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After losing to Notre Dame three times this season -- and in the past two Final Fours -- UConn finally found a way to beat the Irish and Skylar Diggins to return to the NCAA championship game.

He's a bellicose, sarcastic sideline ranter. But no one draws up game plans -- or makes his players believe in them -- like Louisville coach Jeff Walz.

The right side of the bracket? Business as usual. But the left pits two teams few picked to reach New Orleans. On Sunday, it's Notre Dame vs. UConn and Louisville vs. Cal as a trio of Big East teams crashes the party in the Big Easy.

No. 2 Notre Dame 61, No. 3 UConn 59

With Skylar Diggins leading the way, Natalie Achonwa hitting the game winner and Kayla McBride pouring in points, Notre Dame's third victory of the season over UConn clinched the Irish their first Big East tournament title.

Kayla McBride scored 17 points and Skylar Diggins added 14 to help No. 2 Notre Dame beat 16th-ranked Louisville 83-59 on Monday night in the semifinals of the Big East tournament.

Exactly which team is the underdog in Tuesday's Big East final? Yes, UConn has lost six of its last seven to Notre Dame. But the Irish have never won the conference tournament, going 0-for-6 against the Huskies in championship games.

Natalie Achonwa had 20 points and 20 rebounds to lead the second-ranked Irish to a 75-66 win over South Florida on Sunday in the Big East women's tournament quarterfinals.

The Big East is seeking at least $2.5 million from Notre Dame to allow the Fighting Irish to leave and join the ACC on July 1, a source told ESPN.

Notre Dame guard Skylar Diggins, Connecticut forward Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis and South Florida guard Andrea Smith are the unanimous selections to the All-Big East team.

The ACC will allow Notre Dame to join the league this summer if the Fighting Irish can exit the Big East Conference, sources told ESPN.

Skylar Diggins scored 29 points and sparked a decisive run in the third overtime as No. 2 Notre Dame beat third-ranked Connecticut 96-87 Monday night to win Big East regular-season title outright for the second straight year.

Notre Dame has had UConn's number of late, and Monday night's matchup should be no different, with the Irish picking up their sixth win in the last seven meetings between these Big East rivals.

Skylar Diggins scored 28 points and No. 2 Notre Dame clinched a share of its second straight Big East regular-season title with a 92-57 rout of Providence.

Notre Dame's athletic department sits in a more challenging position Friday than it did Thursday. As athletic director Jack Swarbrick sees it, things probably will not be getting easier any time soon.

The Catholic 7 schools are expected to start their own league next season and will keep the Big East Conference name, sources told ESPN. Joining the Catholic 7 schools in the new "Big East" this fall will be Xavier and Butler, sources said.