Controversial Call dooms UConn in the Final Four

In a battle of titans, Caitlin Clark and Iowa defeated Paige Bueckers and Uconn 71-69 in the Final Four Friday night after a controversial offensive foul by Ailiyah Edwards in the final seconds of the game.

In a one-point game with 10.8 seconds left in the game, a crucial turnover by Hannah Stuelke gave UConn a chance to win the game.  On the Huskies next possession, Edwards fouled Gabbie Marshall on a screen and gave the ball back to the Hawkeyes.

UConn head coach Geno Auriemma was visibly frustrated on the sideline after the call.  Bueckers, however, did not put any blame on the call.

“You can look at one play and say, ‘oh that killed us or that hurt us,’” Bueckers said.  “We should have done a better job, I should have done a better job making sure that I didn’t leave the game up to that.” 

Edwards, on the other hand, believes that she did not commit a foul on that play.  Marshall said that she was elbowed and that it was seen on video.

The loss was particularly painful for UConn because for much of the first half, they were the better team.  Their team defense gave the sharp-shooting Clark problems earlier on, and she was held to only six points on three layups in the first half.  

With under six minutes left in the second quarter, the Huskies led 28-16.  Offensively, it was KK Arnold that was rolling for UConn, scoring 10 of her 14 points in the first half.

“We put ourselves in position to win a game that we probably had no business being in given the circumstances we worked with,” Auriemma said.

The Hawkeyes began to wake up after the 12-point deficit, starting with a layup by Clark.  By halftime they cut the UConn’s lead in half and trailed by six points at the break.  Stuelke was big in the paint offensively to keep Iowa in the game.  

In the second half, Clark started to take over.  After a back-and-forth battle for most of the third quarter, Iowa regained the lead after Stuelke made two free throws.  

In the fourth quarter, the Hawkeyes attempted to pull away, leading by as many as nine points, but UConn continued to remain strong.  

Leading by six with two minutes left, the Huskies made some crucial stops and went on a 5-0 run before the controversial ending.  UConn did not get the ball back after Edward’s foul, and Clark made one of her two free throw attempts before running out the clock.

Iowa will face the undefeated University of South Carolina in the championship game Saturday.