Tampa, Fla. — Adversity, the exhaustively used word in many sports conversations, is normally relative. That which is adverse to Team A may not be so much to Team B. And there has never been a better example than the UConn women of 2019, who faced levels of adversity other programs would call abject success.

They've lost two games all year.

"It's crazy to talk about that. We had a lot of adversity this year. We lost two games," UConn coach Geno Auriemma said Thursday, preparing his team for Friday night's national semifinal against Notre Dame (9:30, ESPN2) at Amalie Arena.

"I mean, just saying those words makes you think, 'What an idiot.' Whoever would say we faced a lot of adversity this year and lost two games? Some people lose two games in a weekend."

Ah, but a funny thing's happened to the Huskies facing their version of adversity. They've spit in the eyes of fear. Kind of like when sports mirror life: Fear can be crippling. But there's a sense of empowerment once you've seen the worst and realized ... it's not so bad.

"Our players have already experienced something different than they've experienced the other couple years," Auriemma said. "Any other team in America, they lose the game, it's in the newspaper tomorrow, probably on page four, or can't find it on dot-com anywhere. We lose a game, it's at (No. 1) Baylor, it's on the CBS Evening News. Our kids have experienced that dramatic feeling of, 'Oh, my God, we lost.' They got up the next day, we still had practice, everything was great.

"I think there's this sense coming out here this year, 'What's the big deal?' We've been down that road already. We know what it's like to lose. We know what it's like to win. For the first time, I can honestly say in a long time, in the UCLA (Sweet 16 game) second half, and the Louisville (Elite Eight) game, I was coaching a Connecticut team that wasn't burdened by afraid to lose ... and was playing to win."

This group, too, has lost at the buzzer in the last two Final Fours. Can't get much worse than that, right?

"I wonder, last year and the year before, coming out here, and I know for sure that they did, those teams were more afraid to lose the national championship than wanting to win a national championship," Auriemma said. "We might get beat (Friday) night. But we're not going to lose. They're going to have to beat our (behinds). We're not just going to lose because we're afraid to lose."

The Huskies didn't lose at Notre Dame earlier this season. They may have actually played their best game, an 89-71 win that dethroned Notre Dame as the nation's No. 1 team at the time. Notre Dame, with a defense disorder much of the season, couldn't guard UConn that day.

"It's hard to say what's the most important thing when you look at the team and say, 'Well, we can't let (Katie Lou) Samuelson go off for 29, we can't let Napheesa (Collier) own the backboard and do what she wants," Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw said. "(Crystal) Dangerfield is so critical to their team. You don't want to let one of the other two get loose. Really there's so many critical points. I think rebounding is always key for us. If we can defend and get a rebound, that's going to help our transition game. That's probably maybe the biggest key."

Not that Auriemma believes the outcome of a game on Dec. 2 bears much significance to a Friday night in April. UConn lost to Louisville during the regular season, too. But not last week.

"I just think (Friday's) game is a completely different game," Auriemma said. "I always tell our players whenever we win a big game in December, I say, 'Listen, we're going to have to get a lot better fast. I'm assuming the teams we play against, they're getting a lot better. And Notre Dame is a lot better today than they were in December, no doubt in my mind. I mean, I think they're the best team in the country. I don't think anybody else is even close. Baylor. But I don't think anybody else, I think, can match Notre Dame when they're playing their 'A' game. They just overwhelm you, man, at every position."

m.dimauro@theday.com

NO. 2 UCONN VS. NO. 1 NOTRE DAME

NCAA Final Four

Location: Amalie Arena, Tampa, Fla.

Tip: 9:30 p.m. (approximate), ESPN2

Last game: UConn defeated No. 1 Louisville 80-73 in NCAA Albany Regional Final; Notre Dame defeated No. 2 Stanford 84-68 in NCAA Chicago Regional final.

Probable starters: UConn 6-1 F Megan Walker (12.2 ppg, 6.4 rpg), 6-3 G Katie Lou Samuelson (18.5 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 3.9 apg), 6-2 F Napheesa Collier (21.1 ppg, 10.7 rpg, 3.6 apg, 1.5 spg, 1.5 bpg), 5-5 G Crystal Dangerfield (13.8 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 6.0 apg, 1.6 spg), 5-11 G Christyn Williams (11.3 ppg, 3.1 rpg).

Notre Dame: 5-11 G Arike Ogunbowale (21.5 ppg, 4.8 rpg); 6-3 C Jessica Shepard (16.8 ppg; 10.2 rpg); 5-11 G Jackie Young (15.1 ppg; 7.4 rpg); 6-3 F Brianna Turner (14.4 ppg; 7.5 rpg); 6-0 G Marina Mabrey 12.5 ppg; 2.8 rpg)

Noteworthy: This is the second meeting of the season between the two best rivals in women's basketball. UConn won at Notre Dame, 89-71, on Dec. 2. ... The Irish defeated the Huskies in last season's national semifinals in Columbus, thanks to Ogunbowale's buzzer beater in overtime. ... Notre Dame's starters have combined for 10,070 points, the most ever by a starting five in men's or women's college basketball history. ... UConn leads the series 37-12, but Notre Dame is 4-3 against Connecticut in the NCAA Tournament. ... Samuelson and Collier have 4,708 combined points, the most for a pair of classmates in program history. ... Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw (922-274) and UConn coach Geno Auriemma (1,062-138) have combined for 1,984 wins in their 71 combined seasons. ... This is Notre Dame's ninth Final Four. UConn has been here 12 straight times and 20 overall. ... Walker tied her career high with 12 rebounds against Louisville.

— Mike DiMauro