







UCONN'S
LADY
HUSKIES' WEBSITE
IF KIPLING HAD BEEN AT THE GAME...
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and turning it over,
If you can trust yourself when all people doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too, since you know you're good...
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies, like some other folks do,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:
If you can dream--and not make dreams your master,
If you can think--and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, and make the put-back
And win, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your winning streak;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with Presidents--nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all people count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With forty minutes worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be NUMBER ONE!
-Rudyard Kipling (slightly
changed)
B I G E A S T C O M P E T I T
I O N U N D E R W A Y

Just another day at the office,as UConn commutes to Philly to play
Villanova...
N U M B E R O N
E A G A I N S T N U M B E
R T W O . . . D E C E M B E
R 2 3 , 2 0 0 9







WITH THE 2000 TEAM AND RENEE WATCHING...
What a game!!! We especially liked the first half, when Stanford
could do no wrong...but they only were ahead by one basket! It
was clear that the second half would be different (there was a lid over
the hoop at one end, and in the second half, that became Stanford's
problem!!! NYTIMES reports below: on
the game; about Maya and the Rhodes
Scholarship possibilities.
UConn 80, Stanford 68: Cupcakes
Polished Off, UConn Gets Serious
NYTIMES
By JERÉ LONGMAN
December 24, 2009
HARTFORD — Geno Auriemma gathered his players recently and announced
that the cupcake part of Connecticut’s schedule was over. The Huskies’
remaining regular-season games would be to win the Big East women’s
title and to answer challenges against such powers as Stanford, Duke,
North Carolina and Oklahoma.
“About time,” the reserve forward Meghan Gardler said.
The first real test came Wednesday as second-ranked Stanford took a
2-point halftime lead over the top-ranked Huskies and threatened their
48-game winning streak.
The danger ended quickly, though, in an 80-68 UConn victory fueled by
23 points from Maya Moore, a hounding defense and a relentless fast
break.
The final score hardly described UConn’s second-half dominance before a
sellout of 16,294 at XL Center. The win suggested that the Huskies
(10-0) could be headed to a second consecutive undefeated season and a
seventh national title.
Since losing to Stanford in the 2008 national semifinals, UConn has won
every game by double figures. On Wednesday, a 44-44 tie ballooned to a
72-50 lead before Stanford (9-1) rallied in the final, inconsequential
minutes.
Moore struggled with her jumper after two early fouls and reached
halftime without a rebound or an assist. In the second half, she
displayed her usual mastery and delivered 12 points, 9 rebounds and 4
assists in 18 minutes.
The Huskies repeatedly challenged Jayne Appel, Stanford’s 6-foot-4
center, dumping the ball inside to Tina Charles (20 points, 12
rebounds), storming the lane and tightroping the baseline. Forward
Kalana Greene added 17 points and 9 rebounds.
UConn pressed Stanford early in the second half, shredding its triangle
offense, then hit the boards and the gas pedal.
“They went to the basket,” Stanford Coach Tara VanDerveer said. “They
don’t care if you get in the way or not, they’re going in there.
They’re head and shoulders above us. They play at a different pace than
anybody.”
UConn Star Has an Eye on Oxford
NYTIMES
By JERÉ LONGMAN
December 24, 2009
HARTFORD — Maya Moore of Connecticut is a first-team all-American on
the basketball court and in the classroom, which means there are points
to be scored, averages to be kept and scholarships to seek on more than
one level.
At the urging of her academic advisers, Moore, a 6-foot junior forward
who is the consensus best player in the country, said she was
considering applying for a Rhodes scholarship. If selected for 2011,
she would be the most prominent basketball player chosen since Bill
Bradley in 1965 and Tom McMillen in 1974.
“I don’t think you can say that one aspect of my life built my
perspective,” Moore, 20, said in an interview before scoring 23 points
as top-ranked UConn defeated second-ranked Stanford, 80-68, here
Wednesday. “It is a combination of my faith, my family, the people I’ve
met at Connecticut and understanding that basketball is a platform for
something bigger than the game, helping people, touching people’s
lives. You can do that internationally with basketball.”
Of the 12 athletes chosen among 32 Americans as Rhodes scholars for
2009, two played women’s basketball in college — Caitlin Mullarkey, who
also played soccer and ran track at Swarthmore; and Lindsay Whorton, an
all-Missouri Valley Conference player at Drake. Rebecca Lobo of UConn
was a candidate in 1995.
Moore, who has a 3.7 grade point average in sports media and promotion,
could not say exactly what broadened her perspective in college. But
she noted that she had traveled internationally with USA Basketball,
playing in Serbia and in Slovakia. In November 2008, she got out of
practice early and sprinted to a lecture by the author and poet Maya
Angelou — after whom she was named because her mother admired Angelou’s
work.
“She represents so many things, not just for African-Americans, but for
our country,” Moore said at the time. “I think of her like a Barack
Obama — one of the first icons for us.”
Moore later met President Obama when UConn traveled to the White House
after winning the 2009 national title with an undefeated season. She
was named both the national player of the year and a first-team
academic all-American.
“I felt a deeper appreciation for the founders of this nation,” Moore
wrote in a blog post after visiting the White House. “We truly do live
in an amazing country. Actually walking where some of our great leaders
have walked gave me chills! Meeting President Obama was as enjoyable as
advertised, and he left an inspiring impression on us all.”
The fact that the president took time to shoot a few baskets with the
players “made me remember what life is all about,” Moore wrote. “It is
about investing in people and having faith that the love you impart on
them will somehow make the world better than it was.”
She said she had not yet considered whether she, too, might be
interested in a political career, as were Bradley and McMillen, who
served in the United States Senate and the House of Representatives,
respectively. Still, reflecting on her trip to the White House, Moore
said, “When you have those type of experiences, you start thinking
bigger than yourself.”
The application process for a Rhodes scholarship is complicated and
arduous. Geno Auriemma, the UConn coach, said that for Moore to be a
serious candidate, she must find a deeply felt subject to study at
Oxford. She might have to delay her entry into the W.N.B.A., where she
is expected to be the first pick in the 2011 draft. But it is a summer
league, and Moore said she thinks she could juggle her academic and
athletic responsibilities.
“Does she have a passion for one thing that will take her in that
direction, like, ‘I want to be the greatest writer ever; I want to get
my Ph.D. in this and I think this is the one thing that consumes my
life’? ” Auriemma said. “I think you have to have a single-mindedness
in order to do that. Some people do and some don’t.”
A chance to play in the 2012 Olympics could also play a factor in her
decision, although Moore might find herself in an accommodating
position. Auriemma will coach the United States women’s team at those
Games, which will be held in London.
Still, athletes can feel tremendous pressure when applying for a Rhodes
scholarship, Auriemma said. They excel at their chosen sports because
they are in control and are often able to influence the outcome of a
game. They become more vulnerable when putting their futures to a vote
of a panel of judges.
“The chances of getting turned down are greater than being accepted,”
Auriemma said. “You’ve got to be willing at the end to maybe be
disappointed. Some of the great ones don’t like to put themselves in a
situation where they can’t control the outcome. On the court, the
scoreboard is the only vote that counts. But for these kids to put
themselves in a situation of applying for a Rhodes scholarship takes
courage. They have zero control. I admire anyone in that position. If
Maya wanted to, I would do everything in my power to help her see it
through.”
Whether Moore applies or not, and is accepted or rejected, she seems to
have an insatiable appetite for knowledge and expertise of all sorts,
said Kalana Greene, a teammate. “If there is an opportunity out there
to get something, she goes and gets it,” Greene said. “She’s a great
communicator. She can talk to anyone. We always crack on her, ‘Maya
you’re not good at everything,’ but really she is. She’s even a good
drummer. She can listen to any song, gather the beat and she has it.”
UCONN 1999-2000 HONORED
AT STANFORD GAME DECEMBER 23, 2009 (r.): Renee in the stands,
(notice who she is sitting among) itching to get on the floor and sink
a 3 (first half)!!!



CPTV's UConn Broadcast Schedule
for 2009-2010 (Subject to Change)
Full UConn WBB:
http://www.uconnhuskies.com/sports/w-baskbl/sched/conn-w-baskbl-sched.html
(Games
completed in italics)
Tuesday, November 10 at 8pm
The Geno Auriemma Show: You Make the
Call (live call-in show)
Saturday, November 14 at 2 pm
vs. Northeastern (Gampel Pavilion)
Friday, November 20 at 7:30 pm
at Holy Cross
(The Geno Auriemma Show precedes the
game at 7 pm)
Friday, November 27 at 7:30 pm
2009 WBCA Classic Tournament - UConn
vs. Hofstra (Gampel Pavilion)
Saturday, November 28 at 7:30 pm
2009 WBCA Classic Tournament - UConn
vs. Richmond (Gampel Pavilion)
Sunday, November 29 at 4:30 pm
2009 WBCA Classic Tournament - UConn
vs. Clemson (Gampel Pavilion)
Thursday, December 3 at 7:30 pm
vs. Vermont (Gampel Pavilion)
(The Geno Auriemma Show precedes the
game at 7 pm
Thursday, December 10 at 7 pm
vs. Hartford (XL Center)
(The Geno Auriemma Show precedes the
game at 6 pm)
Sunday, December 20 at 6 pm
vs. Iona (Gampel Pavilion)
(The Geno Auriemma Show precedes the
game at 5 pm)
Monday, January 4 at 7 pm
vs. University of South Florida (XL Center)
Thursday, January 7 at 7:30 pm
vs. Cincinnati (Gampel Pavilion)
(The Geno Auriemma Show precedes the game at 7 pm)
Wednesday, January 13 at 8 pm
at Marquette
Tuesday, February 2 at 7 pm
vs. West Virginia (XL Center)
Wednesday, February 10 at 8 pm
at DePaul
Saturday, February 13 at 5 pm
vs. St. John's (Gampel Pavilion)
(The Geno Auriemma Show precedes the game at 4 pm)
Saturday, February 20 at 1 pm
vs. Providence (XL Center)
(The Geno Auriemma Show precedes the game at 12 pm)
Saturday, February 27 at 12 pm
vs. Georgetown (XL Center)
(The Geno Auriemma Show at 10 am precedes A Tribute To The Class of
2010 at 11 am)
THANK YOU, BONEYARD!
From a moderator of that board, on
August 13, 2009:
...Some information from NCAA.org
(a) August 1 through September 15,
2009: Quiet Period
(b) September 16 through October 6,
2009: Contact Period
October 2-4, 2009: Evaluations
permitted at nonscholastic women’s basketball events.
(c) October 7, 2009 through February
28, 2010, [except for (1) and (2) below]: Evaluation Period
(1) November 9-12, 2009: Dead
Period
(2) December 24-26, 2009: Dead
Period
(d) March 1 through April 1,
2010: Contact Period
Definitions:
Contact
A contact occurs any time a coach
has any face-to-face contact with you or your parents off the college's
campus and says more than hello. A contact also occurs if a coach has
any contact with you or your parents at your high school or any
location where you are competing or practicing.
Contact Period
During this time, a college coach
may have in-person contact with you and/or your parents on or off the
college's campus. The coach may also watch you play or visit your high
school. You and your parents may visit a college campus and the coach
may write and telephone you during this period.
Dead Period
The college coach may not have any
in-person contact with you or your parents at any time in the dead
period. The coach may write and telephone you or your parents during
this time.
Evaluation.
An evaluation is an activity by a
coach to evaluate your academic or athletics ability. This would
include visiting your high school or watching you practice or compete.
Evaluation Period
The college coach may watch you play
or visit your high school, but cannot have any in-person conversations
with you or your parents off the college's campus. You and your parents
can visit a college campus during this period. A coach may write and
telephone you or your parents during this time.
Official Visit
Any visit to a college campus by you
and your parents paid for by the college. The college may pay the
following expenses:
• Your transportation to and from
the college;
• Room and meals (three per day)
while you are visiting the college; and
• Reasonable entertainment expenses,
including three complimentary admissions to a home athletics contest.
Before
a college may invite you on an official visit, you will have to provide
the college with a copy of your high school transcript (Division I
only) and SAT, ACT or PLAN score and register with the NCAA Eligibility
Center.
Prospective
Student-Athlete
You become a “prospective
student-athlete” when:
• You start ninth-grade classes; or
• Before your ninth-grade year, a
college gives you, your relatives or your friends any financial aid or
other benefits that the college does not provide to students generally.
Quiet Period
The college coach may not have any
in-person contact with you or your parents off the college's campus.
The coach may not watch you play or visit your high school during this
period. You and your parents may visit a college campus during this
time. A coach may write or telephone you or your parents during this
time.
Unofficial Visit
Any visit by you and your parents to
a college campus paid for by you or your parents. The only expense you
may receive from the college is three complimentary admissions to a
home athletics contest. You may make as many unofficial visits as you
like and may take those visits at any time. The only time you cannot
talk with a coach during an unofficial visit is during a dead period.
Verbal Commitment
This phrase is used to describe a
college-bound student-athlete's commitment to a school before he or she
signs (or is able to sign) a National Letter of Intent. A college-bound
student-athlete can announce a verbal commitment at any time. While
verbal commitments have become very popular for both college-bound
student-athletes and coaches, this "commitment" is NOT binding on
either the college-bound student-athlete or the school. Only the
signing of the National Letter of Intent accompanied by a financial aid
agreement is binding on both parties.
© The National Collegiate
Athletic Association
WNBA
ALL-STAR GAME: Auriemma's
Prints Are All Over This Day
Courant.com
Jeff Jacobs
July 26, 2009
STORRS — Sorry, my mistake.
UNCASVILLE — Five of the 22 WNBA All-Stars played at UConn. If you're
keeping score in Knoxville, Tenn., that's 22.7 percent of the best
players in the world.
Swin Cash, Class of 2002, was named
Most Valuable Player and set an All-Star Game record Saturday with 22
points in the West's 130-118 victory.
Rebecca Lobo, Class of 1995, was
named to the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.
And during a halftime ceremony
honoring the 2008 Olympians, Geno Auriemma, the coach of the 2012 team,
got the biggest ovation of the day from the sellout crowd of 9,518 at
Gampel, oops, Mohegan Sun Arena.
"It's a WNBA event," Sue Bird said.
"But I think UConn might have taken over."
Bird had 16 points and 10 assists
for the West, while Diana Taurasi had 18 points, Charde Houston scored
16 and, man, we hate to sound provincial, but UConn's fingerprints were
all over this celebration of women's basketball.
"Coach's fingerprints are all over
everything," corrected Lobo. "I brought up all the UConn All-Stars to
Diana, and she said, 'It's all because of The Man.' If he had never
become the coach at UConn, you wouldn't have any of this happening.
"It's great to be a Husky today.
Best program in the country."
You say this and still plan on being
in Knoxville next June for the induction?
"People are very nice to me there,"
Lobo said. "I hope Coach Summitt invites me over. I hear she makes a
mean whatever the drink is. I know she'll save me from any wild
raccoons, too."
Coming off a third perfect season
and with a seventh national title on the horizon, you don't need the
vinaigrette to realize these are the salad days of UConn basketball.
There will be at least four, possibly five or six and — good grief — a
long shot of seven Huskies among 12 U.S. Olympians in London.
"People always tell me the impact
Connecticut basketball has had," Auriemma said. "I kind of shrug it off
and move on. A day like today makes you sit back and for the first time
get a sense what it means to the world of basketball in college, in the
pros and the Olympics."
Auriemma had the 2002 starting five
over to the house Friday night. It was the first time they had all been
together in seven years. Auriemma said he was flooded by memories.
"We were hoping Renee and Maya would
show up," Taurasi said. "We were a little disappointed. We wanted to
play 2-on-2 in the backyard.
Bird and Taurasi, of course, had
gone on ESPN earlier in the day and Bird told the world the 2002 team
would beat the 2009 team nine out of 10 times by an average of 15
points. Auriemma offered no rebuttal.
"I kept telling this year's team
that they beat you by 20 every night," Auriemma said. "I said it to try
to motivate them. But Sue, D and those guys, they think even 10 years
from now no one will ever be able to beat them. And they're right. As
good a team as we had this year, as great a group of guys we had, I
don't think there'll ever be at team like that 2002 team — ever."
Now he was on a roll. He wanted to
talk about Lobo.
"I don't know anybody's done more,
or had a bigger impact on women's basketball in the last 25 years,"
Auriemma said. "The average person in America who didn't know anything
about women's basketball knows Rebecca Lobo and what she did in college.
"She hasn't changed one bit since
high school. She was the girl next door. I don't think anybody could
have handled what happened in her college career the way she handled
it. ... She's unsurpassed as a person. Smart, talented, kind, generous,
a mom. ... She's on the board of trustees at UConn. She's great on TV,
married to a great guy."
He wanted to talk about Taurasi and
her DUI.
"Diana is the best player in the
world," Auriemma said. "I spent a lot of time talking to her about a
lot of things. Rebecca hasn't changed. Diana hasn't changed. When Diana
was in high school the reason everybody wanted her was she was a
carefree spirit, lives life to the fullest. That's why people love her.
That's why she's the player she is.
"This time it got the best of her.
She's at the stage right now where this is the best she's ever played,
the best she has ever looked physically. An incident like this can make
you even better. It forces you to make some changes to who you are.
We've all been in the situation where something bad could happen. Some
of us got caught. Some of us didn't. This is going to turn into a good
thing for her. I really believe that."
He talked about Maya Moore's knee
injury. She's fine. He talked about how Tina Charles used to be a
little kid in a big girl's body and now she's a big kid in a big girl's
body. Her doubts, he said, are gone.
And he talked plenty about Cash,
about how injuries cost her a chance to return to the Olympic team in
2008, and how if he has anything to say about it she'll get her shot at
2012.
"I was talking to Swin about how
much she has grown," Auriemma said. "Sometimes injuries, her back, her
knee, take a lot away from you and you never regain your form. She's
actually a better player now than before she got hurt."
And, just think, when she showed up
in Storrs, she was ...
"A diva," Auriemma said. "She was
very competitive and very much wanted a lot of the attention. Rightly
so. That's probably why she beat out all those other guys to start. She
has a more calculated aggression now, before it was wild, spontaneous.
She's become a mature pro. I'm really proud of her."
And, yes, he couldn't resist
sticking a needle in somebody's eye.
"There are a lot of people in that
Women's Hall of Fame who aren't nearly as good as the guys I coached
who aren't in," he said. "Take in consideration where it is and who
gets involved in voting. ... Jen Rizzotti should be in. Kara Wolters
should be in."
Never satisfied. Always pushing.
"How many more years can you do
this?" he said. "I've been thinking about that. It ends for everybody
at some point ... but not yet."
And on this day? Not even close.
Copyright ©
2009, The Hartford Courant

Watch
Tina tonight (July 12) at 7PM http://www.sportzu.tv/
From
the UCONN website...July 11, 2009
BELGRADE, Serbia - University of
Connecticut senior Tina Charles (Jamaica, N.Y.) erupted for 28 points
and 18 rebounds to lead the 2009 USA World University Games Team to an
83-64 win over Russia in the gold-medal game on Saturday at the 2009
World University Games.
Charles posted her third
double-double effort over the USA's eight games and registered
double-figure points for the seventh time over those eight games.
Charles shot 11-of-16 from the field
and 7-of-8 from the free throw line while playing just 21 minutes, en
route to her 28-point, 18-rebound effort.
"I just wanted to go out and play
the way I know how to play," Charles said. "I treated this like it was
a national championship game or a Big East Conference championship
game. I know everybody worked hard, everybody wanted to win, and that's
what was always on my mind."
She posted averages of 14.1 points
and 7.1 rebounds over the USA's eight contests at the World University
Games.
UConn rising sophomore Tiffany Hayes
(Lakeland, Fla.) chipped in three points and two rebounds in 16 minutes.
Connecticut junior Maya Moore
(Lawrenceville, Ga.) also was a member of the gold-medal winning squad,
but did not see any action after suffering a sprained knee during
training.
The USA dominated the glass,
outrebounding Russia 52-32 and scoring 22 second-chance points to
Russia's four.
For the tournament, the USA squad
posted a perfect 8-0 mark and won those games by an average of 29.0
points.
Also today, Australia (5-2) defeated
Czech Republic (4-3) 88-77 to take home the bronze medal.
USA Basketball women's teams have
participated in 15 World University Games tournaments and collected a
record seven golds, six silvers and one bronze medal. Since 1973, the
first year the USA women competed in the WUGs, the United States has
compiled an 89-15 record.

http://www.politico.com/largevideobox.html?bcpid=1243705446&bclid=1201016315&bctid=21208793001



After ceremony, President Obama shows UCONN his
basketball court. All enrolled in "Diplomacy 101" for
3-credits, UCONN, playing in high heals and dresses, loses to the
President in a game of "h-o-r-s-e-" - shortened to
"p-i-g" for this event. Thanks to all whose photos we use, and
especially to CT's very own king of the 4th estate, below, here in a
D.C.
outpost for those at the top!

Check out the sharp dresser from the Courant!
It was a day I will never forget
Hartford Courant
By John Altavilla on April 28, 2009 10:44 AM
Allow me to begin by saying that I met Helen Thomas Monday, the grand
dame of the White House press corps, who has covered every president
since JFK and can be found in a front row seat at every presidential
press conference.
Ms. Thomas will be 89 on Aug. 4 and when I arrived at the White House
Monday with Courant photographer John Woike, she was sitting at her
desk, well-dressed with red lipstick, reading the New York Times. Some
one asked me if I would like to meet her. Uh, duh?
I walked up to her, extended my hand and said, "Ms. Thomas, I am John
Altavilla of the Hartford Courant. This is my first time at the White
House and I am here to cover the President's reception for the UConn
women's basketball team, which won the national championship this
season.I am happy to meet you"
Ms. Thomas looked up, took my hand, smiled and said, "John, it's a
pleasure to meet you. It's a lot better than the alternative."
Shaking hands with Helen Thomas was like shaking hands with American
political history. In that one moment I was connected to JFK, LBJ and
Nixon. I can't quite describe it. The only moment I can
equate it to in my career as a lowly sportswriter was the time I walked
into the restroom at Yankee Stadium and Joe DiMaggio was standing at
the next stall. What can you possibly say at that moment
that makes any sense, has any gravity, preserves your dignity?
"Good morning, Mr. DiMaggio?," I said.
He nodded. Good enough for me.
Monday was, without question, the greatest day of my professional
career. Until then, covering David Cone's perfect game for the Yankees
on Yogi Berra Day had that honor. No more. Seeing the White
House from afar, from behind the iron gates on Pennsylvania Avenue, is
one thing. Being on assignment there, having access to the grounds,
being in presence of the President, is an entirely different matter.
A couple of impressions.....
Despite what some people believe, journalists are depended on to
be level-headed and bi-partisan, not to allow personal feelings or
sentiments interfere with or cloud judgments. That is all well and
good. When you are standing behind a rope and the President
of the United States walks ouf of a door and stops 10 feet in front of
you for the first time, everything they teach you in Journalism school
temporarily is suspended. I was in awe. I wanted to shake his hand. I
wanted to tell him that my son, who is in fifth grade, wanted me to say
hello to him and to ask him to bring peace to the world before
Christmas.
I couldn't, of course - that's what the rope was for. Only those in
UConn private traveling party, sitting in front of the ropes on folding
chairs, got that privilege.
It was a blistering hot afternoon and the White House asked John and I
to report to security at least an hour before the schedule 2 p.m.
ceremony. We arrived at noon, uncertain about what we'd confront.
We were cleared quickly by security and walked up the sidewalk to the
left of the main entrance of the White House. Protesters were gathered
outside the gates, as usual. A marine in formal dress, wearing white
gloves and a vacant stare, was watching sentry in front of a building,
indicating President Obama was inside. John and I walked into the
media room, which is where Presidential press secretaries hold those
informational sessions you see all the time on television. I had always
imagined it to be a huge conference room. Nope, it was no larger than
the media room we work at the XL Center - but it was air conditioned
and there was no pizza.
I wore a grey suit, blue shirt and purple tie because I was under the
impression that when you were formally in the presence of the
President, such attire was required. Nope, many of the photographers
and reporters there had polo shirts on.
Only the media staffers working the event were formally dressed. Still,
I am happy I made the decision I did. I like to get dressed up; if
you've seen me at games, you know that already. I didn't want to
embarass myself, my newspaper or the UConn basketball program, both of
whom I was representing, by showing up in khakis and boat shoes.
It was not an easy process getting credentialed to cover the event. The
White House has a "pool" of reporters and photographers that routinely
cover these "meet-and-greets" and then distribute video and photos to
the world. The Courant asked for additional access and not until late
Saturday afternoon was it granted by the White House.
Still, having credentials to cover an event like this didn't mean you
could walk where you wanted to. Vistors are cleared to be in only very
specific areas. You always had to be aware of where you were. Media
personnel were there setting up ropes, holding you back with open
palms, telling you - nicely as can be - where you could go, when you
could go there and when you should be back. You do not question their
instructions.
After the President made his remarks, he invited the team to his
basketball court for an impromptu game of P-I-G. This was what John and
I were hoping for, a spontaneous event, an inside look. Not Monday,
unfortunately. The pool reporters, John and I, were not allowed to walk
with them. Only the White House photographer and UConn's personal
photographer were allowed to go, which explains why photos of the
President taking jump shots are not where John and I had hoped they
would be.
After it was over, John and I were allowed to wait for the team inside
one of the ornate holding rooms inside the White House. We walked down
a grand hallway, looked at the portraits and statues, peeked inside a
few rooms. Unbelievable. And after our interviews were over, our
shirts drenched with sweat, we returned to our hotel, had ice coffee,
filed our photos and stories and then drove seven hours home.
All in a day's work - the best day of my professional life.
Obama Shoots Hoops With UConn Women’s
Team (out-takes from the event)
DAY
Published on 4/28/2009
Championship ceremony is a White House standard for sports teams.
Shooting hoops with the president, now that's something to remember.
Moments after Monday's event in front of the South Portico, President
Barack Obama hustled the University of Connecticut's women's basketball
team over to the outdoor half-court, away from reporters and cameras.
The president, a former high school player and avid fan who still plays
pickup games, prevailed in a brief, impromptu game of P-I-G with a few
of the players.
”He was pretty good from 17 feet,” coach Geno Auriemma said. “His
shot's a little unorthodox, but it goes in ... He's got a little bit of
that swagger.”
Renee Montgomery, a senior guard, said Obama only missed one shot and
that he sank a final fadeaway shot from off the court.
After about 10 minutes, Obama walked back to the White House with his
sleeves rolled up and his suit jacket slung over his shoulder.
UConn dominated women's college basketball this season, going 39-0 and
beating opponents by an average of better than 30 points. They capped
the season earlier this month in St. Louis with a 76-54 victory over
Louisville. It was UConn's sixth national college championship.
”Under coach Auriemma's leadership, this Huskies program has redefined
excellence again and again,” Obama said. The president also praised the
academic achievements of the players.
The team gave Obama a basketball signed by the players and a UConn
jersey emblazoned with “1” and his name on the back.
”Number one - that's what I'm talking about,” Obama said.
UConn Women's Basketball Team Visits
President Obama At The White House; President Obama Welcomes
UConn Women To White House
The Hartford Courant
By JOHN ALTAVILLA
3:32 PM EDT, April 27, 2009
WASHINGTON
The national champion UConn women's basketball team was honored by
President Barack Obama in a formal ceremony at the White House on
Monday.
Arriving about 10 minutes late, the president spoke for about five
minutes and congratulated the undefeated Huskies on their sixth
national title as well as their academic achievements.
"Congratulations to Coach Geno [Auriemma]," he said, "on this wonderful
season that took place as a consequence of these wonderful athletes."
In return, Auriemma and the team presented Obama with an autographed
basketball and a UConn jersey with the No. 1.
"I won't wear it right now," he said, "but I will when I'm playing."
That may have been sooner rather than later as the president then
hustled the team off to the White House basketball court, out of sight
of the media. Cheers could be heard from the court that had been
converted from a tennis court by the Obama administration.
The team arrived in Washington in the late morning and was given a tour
of the White House before being honored by the president.






The
team and their day in the sun in downtown Hartford; at the
Capitol.
The
victory lap around the park and then the Capitol steps at the portico
UConn Parade Draws 25,000
The Hartford Courant
By JOHN ALTAVILLA
April 20, 2009
Everybody loves a parade, especially one on a perfect Sunday in honor
of the only perfect team in college basketball this season.
That's why an estimated 25,000 spilled onto the streets around the
Capitol, six deep behind the barricades along virtually the entire
route, to show the UConn women how much they appreciated the effort
that produced a 39-0 season and sixth national championship.
But coach Geno Auriemma, recently selected as coach of the 2012 U.S.
Olympic team, knows there are much different emotions in other parts of
the country.
"The one thing that we get a kick out of, whenever we have these
parades, is that the doctor's offices in Tennessee are filled with
people who get sick — and [at] Rutgers and Louisville and North
Carolina, too," Auriemma told the crowd at the post-parade rally at the
Capitol.
"When we see you out on the streets, wait a little until you tell us
about the hotel rooms you have in San Antonio [the site of next year's
Final Four] or that you already have your tickets. Hold off on that
until maybe September. Let the players and staff enjoy the summer
knowing we don't have to think about another game, another tournament.
"Let them enjoy it, because I don't know how we're going to be able to
go 39-0 next year. ... The only reason I say that is, if we win every
game we play next year we'll be 40-0."
The team, its coaches and support staff rode a double-decker bus that
snaked along the route.
"Nothing against the people in Minnesota [where she will play in the
WNBA], but this is exactly why I don't want to leave Connecticut,"
guard Renee Montgomery said. "I didn't know what to expect from the
parade, but whatever that was, this day exceeded it."
Once the team was at the Capitol, the crowd cheered, breaking into
chants of "USA, USA" to honor Auriemma.
Gov. M. Jodi Rell told how the team impacted the state and its leader.
"During the winter, when the weather wasn't the greatest and we had a
lot of things on our minds at the state Capitol, we would be looking
for little diversions every once in a while. We got it," Rell said.
"I do have to tell you, there were a couple of moments there when I had
to leave the room when I was watching the games. I knew they would be
wonderful, but my heart was beating a little too fast, the agita was
setting in. Then I'd come back in and we'd be up by 10 points.
"I want to tell the team how proud we are of them, and not just because
of the way they mowed down their opponents. They represented
Connecticut in the best possible way. When these ladies stepped out on
the court they were always prepared and poised. They have two things
that are so important: respect for the game and respect for their
opponent. And that showed."
Auriemma, who had returned from a recruiting trip just three hours
before the parade, wanted the crowd to know how much its outpouring of
affection was appreciated.
"We've heard a lot today, leading up to this, about being perfect and
what it means when you do that. We're far from perfect, believe me," he
said. "We don't think of ourselves in that way. But today was a perfect
day because you made it a perfect day for these kids.
"I know they've never experienced anything like this. I know they were
probably wondering who would be here, what it would be like, how would
I feel before and after it. As much as we did during the season, this
was the cherry, the perfect ending to their season. And I can't thank
you enough for doing it."
And thank you for
great photos online at the Boneyard!
Boneyarder in the news...LINK TO WEDNESDAY, APRIL
15, 2009 NORWALK HOUR ARTICLE HERE

HOW
DID WE DO IT? Relive the season here.
GENO
CRITIQUE.
Started the
2008-2009 season with
13
players...down to 10...and back up to 11 (Cassie Kerns is over
mono)..."David v. Goliath" (l.) and victory!





Big East Champs, Senior Night 2009 and
"we're number one" or else Caroline is making a point about coaching
tips...a monster game and all shots taken went in...almost!
A national championship would merely meet expectations
Dave Solomon, New Haven Register Sports
Columnist
Wednesday, March 11, 2009 7:04 AM EDT
HARTFORD — This is supposed to be one of the sweetest moments for the
University of Connecticut women’s basketball team, and I wonder,
sometimes, if expectation and excellence have stolen some of the
hard-earned joy.
Along the poignant stops toward an inevitable national championship,
the Huskies have dominated at every turn, beaten nationally ranked foes
by ungodly numbers, claimed the regular-season title without once
winning by less than a double-figure margin, and they stand on the cusp
of one of the greatest seasons in women’s basketball history.
Yet, outside the hardcore 10,030 at the XL Center, does the
rank-and-file UConn fan appreciate the magnitude of UConn’s achievement
— or have they become numb to the anticlimactic nature of the Huskies’
continuing superiority?
Does a Big East tournament title, once the second highest-prized jewel
in the collection, get its appropriate due, or a mere pat on the back
while we focus on the only prize that seems to matter up ahead.
"I know there’s no way we can reach the expectation level we’ve
created," said UConn coach Geno Auriemma following the Huskies’ 75-36
breeze to the league title over fifth-ranked Louisville Tuesday night.
"We almost have to play a game like this every night now. If I were one
of the other coaches around the league who were asked a hundred times
if anyone could beat us and why are they even showing up ... I would be
really upset and start to feel it’s disrespectful.
"So now we come out and do what we did tonight ... and the expectation
level’s where in the first round of the NCAA tournament, it’s 100-0 at
halftime.
I just don’t know how we can match the level of expectation that’s out
there. So I don’t talk about it. I try to kind of enjoy it in a way
they appreciate it. And as long as they’re having fun, which they did
tonight. I love the way they were celebrating. That was important,
because they’re not taking it for granted. They had a great time
celebrating."
The greatest shame in all this UConn greatness would be if they/we were
unable to bask in the accomplishments along the way. Sometimes it’s
hard to watch because, as Louisville coach Jeff Walz said after the
game, "It’s 9:35 now, and the game was over at 7:20."
But that doesn’t mean accomplishments like Tuesday night should be
taken for granted. They’re still special, even if the ultimate measure
of UConn 2008-09, will occur in St. Louis.
"I think it’s all about St. Louis," Auriemma said. "But judging by the
crowd reaction today, I thought they were pretty involved and pretty
celebratory in a lot of ways."
But those are the hardcore fans that would cheer for 100-0 before the
first media time out. What about the average fan?
"I’m sure the average guy out there who watches TV or reads the
newspaper or goes on the internet is thinking ... and I’ve said this
... the only bigger reaction than celebrating a national championship
is going to be the reaction if we lose the national championship.
That’s going to be a huge story. Wow. I can’t believe they lost. How’d
they do it? Bad coaching. Bad Maya Moore. Bad Renee Montgomery. Bad
playing. Not focused."
Come to think of it, winning a national championship may not even be
sufficiently treasured outside the family. Let’s hypothesize for a
moment that these same two teams meet in the national championship
game, a real possibility when you’re talking about the prohibitive
favorite and a likely No. 2 seed in the upcoming NCAA tournament. Would
beating Louisville a third time — after beating them by 28 and 39
points, respectively, produce the thrill a national championship so
richly deserves?
That attitude could have affected Auriemma and his team a long time
ago, but the UConn coach has safeguarded the innocence of youthful
exuberance by taking it off the table. "It can (take some of the fun
away), if you let it," Aureimma said. "When I was younger, I used to
worry about that. I used to worry about what people are going to think
if this doesn’t work out. What’s the perception going to be? Now, I
could care less. I look at my players. I see how they’re reacting to
what we do, and I just go right at it. Nothing else matters anymore.
I’m too old."
He’d be tearing his hair out otherwise, and that we know, wouldn’t be
too cool.
I guess as long as the coach, his team, and the UConn faithful are OK
with beating everyone by a mile; as long as they’re celebrating all the
right achievements along the way toward greatness, then the
expectations don’t really matter.
Unless, as he said, they go unfulfilled.
UConn
women win 15th Big East tournament title
DAY
Published on 3/10/2009
Hartford — Maya Moore scored 28 points
and top-ranked UConn cruised to its 15th Big East tournament
championship with a 75-36 victory over No. 5 Louisville on Tuesday
night.
When the sensational sophomore walked off the floor with eight minutes
left, she had single-handedly outscored Louisville 28-27. Moore was
selected the tournament’s most outstanding performer.
The Huskies (33-0) have now won four of the last five conference
tournament titles and enter the NCAAs unbeaten for the fourth time in
school history. UConn went on to win the national championship in 1995
and 2002. In 1996-97 they lost to Tennessee in the regional final.
UConn’s road to a sixth national championship will begin on March 22 at
home in Storrs as the Huskies host the first two rounds of the NCAA
tournament.
All-Big East forward Angel McCoughtry was held to nine points to lead
Louisville (29-4).
Oh,
Say Can You See?
DAY
By Vickie Fulkerson
Published on 3/1/2009
Maya Moore said she was nominated for the job by UConn coach Geno
Auriemma.
He brought up the fact at dinner one night that whomever the best
singers on the team were should perform the national anthem on Senior
Night, which was Saturday. Most of the players thought he was kidding.
But Maya, joined by Kaili McLaren, sang the anthem a cappella Saturday
before 13,372 fans at the XL Center in Hartford, making an emotional
night even more so for women’s basketball seniors Renee Montgomery,
Cassie Kerns and Tahirah Williams.
Cassie said she noticed a few people next to her were missing as the
anthem was about to be performed.
“Did you see my face?” Cassie said later of her disbelief.
“For our seniors; that’s the only reason we did it,” said Maya, who
sang in harmony with Kaili. “There’s no way we would have voluntarily
done that.”
Maya said the last time she sang in public was in church when she was 4.
“OK, I remember twice singing in church,” she said.
Apparently, the duo practices occasionally.
“In the moments when we are in the cold tub (in the training room)
after practice,” Maya said. “(And) we are a musical team, so we
are always messing around in the locker room.”
As for Renee, she swears freshman Tiffany Hayes was supposed to sing as
well.
Renee called for an investigation into the matter Saturday night, after
the top-ranked Huskies safely defeated Seton Hall 81-50 to clinch their
17th Big East Conference regular-season championship and third straight.
But Geno wasn’t buying the theory that Tiffany could have been a
participant. He said he’s heard her sing.
“You can’t take Tiffany out in public,” Geno said, shaking his head
with mock seriousness. “You know how some people have a face for radio?
Tiffany has a voice for privacy.”
Student-athletes
to be honored
Hartford
Courant
By John Altavilla
February 23, 2009 3:08 PM
At halftime of tomorrow's UConn-Villanova game the other noticable
strength of the No. 1 UConn women will be revealed when their nine
Dean's List students will be honored along with all the other UConn
student/athletes who achieved academic merit for the fall semester.
Renee Montgomery, Maya Moore, Tina Charles, Kalana Greene, Meghan
Gardler, Tahirah Williams, Jacquie Fernandes and Heather Buck will be
honored, along with Jess McCormack, who back in New Zealand awaiting
surgery on her Achilles.
--------------




CT press row interviews Caroline Doty - at left is New London DAY,
fourth from right, Hartford Courant; Lorin Dixon races bigger
North Carolina players up the court. #20 honored.
Take a letter: UConn is in a different league
By Ron Cook, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Monday, February 16, 2009
STORRS, Conn. -- There's no point in ridiculing the Pitt
women here this morning. That would be piling on after their 95-42 loss
to No. 1 Connecticut yesterday. Really, there's nothing to say that
coach Agnus Berenato didn't mention in her postgame talk to her team.
She went to each player, pointed at the front of her jersey and said
they all "let down Pitt."
On national television, no less.
"I told them I need to write a letter of apology to
chancellor [Mark] Nordenberg and [athletic director] Steve Pederson,"
Berenato said. "But I also told them I'm going to write in that letter
that we will be ready for [Villanova] Wednesday night so they had
better get on board behind me and be ready for what I'm going to throw
at 'em in practice."
It won't be pretty.
Then again, it won't be anything like what Connecticut threw
at Pitt.
Going in, Berenato called the matchup at Gampel Pavillion "a
game that will show us where we really are at." An hour before tipoff,
she said she truly believed the Panthers could compete, perhaps even
win if everything went their way and Connecticut stumbled a bit. "Maybe
I was delusional ... " she said afterward.
Maybe?
That's not so much a knock at the Pitt program, which has
made remarkable strides under Berenato. Last week, it won at Rutgers
for the first time. In December, it beat then-No. 8 Maryland by 29
points for a win against the highest-ranked opponent in school history.
Last season, it went to the NCAA tournament's Round of 16 for the first
time. The season before that, it made its first NCAA tournament
appearance and earned its first win.
It's to the point that Pitt might be the second-best team in
the Big East Conference. We'll know more about that after that game
against Villanova at the Petersen Events Center.
But as far as Pitt has come, it has a million times that far
to go to catch Connecticut. It's as if Connecticut plays one game at an
extraordinary level and Pitt plays a different game, a lesser game.
Connecticut is 25-0, has been ranked No. 1 since the preseason and has
won its games by an average score of 87-54. It has won 24 in a row
against Pitt by an average of more than 35 points.
And now 53?
In Year 6 of Berenato?
"They do that to everybody," Berenato said.
Not that it eases the pain, but ...
"I wonder how [coach] Sylvia Hatchell feels at North
Carolina. UConn went there and won by 30," Berenato said. "I wonder how
they feel at Oklahoma. They got killed by UConn ...
"UConn is just awesome. They're not going to lose to anyone.
The only way they lose is if they overlook somebody or beat themselves."
Connecticut might be too good for the sake of women's
basketball. By the first television timeout yesterday, ESPN2 must have
been wondering why it was doing the game. Connecticut led, 18-3, and
Berenato already had called two timeouts. "It was almost embarrassing,"
she said.
Almost?
"I think we hurt the women's game today," Berenato said. "We
just didn't compete."
That's the real shame. The women's game is fighting to be
accepted by a discerning sports public. Routs like this don't help.
People want to see competition. This game offered none.
Same as almost all of the Connecticut games.
That doesn't mean the Connecticut excellence isn't amazing to
watch. It might be the most athletic team in college basketball, men
included. Pitt had no answer for the quickness of senior point guard
Renee Montgomery, who joined such illustrious Connecticut names as Swin
Cash, Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi on the school's Wall of Honor in an
emotional ceremony before the game. It couldn't deal with the strength
of All-America candidate Tina Charles inside. It barely could get off a
decent shot against Connecticut's relentless defensive pressure.
The afternoon's only drama? Would Pitt stay within 50 points?
Ah, no. And would Connecticut score 100? Surprisingly, no. You have to
think it could have rung up 125 if it had really pushed it.
"Seeing Connecticut in person, they're special," Berenato
said. "You've got to recruit better players to compete with them and,
even then, I don't know for sure. North Carolina has All-Americans.
Oklahoma has All-Americans ...
"[Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma] doesn't recruit. He just
reloads."
Now, Pitt must regroup. It will be interesting to see if it
is up for the challenge against Villanova. Certainly, Berenato will be
ready. Her enthusiasm is irrepressible. But what about her players?
Where are their heads going to be? It isn't easy getting whacked by 53.
There is some good news, though.
Villanova is no Connecticut.
No team that Pitt will play the rest of the season is
Connecticut.
Hey, on days like this, you take your comfort where you can
find it.
Doty's loss tremendous
for UConn
CTPOST
By Rich Elliott, STAFF WRITER
Updated: 01/20/2009 01:13:44 AM EST
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- Caroline Doty's impact had been sizeable for the
UConn women's basketball team this season. Just a freshman, she started
each of the first 17 games and provided the top-ranked Huskies with
grit and moxie.
But as Doty tried to control a pass from Maya Moore in transition with
27.9 seconds remaining in the first half Saturday against Syracuse, the
click she heard in her left knee was unmistakable. She knew that she
had torn the anterior cruciate ligament in the same knee for the second
time in 16 months.
Doty has experienced a whirlwind of emotion over the last couple of
days. Yet, as she sat on the UConn bench prior to Monday's showdown
against No. 2 North Carolina she was in good spirits and poised to
provide her teammates with as much support as possible.
``The past couple of days it's been kind of like a roller coaster,''
Doty said. ``I'm trying to stay as positive as possible, but just the
fact that it happened kind of brings me down sometimes. But my
teammates and coaches have been doing a good job of keeping my spirits
up. So I'm feeling pretty good.'' Surgery has been scheduled for
Thursday.
Doty said her parents, her twin brother, Kevin, and her grandparents
were all in attendance at the XL Center Saturday. And after undergoing
an MRI at a local hospital, she was met by each of her teammates in her
hotel room. They came bearing cakes, hugs and plenty of moral support.
``My ACL is gone,'' Doty said. ``It's completely torn. But it's
different because I didn't tear any other ligaments so it feels a lot
better. I can put weight on it. I can walk. Not normally, with a limp.
It's different, but it's curable. I can do the surgery earlier than I
did last time. And I guess it's better.'' Doty first suffered an ACL
tear during a soccer game Sept. 7, 2007. She had surgery Oct. 23 of
that year.
Doty was averaging 8.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 23.9
minutes for the Huskies this season.
She was third on the team with 30 made 3-pointers and in minutes.
``It was tough, especially after the hard preseason we all went
through,'' Doty said. ``The Big East just started. Everybody was saying
how Big East time is a huge part of the season. It's fun. I was looking
at the Big East tournament. I was looking at this game. I was looking
at the NCAA tournament. I was looking at everything in the future.
Then, again, I thought I have three more years. I'm still young. I
still have a lot of time to play.''
No. 1
Connecticut Routs No. 2 North Carolina
NYTIMES
By VIV BERNSTEIN
January 20, 2009
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — With a 17-0 record and a margin
of victory of 24.8 points a game, the Connecticut Huskies have done
little to disprove that they are the No. 1 women’s basketball team in
the country. On the other hand, with just one ranked opponent on the
schedule to date, the Huskies perhaps had not faced enough challenges
to provide a definitive answer.
So the annual match with North Carolina, ranked No. 2 and also 17-0
entering Monday’s game, was the first real test for Connecticut and an
opportunity for the Huskies to show they belonged atop the polls.
Done.
And they made it look easy with a 88-58 blowout of the Tar Heels at the
Dean E. Smith Center. Renee Montgomery scored 21 points and Maya Moore
added 19 points and 11 rebounds for Connecticut. The Tar Heels never
found a way to slow center Tina Charles underneath. She had 17 points
and 12 rebounds.
Italee Lucas had 15 points for North Carolina.
Connecticut ended North Carolina’s 76-game home winning streak against
nonconference opponents dating to 2001. The Huskies also gained a bit
of revenge against a Tar Heels team that had won three of the four
previous meetings between the teams, including a victory in Chapel Hill
in 2007. Connecticut won last year’s meeting.
The margin of victory was even more surprising given the Huskies were
without the starting shooting guard Caroline Doty, who sustained a torn
anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee in a victory against
Syracuse on Saturday and is out for the season. Doty, a freshman, was
averaging 8.6 points a game and had scored 17 points in the first half
against Syracuse before the injury. She will have surgery Thursday.
Lorin Dixon, starting in Doty’s place, had 14 points.
The Tar Heels were not at full strength, either. North Carolina lost
the 6-foot-3 starting forward Iman McFarland with an ankle sprain.
McFarland, who was averaging 5.1 points and 5.6 rebounds, was in
uniform but spent the game on the bench.
Connecticut started quickly, building a 15-4 lead four minutes into the
opening half. North Carolina chipped away at the advantage but never
managed to overcome it. The Tar Heels closed to 6 points behind before
the Huskies pulled away to a solid double-digit advantage the rest of
the way.
Ahead by 46-30 at the half, Connecticut used a 12-4 run to start the
second half to push the lead to 24 points.
UConn
women: Buck will sit out season
By Carl Adamec, Manchester Journal Inquirer
Published: Wednesday, December 31, 2008 11:32 AM EST
STORRS — Heather Buck made the defensive play of the day in the
University of Connecticut women’s basketball team’s practice on
Tuesday. She blocked a layup by All-American Maya Moore that brought an
outburst from her teammates and a slap on the back from assistant coach
Shea Ralph. Practice will be the only place the 6-foot-3 freshman
center from Stonington will receive applause this season. Buck, who has
not played a regular season game for the top-ranked Huskies due to
mononucleosis, will redshirt and retain four years of eligibility.
“I’ll have a year of practice, playing in the system, and still have
four years to play,” Buck said after the workout at Gampel Pavilion as
UConn wrapped up preparations for today’s game against Hartford at the
XL Center. “It’s good for the nursing program that I’m in. Most
programs are five years, this one’s four. I have the opportunity to
condense it and do graduate work or spread things out.
“Sure, you want to come in and play. But it’s not like I’m losing a
year entirely. I’m still getting four years to play and it will be a
higher quality of play, hopefully. That’s the whole idea. So it’ll be a
better four years.”
Buck will continue to practice and can travel with the team.
She played eight minutes and had three rebounds and a block in the
exhibition opener against Stonehill College on Nov. 6. Soon after she
reported not feeling well and was diagnosed with mononucleosis.
She returned to practice Dec. 2 but lagged behind her teammates in her
conditioning.
“It was getting more and more clear every day that she’s not going to
be ready to play,” UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. “Once you get to a
point where you haven’t played to this point, it almost doesn’t make
sense to go ahead and try and catch up. I’ve talked to her, talked to
her parents about it, and I think it’s in her best interests.”
Ralph used a redshirt year for the 1997-98 season after re-tearing the
anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee in August 1997.
“I’ve talked to Heather a little bit about it and what I told her was
that it’s important to use this time to get better,” Ralph said. “It’s
not a time to sit back and be in a watch mode. Practice is crucial for
her. This is almost like a free year so it’s important for her to come
here every day and challenge herself to get better and learn.
“The day she gets back out on the court for games is going to come and
it will come sooner than she thinks. A lot of times, people wish they
had more time. I don’t want Heather to wish she had worked harder. She
has to use this time wisely.”
Buck was counted on to add some depth to the Huskies’ frontcourt behind
Tina Charles and Kaili McLaren. Even if something happened to one
of those juniors, it’s not likely that Buck would be pressed into
action and lose the redshirt.
“I don’t know if you can tell her she likely won’t play, but be ready
in case something happens,” Auriemma said. “It’d be unfair.”
After the season-ending injury to Nykesha Sales in late February 1998,
Ralph offered to give up her redshirt opportunity — she had been
cleared to play a month earlier — but Auriemma declined it. Buck
will make the best of her situation.
“I want to try and learn everything I can about everything,” Buck said.
“I want to be able to watch a play and know it. I’m going to do extra
workouts to get stronger and in better shape and ultimately work on my
quickness. Fixing my shot is what we’re working on now. It’s only good
for me.”
No.
1 Connecticut 106, No. 4 Oklahoma 78
CBSSports.com wire reports
Nov. 30, 2008
STORRS, Conn. -- Renee Montgomery had a career-high 30 points and
matched the Connecticut record with 13 assists to help the top-ranked
Huskies rout No. 4 Oklahoma 106-78 on Sunday night. Montgomery,
who got the first double-double of her career, tied the assists record
set by Laura Lishness in 1991 against Seton Hall.
Maya Moore added 27 points and 12 rebounds and Tina Charles had 18
points, 10 rebounds and four blocks for UConn (5-0). Freshman Caroline
Doty scored a career-high 18 points, going 6-for-6 from behind the
3-point line.
Danielle Robinson had 19 points and Ashley Paris added 17 points and 13
rebounds for Oklahoma (4-2). Courtney Paris had 14 points and 14
rebounds for her 98th straight double-double, extending her NCAA
record. It was the first time Oklahoma gave up over 100 points
since losing to Connecticut, 102-80, in the NCAA regionals in 2000.
UConn
top recruit Delle Donne won't play at Storrs
DAY
Posted on Aug 16, 6:44 PM EDT
STORRS, Conn. (AP) -- Elena Delle Donne, the Huskies's top recruit in
its 2008 class, has decided not to enroll at the University of
Connecticut, coach Geno Auriemma said Saturday.
The 6-foot-5 forward, who also was courted by Tennessee before
committing to UConn, "has decided not to play college basketball,"
Auriemma said in a brief statement released Saturday by the university.
"Everyone at UConn would like to wish Elena the best of luck," he said
in the statement.
Delle Donne, 18, was named the nation's top female player this spring,
winning the Naismith National High School Player of the Year based on
her career at Ursuline Academy in Wilmington, Del.
She averaged 30 points and 11 rebounds in the 2008 season, despite
missing 10 games because of mononucleosis. She was also Delaware's
all-time leading scorer for boys and girls with 2,475 points.
She would have been the third consecutive national player of the year
to attend UConn, following Tina Charles in 2006 and Maya Moore last
season.
She came to UConn in June for summer school, but left after two days to
return to Delaware. Delle Donne told ESPN at the time that she needed a
long break for problems that go beyond basketball.
UConn officials said the brief statement Saturday will be Auriemma's
final comment on her departure, "in an effort to respect the privacy of
Elena and the Delle Donne family."
TRUE GRIT - WHAT WE NEED NOW...

If this is true, let the
season begin - Shea's back!!!
Shea Ralph named UConn
assistant basketball coach
DAY
Posted on Jul 7, 3:36 PM EDT
STORRS, Conn. (AP) -- Former University of Connecticut standout Shea
Ralph is returning to Storrs to become assistant women's basketball
coach.
Ralph was the captain of the Huskies when they won the 2000 national
championship. She finished her college career eighth on UConn's
all-time scoring list and in the top 10 in assists, steals and field
goal percentage.
The WNBA's Utah Starzz chose Ralph in the 2001 draft, but a knee injury
cut short her pro career. She served the past five season as assistant
women's basketball coach at the University of Pittsburgh.
Ralph will replace Tonya Cardoza, who was recently named head coach at
Temple after 14 years with the Huskies.
UConn coach Geno Auriemma says he's looking forward to Ralph bringing
the same passion to the coaching staff that she brought as a player.
FROM THE 2007-2008 SEASON:










BACK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN (THANK YOU ROY RODGERS AND TRIGGER) -
WOOF!!! (SEE MASCOT JONATHAN AT TOP)
2007-2008 picture story from the Big East (top) season final
game and shirts through net-cutting in Greensboro to Coach holding back
a tear..to two winner pix plus 2 pix with shirts/hats.
The
defense that beat the Lady Huskies (explanation supplied via a post on
the UCONN Huskies forum)
Loss tough on
UConn seniors
Waterbury
Republican-AmericasTuesday,
April 8, 2008 5:24 AM EDT
 |
|
TAMPA, Fla. --- The future for the
UConn women's basketball team looks bright given the wealth of
returning talent and the impressive recruits coming in.
The most difficult part of Sunday night's loss to Stanford in the
national semifinals, according to coach Geno Auriemma, was the
heartbreak senior Mel Thomas felt after the game.
With the team struggling to make shots, Thomas -- the Huskies' best
perimeter shooter -- squirmed on the bench, She wore a pained
expression on her face that was more heartfelt than the one she showed
in Syracuse in January when she found out she had torn her ACL and that
her season was over.
Anxious and restless throughout Sunday's game, she was one of the more
emotional players in the postgame locker room.
It was difficult for her to watch her team struggle and not be able to
help, but she composed herself afterward to explain she wouldn't have
wanted to spend the last four years anywhere else regardless of how
things ended for her.
“You can't look back and regret everything,” Thomas said. “I can
honestly say that I gave it everything I had. I didn't even get to play
at the end of this year, but there's nothing I could've changed. I gave
it everything I had every single day
“I don't even know how to put it into words what it's meant to play
here. I think I've grown as a person. I've learned so much and it's
just been an experience that I'll never forget. Being with your
teammates every single day, they're like my family. Even people that
graduate, they're still part of it. You can come back and it's still
like you're a part of this family. So it's going to be hard to not be
around that every single day.”
Kalana Greene took the loss harder than she thought she would, because
she felt helpless, as well, but she also knew that unlike Thomas she
has two more years at UConn.
“When you are sitting there and you are watching and there is nothing
you can do about, it's the worst thing,” Auriemma said. “You sit there
and it just tears you up. Mel doesn't have any more opportunities, and
it is a shame it has to happen that way. For Kalana, I told her we will
be back.”
A look ahead: Thomas' college career may be over but
her playing career likely is not. Her immediate plans are to rehab
until the fall and then play overseas to boost her stock as a WNBA
player for next summer.
She may not have to wait that long, however.
Connecticut Sun coach Mike Thibault said that Thomas is a good enough
shooter, that WNBA team might actually take a chance on her in this
year's draft in the third round.
The draft is Wednesday afternoon in Tampa.
Swanier's rise: UConn senior Ketia Swanier may have
played her way into the WNBA with the last third of the season she had.
Her growth as a player has also positioned her to be drafted late or at
least earn free agent invitations to teams that need a dependable
backup point guard
“I'm excited,” Swanier said. “I feel like who wouldn't be excited to be
able to get that opportunity. I just feel real blessed.”
Houston uncertain: Charde Houston's athleticism and
offensive skills could make her better suited for the pros than
college. In a draft deep with power forwards, however, her
inconsistencies may cause her to slip into the second or third round,
but she is expected to get drafted.
Houston said Sunday she wasn't sure if would return home with the team
or remain behind for the draft. She wanted to talk to her parents
before deciding what to do.
Hunter finished: Brittany Hunter said that while she
might be able to continue playing professionally, she has dealt with
her knee problems enough and wants to move on. Even if she gets
drafted, she won't play next season. Instead, she plans on being a
player agent. She already has started a partnership with several
lawyers based in Hartford and will stay around Connecticut the next few
years to help grow the agency and develop contacts.
Recruits on the way: Next year's recruits Elena Delle
Donne and Tiffany Hayes were both in town to play in the WBCA High
School All-America game, and both said they have already enrolled in
the first summer session of classes at UConn.
Delle Donne, a 6-foot-5 guard from Wilmington, Del., and the No. 1
recruit in the nation, said she will be in Storrs by June 2 for the
first day of classes. Tiffany Hayes, a 5-10 guard from Winter Haven,
Fla., will be there June 4 because she doesn't graduate high school
until June 3.
“I'm real excited,” Hayes said. “I'm going to have great teammates next
year. I can't wait. I'm willing to come in and do whatever my team
needs me to do. And I'm really ready to play.”
Delle Donne said she is ready for the college experience to begin.
“I definitely worked on my strength and my speed and things I'm going
to need a lot more in college,” Delle Donne said.
The two other members of next year's recruiting class are Heather Buck,
a 6-5 center from Stonington High, and Caroline Doty, a 5-10 point
guard from Fort Washington, Pa.
Huskies planning to return
Norwalk HOUR
April 8, 2008
Connecticut left its first trip to the Final Four in four years saying
not good bye, but see you later.
The Huskies failed in their attempt to win a sixth national
championship, losing to Stanford on Sunday. However, with seven key
players returning and a stellar incoming class, the future looks bright.
These Huskies (36-2) lost just one game during the regular season,
despite losing two starters to injury, and returned to the Final Four
for the first time since 2004.
"I think compared to the last couple years, we accomplished a lot, and
I think we proved to ourselves what we really have in us," said senior
Ketia Swanier. "There was a lot of growth. We improved ourselves a lot.
I think we have always had it in us, but we showed it this year."
Swanier, and fellow seniors Mel Thomas, Brittany Hunter and Charde
Houston are done. But UConn will return seven underclassman who played
significant minutes, including the game's newest star, freshman
All-American Maya Moore.
"Nobody on this team had ever been (to the Final Four)," said Moore.
"Now we have that experience. We've accomplished that experience and
now the bar is higher, and we have to make it to another Final Four,
and another semifinal, and hopefully another championship."
Moore began the year on the bench, but moved into the starting lineup
in December after junior guard Kalana Greene suffered a season-ending
knee injury. Moore averaged almost 18 points a game, and was in double
figures in all but two games. The 6-foot forward helped lead the
Huskies to the Big East regular-season and conference tournament titles
and became the first freshman — male or female — to win conference
player of the year. She was just the second freshman in history to be
named a first-team All-American.
"Maya Moore is going to be a four-time All-American," Stanford coach
Tara VanDerveer said.
The Huskies also have two third-team All-Americans coming back,
sophomore center Tina Charles, who averaged more 14 points and nine
rebounds a game and junior Renee Montgomery who also averaged 14 points
and put up double figures in 26 of her final 30 games.
Montgomery was forced to switch from point guard to shooting guard in
January after the Huskies second major knee injury of the year took out
senior sharpshooter Mel Thomas.
"I think Renee is as good if not better than any guard in America in
every area, Auriemma said. "Renee is probably going to benefit the most
from people coming back.
Those people include Greene, who can play either guard or forward and
was perhaps UConn's best defender before being hurt.
Connecticut also signed another top recruiting class, led by national
high school player of the year Elena Delle Donne.
The 6-4 Delle Donne showed off her skills in Tampa this weekend, being
named the most valuable player at the WBCA High School All-America
game. She had 17 points, while another UConn recruit, guard Tiffany
Hayes scored 18, despite fighting off the flu.
"Somebody asked me, 'What are you going to tell the players?"' Auriemma
said Sunday night. "I'm going to tell them we'll be back here next
year, you can count on that."
Back in the Final Four: UConn rallies
to beat Rutgers in regional
final
By Jim Fuller, New Haven Register Staff
Posted on Wed, Apr 2, 2008
GREENSBORO, N.C. — The long-awaiting odyssey to the Final Four looked
as if it would have to wait for another year for the UConn women’s
basketball team.
Coming out with the same sense of nervous anxiety that plagued them in
an Elite Eight loss to Louisiana State a year ago, UConn was on the
verge of falling one game shy of the program’s ninth Final Four
appearance for the third straight season before the Huskies mustered up
a championship spirit some questioned they possessed.
Hitting 14 straight free throws down the stretch, UConn rallied to post
a 66-56 victory over Big East rival Rutgers in the Greensboro Regional
final at the Greensboro Coliseum Tuesday night.
UConn’s Maya Moore, who struggled all game long to free herself from a
myriad of Rutgers defenders, curled off a screen and made a big
3-pointer with 2 minutes, 52 seconds to play to break a tie at 49. It
was the last field goal the Huskies made, but it was enough to propel
them to their ninth Final Four.
“I feel like it has been hard because the last two years the way we
have lost has been so bad, especially for me,” Montgomery said. “It has
been hard.”
It certainly was hard Tuesday night.
Trailing by 14 points three times in the first half and down by seven
points in the second half, the Huskies rallied to take their first lead
on a Kaili McLaren basket with 6:46 left.
Tina Charles had a block on the next Rutgers possession and was fouled
by Epiphanny Prince. Charles made the front end of the one-and-one to
make it 49-46 with 5:40 to go.
The lead lasted only another 24 seconds as a 3-pointer by Prince tied
the game.
The Huskies used a 12-3 run in the final 4:54 of the first half to
slice a 14-point Rutgers lead to five.
It took them just 1:46 into the second half to draw even.
A jumper by Rutgers’ Matee Ajavon put Rutgers up by seven before
Montgomery sandwiched two free throws and a jumper around a Ketia
Swanier 3-pointer.
But if UConn thought Rutgers was going to wilt, it was mistaken.
Ajavon made a 3-pointer, and after Vaughn rattled home a short jumper
in the lane, Essence Carson kept Rutgers’ next possession alive by
soaring over UConn’s Charde Houston to corral an offensive rebound.
Ajavon made the Huskies pay by making a jumper to give the Scarlet
Knights a 41-34 lead with 12:41 left.
In a back-and-forth slugfest, UConn answered as a jumper by Charles, a
Moore steal and layup, and a Swanier 3-pointer pulled the Huskies back
within two points.
The Huskies started the game a little tight and out of rhythm. With the
perimeter trio of Swanier, Montgomery and Moore missing 10 of 12 shots,
the Huskies shot 5 for 15 from the field in the first 12½
minutes.
Rutgers capitalized to take a 14-point lead on three occasions.
When Kia Vaughn scored with 4:55 left in the half, the Scarlet Knights
led 29-15 and were in danger of running the Huskies right off the court.
But Vaughn and Matee Ajavon each lost the ball out of bounds underneath
the Rutgers basket on consecutive possessions.
An offensive rebound putback by Houston and steal and layup by
Montgomery with 2:35 left in the half allowed UConn to cut the lead
under 10 for the first time since it was 15-8 with 12:37 to play.
Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer had seen enough and called a timeout.
However, the break did little to slow the Huskies’ surge as UConn
scored six of the last nine points of the half.
Houston sandwiched baskets around an Ajavon jumper to pull the Huskies
within 32-25 with 58 seconds remaining. Montgomery followed with a
steal and was fouled to give UConn a chance to hold for the last shot.
Kaili McLaren posted up and scored on a sweet power move in the low
post with 2.4 seconds left in the half to make it 32-27. Brittany Ray,
who was a surprise starter for Heather Zurich, just missed a
desperation heave from midcourt at the buzzer.
The Huskies went into the halftime break only down five even though
Montgomery, Moore and Swanier were a combined 3 for 16 from the field
and combined for just nine points.
Carson, the three-time Big East defensive player of the year, proved
she can play well on the offensive side of the floor as well. Carson
followed up her career-high tying 25 point effort in a win over George
Washington on Sunday by making her first five shots en route to scoring
12 first-half points.
Swanier and Montgomery had 15 points each, McLaren 10, Charles nine
points and 12 rebounds and tournament most outstanding player Moore
seven for UConn (36-1).
Ajavon had 18 points, Carson 12 and Vaughn for Rutgers (29-7).
Moore named regional MVP; Swanier the hero
By ROGER CLEAVELAND Republican-American
April 2, 2008
GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Maya Moore was named the Greensboro Regional MVP
and Renee Montgomery was named to the All-Regional team, but both
agreed that senior Ketia Swanier was the Huskies' most valuable player
in Tuesday's regional final game.
Swanier shot 6-for-6 from the foul line in the final 53.8 seconds of
the game and made two critical three-pointers in the second half to
rally the Huskies' from a 14-point deficit.
“I wanted to shout it right then when they announced my name, 'Ketia
deserves the MVP.' She's my MVP. She was a great player throughout this
tournament for us, and the way she knocked down those free throws was
huge tonight. She's been a floor general for us especially the last
quarter of the season.
Maya is the Woman
of the Hour ... But Seriously, a Raccoon?
DAY
Vickie Fulkerson
Published on 3/7/2008
Trying to figure out the most interesting tidbit for today … UConn’s
Maya Moore becomes the first freshman in the history of the Big East
Conference to be named Player of the Year? Or Tennessee coach Pat
Summitt injures shoulder while chasing away raccoon?
I guess you have to give it to Moore, who is the most utterly polished
freshman you’ll ever meet. And that’s before she even gets to the
basketball court.
Moore has a chance to get a few national player of the year votes, as
Tennessee All-American Candace Parker was ousted as SEC Player of the
Year by LSU center Sylvia Fowles. And UConn beat LSU, with Moore
outscoring Fowles 29-26.
She’s just exciting to be around. Diana-like.
And there’s only more to come.
As for the other thing, this is a serious story from ESPN.com. Imagine
the fodder this could give Geno? Not that he needs any. Pat is already
the chairman of the Evil Empire. She canceled her team’s series against
UConn.
And now, an encounter with a raccoon, that invaded her deck Wednesday
night while she was out walking her dog?
If UConn and Tennessee both make it to the Final Four in Tampa?
Oh, the possibilities.
FROM 2005-2006





THIS SAYS IT ALL - the highs and lows of college basketball...