A historic NCAA tournament will reach its peak this weekend, with two Final Four matches slated for Friday evening and the championship game set for Sunday afternoon. If you already have basketball fever, watching the Final Four and National Championship is the only cure. The women’s NCAA tournament has never been so 

 -the average price paid for a ticket on the resale market this week for the women’s Final Four was twice as high compared with that for the men’s, with the average resale ticket costing $2,323 and more than twice as high as the same period for the women’s Final Four in 2023.

So, what are people paying for, exactly? Two marquee games on Friday night. The first, a Final Four matchup between the Gamecocks of South Carolina and the Wolfpack of NC State, will kick off at 7:00 pm ET on ESPN. Most people - pundits and fans alike - would predict that South Carolina will win this game, but that prediction is far from absolute. Here are some things to watch for:

South Carolina is strong on defense - center Kamilla Cardoso is 6’7, but they’re not as dominant offensively as last year. Center Kamila Cardoso leads the Gamecocks as the top rebounding team in the Final Four with 46.2.

The Gamecocks also have a lot of momentum surrounding them right now as they make a second consecutive attempt at an undefeated season. Last year’s attempt was hampered by a Final Four match against Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes.

NC State carries the one remaining Cinderella-ish story of this tournament and upset No. 2 Stanford and No. 1 Texas to get here. The Wolfpack are led by Saniya Rivers (a former Gamecock) and Aziaha James, who had seven 3-pointers in the Elite 8.

After South Carolina and NC State fight for a spot in the finals, Iowa and LSU will play the highly-anticipated matchup. After Iowa and LSU 

to a recording-setting 12.3 million on ESPN in the Elite Eight, fans will be tuning in to watch Caitlin Clark battle another household name in women’s college ball, Paige Bueckers. This game, on Friday night at 9:30 on ESPN, could go either way. Here are some things to watch for:

Iowa’s biggest strength is inarguably Caitlin Clark. Her 41 points, 12 assists, and seven rebounds are just a few of her accomplishments from Monday night’s game against LSU. Defensively, though, the Hawkeyes can struggle. 

Yahoo Sports, Iowa is ranked 22nd in the country in defense. That can create opportunities for the UConn Huskies.

Paige Bueckers is looking for those opportunities. The UConn Guard scored 

 in the team’s Monday night win over USC. Plus, she is one of the most dynamic players in the game.

Though Clark averages more points per game than Bueckers, Bueckers could rise to the occasion on Friday night.

The UConn bench has been decimated by injuries for the second year in a row. UConn can’t risk foul trouble with only seven active players.

The finals will take place on April 7 on ESPN at 3:00 pm ET.

South Carolina, NC State, Iowa, and UConn battle for spot in finals

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