Everything Syracuse did to power its historic season couldn’t be replicated against the UConn juggernaut.
The Orange reached its first-ever national title game with superior shooting, offensive rebounding, and the ability to create turnovers. But the team didn’t do enough of those things in an 82–51 loss to the top-seeded Huskies in the National Collegiate Athletic Association women’s basketball tournament final in Indianapolis on April 5. UConn finished the season 38–0 and won its record fourth-straight crown.
“We were just rushing some shots,” Syracuse guard Brittany Sykes said. “And then we weren’t really in our defense settle and we had to crash the boards.”
Former Nazareth star Brianna Butler, who in the semifinal set the league’s single-season record for three-pointers made, was held to just three points and 1 of 8 shooting from the field. She added three rebounds. Former Lady Kingsmen teammates Taylor Ford chipped in three points in her last game at Syracuse.
“It’s bitter-sweet,” Butler said. “It still hasn’t hit me just yet. It will definitely hit me Wednesday morning that Tuesday was the last time I put on a Syracuse jersey.”
Syracuse went just 2-for-19 from three-point range and was out-rebounded 43–27 for the game. UConn star Breanna Stewart notched 24 points and 10 rebounds. It’s the second time a Stewart-led team ended Ford and Butler’s season. Her Cicero-North Syracuse team beat the Lady Kingsmen in the Federation Class AA semifinals in 2012.
This loss halts a magical March run for the duo and the No. 4 Orange, which was looking to be come the lowest seed to ever win the crown.
“I think what this year has done for our program, it’s made all of us better,” Orange coach Quentin Hillsman said.
UConn opened up a 35-point lead, but Syracuse narrowed the gap to within 17 by using a 16–0 run in the third quarter — but it never got closer.
The Orange reached the final with an 80–59 drubbing of No. 7 Washington on April 3. Butler, a former McDonald’s All-America, dropped in 12 points (all three-pointers), grabbed six rebounds, and dished out four assists.
Her four treys were part of a Final Four-record 12 makes from behind the arc, and Butler set the league’s single-season record for three-pointers with 128 in the contest. Ford chipped in eight points of her own, including two treys.
The duo is part of the most successful group in Syracuse history. The Orange collected five of its seven total tournament wins during the run. The team’s 30 wins are the most in the history of the program. The 2016 senior class finished with 99 wins, the most of any class in program history. It’s an accomplishment none of them will forget.
“It’s unbelievable,” Butler said. “It’s something you dream about as a kid, to finally be here.”
