This is a national championship that certainly has more notoriety coming from the head coaches more than the team. UConn HC Luigi "Geno" Auriemma (born in Italy but grew up in Norristown, Pa.) is now in his 37th season & has earned 11 national championship (out of 11 tries), 22 final four appearances (now @ 15 straight) & 3 USA Olympic golds during his tenure. He goes up against South Carolina HC Dawn Staley (played @ Dobbins Tech HS in Philadelphia) who played for the WNBA Charlotte Sting (6-time all-star), earned 3 Olympic golds before her 22 years of coaching @ Temple & SC. At SC, her teams went to 4 final fours & earned just 1 national championship back in 2017. What's shocking about all that is she's won just 1 national championship. I feel she's MORE than groomed her squad into a powerhouse this season & has already beaten Connecticut in November 73-57 @ Paradise Island in the Bahamas. What I've learned from this was the Lady Gamecocks can rule the boards with probably better boxing out skills than most men teams. They can crash the offensive boards & earn more 2nd-chance points that usually gets them to the win column on a constant basis. This 34-2 team now takes on the best of the Big East in the 30-5 Lady Huskies. Auriemma's squad is no slouch by no means but the bulk of their successes come from G Paige Bueckers & F Aaliyah Edwards. I look for Dawn Staley to put up an excellent triad of defenders on Bueckers throughout & force the rest of the team to try & pick up the slack. The bulk of SC's one-on-one defensive prowess will probably come from the 5'7" speedster G Destanni Henderson whose also an excellent penetrator on offense. My bottom line says it's the play of 6'5" power forward & glass cleaner Aliyah Boston that will be a matchup nightmare for UConn on both ends of the court. The oddsmakers are giving too much credit (reflecting in a deflated number) for the Huskies' accomplishments playing in the weaker Big East. SC has gone up against much stiffer competition playing the LSU's & Tennessee's of the SEC. The lines-makers have set this line @ South Carolina -4. We're going to the Target Center in Minneapolis, MN to play the SOUTH CAROLINA LADY GAMECOCKS (buying to - 1 1/2) for 10 Stars as my NCAA Women's National Championship Survivor. (WIN) SC 64-49 Mike Handzelek 2021-22 CBB Overall Record: 19-17 for a disappointing 53% Mike's Overall Record Last 60 Plays (All Sports): 41-19 for a very profitable 68%
 

Click here to view all of Mike Handzelek 's premium picks.