Monday night, USC women’s basketball plays its first Elite Eight game since 1994. That last Elite Eight appearance did not lead to a win for USC. The Trojans ran into a familiar opponent 30 years ago.
In 1983, 1984, and 1986, USC reached the national championship game of the NCAA Tournament, winning two of three times. In each of those three runs to the final round of March Madness, USC defeated Louisiana Tech, including a point guard named Kim Mulkey who led Tech to the 1982 national championship and then two more Final Fours. USC beat Louisiana Tech and Mulkey in the 1983 championship game and the 1984 Final Four national semifinals. Mulkey was no longer playing for Tech in 1994, but Tech was definitely aware of the history between the two programs. It managed to strike back and defeat USC.
The Los Angeles Times picked up the Associated Press account of the game:
“Amy Brown’s three-point play put Tech ahead to stay, 55-54, with 12:21 to play. Williams’ rebound basket and three-pointer gave Tech some breathing room, 64-58. Nicky McCrimmon’s driving layup cut it to 64-61, but Williams responded from the outside. Racquel Spurlock came up with a steal that resulted in a seven-point lead, and Southern Cal never got closer than five points the rest of the way.
“Southern Cal appeared tired down the stretch. Lisa Leslie, the Pac-10’s all-time leading scorer and rebounder, was short on a free throw, short from in close and missed badly on two three-pointer attempts in the final minutes. She finished with 24 points, while Tina Thompson scored 17 and McCrimmon 16.”
USC isn’t playing Louisiana Tech in the 2024 Elite Eight, but the Trojans are playing a blue-blood, just as they did in 1994. It’s the ultimate women’s basketball blue-blood, the UConn Huskies. The game starts a little after 6 p.m. Pacific on Monday, April 1.
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