The Weekly Roundup: And Then There Were Eight
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There have been a lot of incredible individual performances since the start of the NCAA Tournament — Belmont freshman Destinee Wells’ 26-point game to upset Gonzaga in the first round, Angel Baker’s 26 points, 12 rebounds, and four-steal performance to fuel Wright State’s upset over Arkansas, Jordan Nixon’s steal and buzzer beater to seal overtime for Texas A&M against Iowa State and cap a career scoring night — but which players have made the biggest impact for their team’s journey to the Elite Eight this year? Here are a few of my favorites so far:
NaLyssa Smith, Baylor - Through the first three games of the tournament, Smith is shooting 26-of-33 (78.8%) from the field. Her perfect performance against Michigan in the Sweet 16 matched Teaira McCowan’s 11-of-11 shooting against NC State in the 2018 Sweet 16, and was just the third perfect shooting performance with at least 10 attempts in a postseason game since the 2015-2016 season.
Aaliyah Edwards, UConn - The Huskies have had different players step up throughout the tournament — especially Christyn Williams, Evina Westbrook, and Paige Bueckers — but Edwards has played a huge role in all three of their wins. She’s averaging 18 points a game and has shot at least 80 percent over the last three games. She played 31 minutes against Iowa, and Geno Auriemma had high praise for her performance after the game, saying: “If it wasn’t for Aaliyah Edwards, we wouldn’t be here today. That kid has really added so much to our team. Her strength, her physicality, her toughness, her finishing around the basket.”
Aari McDonald,Arizona- McDonald is playing some of her best basketball in March. She took over against Texas A&M and scored a season-high 31 points on 57.1% shooting, including six buckets from beyond the arc. She’s contributed nine of Arizona’s 41 tournament steals so far.
Dana Evans, Louisville - Evans has been hot and cold with her shooting through the first two rounds of the tournament, but was able to turn her offensive magic on when her team needed it most. After going scoreless in the first quarter against Oregon, Evans contributed 13 points in the second quarter and finished the game matching her career-high 29 points on 11-of-21 shooting in 39 minutes of action.
The Best Upset
No. 6 Texas upsets No. 2 Maryland (64-61) - After shocking UCLA in the second round, Vic Shaefer’s Longhorns reminded everyone just how dangerous their team -and defense - can be by stymying the most powerful offense in the country. Despite a season-low 35 points at the half, the Terps led by ten and held control of the game through the first two quarters. The game stayed close in the second half with nine lead changes and came down to the final minute, but Maryland looked nothing like themselves. Texas outscored Maryland 39-29 in the last 20 minutes of action and held the Terps to just 34% shooting from the floor, compared to their own 52% clip in the second half.
The Longhorns will make their first Elite Eight appearance since 2016, and that will feature a familiar coaching matchup as Schaefer meets his former SEC rival Dawn Staley. Schaefer and Staley went head-to-head as the top teams in the SEC for years when he was the head coach at Mississippi State. They last met in the NCAA Tournament during the 2017 National Championship game, which South Carolina won.
Sweet 16 Results
No. 1 UConn over No. 5 Iowa (92-72)
No. 2 Baylor over No. 6 Michigan (78-75 OT)
No. 4 Indiana over No. 1 NC State (73-70)
No. 3 Arizona over No. 2 Texas A&M (74-59)
No. 1 South Carolina over No. 5 Georgia Tech (76-65)
No. 1 Stanford over No. 5 Missouri State (89-62)
No. 2 Louisville over No. 6 Oregon (60-42)
No. 6 Texas over No. 2 Maryland (64-61)
Elite Eight Schedule
Monday, March 29
No. 2 Baylor vs. No. 1 UConn - 7 p.m. ET on ESPN
HHS Predicted Winner: UConn (63.6%)
No. 4 Indiana vs. No. 3 Arizona - 9 p.m. ET on ESPN
HHS Predicted Winner: Indiana (66.8%)
Tuesday, March 30
No. 6 Texas vs. 1 South Carolina - 7 p.m. ET on ESPN
HHS Predicted Winner: South Carolina (85.2%)
No. 2 Louisville vs. No. 1 Stanford - 9 p.m. ET on ESPN
HHS Predicted Winner: Stanford (62.2%)
What We’re Working On
Aaron Barzilai and Megan Gauer broke down all the action from the Sweet 16, including a live reaction to Texas’ upset over Maryland, look ahead to Baylor vs. UConn, and pick their Final Four teams on the latest episode of Unplugged (released this morning!).
Megan Gauer broke down this season’s national player of the year candidates by win shares and player efficiency rating, and examined if Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark were the most valuable players statistically this season.
Gabe Ibrahim wrote about the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament and the best of what we’ve seen so far.
Christy Winters-Scott and Gabe broke down the Iowa State-Texas A&M overtime thriller, Jordan Nixon’s post-game interview, and Maryland’s dominance on Courtside.
Aaron Barzilai joined Megan Gauer on Unplugged after last Monday’s games to discuss the first round and the inequities between the men’s and women’s tournament.
Other Recommended Reading and Listening
Aaron Barzilai joined ESPN’s Charlie Creme and Debbie Antonelli to preview the Sweet 16 on Nothing But Net with Debbie Antonelli.
For the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Brandon Sudge looked back on Dawn Staley and Nell Fortner’s relationship through Team USA Basketball ahead of their team’s Sweet 16 matchup.
For ESPN, Mechelle Voepel, wrote about Indiana and Arizona’s historic Sweet 16 wins and the respective program’s transformations.
For The Athletic, Chantel Jennings reflected on the highly anticipated matchup between freshman phenoms Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark, and the very bright future of women’s basketball.
For Queen Ballers Club, Gabe Ibrahim wrote about Alysha Clark’s journey to WNBA stardom.
For The Athletic, Chantel Jennings wrote about Betty Wiseman, the matriarch of Belmont women’s basketball ahead of the team’s second round game.
For The Undefeated, Marc J. Spears interviewed Allison Feaster, a former star for Harvard and 10-year WNBA veteran, who now leads the Boston Celtics player development and personal growth department.
Thanks for reading the Her Hoop Stats Newsletter. If you like our work, be sure to check out our stats site, our podcast, and our social media accounts on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.