SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
And now it's time for sports.
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SIMON: March Madness. Oh, wait, it's April. Women's championship tomorrow - South Carolina and UConn. Men's Final Four tonight. Howard Bryant of Meadowlark Media joins us. Howard, thanks for being with us.
HOWARD BRYANT: Good morning, Scott. How are you?
SIMON: I'm fine, thanks, my friend. Let's try April hysteria. Women's tournament, finals set after South Carolina beat Texas 74 to 57. UConn throttled UCLA 85 to 51. Who do you think has the edge in the final tomorrow?
BRYANT: That's a great question. You're talking about one team, UConn, that's won the thing 11 times with Geno Auriemma. Then you're talking about Dawn Staley in South Carolina. They're the defending champions. So tough to say who's got the edge. I think that I'm - you know me. Scott, we've been doing this for a long time. You're always - you're the champion until somebody beats you. So even though UConn...
SIMON: Yeah.
BRYANT: ...Looked phenomenal, even though I think they've got the best player in the country in Paige Bueckers and they look like they are absolutely ready to finally do something that Paige hasn't done, which is to win the championship. She's been in the Final Four almost her entire career, other than...
SIMON: Yeah.
BRYANT: ...The - you know, the 2023 knee injury. But she's so close. And you want to climb that mountain, now's the time to do it. But at the same time, you're going up against a championship team that has looked beatable, but here they are again. South Carolina's champion for a reason.
SIMON: Men's tournament, Final Four tonight. Florida faces Auburn. Houston faces Duke. All the No. 1 seeds in play. First time in the Final Four since 2008. So, I mean, what was March (laughter) - what was March about?
BRYANT: Yeah. Well, it's interesting because the last time it happened, and the only other time it happened, was in 2008 in San Antonio, and here we are again in San Antonio. So...
SIMON: Yeah.
BRYANT: ...That - you've got great teams. I think that these - they are the four best teams. They've all been sort of trading being No. 1. or very - you know, very close to it. I didn't think Auburn was going to get there. They - because they can be so erratic. But they've all played close games. They've all won blowouts as well. They all play defense. I think Houston's the one whose offense isn't really - isn't as good as the other ones. I mean, Duke has got Cooper Flagg, who - you're probably going to see him in the NBA in about six months. And so every team here has a reason why they can win. You look at even, you know, a team like Florida that nobody thought was as good as - they are a good team. They haven't - well, you know, they lost one game...
SIMON: Yeah.
BRYANT: ...Since February 1. So everybody's great. They all play similar styles. Then you've got the superstar with Cooper Flagg and Duke, but they're the youngest team. So here we go.
SIMON: And, of course, last night in the NHL, Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals tied the NHL's all-time scoring record held by Wayne Gretzky. He scored two goals last night. Thirty-nine-years-old, still playing at such a high level. Just...
BRYANT: And broke his leg this year, by the way.
SIMON: Right. I'd forgotten that.
BRYANT: (Laughter) And broke his leg in November. Incredible. And I think this is - I mean, this is one of those records, Scott. You're not supposed...
SIMON: Yeah.
BRYANT: ...To break Wayne Gretzky's record. And to have done it in one - and to tie it in one fewer game is sort of also amazing. And I think that when you look at Ovi, the scoring, the goals, the ferocity, the way he plays the game, there is so much to love about what he's done. I think the amazing thing is, obviously, this is one of those records that you're just never - you never expected anyone when Gretzky broke Gordie Howe's record at 801...
SIMON: Yeah.
BRYANT: ...Back, you know, 30 years ago, you didn't think anybody was going to get to 894, and here we are. And if he wants to, because he's still playing so well...
SIMON: Yep.
BRYANT: ...He could score 950 - he can score a thousand goals...
SIMON: Wow.
BRYANT: ...If he wants to keep going. But it's fascinating to see it happen, to witness one of the all-time great records go. And I think the thing that I really sort of enjoy about it, as well, is that this is also what it takes. Because let's not forget, before they won the cup, you know, seven years ago, people were thinking that he was finished...
SIMON: That's right.
BRYANT: ...That he was done.
SIMON: That's right.
BRYANT: And here he is at the top of the mountain - a Mount Rushmore moment for the unbreakable record about to be broken.
SIMON: OK. Howard Bryant of Meadowlark Media, thanks so much for being with us.
BRYANT: Oh, my pleasure, Scott. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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