TAMPA, Fla. — Kalani Brown scored 22 points and Lauren Cox added 21 as Baylor held off Final Four newcomer Oregon 72-67 Friday night to reach the women's championship game for the first time since 2012.
"I asked them why they came to Baylor," said Kim Mulkey. "All of them screamed, to play for championships. Well, you're getting to play for a championship."
The Lady Bears (36-1) won their 28th straight game, exerting themselves defensively down the stretch. Chloe Jackson delivered a go-ahead layup with 39 seconds left and Brown and Cox finished out the victory with free throws for the overall top-seeded team.
"They did come as advertised," said Didi Richards. "I think they're a real hard team to guard. We stuck to our defense and came out with the win."
All-American Sabrina Ionescu led Oregon (33-5) with 18 points, but didn't score in the fourth quarter. She missed a layup that would have given her team the lead in the final minute and the Ducks misfired on 11 of their last 12 shots.
"We might have just worn them out," said Lauren Cox. "We like to run. When you got to run back on defense, stop us in transition, your legs get tired, shots that usually fall might not fall."
Baylor will play Notre Dame for the national title on Sunday night.
Watch reaction from Kim Mulkey, players and fans below:
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