Senior Watch: WNBA Draft Prospects to Watch in Columbus

Thu, Mar 29, 2018, 7:22 PM
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Brian Martin

After 60 games over the first two weekends of the NCAA Tournament, the Final Four is set. For the fourth time since the women’s NCAA tournament began in 1982, all four No. 1 seeds advanced to the Final Four. Connecticut, Notre Dame, Mississippi State and Louisville have all arrived in Columbus, Ohio for the last three games of the college season, with the national semifinals tipping off Friday at 7:00 PM ET on ESPN.

For the seniors on the floor, this is not only the culmination of this season, but their college careers. In the coming weeks a handful of those seniors will make the transition to the WNBA. Here are the ones to watch this weekend as we take a closer look at both semifinal matchups.

No. 1 Connecticut (36-0) vs. No. 1 Notre Dame (33-3)

Friday, March 30, 9:00 PM ET, ESPN

The Huskies and Fighting Irish are familiar foes on this stage with six previous Final Four meetings, including five in the past seven years. The series is split 3-3 in the Final Four with Notre Dame beating UConn in the semifinals en route to their 2001 title and the UConn beating the Fighting Irish in the championship game in both 2014 and 2015.

Notre Dame’s run of six Final Fours over the past eight years is incredibly impressive, but pales in comparison to UConn reaching the final weekend in each of the last 11 years and 19 times overall.

While its always a safe bet that UConn will make the Final Four, the same could not always be said for Notre Dame this season as the team has been depleted by injuries to key players. In total, four players are out due to torn ACLs – seniors Brianna Turner (suffered late last season) and Mychal Johnson, graduate student Lili Thompson and freshman Mikayla Vaughn. When it comes to seniors to watch from this Notre Dame squad, there are only two that will even suit up this weekend.

Kathryn Westbeld, Notre Dame

Westbeld has averaged 7.7 points and 5.5 rebounds in just under 26 minutes per game this season. The 6-2 senior forward gave the Irish another injury scare in the tournament opener, rolling her ankle after playing just three minutes. She was able to return to action in the second round as she logged 16 minutes off the bench before returning to the starting lineup for the regional semis and final.

After scoring a total of six points in the first three rounds of the tournament, Westbeld had one of the biggest games of her career in the Spokane Regional Final against Oregon. She scored a team-high 20 points on 9-12 shooting and added 7 rebounds and 3 assists in 33 minutes. The player often called “The Glue” by Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw delivered when it mattered most.

Kristina Nelson, a 6-4 forward and grad student, has averaged 3.8 points on 64% shooting, 2.5 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 13.5 minutes per game, including one start in place of Westbeld in the second round.

While the Irish are down to seven scholarship players due to their injury woes, the Huskies are once again loaded with talent as they pursue their 12th NCAA title. That includes a pair of seniors that project to be first round draft picks in next month’s WNBA Draft – Gabby Williams and Kia Nurse.

Gabby Williams, Connecticut

Williams continues to show why she is the best all-around player in the women’s college game today. Take a look at these numbers from the past two games – wins over No. 5 seed Duke and No. 2 seed South Carolina – 38 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists, 4 steals and 3 blocks on 18-27 (66.7%) shooting. For the tournament, Williams is shooting a ridiculously efficient 73.0% (27-37) from the field while stuffing the stat sheet on a nightly basis.

Kia Nurse, Connecticut

Nurse has scored in double figures in all four games of the tournament thus far. She finished with 11 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals in the Albany Regional final win over South Carolina. She shot 4-7 from the field and 3-5 from three as the Huskies punished the Gamecocks from beyond the arc, shooting 12-20 en route to a 29-point win.

Williams and Nurse are two wins away from their third national championship and what a perfect way to end their collegiate careers as they get set to take their games to the next level.

No. 1 Mississippi State (36-1) vs. No. 1 Louisville (36-2)

Friday, March 30, 7:00 PM ET, ESPN

While the Connecticut vs. Notre Dame matchup is filled with history, this will be the first-ever matchup between Mississippi State and Louisville. And while Connecticut (19) and Notre Dame (8) have 27 Final Four appearances between them, Mississippi State (2) and Louisville (3) combine for five.

Mississippi State is back in the Final Four for the second straight year, while Louisville last appeared on this stage back in 2013.

The Bulldogs had a memorable Final Four debut a year ago as they stunned UConn in overtime to end the Huskies’ NCAA-record 111-game winning streak in the national semifinals. The magic ended two days later as they fell to South Carolina in the title game. The Bulldogs came back hungry as they rattled off 32 straight wins to open the season, winning the SEC regular season title, but they were unable to complete an undefeated run to the NCAAs as South Carolina once again defeated them in the SEC Tournament title game.

In the NCAA Tournament, the Bulldogs have won their four games by an average of 22.5 points, including a 16-point win over No. 3 seed UCLA in the Kansas City Regional final to advance to the Final Four. Two seniors have been key contributors to this run to back-to-back Final Fours – Victoria Vivians and Morgan William – as well as 6-7 junior center Teaira McCowan (23 points, 21 boards vs UCLA).

Victoria Vivians, Mississippi State

Vivians scored a game-high 24 points and added four rebounds and one block in Mississippi State’s win over UCLA. For the tournament, the senior guard has averaged 20.3 points and 6.8 rebounds while shooting 48.4% from the field and 57.1% (8-14) from beyond the arc. It is Vivians’ improved efficiency that has catapulted her to new heights this season.

Morgan William, Mississippi State

William’s game-winning shot against UConn in last year’s Final Four made her a Mississippi State legend. And with the NCAA Tournament underway, it is definitely William time once again. She averaged just 7.5 points per game this season heading into the NCAA Tournament, but in the first four games of the NCAAs, William is averaging 14.0 points to go with 4.3 assists and shooting 45.0% from the field and 50.0% (3-6) from beyond the arc. William proved last year that she is comfortable on the Final Four stage; what will she do for an encore this year?

Louisville enters the Final Four coming off an impressive 33-point win over No. 6 seed Oregon State in the Lexington Regional final. Over the past three rounds of the tournament (removing extremely lopsided first round wins), Louisville enters the Final Four with the top win margin of the field at plus-78, besting UConn by 11 points.

Myisha Hines-Allen, Louisville

Leading the charge throughout the tournament as they have done all year is the combination of junior guard Asia Durr and senior forward Myisha Hines-Allen. For the tournament, Hines-Allen is averaging 15.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. She also added 1.8 steals per game as the Cardinals have held their four opponents to an average of 54.0 points per game. She has 16 double-doubles on the season and 45 for her career at Louisville.

The stage is set for the final three games of the 2017-18 NCAA season. Which of the seniors discussed above will shine brightest as they close out this chapter of their basketball story and get ready to start the next one when the WNBA calls next month?

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