Baylor and Oregon fight for a spot in the NCAA Women’s Championship

It is no surprise that these two teams are facing off in the NCAA women’s semifinals. The No. 2 seed Oregon Ducks and the No. 1 seed Baylor Bears will fight for a spot in the championship tonight at 7.

Baylor Advances

The Big 12 Champions have a record of 35-1 and a win streak of 27. The Lady Bears have breezed through the NCAA women’s tournament thus far defeating their opponents by an average of 30 points.

In the first round, they dominated Abilene Christian by a score of 95-38 and California in the second round by a score of 102-63.

In the Sweet Sixteen, the Lady Bears defeated the South Carolina Gamecocks 93-68 to advance to the Elite Eight.

They had no problem breezing through the second seed Iowa by a score of 85-53 to lead them into the final four. With a 27-game win streak in mind, the Lady Bears are confident but know it won’t be an easy task.

Baylor’s 4️⃣th #wFinalFour in the last 15 seasons begins tonight!#SicEm | #TTT pic.twitter.com/i0wyQsoCJD

— Baylor Women's Basketball (@BaylorWBB) April 5, 2019

Key Lady Bears

The Lady Bears are coached well under the Associated Press National Coach of the Year, Kim Mulkey. Some of the playmakers on the court include Kalani Brown, Lauren Cox, and Queen Egbo.

The senior center, Kalani Brown just joined Brittney Griner as the only Baylor University players to be named Women’s Basketball Coaches Association All-Americans in three different seasons.

Lauren Cox is one of the best defenders at any position, Coach Mulkey said. If she can prove that on the court against the Ducks tonight, a spot in the championship is a strong possibility.

The freshman center, Queen Egbo is an asset to the Lady Bears offense. Whether it’s through assists, dunks, layups, or three-pointers, she can score for her team.

OH WE DUNKIN' IN TAMPA!!! #WFinalFour | @BaylorWBBpic.twitter.com/Uxyyr1rFNw

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessWBB) April 4, 2019

What Oregon Brings to the Court

The back-to-back Pac 12 champions in 2018 and 2019 have declared a spot in the final four against the Lady Bears. The Ducks are 33-4 on the season with a four-game win streak.

Oddly enough, this is the first ever final four appearance in franchise history for the Oregon Ducks. The past two years, they have not been able to advance past the Elite Eight.

In the tournament thus far, the Ducks have not had a problem advancing. They dominated Portland State 78-40 in the first round followed by Indiana by a score of 91-68 in the round of 32.

In the Sweet Sixteen, the Ducks defeated South Dakota State 63-53 to advance to the Elite Eight. In their next matchup, they won in a close game 88-84 over the top-seeded Mississippi State.

Less than 40 seconds on the clock.
A four point lead.
Final Four trip on the line.
Dagger.

Maite Cazorla delivered, just like everyone knew she would. #GoDucks pic.twitter.com/msRBXbsHlt

— Oregon Women’s Basketball (@OregonWBB) April 1, 2019

Ducks PlayMakers

The Ducks are by no means a one-woman show. They have had five players average 9.8 points per game. As a team, they have shot over 41 percent from behind the three-point line. Although, their star guard Sabrina Ionescu definitely leads the team.

Ionescu has been recognized for her third first-team All-American and recently became the NCAA leader in triple-doubles.

https://twitter.com/ncaawbb/status/1113790297190936577

Game Details

This final four match-up between the top seed Baylor and second seed Oregon will be played in Tampa.

The game will begin at 7 p.m. and be aired on ESPN2. One win streak must come to an end.