3 biggest mistakes that cost Dawn Staley a championship win over Geno Auriemma's UConn

South Carolina coach Dawn Staley was unable to lead the No. 1-seeded Gamecocks to a fourth national championship. The Gamecocks were blown out 82-59 by the Paige Bueckers-led No. 2-seeded UConn Huskies on Sunday.

The Huskies led 36-26 by halftime and at one point in the second half, they held a 32-point lead to easily close out the game and hand coach Geno Auriemma his twelfth national championship and first since 2016.

During her postgame news conference, the Gamecocks coach was complimentary of the Huskies' firepower, which included the talents of Bueckers, Sarah Strong and the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player, Azzi Fudd.

“Our kids gave it all they had. When you can understand why you lost and when you’ve been on the other side of that three times, you understand it. You can swallow it,” Dawn Staley said. “We lost to a very, very good basketball team. They beat our ass, but they didn’t make us like it.”

The mistakes that cost Dawn Staley a natty

Below, we take a look at three mistakes that cost coach Dawn Staley a fourth national championship and back-to-back national titles against the UConn Huskies on Sunday.

#3. Costly turnovers

The South Carolina Gamecocks and the UConn Huskies traded baskets early on, but DawnStaley's team gave up four steals in the first quarter, allowing coach Geno Auriemma's team to open up a 5-point lead, which grew to 10 points in the second quarter.

The Gamecocks gave up a cumulative 11 turnovers in the game and were repeatedly punished by the brilliance of the Huskies' big three of Paige Bueckers, Azzi Fudd and Sarah Strong.

#2. The Gamecocks' woeful shooting

The South Carolina Gamecocks never led in the game after the first two minutes, when they traded scores with the UConn Huskies.

They rallied before halftime, going on an 8-2 run and then went cold, missing 16 of their next 19 shots and allowing UConn to go on an 8-0 run accounting for the 10-point difference at halftime despite only scoring once from beyond the arc.

The Gamecocks were outscored 26-16 in the third quarter by the Huskies to put the game out of their reach. Cumulatively, South Carolina shot just 34.4% from the field all game while UConn shot 48.4% from the field, a fact that Dawn Staley addressed during her postgame news conference.

"We took a couple of bad shots. We didn't make layups, and they make you pay," Staley said.

#1. The Gamecocks' stars went missing

Ever since the South Carolina Gamecocks lost Kamilla Cardoso to the WNBA last year, they have had mixed fortunes offensively, with different players taking the lead in different games.

The Gamecocks' highest points scorer this season was freshman Joyce Edwards, who tallied 10 points on 33.3% shooting from the floor, 5 rebounds and an assist in the national championship game.

By contrast, the Huskies' top point scorers, Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd, both managed 24 points even as star Paige Bueckers managed 17 points in an off-day for her (she made five of her 14 shots).

Edwards was backed up by sophomore Tessa Johnson, who also managed 10 points, while the SEC Sixth Woman of the Year, MiLaysia Fulwiley, scored 6 points. The 10 points by Edwards and Johnson were the fewest by a team's leading scorer in the national championship game.

The offensive firepower from UConn overwhelmed South Carolina and ultimately made the difference as the Huskies pulled away after halftime. Dawn Staley was left frustrated on the sidelines as Geno Auriemma's stars showed up during the biggest game of the season.