SAN ANTONIO — The Final Four of the N.C.A.A. women’s basketball tournament, it seems, came early — UConn sneaking past Baylor, 69-67, in a game between championship pedigrees that looked much more like a title slugfest than a test in the round of 8.
The Huskies used a 19-point run that started late in the third quarter to surge ahead, then held on for their tournament life until the final possession, when their freshman star Paige Bueckers snagged the Bears’ final inbound pass to seal the win, securing UConn’s 13th consecutive trip to the Final Four.
UConn has won the championship 11 times under Coach Geno Auriemma, who was mobbed by his team with paper confetti as he gave a postgame interview following the win.