TAMPA, Fla. — Brenda Frese and Maryland aren’t just happy to be back in the Final Four for a second consecutive season. They plan on sticking around through the weekend and playing on Tuesday night for the national championship.
For that to happen, they’ll have to knock off two-time defending champion UConn on Sunday night.
“Aren’t we tired of it?” Frese said of UConn’s dominance. “Everyone’s rooting for us. Some new stories — our sport needs it, to be quite honest. I know there are a lot of people out there cheering and want to see Maryland beat UConn. For us and our sport, it would be a great thing.”
After the Terrapins won the national championship in 2006, they didn’t make it back to the Final Four until last season with star Alyssa Thomas. Frese graduated five seniors, including Thomas, and few thought they’d be back so soon.
Frese said she started believing this team could be something special midway through their undefeated run through their first year in the Big Ten.
“This is a team that no one expected to be here,” Frese said. “To accomplish what they did we were written off after Alyssa graduated and our five seniors. It is a different mentality coming back with this team.
“Last year’s team that was their goal, they were happy to be here. That’s not the goal for this year’s team.”
Making the Final Four feels like a rite of spring for the Huskies lately as the team has appeared in the last eight national semifinals, winning four championships. Auriemma has said he believes the Huskies’ dominance is good for the sport, It’s certainly a role the they relish.
“They come to Connecticut with that expectation in mind and they either embrace that role and survive and thrive,” UConn coach Geno Auriemma said.
The winner of Sunday’s game will face either South Carolina or Notre Dame for the title on Tuesday night.
Winning a third consecutive championship for the second time in school history would give Auriemma 10 in his career, tying him with vaunted UCLA men’s coach John Wooden for the most titles in college basketball.
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