South Carolina looked every bit the top overall seed in the Final Four

CLEVELAND — In Friday night’s epic showdown between Iowa and UConn, featuring tremendous performances from both sides, an illegal screen call decided the game.

With three seconds to go, officials whistled UConn’s Aaliyah Edwards for a screening foul as she tried to pry teammate Paige Bueckers open for a game-winning shot. Instead, Iowa took possession holding a one-point lead and salted away a 71-69 victory.

The Hawkeyes and star point guard Caitlin Clark, who finished with 21 points, will face undefeated South Carolina for the national championship. The Gamecocks took care of NC State 78-59 earlier Friday to move to 37-0.

ESPN’s Katie Barnes, Charlie Creme and Jake Trotter break down how each women’s Final Four game was won and look ahead to Sunday’s championship matchup (3 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN App).

How Iowa beat UConn 71-69

What was key in Iowa’s win?

Perseverance. UConn had a tremendous game plan and made Clark’s life miserable for 40 minutes. But Iowa kept finding ways to score outside its usual method. The Hawkeyes didn’t panic, didn’t get flustered. Clark said all season that she trusts her teammates and that is what she did tonight, specifically Hannah Stuelke. Facing double-teams, aggressive face-guarding and strategic help side defense by the Huskies, Clark looked for Stuelke and the sophomore delivered with the best game of her career, sans her 47-point effort earlier this season against Penn State. Her 23 points came with an efficient 9-of-12 shooting. Nika Mühl harassed Clark into matching her lowest point total of the season and Iowa still found a way. — Creme

What surprised you the most about this game?

How Mühl was able to hold Clark in check for much of the game. Clark finally got going in the third quarter with a four-point play, and she still had seven assists. But before that, Mühl completely hounded Clark, denied her the ball and often picked her up full court. As a result, Clark went 0-of-6 from 3 in the first half while struggling to find space to create. Clark was always going to get her points, but Mühl made her work for them. — Trotter

Who was the most outstanding player?

The Huskies had to give up something with the way they guarded Clark on the perimeter with Muhl and provided help in the lane from Edwards and Brady. That something was Stuelke, and she delivered with those 23 points, the first time someone other than Clark led the Hawkeyes since Stuelke’s 47-point game against Penn State on Feb. 8. Kate Martin, Gabbie Marshall and Sydney Affolter had trouble finishing in the first half with Iowa shooting just 50% on its layups before halftime. In contrast, Stuelke played a calm second half, scoring 15 of her 23 points in the final 20 minutes when Iowa outscored UConn by eight. It’s not often that any Hawkeye could be the player of the game other than Clark, but on this night, Stuelke was clearly that player. — Creme

What will be the legacy of UConn?

This might be the first time since 1991 that UConn making a run to the Final Four could have been considered any sort of surprise. The Huskies were a 3-seed, their lowest seeding since 2005. But even in this era of parity, UConn proved why it can never truly be counted out, even while having a depleted bench because of injury for the third straight season. Edwards and Muhl will move on but Bueckers will return next season, which means the Huskies will likely be a force. — Barnes

How South Carolina beat NC State 78-59

What was key in South Carolina’s win?

Two words: Kamilla Cardoso. South Carolina has been balanced all year, but Friday night the Gamecocks rode Cardoso to the championship game. Cardoso led all scorers with 22 points and chipped in 11 boards. It marked just the fifth time she has scored 20 points while at South Carolina. In addition to the individual scoring effort from Cardoso, the Gamecocks exploded for a 29-6 run over the third quarter to put NC State away. — Barnes

What surprised you the most about this game?

The victory margin was somewhat surprising, but the biggest takeaway was just how clinical South Carolina was in the third quarter. It was a lesson in shot selection (60% shooting), defensive execution (NC State made one field goal and had four turnovers) and rebounding (15-5 advantage). Giving up second-half leads has been the biggest issue for the Gamecocks late in the season. Tennessee, Indiana and Oregon State all made runs to make games tense late. The Gamecocks’ third quarter was so good, so dominant that there was no way NC State could come back. The thought around the Gamecocks has been that if they play their A-game, they won’t lose. That 10 minutes was South Carolina’s A-plus game. — Creme

Who was the most outstanding player?

Twice, Cardoso had to leave the floor for the locker room. But when she was on the court, South Carolina’s All-American center dominated. In the first quarter, Cardoso had to exit because of an issue with her left eye. She returned from the locker room for the second quarter to score 12 straight points, as the Gamecocks asserted control following a shaky first quarter. With 1:39 left in the first half, Cardoso had to be subbed out again after injuring her right leg contesting a shot at the rim. Despite limping off to the locker room, she started the third quarter. Cardoso’s back-to-back layups early in the half helped ignite a 29-6 South Carolina run that put the game away. — Trotter

What will be the legacy of NC State?

This was the first Final Four appearance for NC State since 1998. The Wolfpack were just the seventh team to make a Final Four after being unranked in the AP preseason poll and the first since Washington in 2016. Though the outcome didn’t go NC State’s way, the Wolfpack got over the hump to the women’s basketball final weekend after losing in the Elite Eight and in first round in the prior two years. — Barnes