Arizona Wildcats forward Trinity Baptiste (0) and Arizona Wildcats guard Bendu Yeaney (23) guard UConn Huskies guard Paige Bueckers (5) in the second half during the NCAA Tournament Final Four game at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas on April 2, 2021. Arizona won 69-59.

 Mamta Popat / Arizona Daily Star

What a team, what a ride. The Arizona Wildcats are heading to the national championship game.

Arizona shocked top-seeded UConn 69-59 in Friday's national semifinal, will play Pac-12 foe Stanford in Sundayโ€™s NCAA title game.

Hereโ€™s how the Cats took down one of college basketballโ€™s greatest programs:

The Arizona Wildcats star point guard talks about her 26-point game, how Arizona pulled off the unlikely upset of UConn and why she's proud of her teammates.

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Aari McDonald, once again, was the best basketball player on the floor.McDonald scored 26 points, the fifth time this tournament sheโ€™s had over 20 points, and was equally as impactful on the defensive end. Arizonaโ€™s All-American point guard drained the gameโ€™s first basket of the game โ€” a 3-pointer from the wing โ€” and it was on from there.

McDonald hit four 3-pointers in the first half as Arizona punched its way to an early double-digit lead. She was also instrumental in slowing down UConnโ€™s Paige Bueckers, holding the AP Player of the Year to 5 of 13 field goals for the game.

32%

While McDonald jolted Arizonaโ€™s offense, the Wildcatsโ€™ defense stood tall on the other end.

The Huskies were held to 8 of 25 shooting in the first half as the Wildcats countered with 11 of 29 field goals, including six 3-pointers.

For the game, UConn shot 20 for 56 (36%) and made five 3s. Those figures were below Arizonaโ€™s shooting which went 20 for 50 and knocked down seven 3s.

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The graphic flashed on ESPNโ€™s score ticker at 1:37 in the third quarter and even the TV broadcast team was stunned while reading it. The Wildcats had a 14-point lead with just under 12 minutes to go in the game.

UConn had never trailed this season by more than 13 points.

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Because of Bueckerโ€™s early struggles, the Huskies relied on junior guard Christyn Williams.

The 2021 All-Big East First Team selection had a team-high 20 points but picked up her fifth foul with 3:51 left in the fourth quarter with the Huskies down nine.

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The most jaw-dropping stat of the night? UConn never led against the Wildcats. Arizona led for 39:19 in a wire-to-wire victory to clinch a spot in Sundayโ€™s national championship; the rest of the time, it was tied.

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Alec has been with the Star since October 2019. He writes stories and produces digital content primarily about the Arizona Wildcats. Alec graduated from the University of Arizona in May 2020.