Time to Dance: Connecticut, Big East

posted by Swish Appeal
Wednesday, March 9, 2011 at 10:30pm EST

In keeping with SB Nation’s innovative use of social media in reshaping sports journalism, our vision is a women's basketball site that goes beyond merely providing game reports; instead, we want to capture the narratives that fuel our passion for the game, while maintaining the critical stance that helps us understand the game better.

Who? The Huskies of Connecticut. They are not Lady Huskies, because we all know what a female dog is, and that is not something it would be wise to call a UConn player.

What? UConn's Husky is of the Siberian variety, pure white, named Jonathan. He does stunts with the cheerleaders, and I don't know about you, but if I were wearing a giant dog head that obscured my vision, I wouldn't be climbing any cheerleader pyramids, which only goes to show that even UConn's mascot is fearless.

Where? Storrs, Connecticut. They talk glowingly about how close it is to New York, Providence, and Boston; from my personal experience, it's about eight miles northeast of the middle of nowhere.

When? March 8th, in Hartford, Connecticut.

Why? Because they won the Big East conference tournament.

How? Stefanie Dolson put in 24 points, and Maya Moore had 22 as the Huskies pulled away from Notre Dame, 73-64.

Surprise? No. Very much no. Whatever the polar opposite of a surprise is.

Who's driving this thing, anyway? Geno Auriemma, since 1985. Source of many colorful quotes.

RPI: 1

SOS: 2

Record: 32-1 (16-0)

Best win: No offense, but UConn can't have a best win. They're UConn, for God's sake.

Worst loss: Stanford (A)... I guess. Not that losing a close game to a top-3 team is a bad loss, but if it's their only one, it's worst by default.

Notable results: Baylor (W, H, 65-64), Ohio State (W, N, 81-50), North Carolina (W, A, 83-57)... I could go on, you know.

If you're here, you've heard of UConn, whether you're a regular reader or a first-time visitor who found us through a search string (unless that search string had to do with, I don't know, people who really like the sound of taffeta or something). 90-game winning streak, loud-mouthed coach, Maya Moore- you've heard of them and you might even be sick of hearing about them.

So we'll talk about UConn's defense instead. Those terrifying blowouts that make ranked teams look like garbage on national television weren't completely due to the Huskies' efficient and brilliantly executed offense. They had as much to do with UConn's smothering defense, which forces turnovers and bad shots at an impressive rate. UConn will not let up. UConn will not give up. UConn will not surrender. UConn is sort of like that ESPN commercial where Albert Pujols is actually a robot.

And we'll talk about the emergence of Stefanie Dolson as a threat in the middle, putting in 63% of her shots. And we can talk about the quick hands of sophomore guard Kelly Faris. But you're probably here for 22.8 points, eight rebounds, an almost 2-to-1 turnover ratio, four assists, more than a block, and slightly over to steals per game, all wrapped up in a fast, athletic, relentless, and occasionally reckless package that the folks in Connecticut just call Miss Maya.

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March Madness 2011

View Original Post at swishappeal.com | View Q McCall's Full Profile

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Time to Dance: Connecticut, Big East

March Madness 2011

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