34% shooting.
UConn is back in the Final Four after a rare miss last season and is hoping to end the weekend by cutting down the nets for the first time since 2016. The Huskies have been tested from the second round onwards and their defense has allowed them to continue to advance through the bracket. Paige Bueckers has reintroduced herself to the nation all throughout the tournament, averaging 28 points, nine rebounds, five rebounds, and 3.3 steals per game. But don’t overlook Aaliyah Edwards, who provided 24 points and six rebounds in their Elite Eight win over USC on Monday.
No. 1 Iowa (33-4)
First Round: Defeated No. 16 Holy Cross 91-65
Second Round: Defeated No. 8 West Virginia 64-54
Sweet 16: Defeated No. 5 Colorado 89-68
Elite Eight: Defeated No. 3 LSU 94-87
Her Hoops Stats ratings: 2nd
Leading scorer: Caitlin Clark (32 ppg)
Key stat of tournament: Has held all four tournament opponents to under 39% shooting.
Iowa is in the Final Four for a second straight and was able to get here by taking down No. 3 LSU on Monday, avenging its loss from last year’s national championship game. In front of over 12 million viewers, the Hawkeyes were able to pull away from the reigning champions in the second half as Caitlin Clark put up 41 points, 12 assists, and seven rebounds. She’s managed to up her season average with 32.3 ppg in the tournament and she’s had backup with fellow guard Sydney Affolter stepping up her offensive production in the tournament as well.
Pick: UConn +2.5
All eyes will be on the showdown between Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers and we should be in for a treat watching two of the best scorers in the country duking it out on the sport’s biggest stage. It’s ultimately going to come down to how their supporting casts step up and the presence of a projected top five WNBA Draft pick like Aaliyah Edwards should make the difference for UConn. I have the Huskies both covering and winning outright to advance to the title game.