It’s a quality women’s Final Four Friday

It’s about a 10-mile drive from Hopkins High School to the Target Center in Minneapolis. To University of Connecticut women’s sophomore superstar Paige Bueckers, it’s home sweet home. At Hopkins, the 5-foot-11 bundle of versatility was the best high school player in the land.

Now, fully recovered from missing 18 games after knee surgery, it was easy to say she’s back after putting on a show in the Elite Eight double overtime nail-bitter thrilling win over North Carolina State, one of the three top seeds to fall. Thus, the Friday Final Four in Minny will have No. 1 seeds South Carolina (33-2), Stanford (32-3) and Louisville (29-4) and the No. 2-seeded Huskies (29-5), the all-time most recognized, winningest women’s program coached by Hall of Famer Geno (the genius) Auriemma, who took over a program that had but one winning campaign.

That’s history now, just toss it in the thrash basket, but save these remarkable facts. They own a record 11 national championships in Auriemma’s 37 years, 21 Final Fours, six perfect seasons and 53 conference titles. And of course there’s plenty of room to include what Auriemma has accomplished. National Coach of the Year nine times, WBCA National Coach of the Year seven times and conference coach of the year 15 times.

Under him, 26 UConn players have been selected as All-Americas for 46 total recognitions while a Husky has been named  National Player of the Year 14 times. He’s the first coach in women’s basketball history to guide a team to five consecutives Final Four appearances on two separate occasions, and the current run of 14 straight Final Fours is also in the record books.

Yes, despite the lengthy loss of Bueckers, UConn is there again. It closes the doubleheader against Stanford after top-seeded South Carolina opens versus Louisville. Usually the favorite, not so this time for the Huskies as the Cardinal comes in as a 4-point pick, and the Gamecocks are favored by 7 over the Cardinals. Never before have the Cardinal and Cardinals both gained the Final Four.

Auriemma is 11-7 against Stanford, which is coached by Tara VanDerveer, the all-time winningest women’s coach who has 1,113 victories, seven more than second place Auriemma. The Cardinal is the reigning champion, turned back the Gamecocks in last year’s semifinals when Dawn Staley’s team missed two inside shots as the final buzzer sounded. Texas edged UConn in the other semis and then lost a tight tussle versus Stanford.

As is the Cardinal, it lost to Texas, South Florida and South Carolina. The Gamecocks have lost twice, first to unranked Missouri and then to 6th-ranked Kentucky for the Southeastern Conference championship. But it reigned supreme otherwise by downing LSU, now coached by former Baylor long-time successful coach Kim Mulkey, as well as defeating coaching icons Auriemma and VanDerveer in the same season. Louisville’s defeats have come against Arizona, NC State, North Carolina and Miami.

Meanwhile, Stanford has won its last 24 starts, Louisville has had 15 and 8-game win streaks. and South Carolina hasn’t gone down since the Kentucky setback, while UConn has won its last 13 times after avenging the loss to Nova.

Being in the Final Four is nothing new for this quartet. Louisville, South Carolina and Stanford have been there before, but Connecticut is most familiar with reaching this level.

The Huskies have also stormed back to dominate Big East opponent Villanova after the Wildcats stunned them during the regular season when injuries sidelined Bueckers, freshman Caroline Ducharme and senior Oliva Nelson-Ododa. Without Bueckers, they also lost at Georgia Tech, at Oregon, to visiting Louisville by five points, and with Bueckers, went from a 55-55 tie against South Carolina after three quarters to being outscored 18-3 in the last quarter on a neutral court.

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But following the rout over Villanova, UConn put together a well-timed winning streak, came from 7th-ranked to 3nd-ranked, and settled into the NCAA Tournament as a 2nd-seed, playing back-to-back games in its state at Hartford and hosting the Regionals in Bridgeport.

Said an exhausted Auriemma after 13 lead changes and 17 ties versus the Wolfpack: “This was about the most tense, tightly played game I’ve ever been associated with in all my years with UConn. Right after, I hurried over to NC State’s head coach and told him too bad we both didn’t win for it was just a dandy match-up.”

Except for the loss of 6-5 graduate senior Dorka Kuhasz when she fell and injured her left wrist to sideline her, the Huskies are at full strength with Auriemma now going nine deep with two 6-5 underclassmen in reserve if needed. The other three teams are also at full strength with some minor injuries. The All-America and candidate for Player of the Year is 6-5 junior Aliyah Boston of the Gamecocks, and she’s brutal inside to go with shot blocking and short jumpers.

Stanford is led by 6-1 senior guard Lexie and her twin, 6-1 senior guard Lace, then there’s 6-4 sophomore forward Cameron Brink, while Louisville is led by 5-9 sophomore point guard Hailey Van Lith, 6-5 senior forward Liz Dixon, and 6-3 sophomore wing Olivia Cochran. And South Carolina has Boston and can also turn to 5-9 junior guard Zia Cooke and 5-7 senior guard Destanni Henderson. Uconn, well it has depth and Bueckers to go with 5-11 freshman Azzi Fudd and 5-11 senior guard Christyn Williams.

STARTING LINEUPS:

SOUTH CAROLINA — 6-5 Junior forward Aliyah Boston, 5-9 junior guard Zia Cooke, 5-7 senior guard Destanni Henderson, 6-1 junior forward Elysa Wesolek, 6-7 senior forward Kamilla Cardoso.

LOUISVILLE — 5-9 Sophomore guard Hailey Van Lith, 6-5 senior forward Liz Dixon, 6-1 senior wing Emily Engsteler,

6-3 sophomore forward Olivia Cochran, 6-0 senior forward Kianna Smith.

STANFORD — 6-1 senior guard Lexie Hull, 6-1 senior guard Lacie Hull, 6-4 sophomore forward Cameron Brink, 6-1 junior forward Haley Jones, 6-5 junior forward Ashten Prechtel.

CONNETICUT — 5-11 sophomore guard Paige Bueckers, 5-11 freshman guard Azzi Fudd, 5-11 senior guard Christyn Willians, 6-5 senior forward Olivia Nelson-Ododa, 6-3 sophomore forward Aaliyah Edwards.

FINAL FOUR at TARGET CENTER in MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA Friday Night:

7 p.m.     SOUTH CAROLINA versus LOUISVILLE on ESPN

9:30 p.m.  CONNECTICUT versus STANFORD on ESPN