Baylor's Brittney Griner dunked four times all season. Maybe not as much as expected given her 6-foot-8 frame and status on YouTube.
But she set an NCAA tournament record for blocked shots and became the biggest name in women's college basketball at 19 years old.
She also threw the most famous punch in basketball this season, got suspended two games and took the Bears to the Final Four.
It's the last one Baylor prizes most.
``I told Brittney, I know a lot of four-time All-Americans that didn't make it to a Final Four until their senior year,'' Baylor coach Kim Mulkey said. ``You brought your team here as a freshman. Build on it.''
Those were the last words Griner heard from Mulkey in the waning seconds of Connecticut's 70-50 win over Baylor on Sunday, moving the Huskies to the national championship game and ending a Baylor run few predicted.
Yes, even with Griner.
``I just hope to be back,'' Griner said.
Those chances look good.
Baylor (27-10) entered just their second Final Four with five freshmen and one senior, forward Morghan Medlock. The Bears came into this season having lost four starters, their top four scorers, from a 29-win team.
That youth bodes well for Baylor's future. But against the Huskies, it was part of its downfall.
Mulkey said Baylor's inexperience mostly explained how the Bears pulled within three points of UConn in the second half only to wind up with their second-most lopsided loss of the season. While Baylor won its first national championship in 2005 behind a veteran star in Sophia Young, the Bears had no upperclassmen to lean on this time.
While Griner chased Tina Charles, The Associated Press player of the year, freshmen Shanay Washington, Nae-Nae Haden and Jordan Madden took their shots against Maya Moore. Charles and Moore combined for 55 points, the two of them outscoring Baylor.
``Therein lies the difference in the game,'' Mulkey said. ``And because of the experience our freshman got guarding those great players, I can only think in the future they're going to be really excited to have an opportunity to get back here.''
Medlock guaranteed it.
``When these kids are back in the Final Four - which they will be - I think they'll know what to do,'' she said.
Baylor may not look much different next season, but the Bears hope Griner will. She set an NCAA tournament record with 40 blocks and finished with an NCAA record 223 in a single season. She led Baylor through the tournament, averaging 16 points and 7.6 rebounds, and her presence was unlike any Connecticut had seen in its 77-game winning streak.
Griner's height was a big reason for her dominance. But Mulkey wants Griner to bulk up in the weight room before her sophomore year so she's not pushed around so much in the paint. She also wants Griner to shore up her offensive rebounding.
For her part, Griner said she learned plenty by going up against Charles. Baylor will get another crack against Connecticut early next season, though Charles will be gone.
By then, Griner likely will keep chipping closer to Candace Parker's career record of seven dunks. And begin working to get back to the Final Four.
``The progress those young ladies made is big,'' Mulkey said. ``But you haven't seen the best of them yet.''
