2014 NATIONAL CHAMPS!

"Folks, you got to believe - just when people say you can't, you can and UConn has won the National Championship!" - Jim Nantz, CBS Sports, March 29, 1999

Congrats to Kevin Ollie and his staff, Shabazz Napier and the band of brothers.  This was one unbelievable run.  This team lost to Stanford, Houston, Cincinnati, SMU twice, Louisville three times.  This team could have lost to St. Joseph's in the second round.  What an amazing run!  No one believed...the national media was full of doubters.  WOW - what an unbelievable time....now onto Tuesday night when the women's can repeat as National Champions.

Damn, it feels good to be Husky!

AP

National Championship Game on Monday night!

In Ollie we trust!

This team has turned it around.  I am shocked and proud of this team.  For all the adversity and struggles this team has gone through, they will be playing for a national championship on Monday night.  My criticism earlier in the season was justified, but I knew the talent and potential this team had.  I am happy for them and the university.  Onto Monday night.  Go Huskies!

By the way, Turner and CBS did something awesome tonight.  The Team Cast on TNT and TruTV was just awesome.  I watched the UConn Team Cast.  I loved the basis slight of Donny Marshall and Swin Cash.  Eric Frede was great with the play-by-play.  I hope we can see more of this in the future.

AP

Gameday Preview: UConn women set for BYU in Sweet 16 showdown

Top-seeded Huskies looking advance to the Elite Eight for the ninth straight year

Well, it’s the Sweet 16 and the Connecticut women’s basketball team is in a very familiar place.  The No. 1 seeded Huskies advanced to the Lincoln Regional with two conceiving wins in the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament. They will face the No. 12 seeded BYU Cougars in the regional semifinal this afternoon at 4:30pm (ESPN) at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Neb.

Yes, that is right – the Huskies (36-0) next opponent is the 12 seed. The Cougars (28-6) had two upsets in the opening rounds in Los Angeles to advance to the Lincoln Regional. They are the third 12^th seed to advance to the Sweet 16.

In a tournament that typically lacks the upset, there were plenty within the Lincoln Regional. It all started with these Cougars who knocked off fifth-seeded N.C. State 72-57 last Saturday in the first round. Then they took down fourth-seeded Nebraska 80-76 last Monday night in the second round to advance to their first Sweet 16 since 2002. BYU’s second round win prevented Nebraska from playing on their home court in this weekend’s regional.

In the other half of the bracket, Big East champion and seventh-seeded DePaul defeated second-seeded Duke at Cameroon Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C. The Blue Demons will face No. 3 seed Texas A&M at 7pm (ESPN) in today’s other semifinal.

The Cougars know they are significant underdogs heading into this afternoon’s match-up. Two previous 12 seeds have advance to the round of 16 and lost badly. In 1996, UConn defeated San Francisco (72-44) and last season Notre Dame beat Kansas (93-63).

“It's very intimidating, and [UConn has] been here every year, so they're not nervous or excited probably as much as we are,” BYU coach Jeff Judkins told the Associated Press. “Anybody on any given night – a team can be off, foul trouble, injury, some team can be really on, so you just don't know.”

However, the Cougars are relying on their own family history to motivate them. They are being inspired by the 1983 NCAA men’s basketball champions. Forward Morgan Bailey’s uncle, Thurl, was on that N.C. State Wolfpack team. Led by coach Jim Valvano, the Wolfpack upset the Houston Cougars for the national championship. Houston was the top-seed in that tournament and on a 26-game winning streak before being upset on a last season shot.   

BYU does present a unique challenge for the Huskies. Stefanie Dolson, Breanna Stewart, and Kia Stokes will be challenged in the front court as the Cougars have Jessica Hamson. At 6-foot-7, Hamson averages 18 points and 11.5 rebounds per game and also leads the nation in block shots with 4.2 per game. Hamson was the West Coast Conference Player of the Year as well as the Defensive Player of the Year.

“She's extremely tall and is going to change a lot of shots and probably block a lot of shots,” Dolson told the Associated Press. “We have to make sure we keep attacking her and, for me, setting a lot of ball screens and bring her out of the paint so our guards can drive it in there.”

Another key to BYU is Lexi Eaton, a 5-10 guard, is averaging 17.1 points per game. Eaton had 25 points in the first round win against N.C. State.

As for the Huskies, this is the 22^nd trip to the regional semifinals. They are 19-2 in the Sweet 16 and they are looking to advance to the Elite Eight for the ninth straight year.

UConn is coming off two dominating performances this past week at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Conn.

After coming off Spring Break and a 12 day lay-off, UConn had 18 turnovers in an uncharacteristically sloppy performance in their opening round game last Sunday. The Huskies defeated No. 16 seed Prairie View A&M 87-44.

Stewart had 19 points and 10 rebounds to lead five Huskies in a balanced scoring attack. Bria Hartley had 16 points and Moriah Jefferson added 14 points and five steals. Dolson scored 11 points and had six assists, while Kalenna Mosqueda-Lewis had 13 points and six rebounds.

In the second round match-up with No. 9 seed St. Joseph’s this past Tuesday; UConn scored the first 10 points in en route to a 91-52 victory. Offensively, the Huskies were on fire with four players scoring 20 or more points. They shot 55% from the field for the second straight game and limited their turnovers to only eight. Defensively, they held the Hawks to under 35% shooting for the game.

Again five Huskies scored in double figures, led by a triple-double by Mosequeda-Lewis. She had 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Dolson (21 points and 11 rebounds) and Stewart (21 points and 10 rebounds) had double-doubles as well. Hartley also contributed with 20 points and Jefferson added 11.  

The winners of today’s games in Lincoln will play on Monday night at 9pm (ESPN) for the regional championship with the winner heading to next weekend’s Final Four in Nashville, Tenn.

American Semifinals - Journal of Day 2

The UConn women made quick work of Rutgers on Sunday afternoon at Mohegan Sun.  The Huskies just dominated the game.  They clearly came to play.

C. Vivian Stringer described UConn as a prize fighter who throws a knockout punch early in the game and they shadow box throughout the rest of the half.  Then after halftime, they throw that next punch and usually the opponent can't withstand it. If you can't survive either punches, it is a TKO.

USF came so close to an upset bid - but lost the game in the final seconds. The Schimmel sisters played a key role in the Cardinals win - Shoni with the go ahead bucket and Jude with the steal and two free throws with 3.3 seconds left.

Jeff Walz and Jose Fernandez are the most animated coaches I have seen on a sideline in a long time.

USF has some ugly uniforms.  What are the people at Under Armor thinking?

$43.30 for a ticket to Monday's championship game is well worth it.  This will be Part Three between No. 1 UConn and No. 3 Louisville.  If the Cards win, UL is the No. 1 seed in the Louisville Region and UConn will be the No. 1 seed in Lincoln.  If the Huskies win, there is a 51% chance UConn is the top seed in Louisville region and Louisville is the two seed. Still, how is Louisville not a one seed - two losses to UConn and one loss to SEC runner-up Kentucky?  The NCAA should forget about their regional rules and do the right thing and place these two teams away from each other.

Best line of the day - Geno was asked if he thought it was odd that Rutgers did not attempt a three during the game.  His answer - why shoot threes if you are going to miss.  Stringer agreed.

Of note, 2014-15 season - UConn and Rutgers may meet in either Madison Square Garden or the Barclays Center.  This all depends if Stringer wants to play a neutral site game.  Also, UConn will visit Notre Dame.  UConn an Louisville will continue to play their series in the 2015-16 season.

UConn women advance to AAC Semifinals

Uncasville, Conn. – The UConn women’s basketball team opened the American Athletic Conference postseason play with another rout. The No. 1 Huskies defeated eighth-seeded Cincinnati 72-42 in the quarterfinals at Mohegan Sun Arena. They will face fourth-seeded Rutgers on Sunday afternoon.

In front of a 7,332 partisan fans, the Huskies played uncharacteristically sloppy. As a team, they only assisted on 12 baskets, had 15 turnovers, and shot 25% from three-point range. Perhaps it can be attributed to the fact they were playing for the first time since last Monday or it was the first time playing at Mohegan Sun, which is located in southeastern Connecticut.

However, there were many positives to this game. The Huskies did win by 30 points and held the Bearcats to 32% shooting. Four starters scored in double figures. Breanna Stewart, the American Player of the Year, scored a game-high 22 points. She was nine for nine from the foul line.

Stefanie Dolson added 10 points and nine rebounds, while Bria Hartley scored 17 points and added five assists, but had five turnovers. Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis struggled shooting again going four for 10 from the field, but ended with 12 points.

UConn (32-0) will play Rutgers (22-8) on Sunday at 1pm on ESPNU in the semifinals. The Scarlet Knights came from behind to defeat SMU 68-49. Guards Kahleah Copper scored 22 points and AAC Freshman of the Year Tyler Scaife added 18 points for Rutgers.

The UConn backcourt will be challenged to defend these two players on Sunday. In addition, the Huskies must be focused and not turnover the ball. Rutgers pressed SMU throughout the second half to take control of the game. Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer said “that it is do or die” and she will do everything in her power to help her team advance to the American final on Monday night and secure an NCAA tournament bid.

Hartley and Moriah Jefferson must pass the ball up court to see Stewart and Dolson in transition. If they do that, they will win in ease. If they don’t, Rutgers will press and then drop into a zone and pack it in to force the Huskies to make outside shots.

The Huskies defeated the Scarlet Knights twice this season. Most recently, UConn won last weekend 72-35.  Defensively, the Huskies held Rutgers to their lowest scoring output of the season.

****

Game Notes:

UConn advanced to a conference semifinal for the 26^th time. They are 23-2 in the conference semifinals.

Louisville and South Florida will meet in the second semifinal on Sunday at 3pm (ESPNU).  Both teams won in Saturday evening blowouts.

Former UConn men’s basketball player Andre Drummond stopped by the UConn locker room after the game and took a picture with the team.

The American honored seven UConn players during a pre-game ceremony before the game. Soniya Chong was honored for making the All-Freshmen Team; Mosqueda-Lewis and Kia Stokes were honored for making the Second Team All-Conference; Dolson, Hartley, Jefferson and Stewart were honored for making the First Team All-Conference. Dolson received her Sportsmanship Award and Defensive Player of the Year trophies. Stewart received her Player of the Year Award and Geno Auriemma received his Coach of the Year Award.

What a mess in Louisville!

The UConn men were destroyed in Louisville on Saturday afternoon.  I am very happy I did not get the opportunity to watch it.

The defending national champions made some noise, playing at a higher level and hope to get back to the Final Four next month.

Kevin Ollie took full responsibility for the way his team played.  It was honestly embarrassing.  I am not sure if the loss against Houston was worst.  The Huskies were outplayed and outcoached.  I really hope the Huskies learn to play against zone and some pressure defense and learn some patience on offense or it will be a quick end to March.

Ollie was asked if he saw this coming and he said no.  As of fan, I saw it happening.  Last Wednesday, they struggled to beat Rutgers.  There were many times this season where they were lucky to win games.  Still it would be great if there was another consistent option or two besides Shabazz Napier.  And post play, including rebounding, is key.

UConn will play Memphis on Thursday night in Memphis in the quarterfinals of the American Athletic Conference. UConn will be the home team by seed, but Memphis will be playing on their home court.  The winner will most likely take on Cincinnati in the semifinals.

Finally, anyone else notice the happy music ESPN has during the 30 for 30 commercial on the Big East?  It is like they are happy they destroyed the Big East.  However, I did notice on the new Big East website, they control all the records and the AAC (which is technically the Big East before it was renamed the American) has nothing.  Sad to see the likes of Ray Allen, Emeka Okafor, 6 OTs and UConn's 2011 run controlled by a bunch of Catholic schools who purchased it. So is the Big East dead or just dead to ESPN?  Still want to know what UConn does with the Big East banners in Gampel Pavilion?

AAC Women's Tournament - Quarterfinal Journal

The next few days, I am reliving some of the best moments of my life.  I am covering the American Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Tournament at Mohegan Sun this weekend for SB Nation/The UConn Blog.  What a great experience and an honor!

First of all, most the reporters are still the same since I last saw them in San Antonio in April of 2002. It is great to see a lot of old faces. Do they remember me, of course not, but I remember them.  They are all great people.

Mohegan Sun Arena is a wonderful place to host this event.  It is near the American's conference headquarters in Rhode Island and it is located in the state that has the most passion for women's basketball.  Today, there were over 7,000 fans - mostly UConn fans - for the quarterfinals.  A decade ago I remember going to the Rutgers Athletic Center and it was half filled with no excitement.  The XL Center served its purpose the past eight years, but the building is old and falling apart and looked empty the past few years.  I am sure the non-UConn games will struggle in attendance at Mohegan Sun, but a "neutral" site at a smaller venue is the way to go.   

I really hope the American considers hosting the men's championship at Mohegan Sun in the future as well.

No big news to report on during the UConn-Cincinnati game from today.  I was really impressed the skill of Breanna Stewart and Stefanie Dolson.  Sitting on the baseline gives you a better vantage point than on television or in the stands.

UConn will be playing a final time against Rutgers on Sunday afternoon during a conference tournament.  My best memory of this rivalry was the Big East semifinal in 2001 when the roof leaked at Gampel causing a lengthy game stoppage.

I will be tweeting and posting pictures on Twitter @TheUConnBlog and my game stories will be posted at theuconnblog.com.  I will be continuing my journal on this site after each game.

Back to Uncasville in the afternoon!  Don't forget to change your clocks - spring forward!

The American Women’s Tournament Preview

On Friday afternoon, the American Athletic Conference announced the conference’s major award winners – Coach, Player, Rookie and Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Just like on Thursday, the University of Connecticut women’s basketball team took home some more hardware.

Sophomore Breanna Stewart was honored as the Player of the Year and head coach Geno Auriemma was named the Coach of the Year.  Rutgers’ Tyler Scaife was earned the Rookie of the Year honors, while Antonita Slaughter from Louisville was the Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

Stewart was a dominating force during the regular season. She averaged 19.8 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game. This should be the first of many awards that Stewart will earn this postseason. She is a finalist for most National Player of the Year awards and should be named a First Team All-American.

Auriemma has led the Huskies to another undefeated regular season. Dating back to last season’s NCAA Tournament, No. 1 UConn has won 37 straight games and will be the favorite to win the AAC postseason tournament and the program’s ninth national title.

UConn will begin American Tournament play on Saturday in the second quarterfinal game at 2:00pm on ESPN3. The top-seeded Huskies will face No. 8 seed Cincinnati at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.

The Bearcats hung on for a 54-52 win over No. 9 seed Central Florida in the opening round on Friday night and will play UConn for the third time this season. In the second game of the opening round, No. 10 seed Houston upset No. 7 seed Memphis and will play No. 2 seed Louisville on Saturday evening.

AAC Preview

Dark Horse-

South Florida is fighting for its NCAA Tournament lives.  They earned the No. 3 seed with a win at Rutgers this past Monday. Two more wins would get them to 20 for the season and the championship game which should guarantee them an NCAA bid.

Game to Watch-

Rutgers vs. SMU – Rutgers has been ranked during the regular season and should make the field of 64.  However, they have lost their past two games (at UConn and vs. USF).  Have they done enough to get into the NCAA Tournament?

A Final Goodbye-

UConn can possible play Rutgers and Louisville for the final time in a conference postseason tournament. Next season Rutgers is off to the Big Ten while Louisville is heading to the ACC.

Just like the Old Big East-

UConn should win their first American Athletic Conference Tournament Championship on Monday night. They have been the best team all season and have the best player and coach in the conference – if not the country. If the Huskies win, it will be their 38^th conference championship. 

American Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Tournament Schedule

Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Conn.

Quarterfinals – Saturday, March 8, 2014

12pm – No. 4 Rutgers (21-8, 12-6) vs. No. 5 SMU (17-12, 8-10)

2pm – No. 1 Connecticut (31-0, 18-0) vs. No. 8 Cincinnati (13-17, 5-13)

6pm – No. 2 Louisville (28-3, 16-2) vs. No. 10 Houston (6-24, 1-17)

8pm – No. 3 South Florida (18-11, 13-5) vs. No. 6 Temple (14-15, 8-10)

Semifinals – Sunday, March 9, 2014

1pm – Semifinal No. 1 (ESPNU)

3pm – Semifinal No. 2 (ESPNU)

Championship – Monday, March 10, 2014

7pm – Winner of the Semifinal Games (ESPN)

American announces women’s regular season awards

The American Athletic Conference named their inaugural regular season women’s basketball award winners on Thursday afternoon. The University of Connecticut, the regular season champions with a perfect 18-0 record, had seven players earn recognition. 

Stefanie Dolson received a lot of hardware and recognition. Dolson was named the American Defensive Player of the Year and the American Sportsmanship Award Winner. The senior center led the Huskies with 9.1 rebounds and was second on the team with 2.3 blocks, but also scored 12.4 points and had 3.4 assists.

Dolson joined Bria Hartley, Moriah Jefferson, and Breanna Stewart on the All-Conference First Team. Dolson, Hartley, and Stewart were unanimous selections. Hartley, a senior guard, averaged 16.6 points and 4.2 assists. Stewart, a sophomore forward, led UConn with 19.5 points and also grabbed 8.3 rebounds. Jefferson, a sophomore guard, scored 10.1 points, 5.2 assists and 2.6 steals.

Junior forwards Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis and Kiah Stokes made the All-Conference Second Team. Saniya Chong was on the All-Freshmen Team. Mosqueda-Lewis, limited to only 19 games this season due to injuries, averaged 12 points and shot 40.7 percent from three-point range. Stokes only scored 5 points per game but shot 62.3 percent from the field and averaged 7.4 rebounds off the bench. Chong averaged 5.7 points a game in her rookie season for the Huskies.

The American will announce the Coach of the Year and Player of the Year awards on Friday afternoon prior to the first round of the AAC Tournament at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.  UConn will open tournament play on Saturday in the second quarterfinal game at approximately at 2:30pm (ESPN3).  The Huskies will face the winner of Friday night’s 8/9 game between Cincinnati-Central Florida.

The UConn Blog will at the AAC Tournament. Follow our twitter feed for live updates and the blog for all your pre- and postgame tournament coverage.

American Defensive Player of the Year
Stefanie Dolson, UConn, Sr., C
 
American Most Improved Player of the Year
Asia Taylor, Louisville, R-Sr., F
 
American Sportsmanship Award
Stefanie Dolson, UConn, Sr., C
Tia Gibbs, Louisville, R-Sr., G
 
American Sixth Player of the Year
Rateska Brown, Temple, Jr., G
 
All-Conference First Team
*Stefanie Dolson, UConn, Sr., C
*Bria Hartley, UConn, Sr., G
Moriah Jefferson, UConn, So., G
*Breanna Stewart, UConn, So., F
Sara Hammond, Louisville, Jr., F
Asia Taylor, Louisville, R-Sr., F
*Shoni Schimmel, Louisville, Sr., G
Ariel Hearn, Memphis, So., G
Kahleah Copper, Rutgers, So., G
Courtney Williams, USF, So., G
*Keena Mays, SMU, Sr., G
 
All-Conference Second Team 
Jeanise Randolph, Cincinnati, Sr., F
Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, UConn, Jr., F
Kiah Stokes, UConn, Jr., C
Bria Smith, Louisville, Jr., G
Betnijah Laney, Rutgers, Jr., G/F
Tyler Scaife, Rutgers, Fr., G
Alisia Jenkins, USF, So., F
Inga Orekhova, USF, Sr., G
Akil Simpson, SMU, Sr., F
Feyonda Fitzgerald, Temple, Fr., G
Natasha Thames, Temple, R-Sr., F
 
All-Freshman Team
*Zykira Lewis, UCF, Fr., G
Bianca Quisenberry, Cincinnati, Fr., G
Saniya Chong, UConn, Fr., G
Emmonnie Henderson, Louisville, Fr., F
Breigha Wilder-Cochran, Memphis, Fr., G
Mooriah Rowser, Memphis, R-Fr., G
*Tyler Scaife, Rutgers, Fr., G
Ariadna Pujol, USF, Fr., G
*Kiara Perry, SMU, Fr., G
*Feyonda Fitzgerald, Temple, Fr., G
Taylor Robinson, Temple, Fr., C
 
[*] denotes unanimous pick                   
 
Ties are not broken

   

UConn women look to clinch top seed in AAC Tournament

Eleven months ago in New Orleans, the upstart Louisville Cardinals met the Connecticut Huskies for the NCAA National Championship. Although it was a rout for the UConn women, Louisville displayed in that game that they were no Cinderella.

Tonight, they meet again for another championship at the KFC Yum! Center in downtown Louisville, Ky. (7pm ESPN2). This time it is for the inaugural American Athletic Conference regular season title. If UConn wins, they will win the outright conference championship and will be the top seed in this weekend’s American tournament at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Conn. If Louisville wins, both teams will share the regular season title and a coin flip will determine the top seed in the tournament.

The No. 1 Huskies defeated No. 25 Rutgers, 72-35, to earn a share of the American Athletic Conference regular season championship last Saturday. In a game where they never trailed, top-ranked and unbeaten UConn (30-0 overall, 17-0 AAC) used a stifling defense to keep the Scarlet Knights at bay. Rutgers was held to a season-low 35 points scored. They played without their leading scorer Kahleah Cooper who missed most of the game Breanna Stewart and Bria Hartley led the Huskies in scoring. They both scored 20 points each. Stewart and Stefanie Dolson (six points) had 10 rebounds apiece. Kia Stokes pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds off the bench.

Last month, UConn defeated the No. 3 Cardinals 81-64 and ended a 16 game winning streak in front of soldout crowd at Gampel Pavilion. Since then, the Cards (28-2, 16-1) have won five in a row, most recently a 75-51 victory against Cincinnati.

Louisville coach Jeff Walz is known for his aggressive game plans. In the last meeting, his team was physical and they opted to leave Moriah Jefferson open. However, offensively they struggled against the UConn defense and Stewart just took over. Stewart had 24 points and 10 rebounds, while Jefferson scored a career-high 18 points. The Huskies forced 14 turnovers and held the Cardinals to 36% shooting.

Expect Walz and his team to learn from the previous meeting and come with another game plan to contain Stewart and Hartley. It is without question that Walz will use some type of full-court pressure defense to tire out the Huskies who only have eight scholarship players. They will also use a combination of a two-three or three-two zone. Expect Stewart to be double or triple teamed in the post.

The Cardinals are led by a pair of All-American candidates in guard Shoni Schimmel (17.2 point per game) and forward Sara Hammond (11.2 points, 6.6 rebounds). In the last meeting, the UConn defense was able to contain and limit both players on offense. Forward Asia Taylor (12.2 points) had 18 points in the last meeting and guard Antonia Slaughter is a three-point threat.

Both teams are pretty much at full strength. UConn saw the return of Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis on Saturday afternoon. Although she scored only seven points, she did play 27 minutes. Geno Auriemma expects Lewis to have a better shooting performance than she did last Saturday. Lewis sat out the past two weeks with mononucleosis. Louisville will have guard Bria Smith, who missed the last meeting with the Huskies due to a knee injury.

The Cardinals are undefeated at home this season (17-0) and this is their senior night.

UConn women win on Senior Day, 72-35

March got off to a great start for the Connecticut women’s basketball team. The Huskies defeated No. 25 Rutgers, 72-35, to earn a share of the American Athletic Conference regular season championship.

In a game where they never trailed, top-ranked and unbeaten UConn (30-0 overall, 17-0 AAC) used a stifling defense to keep the Scarlet Knights (21-7, 12-5) at bay.  Rutgers was held to a season-low 35 points scored. They played without their leading scorer Kahleah Cooper who missed most of the game with turf toe.

Breanna Stewart and Bria Hartley led the Huskies in scoring. They both scored 20 points each. Stewart and Stefanie Dolson (six points) had 10 rebounds apiece. Kia Stokes pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds off the bench.

Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis returned to the court after missing four games with a bout of mononucleosis and played 27 minutes and scored seven points. She was a bit rusty making only one three pointers in seven attempts but had three assists.    

Prior to the game, Hartley and Dolson were honored in the senior day festivities. Both All-Americans were also inducted into the Huskies of Honor at Gampel Pavilion.

The Huskies, which have won 36 straight, have started the season 30-0 for the seventh time in program history.  They went on to win the national title five times and went undefeated four times. This is also the ninth straight time UConn has won 30 games in a season and the 18^th time in the last 20 seasons.

During the game, Dolson pulled down her 1,000 career rebound. She became the fifth UConn player to score 1,000 points and grab 1,000 rebounds.

No. 1 UConn will visit No. 3 Louisville on Monday night in the final regular season conference game of the season. If the Huskies win, they will capture their first outright American championship and the top seed in next weekend’s conference tournament. If they lose, both teams will be declared co-champions and a coin flip will determine the top seed in the tournament.

No. 1 UConn women hosts No. 25 Rutgers on Senior Day

March is finally here. This is what college basketball is all about.

The easy competition is over.  Every game now can be a struggle.  It is all about survive and advance.  This is the time of year where legends are made.

The final two regular season games for the No. 1 Connecticut women’s basketball team are against two NCAA caliber opponents. This afternoon, UConn (29-0 overall, 16-0 American) will host No. 25 Rutgers (21-6, 12-4) at Gampel Pavilion on Senior Day (4pm, CBS Sports Network). The Huskies travel to No. 3 Louisville on Monday night.

Seniors Bria Hartley and Stefanie Dolson will be honored in a pregame ceremony. Since both were named All-Americans during their career they will both be inducted into the Huskies of Honor.

Hartley and Dolson have had stellar senior campaigns and great college careers. Hartey recently joined elite company by being the third UConn player (Diana Taurasi and Maya Moore) to have 1,500 points, 500 rebounds and 500 assists. Dolson enters today’s game is six rebounds shy of 1,000 for her career – she can become the fifth member of the 1,000 point/1,000 rebound club.

In addition to the final regular season home game at Gampel Pavilion, today marks an end of an era.  UConn and Rutgers had a fierce conference rivalry dating back to the late 1990s.  C. Vivian Stringer came to Rutgers wanting to make them the jewel of the east.  She made the Scarlet Knights relevant – NCAA appearances, Final Fours, Big East regular season and tournament titles, and wins against UConn. They gave the Huskies a run for their money in the Big East.

With Rutgers leaving for the Big Ten next season, today’s match-up may be the last between the two Hall of Fame coaches. Auriemma (868) and Stringer (924) have combined for 1,792 wins. However, Auriemma has had an edge in the overall series (31-6) against Rutgers.  The Huskies have won 11 straight games and are 18-1 at home. 

Most recently, UConn defeated Rutgers 94-64 on January 19.  Hartley scored a career-high 30 points while Breanna Stewart added 22 points and nine rebounds.  Dolson had a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Rutgers was led by Tyler Scaife (22 points) and Kahleah Copper (20 points).

Overall, the Huskies survived their 6,000 mile, nine-day road trip and got some good news along the way.  Brianna Banks came back from ankle injury and provided the team with some depth and quality minutes.  In addition, there was word on late Thursday night that Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis participated in practice and may play today.

This past week, the Huskies swept their Texas road trip defeating both Houston 92-41 and SMU 81-48. Auriemma was not pleased with the first half performance against Houston last Saturday.  Despite winning by 51 points in a nearly empty arena, the Huskies struggled to be motivated in Auriemma’s 1,000^th game.  They regrouped at the half and UConn was lights out in the second half shooting 80 percent and went on to the easy victory.  Hartley and Dolson scored 24 points apiece to pace the Huskies.

On Tuesday, SMU played with UConn and kept things closer than their previous meeting earlier this month.  The Mustangs were playing in front of their largest home crowd at Moody Coliseum.  They played pretty good defense and kept within five points with four minutes left in the first half. UConn just went on a dominating 30-7 run that spanned the end of the first half into the first eight minutes of the second half.  Hartley and Stewart led the way with 25 and 23 points, respectively, in the 33-point rout.

If UConn wins today, they will win at least a share of the American Athletic Conference regular season title.  This will be their first regular season conference championship since 2011.  They can win the outright title on Monday night at Louisville.

Would Of, Could Of, Should Of

It has been a pretty big week for the University of Connecticut.

Connecticut forward Niels Giffey, left, comes down with a rebound against Cincinnati guard JaQuon Parker, right, during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, March 2, 2013, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/David Kohl)

The week started with the men's basketball team ranked in the Top 25 for the first time since late December. 

The men's basketball team had a huge opportunity on Thursday night at AAC leader Cincinnati.  They had a 10 point lead late in the first half, but saw it evaporate late in the second half.  The Bearcats out willed and out toughed UConn late in the game.  The Huskies made plenty of poor decisions and it cost them the game.

Kevin Ollie's crew needs to refocus.  They need to get DeAndre Daniels healthy.  Daniels was out of Thursday's game with back spasms.  They have games at Central Florida on Sunday night and a home game with South Florida.  They need to win those game as well as rematches with Temple and Rutgers and try to defend their own home court in games with Memphis, SMU and Cincinnati later in the season.  They have nine games left and need to start making up ground in order to avoid the 4/5 AAC Tournament quarterfinal game.    

Bob Diaco, former Notre Dame defensive coordinator, speaks as Connecticut's new head football coach during an introductory news conference on campus in Storrs, Conn., Thursday, Dec. 12, 2013. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

The football team got 14 new players committed to playing for UConn this coming year.  However, the national ranking services gave Bob Diaco a pretty poor grade.  These rankings are dumb and flawed.  They rank young kids until their senior year of high school.  I do not believe that they take team fit into consideration. I wonder what their rankings are on these athletes while in college and in the NFL?

On Thursday, the University of Tennessee suspended the upcoming football series with UConn.  Tennessee is opting to play two neutral site games in Tennessee in 2015 and 2016.  The two universities agreed to find a new date by 2015.

Connecticut's Bria Hartley (14) drives past SMU's Gabrielle Wilkins (3) during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in Storrs, Conn., Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2014. Hartley scored a game-high 21 points in her team's 102-41 victory. (AP Photo/ Fred Beckham)

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2014/02/04/3245299/uconn-women-win-30th-straight.html#storylink=cpy

The top-ranked UConn women had their largest conference win this year defeating SMU by 61 points.  Five UConn players scored in double figures.  On Sunday, they will take on No. 4 Louisville for first place in the American Athletic Conference.  The game preview will be posted on The UConn Blog sometime on Saturday.

Go Huskies!

Steve Lappas' Post Game Comment following Thursday's Game

Watch this video from CollegeSpun...

http://collegespun.com/aac/connecticut/steve-lappas-did-not-enjoy-last-nights-uconn-houston-game-very-much#

Thoughts after the Houston blowout

Last night's victory against Houston was payback.  A very focused UConn team perhaps played one of the best defensive games of the season in the 80-43 win.  The Huskies did this without DeAndre Daniels.  However, it would be great if they can continue to do this against their conference mates.

I really think Kevin Ollie needs to have a talk with Geno Auriemma.  Geno is very familiar with many lopsided games.  These types of scores will be common place going forward in the new American Athletic Conference.  These schools were brought in for football, not basketball.  The only competition facing the Huskies will face in conference play in the future is Cincinnati, Memphis, Temple or USF (maybe???), and SMU (until Larry Brown retires).  The rest of the conference is just bad - get use to it UConn fans.

Multicultural Lesson

David Borges ‏@DaveBorges19h

Ollie: "They ruined my New Year, we ruined their Chinese New Year."

We live in a society that people can take offense to anything.  Well, Kevin Ollie has just learned that.

Kevin Ollie ‏@CoachKO_UConn8h

Chinese New Year quote was a Joke at the press conference after the game ..

The Sensitive Media

Funny, when I made this point on Twitter this afternoon, I was called negative by a UConn beat writer.  My problem with the Connecticut media is that they don't want to call an ace an ace or ask the tough questions.

Tweets

1. 1. Ed Daigneault ‏@EdDaigneault8h

      #UConn won 5 of its first 12 games by single digits. Its last five wins have come by an average of 21 pts. Closest was 83-73 vs. Memphis.

      •  Reply 
      •  Retweet 
      •  Favorite 

      Expand
   2. Back In Storrs ‏@BackInStorrs7h

      @EdDaigneault AAC! Look at will happen next year when Tulsa, Tulane, and East Carolina join. Anyway to play these in the preseason?

      •  Reply 
      •  Delete 
      •  Favorite 

      Expand
   3. Ed Daigneault ‏@EdDaigneault6h

      @BackInStorrs Geez, point out something positive, get a cynical response. Be negative and get lambasted. Ah, Twitter.

      •  Reply 
      •  Retweet 
      •  Favorite 

      Expand
   4. Back In Storrs ‏@BackInStorrs4h

      @EdDaigneault Its about time UConn is dominating teams. Its not negative, just facts. Look at the remaining schedule vs the RPI.

Weekly Recap on the Huskies

The UConn men's basketball team took care of business against two of the cellar dwellers in the American Athletic Conference this past week.  Without Ryan Boatright and in front of  a cozy home crowd due to a snowstorm, the Huskies destroyed the Temple Owls (99-66) on Tuesday night at the XL Center in Hartford.  Last night, UConn made a final conference road trip to Northern Jersey and the Rutgers Athletic Center - a horrible building in its own right - and dismantled the Scarlet Knights (82-71).

On Tuesday night, behind stellar performances by Shabazz Napier (27 points) and DeAndre Daniels (31 points), the Huskies outright dominated new conference foe Temple.  It was a performance for the ages for these two.  They came a few points short of becoming the first UConn duo to score 30 points a piece in a game.   The team was on fire from the field, hitting 53.4% of their shots, and going 12-23 from three point range.  The Huskies also held their own on the glass, winning the battle of the boards 45-25.

Saturday night, the Huskies started the game up 1-0 before tip-off at Rutgers.  Referee Duke Edsell (yes, brother of former UConn football coach Randy Edsell) called an administrative technical foul while Rutgers was in the lay-up lines.  A Rutgers player was dunking the ball when he was not suppose to.  The crowd was electric at the RAC.  It could be the little shop of horrors in what looks like a bomb shelter.  The game was back and forth, but the Huskies were able to build a ten point lead midway through the first half.  They kept Rutgers in the game throughout.  Niels Giffey (9 points in 33 minutes) hit open threes and Amida Brimah (10 points and 8 rebounds) was a force down low.

Rutgers did cut the lead down to five at the half and took it early in the second half on an 11-0 run.  Little used freshman guard Terrance Samuel came into the game, provided some instance offense with the Huskies struggling, and converted on a three point play which gave the Huskies back the lead.  Napier took over in the final 18 minutes of the game scoring 20 points.  Napier finished with a game high 26 points.

The big concern are the ankle injuries of two key players.  Omar Calhoun injured his ankle during the Temple game and did not play on Saturday.  DeAndre Daniels suffered a high ankle sprain late in the first half on Saturday. A good thing the schedule is spread out the next couple of weeks.  The Huskies play twice in the next 12 days.  This gives time to heal.

Expect the Huskies to be ranked in this coming week's AP and USA Today polls.  They are winners of five of six games.  UConn is 16-4 overall and 4-3 in the American.  Currently, they are fifth place in the American - only a half game out in the loss column of third place (Memphis and SMU are 4-2).  Cincinnati (7-0) and Louisville (6-1) are the top two teams in the conference.

The Huskies are off until Thursday night when the host Houston at 9pm at Gampel Pavilion.  (Yes, those Houston Cougars who knocked off UConn on New Years Eve.)  The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.  If you do not get the game on your local tv package, listen to the game on the radio (1080AM - Hartford or 960AM New Haven) - do no pay UConnHuskies.com to listen to the broadcast online.  There is no online coverage of the game.  You only can listen for free online, tune in to WHUS.org, 91.7FM, the UConn student radio station.

Random Thoughts on a Tuesday Morning-

Can Brimah and Nolan come off the bench and continue their recent performance?  Interesting quote by UConn Associate Head Coach Glen Miller over the weekend where he said that Brimah can be an offensive threat but the guards need to get him the ball high and not at his ankles.  I think that quote can be said for any big man, at any level.

********
Speaking of distributing the ball, the Huskies are a bunch better team when they share the basketball.  They proved that on Saturday night.  In order to be successful, they cannot be a one-man show.  It has to be a team effort.

********

I am surprised that I got a letter from the UConn Athletic Department saying that I can buy tickets to the AAC men's basketball championship in Memphis.  That would never happen in the old Big East at MSG.  This is a whole new world in conference realignment.  But who is going to Memphis in early March?

********

Moving over to  women's basketball - a very good solid win by the UConn women's basketball team at Baylor.  They struggled but gutted out a road win and ended the Bears 69-game home winning streak.  Who knows how many more close games the Huskies will face the rest of the season, but this experience will help come NCAA Tournament time.

********

It was great that Baylor used the UConn version of jock jams before the tip during last night's game.  It made it more of a home game in Texas for the Huskies.

********

For all those few people on a certain message board website that supports UConn Athletics - please stop posting about building a new football stadium on the Storrs Campus.  I would post a response but would be considered a troll, but I am going to respond here.  These people are not too smart - have they ever been to the Storrs campus?  When I moved into Storrs in August of 1999 during freshman move-in, it took over 2 hours on Route 195 to go 10 miles from the Exit 68 off ramp on I-84.  The surrounding areas cannot support the traffic.  In addition, the State of Connecticut had invested over $100 million to build the current stadium and additional millions to put in new scoreboards - why waste the taxpayers dollars?  East Hartford, with access to several highways, is in a great location for everyone to get to in the state.  Storrs is not Ann Arbor or Columbus - its a rural campus, not an urban center.  Please think before you post!

Talk to you after Thursday's game!

Brian

Back in the American

Wednesday night was a gutsy performance by the Huskies. The average fan does not know that Harvard is a great basketball team with a great coach.   The Crimson is an NCAA Tournament team and will be a tough out come March.  This win will help the RPI in March.

Yes, UConn had to deal with turnovers during the first half and poor shooting in the second half and then there was final sequence of events in the final minute,  but they pulled it off.  Perhaps this was the best team win of the season.

Tonight they will be challenged by UCF.  Gampel will be close to a sellout.  The American is back open for business.  Win tonight and the Huskies are only two games out of first place.  Cincinnati looks strong and are undefeated, and Memphis and Louisville both have a loss.  If UConn wins the next three, they will be up there challenging for the conference crown.  The only thing good about a true round-robin schedule,  you determine a true champion.

Go Huskies!