SEATTLE >> UConn’s record Final Four run is over, thanks to a monumental performance by Ohio State.

The Buckeyes ended UConn’s unprecedented streak of reaching 14 consecutive Final Fours, beating the Huskies 73-61 on Saturday in the Sweet 16 of the women’s NCAA Tournament.

“The problem with streaks is the longer they go, you’re closer to it ending than you are to the beginning of it,” UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. “It’s just a matter of time. I mean, it’s not if it’s going to happen. It’s just a matter of time when it’s going to happen. And it was going to happen sooner rather than later.”

Cotie McMahon scored 23 points for the Buckeyes, who snapped their three-decade Elite Eight drought. The Buckeyes hadn’t made a regional final since 1993, when they eventually lost in the title game to Texas Tech.

“When I had the opportunity to come to Ohio State, this was certainly the goal and the vision to go farther than they have been going,” said coach Kevin McGuff, who had never beaten UConn. “It’s not easy to get here, obviously. But I’m really proud of our team and our program of how we’ve evolved to be able to get to this point.

“Like I said, I mean, I have so much respect for Geno and his staff and all that they have accomplished. So for us to be able to win this game in the Sweet 16 is obviously extremely significant. They’re just hard to beat. They’re so well-coached. So this is a great win for us.”

The third-seeded Buckeyes (28-7) forced No. 2 seed UConn (31-6) into 25 turnovers, ending the Huskies’ season before the national semifinals for the first time in 14 seasons. UConn hadn’t been eliminated this early since 2006.

“It’s an impossibility to do what we have done already,” Auriemma said. “What’s the next highest streak? ... And you take that in stride and you say, yeah, it was great while it lasted and it’s a credit to all the players that we had and all the times that you have to perform really, really well at this level.”

Ohio State will play Virginia Tech on Monday night in the Seattle 3 Region final with a trip to Dallas at stake. The Hokies beat Tennessee 73-64.

This has been the most trying year of Auriemma’s Hall of Fame career. UConn was beset by injuries and illnesses to both players and coaches, including a torn ACL that sidelined star Paige Bueckers all season. It got so bad the Huskies had to postpone a game when they didn’t have enough scholarship players.

Virginia Tech 73 Tennessee 64

SEATTLE >> Throughout this historic season for Virginia Tech, coach Kenny Brooks has repeated the belief that Elizabeth Kitley is the best player for the Hokies, but Georgia Amoore is the most important.

It was proven again Saturday with Amoore carrying Virginia Tech to a level it’s never reached before in program history.

Amoore scored a career-high 29 points and the top-seeded Hokies advanced to the Elite Eight for the first time in school history with a win over No. 4 seed Tennessee.

Amoore and the Hokies (30-4) used a dominant stretch spanning the end of the second quarter and beginning of the third that built enough of a cushion to hold off Tennessee’s valiant rally over the final 12 minutes.

Tennessee made just 3 of 17 attempts from beyond the arc against the Hokies after making 11 of 22 in the win over Toledo.

South Carolina 59, UCLA 43

GREENVILLE, S.C. >> South Carolina’s defenders chased ballhandlers and used their length to disrupt any flow. Its bigs continued to snag just about every miss coming off the rim.

It’s an unwavering combination, one that at times has the Gamecocks’ push for a second straight national championship flirting with a vibe of inevitability.

Three-time All-American Aliyah Boston had 14 boards and two blocks while reigning national champion South Carolina turned in its latest overwhelming defense-and-rebounding-first performance to beat UCLA in the Sweet 16 of the women’s NCAA Tournament.

Kamilla Cardoso added 10 points and Boston had eight for the Gamecocks (35-0), the top overall tournament seed. It marked South Carolina’s 41st consecutive victory, securing the program’s sixth trip to the Elite Eight under coach Dawn Staley.

“It was the lowest point total that anyone had held them to in a half in the first half,” UCLA coach Cori Close said, “and we couldn’t even take advantage of that because we were struggling so much offensively.”

Three games into the NCAAs, the Gamecocks have yet to surrender more than 45 points or let an opponent hit even 30% of its shots. They next face 2-seed Maryland in Monday’s regional final in a rematch of the Gamecocks’ 81-56 win from the season’s opening week.

Maryland 79, Notre Dame 59

GREENVILLE, S.C. >> Amid Maryland’s on-court celebration of reaching the Elite Eight for the first time in eight years, Terrapins coach Brenda Frese took a few moments to smile and reflect on how far her team has come in the past year.

The best part for Frese is the journey’s not done yet.

Diamond Miller and Shyanne Sellers had 18 points apiece as the Terps (28-6) took control in the third quarter to beat depleted No. 3 seed Notre Dame and move within a victory of the Final Four of the women’s NCAA Tournament.

Chasing a championship didn’t appear likely for Maryland at the end of last season. Frese had lost 85% of her offense a year ago as Maryland went through a roster transition with nine new faces. The group jelled quickly and is among the last teams still standing in March Madness.

“What I felt like a year ago and to where we are today,” recalled Frese, who won a national title 2006 and last reached the Elite Eight in 2015. “Yeah, this one is going to be one I’ll remember for a very long time.”

Miller and Sellers combined for 30 of their 36 points in the final two quarters.

The third-seeded Fighting Irish (27-6) played once again without injured leading scorer Olivia Miles after her knee injury at the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament earlier this month.