UConn women's basketball

Rebecca Lobo will always be remembered as one of the players that helped bring women’s basketball to the forefront of American sports in the mid-1990’s. Her jaunt around the floor of the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn. April 2, 1995 with her arms outstretched is an image that fans, especially those in Connecticut, will not forget.
In four years at UConn, she became a national icon. Now she will deservedly take her seat among the greatest figures in the history of the sport.
A source with knowledge of the selection process has confirmed that Lobo will be inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame as one of the six members of the Class of 2010. An official announcement will be made during the WNBA All-Star Game today on ABC.
The class, which is the 12th in the history of the Hall of Fame, features three former players, two former coaches and one contributor. It will bring the total of individuals honored to 115.
UConn head coach Geno Auriemma was inducted in 2006.
The Class of 2010 will be officially introduced during the 2009 State Farm Tip-Off Classic at Tennessee Nov. 15. It will be officially enshrined next June 12 in Knoxville, Tenn.
Lobo, 35, was the consensus national Player of the Year and a first-team All-American when she led UConn to its first national championship and its first undefeated season (35-0) in 1994-95. That was also the first season the Huskies rose to No. 1 in the national polls.
Lobo, the only player in Big East history to earn Player of the Year and Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors, is ranked fifth all-time in UConn history in scoring (2,133 pts.) and first in rebounding (1,268) and blocks (396). She is currently the only player in team history with 1,500 points and 1,000 rebounds.
Lobo was a two-time State Farm/Kodak All-American (1993-94, 1994-95) and the NCAA Women of the Year (1994-95) at UConn before going on to win a gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and helping launch the WNBA in 1997.
Along with Teresa Weatherspoon, Lobo was assigned to the New York Liberty during the league’s first player allocations Jan. 22, 1997. Lobo spent seven seasons in the WNBA, five with the Liberty (1997-2001) and one season with the Houston Comets (2002) and the Connecticut Sun (2003).
Lobo, who helped lead the Liberty to the 1997 WNBA championship game, was voted to the league’s first-ever Eastern Conference All-Star Team in 1999. She currently serves as an analyst with ESPN.
In order to be eligible for induction into the Hall of Fame as a player, one must be retired from the highest level of play for at least five years.

Rich

UConn rising freshman Kelly Faris had a team-high 13 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals in 26 minutes today to help the U.S. to a 100-38 rout of Mail in its final preliminary-round play game at the FIBA U-19 World Championship in Bangkok, Thailand.
“I think we’ve gotten a lot better since the beginning,’’ Faris said. “(The loss to Spain) was a wake-up call for us. Everybody’s starting to gel and play a lot better together. We’re playing more team ball. It’s getting to be more fun. We’re all having a good time and making the most of it.’’
The U.S. (2-1) will meet Canada (2-1) in its first second round game Monday at 4:15 a.m. EST.

Rich

UConn rising freshman Kelly Faris had four points, three rebounds, one assist and one steal in 14 minutes today to help the U.S. to an 88-53 victory over China in its second preliminary-round play game at the FIBA U-19 World Championship in Bangkok, Thailand.
The U.S. (1-1) will meet Mali in its final game of the round Saturday at 8:45 a.m. EST.

Rich

UConn rising freshman Kelly Faris was scoreless today and played just two minutes, 24 seconds in a 90-86 loss to Spain in the first game in preliminary round play at the FIBA U-19 World Championship in Bangkok, Thailand.
The U.S suffered through a dismal shooting effort, shooting just 38.7 percent from the field (29-of-75), 20 percent from 3-point range (3-of-15) and 69.4 percent from the free throw line (25-of-36). It also committed 20 turnovers.
The U.S. will meet China Friday at 8:45 a.m. EST and Mali Saturday at 8:45 a.m. EST. The top three teams in each preliminary round group will advance to the second round July 27-29; the medal quarterfinals and semifinals will be held July 31 and Aug. 1, respectively; and the medal final will be Aug. 2.

Rich

The road to a second straight national championship for the Huskies will begin at home against Northeastern Nov. 14. It will be the first of 14 non-conference games for UConn, who returns four starters from last season’s 39-0 team.
“What better way to start our season than against the 2009 NCAA national champions,’’ Northeastern coach Daynia La-Force Mann La-Force Mann said. “Our goal as coaches is to allow our athletes to experience collegiate excellence both on and off the court. Scheduling Connecticut will expose us to a program that is dedicated to success. No matter the outcome, we will walk away with a sense of what it takes to perform at the highest level.’’
The Huskies will also host Clemson, Richmond and Hofstra in the WBCA Classic Nov. 27-29 and Stanford Dec. 23. They will meet Texas Nov. 17 in San Antonio and will travel to Oklahoma Feb. 15.
UConn will also have home games against North Carolina and Hartford and road games at Florida State and Duke.
The entire 2009-10 schedule is expected to be announced in late August or early September.

Rich

Here’s some news I received from Tilea Coleman at ESPN today that I know will make UConn fans across the state happy …
Comcast and ESPN announced that ESPNU is now available to Comcast customers throughout Connecticut. The addition of ESPNU to Comcast’s digital lineup gives fans access to some of the best college sports programming, including action from the Big East, America East and Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference featuring UConn, Hartford and Fairfield games.
“ESPNU has been growing in popularity due to the dynamic sports matchups we’ve been adding, and we are thrilled Comcast has added this network to its lineup,’’ said David C. Preschlack, Executive Vice President of Disney and ESPN Media Networks. “Fans will now have access to the best in college sports action through this agreement.’’
“Comcast recognizes that the people of Connecticut are passionate about their local college sports teams, and we are proud to offer them all the best action from UConn and other local schools,’’ said Doug Guthrie, Senior Vice President of Comcast’s Western New England Region. “The launch of ESPNU – along with the wealth of other sports networks we offer – delivers on Comcast’s commitment to being the top destination for sports fans for all the professional, college and high school sports action they want.’’
ESPNU provides college sports fans with more than 550 live events annually and televises some of the top Division I conferences in the nation, including the ACC, BIG EAST, Big Ten, Big 12, MAC, SEC, Sun Belt and WAC. The network also has a wide-ranging, long-term agreement with the NCAA that includes extensive coverage of 22 NCAA Championships, including sports from each of the three collegiate seasons.
Fans can find ESPNU on channel 279 on the Comcast Digital Classic lineup, except as noted below:
In the towns of Andover, Avon, Berlin, Bloomfield, Bolton, Bristol, Burlington, Canton, East Hartford, Ellington, Farmington, Hartford, Hebron, Marlborough, New Britain, Plainville, Simsbury, Tolland, Vernon, West Hartford, and Windsor on Channel 735;
In the towns of Bozrah, Colchester, East Haddam, Franklin, Haddam Neck, Lisbon, Lyme, Norwich, Old Lyme, Preston, Salem and Sprague, on Channel 178; and
In the towns of Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Bethany, Derby, Middlebury, Naugatuck, Oxford, Plymouth, Prospect, Seymour, Shelton, Waterbury and Wolcott, on Channel 154.

Rich

UConn rising freshman guard Kelly Faris had four points, two rebounds, three assists and two steals in 19 minutes to help the U.S. U-19 World Championship team to an 86-46 rout of France in an exhibition game today in Bangkok, Thailand.
The U.S. will scrimmage against Australia Tuesday. It will then practice Wednesday before beginning its quest for a third straight gold medal against Spain in preliminary round play Thursday at 4:30 p.m.
The team will meet China Friday at 7:45 p.m. and Mali Saturday at 7:45 p.m. The second round of the World Championship will be held July 27-29; the medal quarterfinals and semifinals will be held July 31 and Aug. 1, respectively; and the medal final will be Aug. 2 at 6 p.m.

Rich

The decision was one that Kalana Greene felt she had to make. She wasn’t ready to leave college in late February when she announced she would be returning for a fifth year.
As Greene, a super athletic 5-foot-10 swingman, sat at a table outside the UConn locker room at Gampel Pavilion this week she reiterated the fact that she is more than content to spend another years in Storrs. And why not? She is again expected to be a captain on a team that will be favored to win a second straight national championship.
In fact, there has actually been just one instance when Greene has even thought about her decision since making it public. It came as she watched former UConn All-American Renee Montgomery clean out her room prior to graduation in May.
“It’s like, `Wow, that’s supposed to be me,’’’ Greene said. “You think about it, but after a while you’re just like everything happens for a reason and there’s nothing you can do about it. What happened happened and you’ve just got to make the best out of whatever situation you’re in now.’’
Greene, who suffered tears in the anterior cruciate and lateral collateral ligaments in her right knee Dec. 17, 2007, has reaped some of the benefits this summer of receiving a fourth year to compete at UConn. Rather than working her way back from three separate surgical procedures she has remained on campus to work on her game.
She can run. She can jump. She can workout with her teammates without limitation. Greene said she has worked her pull-up jumper and her 3-point shooting in particular.
“This year is all about staying in shape, working out, doing a lot of things I couldn’t do last summer,’’ Greene said. “Last summer was all about get healthy, get the knee back strong, get your quad strong. And this year it’s all about get faster, get stronger, get a better shot. Just keep getting stronger and getting better to help the team.’’
Greene averaged 8.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 25.4 minutes last season. She also shot 58.3 percent from the field. Her scoring and rebounding averages were down from her junior season, but her minutes were the most since averaging a career-high 29.1 during her best season statistically in 2006-07 when she averaged 12.4 points and 7.5 rebounds.
But as last season progressed it became clear that Greene was regaining complete confidence in her knee. She scored in double figures in 14 of the last 22 games after doing so just five times in the first 17 games. She also averaged 8.8 points and 6.3 rebounds in 29.2 minutes during the NCAA tournament, playing 70 of a possible 80 minutes at the Final Four.
Next season Greene isn’t looking to at least match her production to that of her sophomore year. She said she only wants to help the team in any way possible. However, Montgomery’s 16.5 points per game will have to be accounted for. And Greene and sophomore Tiffany Hayes are two prime candidates to fill the void.
“I think anybody can come in and fill that void,’’ Greene said. “We don’t need five people scoring 20 points. We know how to play the game of basketball. We know what’s smart. So I think it’s the chemistry between our team and knowing when to take shots and shot selection I think is a good thing that we have on this team.’’
Greene has already earned a bachelor’s degree in urban studies. Her extra year will be utilized to work on a double major in political science.
At this juncture in her career, Greene feels fortunate to have been given the opportunity that has been afforded to her by the NCAA. And with another year left to play for the Huskies, she is hoping to make the best of her situation.
“You look at people like Mel (Thomas) and Caroline (Doty) … They don’t get a year back,’’ Greene said. “So a bad thing happened, but at the end I still got another opportunity to play a sport I love and be in college for another year and just enjoy college and enjoy my teammates. I don’t think anybody’s in a rush to get out of college. And I’m sure not in a rush to get out of college right now.’’

Rich