Arike Ogunbowale's jumper from the corner with a second left lifted Notre Dame to a 91-89 overtime victory over UConn on Friday night in the semifinals of the NCAA Tournament.
She finished with 27 points and Jackie Young had a career-high 32 to lead the Irish back to the championship game for the first time since 2015.
"I know I just had to shoot it at the last minute," Ogunbowale said. "I didn't want to give them a chance to get the ball. I went into Mamba mentality. Kobe's here, so that's what I tried to channel."
It's the second consecutive year an undefeated UConn team lost in the Final Four on a last-second shot in overtime. Last time it was Mississippi State and Morgan William, ending the Huskies' 111-game win streak.
The Irish will face Mississippi State — which won again in OT earlier Friday — on Sunday night in the title game. Muffet McGraw's squad will be looking for its second national championship to go with the one the Irish won in 2001.
This was the latest chapter in the greatest current rivalry in women's basketball. The sellout crowd that included Lakers great Kobe Bryant, who was sitting behind the Huskies bench with his wife and daughters, saw quite the show with epic comebacks from both teams.
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