UConn women's basketball

One of UConn’s finest was seen at Gampel Pavilion Tuesday playing defense during the Huskies’ three-plus hour practice. She chatted with UConn legend Dee Rowe, met with the media on hand and looked every bit as happy to be back where her own legend was spawned. Former National Player of the Year Sue Bird paid yet another visit to Storrs. And this time it wasn’t with Team USA for an exhibition game as it was last November. This was simply a visit to a place she still calls home.
There is undeniably a special bond that exists between Geno Auriemma and his players. Oh, they might hate him many times during the course of their career for the way he demands greatness every day. But, boy, do they love him dearly once they move on. And it is this type of bond between player and coach is what drives people at other schools batty.
“I think the fun part, and it never stops being fun for our guys, is how much they feel connected to this thing here,’’ Geno said. “And I don’t mean connected to this building. It’s like coming home for the holidays. It doesn’t matter where your family is. As long as you’re with them there’s a connection there that I find really satisfying. And they make it a point to do that. I don’t know who gets more of a kick out of it, the players that we have who see them back here or the ones who come back and how they feel about being back to where they had some of the greatest moments of their careers and great memories.’’
Bird, who is currently on break from her stint with Moscow Spartak until Jan. 7, did not attend today’s game against Hartford at the Xl Center. But she said she will be back Saturday when the Huskies face LSU in Hartford. She Diana Taurasi, Asjha Jones, Maria Conlon and Ashley Valley might also be on hand.
“I actually haven’t been able to come back to catch a game,’’ Bird said. “The last time I was here was with the USA Team. That was obviously a little different. I wasn’t completely on my own. But other than that on my own I haven’t really been able to get up here. So I had the opportunity and I wanted to get up here.’’
Bird said she “absolutely’’ keeps up with the Huskies throughout the season and she watched the Penn State game on TV Dec. 14. Here’s her take on this year’s top-ranked team.
“They’re very good,’’ she said. “I think it’s still early in the season. I can hear the things he’s nitpicking on and I think that’s very normal. We were nitpicked on as well. And I guarantee there will come a time because they have a really good balance of older players, obviously, like Renee, even Tina now. Tina’s playing great. You can tell in practice. And they’ve been around. They’ve been to a Final Four. They know what it’s like. They know what it takes. You’ve got the young players kind of coming in who will follow that lead. And I guarantee by the end of the year they’ll be pretty good.’’
Sue knows something about being pretty good. She was a senior on the 39-0 team in 2001-02. There have been comparisons made between this team and that one already. But she won’t go there.
“We got compared to ‘95,’’ she said. “It’s two totally different teams I think. Just like we were different from ’95. So it’s hard to say. But, hey, I hope they win. I hope they go undefeated.’’
As far as Geno is concerned she said he hasn’t changed much since she moved on to the WNBA.
“Very nitpicky,’’ she said. “That’s the first thing I noticed (Tuesday). But that’s always how he is. He wants perfection and he knows that if you can do it in these circumstances with him on your back for the tiniest of mistakes come game time you’ll be able to get it done.’’

Erica Beverly, the former Kolbe Cathedral star who was a unanimous preseason All-America East selection, continues to find success at Hartford. And head coach Jennifer Rizzotti couldn’t be happier with her progress.
Erica had nine points and four rebounds in 26 minutes against the Huskies today at the XL Center. It was another steady performance against an upper echelon team this season. She had four points and 11 rebounds in 31 minutes in a victory over then-No. 6 Duke Nov. 21; nine points, seven rebounds and three assists in 32 minutes against then-No. 20 Ohio State Nov. 25; and she had five points and six rebounds in 30 minutes against then-No. 12 Louisville Dec. 10.
All of these games were played on the road or at a neutral site.
Erica was named the conference Player of the Week for the first time Dec. 22. Through the first 12 games this season, she is second on the Hawks in scoring (9.5), steals (1.7) and minutes (28.3) and leads the team in rebounding (7.9).
“Erica’s just been phenomenal,’’ Rizzotti said. “I can’t imagine that she is that much better this year than she was the first two years at Hartford, but she is. She was the best freshman we’ve ever had and she’s already a lot better. She’s taken it upon herself to score more, to be more aggressive. Defensively, I think she’s a machine. I thought she did a phenomenal job today on the ball, but also off the ball in helping. They only have her for one block, which I’ll have to talk to the stat guys on that because she should have certainly had more than that. But she’s just been our most competitive player, our most consistent player and she’s definitely our best all-around player. And she thrives on games like this. And in every game we’ve played against a top opponent she’s been our best player, and I think today is no exception.’’

Happy New Year everybody!!

Rich

The decision was not a difficult one for UConn freshman Heather Buck. She has missed the first 11 games this season and she continues to lag well behind her teammates from a conditioning standpoint after battling mononucleosis.
Huskies coach Geno Auriemma provided Buck, a 6-foot-3 post player from Stonington, with the option of redshirting this season. Following practice today at Gampel Pavilion, she announced that she will indeed sit out. Buck will retain four years of eligibility.
“It’s only good for me,’’ Buck said. “Yeah, 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’ll be higher quality of play hopefully. That’s the whole idea. So it’ll be a better four years.’’
Buck, who has no physical restrictions at this point, is the first UConn player to redshirt without being injured since Jessica Moore in 2000-01. Buck began suffering from a scratchy throat Nov. 3 and UConn publicly announced that she had contracted mononucleosis Nov. 14.
Buck returned to practice for the first time Dec. 2. Auriemma first talked to her about the possibility of red-shirting in the days surrounding her return to practice. He also spoke to Buck’s parents.
“The overriding issue is what’s going to be in Heather’s best interest, and I think not playing this year is going to be in her best interest,’’ Auriemma said. “She can be in the weight room more often than our guys can. She can do some workouts more often than our guys can. And I think down the road it’s going to make her a better basketball player.’’
According to the UConn compliance department, a student/athlete is eligible to red-shirt if their injury or illness occurs in the first half of the season or if they do not appear in 30 percent of the team’s regular season games. But if they appear in any of the games in the second half of the regular season their eligibility would be forfeited.
UConn will play Game 16 in its 30-game schedule Jan. 13 against DePaul.
Buck would still be available in the case of an injury to fellow post players Tina Charles and Kaili McLaren. But, in the event that something of this nature does occur, Auriemma said he would not use Buck.
Buck will use the rest of the year trying to completely grasp the system, polishing her shot, working out in the weight room and becoming the best practice she possibly can.
“Right now it’s just about picking everything up and learning and being a part of the team that everybody can count on,’’ Buck said. “I’m not there yet. I don’t think that they really expect freshmen to be counted on all the time, but I’d like to be more reliable than I am.’’

Rich

Stefanie Dolson has taken her visits. She has weighed her options and figured out where she would fit in best.
In the end, the answer is UConn. Dolson, a 6-foot-5 center from Port Jervis, N.Y., gave an oral commitment to attend UConn Christmas Day. She becomes the second member of the Class of 2010 to offer a commitment to Huskies coach Geno Auriemma, joining Samarie Walker, a 6-1 swingman from Dayton, Ohio.
“For one, I love their campus,’’ Dolson said. “It’s very pretty. It kind of reminds me of where I live now. The academics are good, but with their basketball program I just felt like it was the one that would make me the best player I could be, the one that could get me the furthest in basketball, make me better as a player, as a person. So I just thought it was overall the best one.’’
Dolson selected UConn over Maryland, Rutgers, Duke and Penn State. She visited all five schools during the recruiting process, including a visit to UConn when she attended a Huskies’ football game against Virginia at Rentschler Field Sept. 13.
Dolson, who is expected to attend UConn’s game against LSU next Saturday at the XL Center, phoned Auriemma Thursday at about 1:30 p.m.
“He seemed surprised,’’ Dolson said. “He just kept saying, `Wow’ and `Fantastic.’ He kept saying it over and over. He said that he had a really good Christmas, but this made it better. It was really nice.’’
Duke and Maryland had topped Dolson’s list initially. That, however, was before UConn began involved. Dolson said UConn began recruiting her at the end of June. And when she saw Auriemma at one of her AAU games this summer she didn’t think that he was there to see her play.
“I think the UConn tradition speaks for itself,’’ said Marc Riley, the Program Director of the NY Elite AAU club. “And I just think with the skill set that she has she’s a perfect mix for what they do and in terms of what they’re going to ask her to do. So I think she’s going to get the best of both worlds. Quality kid. Quality program. And then hopefully she can continue the tradition there.’’
Dolson, who is ranked No. 10 in the Class of 2010 by ESPN HoopGurlz, averaged 18.9 points, 14.6 rebounds and four blocks last season in leading Minisink Valley High to the Section 9 Class AA state championship game. She is currently averaging 19.7 points this season for the Warriors.
Dolson also earned All-American honors after averaging 14 points and 12 rebounds in leading the N.Y. Elite Silver Bullets to the AAU junior national championship in Orlando, Fla. last July.
“The best thing I think about her overall game is her passing ability,’’ Riley said. “She thinks the game. I call her a throwback big. She’s the traditional back-to-basket type of a center. She does a lot of the dirty work. Her passing ability is exceptional. She does what a center is supposed to do.’’
Walker, a junior who attends the same high school (Chaminade-Julienne) as former UConn standout Tamika (Williams) Raymond, gave an oral commitment to attend UConn during an unofficial visit Oct. 17. She is regarded as the top overall player in the class.
The Huskies would like to land one more post player in this recruiting class. They remain involved with Orsi Szecsi, a 6-3 Hungarian forward from Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va., Michala Johnson, a 6-3 forward from Montini High in Lombard, Ill. and Sheronne Vails, a 6-4 forward from Arundel High in Gambrills, MD.
Johnson is rated No. 16 by ESPN HoopGurlz.

Rich

Stefanie Dolson had taken her visits. She had weighed her options and figured out where she would fit in best.
In the end, the answer is UConn. Dolson, a 6-foot-5 center from Port Jervis, N.Y., gave an oral commitment to attend UConn Christmas Day, Marc Riley, the Program Director of the NY Elite AAU club, confirmed today. She becomes the second member of the Class of 2010 to offer a commitment to Huskies coach Geno Auriemma, joining Samarie Walker, a 6-1 swingman from Dayton, Ohio.
“I think the UConn tradition speaks for itself,’’ Riley said. “And I just think with the skill set that she has she’s a perfect mix for what they do and in terms of what they’re going to ask her to do. So I think she’s going to get can continue the tradition there. he best of both worlds. Quality kid. Quality program. And then hopefully she can continue the tradition there.’’
Dolson ultimately selected UConn over Maryland, Rutgers, Duke and Penn State. She visited all five schools during the recruiting process, including a visit to UConn in September when she attended a Huskies’ football game against Virginia at Rentschler Field Sept. 13.
“From what I gather about Stefanie, when she makes up her mind on something she’s pretty much going to see it through,’’ Riley said. “I know she had her fair share of unofficial visits and she’s been to a number of schools. I know she felt comfortable making that decision early rather than later.’’
Dolson, who is ranked No. 10 by ESPN HoopGurlz, averaged 18.9 points, 14.6 rebounds and four blocks last season in leading Minisink Valley High to the Section 9 Class AA state championship game. She finished with a game-high 26 points in a 53-46 loss to Kingston in the final and is currently averaging 19.7 points this season for the Warriors (4-2).
Dolson also earned All-American honors after averaging 14 points and 12 rebounds in leading the N.Y. Elite Silver Bullets to the AAU junior national championship in Orlando, Fla. last July.
“The best thing I think about her overall game is her passing ability,’’ Riley said. “She thinks the game. I call her like a throwback big. A lot of this type of game involves a lot of girls that are 6-3, 6-4 starting to step out on the perimeter and things like that. She’s the traditional back-to-basket type of a center. She does a lot of the dirty work. Her passing ability is exceptional. She does what a center is supposed to do.’’
Walker, a junior who attends the same high school (Chaminade-Julienne) as former UConn standout Tamika (Williams) Raymond, gave an oral commitment to attend UConn during an unofficial visit Oct. 17. She is regarded as the top overall player in the class.
The Huskies would like to land one more post player in this class. They remain involved with Orsi Szecsi, a 6-3 Hungarian forward from Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va., Michala Johnson, a 6-3 forward from Montini High in Lombard, Ill. and Sheronne Vails, a 6-4 forward from Arundel High in Gambrills, MD.
Johnson is rated No. 16 by ESPN HoopGurlz.

Rich

Tina Charles picked up her fourth foul with 11:23 left in the game today. Geno Auriemma had no choice but to get her out of the game and turn to Kaili McLaren for help off the bench. And just like she did in the first two games of the Caribbean Classic, Kaili played a huge role in helping the Huskies dispatch Florida State to win the tournament championship.
Kaili finished with 10 points (4-of-6 FG), a career-high seven assists and two blocks in a season-high 23 minutes. She assisted on a layup by Kalana Greene with 8:25 left that triggered a 10-2 run after the Seminoles had closed to within 11. She also had another assist in the run. This time it was on a layup by Maya Moore.
Kaili averaged 8.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 21.3 minutes over these three games. And she has now played at least 20 minutes in three straight games for just the third time in her career. She played 20 minutes in a career-high six straight games last season, a string that ended when she played just 13 minutes in a season-ending loss to Stanford in the national semifinals in Tampa.

The news seemingly never stopped coming this week at the Moon Palace Resort. As the Courant’s John Altavilla and I said our goodbyes to tournament director Melissa Koza of Triple Crown Sports and commended her for a job well done, she told us that the Huskies might compete in the 16-team Preseason WNIT in 2010 and will be one of the host sights. Triple Crown also runs that event. The event is one of several that UConn is looking into at the moment.

Rich

Meghan Gardler will be back in uniform for the Huskies today against Florida State. She had missed the first two games of the Caribbean Classic with a concussion.
Gardler was kicked in the head after falling during practice Wednesday and was finally cleared to play by team doctor Thomas Trojian.
The Huskies are looking to earn their 12th straight in-season tournament championship.

Rich

Today was the day to relax, kick up your feet and sip on a few of those free – non-alcoholic, of course – pina coladas. For the Huskies, that is. For the Courant’s John Altavilla and UConn SID Randy Press it’s business as usual. John did find the time to tangle with an elliptical machine today, though. He’s far more dedicated than I am when it comes to cardio.
Any way, the Huskies deserve a break at this point. After a grueling fall semester and nine wins in as many games, today was a mental health day on a trip that has been a solid mix of both basketball and fun in the Land of Sun, where a fine Asian restaurant really does exist.
The team practiced this morning from 9 to 10:45. Northern Colorado coach Jamie White and assistant Krista Van Hauen took it in courtside as Geno provided the Huskies with some offensive and full court pressure instruction. From there, they had their choice of sticking around the Moon Palace Resort or taking a trip into town. The choice was entirely theirs. Most of the Huskies headed downtown to shop and check out the scenery.
For Geno, giving his players some time to themselves is an important facet of this trip.
“That’s one of the reasons you want to come here earlier than normal if you can to make it more than just a basketball trip,’’ Auriemma said. “But at the same time you try to impress upon them that we’re not out here just to get some sun and just to enjoy ourselves, and at the same time we’re not going to lock ourselves up in our room and watch game film all day long. I want them to enjoy themselves and have an opportunity to experience whatever it is that exists out here. For a lot of these kids, it’s been a long semester and they worked pretty hard it. We were kidding each other (Friday) night at the pregame that nine of them got over 3.0 (GPA) and they’re pretty proud of themselves. And they know how hard they worked, and when we get back it seems like it’s all basketball all the time. And this is an opportunity to get away from that.’’
Many of the Huskies also had the pleasure of being able to spend time with their families today. Meghan Gardler, Kaili McLaren, Tina Charles, Caroline Doty, who was called a “dork’’ by Geno toward the end of practice today, Tahirah Williams and Jacquie Fernandes all have family on the trip. Many of them don’t get to see their families during the season so this was a nice release from the marathon season that will commence once UConn travels to South Carolina next week to begin what is expected to be a stretch of 29 more games to end the season.
“It’s nice because with our downtime we get to see them,’’ Doty said. “During the season you don’t get to see much of them. My twin brother (Kevin’s) here. He plays football in college (Lafayette) and I haven’t seen him all year. So the fact that I get to hang out with him … I was hanging out with him (Friday) night. It’s nice.’’
Sometimes it’s easy to forget that these players are young adults as well as elite athletes. Family time matters. So does the chance to shop, relax and play Rock Band, poker and Cranium with their teammates.

Rich

Geno Auriemma and his staff have always prided themselves on having well-rounded players in their program. This season is no different. Geno said today after practice at the Moon Palace Resort that nine of the 13 players on the roster earned at least a 3.0 grade point average for the fall semester.
The brainiacs are Heather Buck, Tina Charles, Jacquie Fernandes, Meghan Gardler, Kalana Greene, Jessica McCormack, Renee Montgomery, Maya Moore and Tahirah Williams.

A home-and-home series with Florida State has been locked in. The Huskies will play Clemson, Richmond and Hofstra in the WBCA Classic next Nov. 27-29 at what looks to be Gampel Pavilion. Now there is word that they will likely play Texas at a four-team event early next November in San Antonio, the site of the 2010 Final Four. The event, which is expected to be televised by the ESPN network, will be played at either the Alamodome or the AT&T Center. The latter is more likely to be the venue.

Meghan Gardler remains a question mark for Sunday’s game against Florida State. She practiced for about 30 minutes this morning. Team doctor Thomas Trojian was due to examine her once more at some point today.
“She had a limited practice today and then he’s going to check her again and let’s see what happens,’’ Auriemma said. “So as of right now she’s halfway cleared, but not completely.’’

A recruiting source with knowledge of the situation confirmed today that the rumors floating around the web that Stefanie Dolson, a 6-5 center from Greenville, N.Y. who is considered the top post player in the Class of 2010, has given an oral commitment to play for UConn are false. There is currently no timetable as to when she will make her decision.
The source said that a lot of schools are trying to put out there that she has committed and that Dolson and her mother are not happy with this ploy.

Rich