Iowa hasn't been to the Final Four since 1993. LSU is back for the first time in 15 years. Virginia Tech has never been. This was the first Elite Eight since 1985 that did not include UConn, Tennessee or Stanford. New blood has been the mark of the 2023 women's NCAA tournament, and now so much of it is heading to Dallas. Parity in women's basketball is real.
And then there is South Carolina. Monday's win over Maryland marked the Gamecocks' school-record 36th victory of the season. They have now won 42 in a row. The Final Four has seemed like a foregone conclusion for a year since they hoisted the 2022 trophy. If South Carolina completes its perfect run in Dallas, the Gamecocks will be the 10th team to finish the season undefeated. UConn in 2016 was the last undefeated team and the most recent back-to-back champion.
The next step for the Gamecocks is a matchup nearly every observer of the women's game has craved all season, and now Iowa-South Carolina arrives on the biggest stage. It's the game's toughest defense vs. the most prolific offense, and although they won't match up directly, having Aliyah Boston and Caitlin Clark on the floor together will feel electric.
The entire Final Four is full of stars. LSU's Angel Reese has put up stat lines all season that at times seem incomprehensible. Elizabeth Kitley is a two-time ACC Player of the Year. Point guard Georgia Amoore has become a star in this NCAA tournament.
Still, despite all the Final Four newcomers, nothing will be bigger than South Carolina's pursuit of a repeat and perfection.
The Gamecocks are, of course, the No. 1 team in our ranking of all the Final Four teams.
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And then there were four.
Don't lie and say you predicted this. This Elite Eight made history with the absence of all No. 1 seeds. Alabama, Kansas, Houston and Purdue all looked like potential champs two weeks ago when they all earned top seeds on Selection Sunday. They didn't even get a chance to play for a shot at the Final Four.
But that chaos has produced a multitude of storylines. Florida Atlantic didn't have an NCAA tournament win prior to its Final Four run. And while they're never mentioned among the blue bloods, the UConn Huskies will pursue their fifth national championship since 1999 -- more than Duke and North Carolina, Kentucky and Kansas. Miami has a chance to win its first national championship after winning the ACC regular-season title. And San Diego State could cut down the nets for the first time in school history.
But how do these teams stack up against one another? We're here to tell you.
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