This past Sunday was an exciting night for the basketball world as the Women’s 2018 NCAA tournament came to a close with a heart-stopping finish. As the last few seconds came dripping down, Arike Ogunbowale from the Notre Dame Fighting Irish captured the 2018 National Championship title by sinking in a quick jumper to barely pull her team ahead of the Mississippi State Bulldogs 61-58. This marks their second national title in program history, the first was won in 2001, and both were under head coach Muffet McGraw.
In the first half, the Irish struggled to keep the game close, leaving the half with a heavy thirteen-point deficit (30-17). However, they quickly switched gears by the beginning of the second half, turning up the pressure on the Bulldog’s key players, Teaira McCowan and Victoria. This catapulted Notre Dame to unleash a 16-1 run in the third quarter to comeback from their deficit. The score was tied again, 58-58. The pivotal moment of this game was when Mississippi State’s dominant center, Teaira McCowan missed a layup in the final seconds and the ball was turned over to Irish’s possession. McCowan next fouled out by committing her fifth foul of the game at midcourt to prevent a Fighting Irish fast break, setting up the final play for Notre Dame.
The original purpose of the play was to get the ball in the hands of the Irish’s lead scorer, Jessica Shepard. However, Jackie Young who was inbounding the ball, told Ogunbowale (who had only made one shot in the entire first half) to be ready if she didn’t have a good look to Shepard. The ball ended up in Ogunbowale’s hands and Ogunbowale’s hands delivered the game-winning shot for Notre Dame.
Thanks to Ogunbowale, 2018 women’s collegiate basketball has come now to a close with very elevated standards for next year. From what we know, Arike Ogunbowale may be one of the only athletes (male or female) that has ever accomplished hitting buzzer beaters in back-to-back games within the Final Four. The first was against UConn, and this bucket against the Bulldogs marks the second. Only the greatest of collegiate athletes can manage to pull off these epic shots, and yet Ogunbowale has managed to pull off two… as a junior.