FORT WORTH, Texas -- Entering Sunday's Elite Eight matchup, UConn coach Geno Auriemma had led 24 previous teams to the women's Final Four. He'd had four other squads enter the final weekend of the season as the undefeated, defending champion.
And yet as his No. 1 Huskies grinded out a 70-52 victory against No. 6 seed Notre Dame -- prompting Auriemma to don a Huskies-branded cowboy hat and break into a cowboy-inspired jig in the postgame celebration -- the coach couldn't help but feel that this team stands out among the rest.
"I don't know if I've ever been prouder to take a team to the Final Four than this one," Auriemma told the crowd in Dickies Arena.
"Seeing him excited and kind of goofy is really good for us," said sophomore Sarah Strong, who scored a team-high 21 points. "... He's usually all serious or like anxious, grumpy. Just seeing him let loose and be his true self was really good."
After a pair of hard-fought wins in Fort Worth -- including one Sunday against a gritty Notre Dame team that kept the game closer than the final score indicates -- the Huskies (38-0) will arrive in Phoenix as the reigning champs and winners of 54 straight.
Not that they'll necessarily show it.
"We don't walk around with that attitude," Auriemma said. "Like Jamelle Elliott and Jen Rizzotti did back then, or Sue [Bird], D [Diana Taurasi], and Asjha [Jones], Swin [Cash], and Tamika [Williams]. They walked around like, 'What did you think? We were going to lose?' Maya [Moore], Tina [Charles], Renee [Montgomery], Stewie [Breanna Stewart], they walked around like, 'Why are you surprised we're undefeated?'
"This group, they don't have that kind of swagger, trash-talking kind of mentality. That's why I think, for me, I just keep my fingers crossed because it's not the kind of team that I've had in the past that has gone this far undefeated. It's not. They don't have that kind of mentality off the court, on the court. They're just a bunch of really nice kids that play hard for each other."
The Huskies will face the winner of Monday's No. 1 South Carolina-No. 3 TCU matchup for a spot in the national title game. The national semifinals will be held Friday, with the championship game set for April 5.
UConn will be making its 17th Final Four appearance in 18 tournaments.
This group might not have the swagger of some of Auriemma's previous teams, but it does its own kind of grit -- something the players had to channel Sunday as the Irish wreaked havoc defensively and kept the score within single digits until the end of the third quarter.
The Huskies' typically high-powered offense stalled early Sunday as stars Azzi Fudd and Strong were quiet by their standards, with their 10 combined first-half points being the fewest by the duo in a first half all season.
The Irish, who had lost to UConn by 38 in January but had won 10 of their past 11 games entering Sunday, made the Huskies uncomfortable as star Hannah Hidalgo sizzled in the second quarter, allowing them to pull to within 32-25 at the half.
UConn kept the Irish at an arm's length before finally taking control toward the end of the third behind a layup from Jana El Alfy and a 3-pointer from Strong, giving them a double-digit lead for the final 11 minutes.
"We never really get too high or too low," junior Ashlynn Shade said. "We're always pretty even keel, and we never let any rough patch or any rough run get us down, really."
Strong, who has earned multiple national player of the year awards, scored 15 of her 21 points in the second half. The performance was good for her 31st career 20-point game, tying Stewart for the most by a UConn player through their first two years with the program over the past 25 seasons.
Her 192 career points are also the second most for a UConn player through 10 career NCAA tournament games, behind only Moore's 199.
Strong told ESPN she felt "stagnant" in the first half due to tired legs before successfully digging deep after halftime.
"I just knew that my team needed me, that I had to play well," she said.
Added Auriemma: "She knows that when it's time to win games, that she has a huge responsibility. Some players shy away from it, and she likes it."
Blanca Quiñonez, whose 12 first-quarter points kept the Huskies afloat early, finished with her second 20-point game. The freshman also became the first player in UConn history with 20 points off the bench in the Elite Eight or later.
"She was the X factor for them," said Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey, who'd led her squad to her first Elite Eight appearance.
UConn's defense led the way once more, holding the Irish to 39% shooting and forcing 18 turnovers. Hidalgo, who had a triple-double with steals in the Sweet 16 vs. Vanderbilt, was held scoreless in the first quarter and finished with 22 points on 7-for-18 shooting.
The road will only get tougher for the Huskies as the target on their back intensifies and another national title and undefeated season get tantalizingly within reach.
But after getting through the regional final, Auriemma is optimistic of what's ahead for his team.
"Getting over this hump and getting to next weekend, I think that will let the air out," Auriemma said, "and we can maybe just relax and play some good offensive basketball."
