In a tournament dominated by top seeds, No. 1 Notre Dame (36-2) and No. 1 Connecticut (37-1) are the final two teams standing in the 2015 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament as the title game nears Tuesday night. Both the Irish and the Huskies defeated fellow No. 1 seeds in Sunday's Final Four, toppling South Carolina and Maryland, respectively.
Connecticut arrives at the championship game in a familiar position as the seemingly prohibitive favorite, seeking its third straight NCAA title. Led by Geno Auriemma — who has won nine NCAA titles as a head coach — the Huskies have stormed into the title game, winning each of their five tournament games by an average of 37.4 points.
MORE: UConn dominates Maryland | Notre Dame edges South Carolina | Duke captures men's title
UConn is led on the floor by Breanna Stewart, who has averaged a team-best 17.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per game this season. The junior forward has been the NCAA Tournament's Most Outstanding Player in each of the Huskies' last two NCAA championship runs and is the reigning National Player of the Year.
While Connecticut figures to be a safe bet to hoist its 10th championship trophy, Notre Dame is no stranger to the sport's biggest stage. The Fighting Irish have been to the past five Final Fours and have reached the title game in three of those trips.
Led by head coach Muffet McGraw, who coached Notre Dame's only national champion in women's basketball in 2001, the Irish have had to battle to reach the title game. Notre Dame mounted a last-minute comeback against South Carolina in the national semifinals, winning 66-65 behind Jewell Loyd's 22 points.
Loyd, a junior guard and Player of the Year candidate, is Notre Dame's most dangerous scorer, leading the team this season with 20 points per game. Freshman forward Brianna Turner leads the team in rebounds per game (7.8), and is second on the team in scoring with 13.8 points per game.
Notre Dame will have to learn from its 76-58 loss to UConn in early December to topple the mighty Huskies on Tuesday night.
2015 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament championship game date, time, TV coverage
Date: Tuesday, April 7, 2015
Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Location: Amalie Arena, Tampa, Fla.