UConn women's basketball

Kalana Greene spent far too much time on the bench last night against Vanguard. The reason was simple. When she was in the game she was not looking to get involved offensively.
Greene took only two shots – both 3-pointers – in 15 scoreless minutes against the Lions’ zone looks. She did have four rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block, but she is going to need to be more of a factor offensively over the course of the season to keep opposing defenses honest.
“She tends to kind of appear and disappear,’’ Huskies’ coach Geno Auriemma said. “Who knows? Kalana’s Kalana. When the other team’s playing zone a lot, she tends to stand around and she doesn’t really assert herself. And that’s not her game to stand out there and shoot it. So it makes it difficult for her to really have an impact. But she’s been practicing well so I’m not worried about it.’’

Heather Buck, playing with her right knee wrapped, continued her quest to find a meaningful spot in UConn’s rotation. Her quest is slow moving at the moment. She did not see action until there was 8:56 left in the second half and then tallied two points, two rebounds and an assist. She also badly missed a couple of layups.
“She’s nervous,’’ Auriemma said. “She’s playing nervous. Everything’s just happening a little too fast right now. Like we have Blue and White … The Blue team is usually the guys that are playing together and the guys that get the most minutes and the White team is the other guys. And when she’s on the Blue team she struggles. She’s nervous. When she’s on the White team she plays like a she’s a first-team All-American because she’s just not nervous. So we’ve got to figure out a way to calm her down a little bit. She gets a little bit ahead of herself. But she works hard. She hasn’t played. All she’s done is practice so she hasn’t played. And it’s a little different in a game than in practice.’’

Recruits Bria Hartley, Stefanie Dolson, Lauren Engeln and Michala Johnson are expected to fax their signed National Letter of Intent to UConn at some point tomorrow on the first day of the NCAA fall signing period. Samarie Walker is slated to sign her Letter Friday.

According the Cypress (TX) Sun, Chiney Ogwumike will sign a National Letter of Intent Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. EST. She has visited UConn, Stanford, where her sister Nneka is a sophomore, and Notre Dame in recent weeks.

Rich

There is no question that UConn and Stanford are the top two teams in the country right now. They won’t do battle on the court until Dec. 23 at the XL Center, but one man has seen both of them in the last week – Vanguard coach Russ Davis.
Davis got an up-close look at Stanford in a 107-49 loss Nov. 1. He saw UConn tonight, with the Lions suffering a 98-68 loss as reigning national Player of the Year Maya Moore scored 33 points.
Davis provided his thoughts on both teams after the game.
“Well, Stanford is pretty dang big, and they can go big across the board,’’ Davis said. “But I think so can UConn. But they don’t have any Maya Moore’s over there, somebody who can just take the game over in a second. Their people who do that are in the post. That was Stanford’s first game and they are so much bigger than us.
“If you are asking me to say who is better, UConn is better, obviously. They are both great teams. I don’t know who else is out there, but it’s hard for me to imagine there are two better teams out there around the country. They both have a lot of people back. I know (UConn) coach (Geno Auriemma) is searching for Renee (Montgomery) because Renee was the heart and soul of that team. But they have a lot of great competitors out there and he will find somebody to step up and do that.’’

Rich

Junior point guard Lorin Dixon suffered a strained left hamstring driving to the basket with 15:42 left in the first half. She immediately headed to the locker room and will not play in the second half.
Dixon is listed as questionable for Saturday’s season opener against Northeastern.

Rich

The Huskies conclude their two-game exhibition schedule tonight against Vanguard, who was ranked No. 2 in the NAIA Division I preseason poll, at the XL Center at 7. For those of you looking for the connection it lies with head coach Russ Davis, who is also the AAU coach of UConn-bound recruit Lauren Engeln. The Lions have already faced Stanford (L, 107-49 Nov. 1), California (L, 101-81 Nov. 3) and Arizona State (L, 97-64 Nov. 5).
It will be interesting to see how Lorin Dixon performs. She certainly needs to improve on a one-point, three-assist effort in 19 minutes against St. Rose last Thursday. It will be interesting to see if freshman Kelly Faris gain plays nearly perfect off the bench and whether or not Heather Buck is more active. I think it’s safe to say that Tiffany Hayes will bounce back from her 1-of-11 shooting display against the Golden Knights.
Also, this will be another chance for Caroline Doty to prove she is inching closer to reaching full speed. She totaled 14 points (3-of-10 FG) and six rebounds in 20 minutes the other night. Coach Geno Auriemma walked away encouraged by what he saw.
“She did more than just shoot the ball, which is good because every time she shot it she missed,’’ Auriemma said. “It was good that she was able to get to the basket a couple times, find people, pass the ball a little bit. When you haven’t played for a whole year almost, that’s hard. It’s been hard on her in practice. She’s kind of hard on herself to begin with. Then she wants it to come real easily, and it’s not going to come easy. It’s going to take a month or so. Everybody says six months and you’re ready to go. No, you’re not. Those ACLs are not six months. They’re more 8 or 9 months before you feel like you’re playing.’’

The Huskies will unveil the 2008-09 national championship banner prior to Saturday’s season-opener against Northeastern at Gampel Pavilion.

The first day of the NCAA fall signing period is Wednesday. That’s when all those oral commitments from Stefanie Dolson, Bria Hartley, Engeln, Samarie Walker and Michala Johnson will become official. The Huskies continue to chat with Chiney Ogwumike, who still has yet to announce her decision. She has visited UConn, Stanford and Notre Dame in recent weeks.

Rich

You never know what to expect when it comes to a freshman playing their first game for the Huskies. Are they are good as their high school and USA Basketball resumes indicate? Are they as good as Geno Auriemma says they are? Or will they need some time to get acclimated to life at the top of women’s basketball?
Kelly Faris is as good as advertised. There wasn’t a moment that she was in the game last night that she wasn’t doing something productive. Face it, she played like a senior. I know it was only an exhibition game against a Division II team. This wasn’t Stanford or North Carolina or Duke or Oklahoma or Notre Dame. But it’s not difficult to see that this kid play and that this kid can – and will – do a lot of things for the Huskies this season and beyond.
“I was telling Kalana (Greene) on the bench, `That’s what happens when you get workhorses that come to Connecticut.’ Good things happen,’’ All-American Maya Moore said. “And I feel like Kelly is above average in that. She works hard, and she’s also smart. And she makes the right dish. I was thinking of a drive in the second half. I think she drove the baseline. She could’ve easily tried to make a tough shot and create something, but she dished right off to Kaili (McLaren) and Kaili finished it. It was just a smart play, a real heads-up play. There are certain things that people have to come to Connecticut with. Not for one minute did we ever doubt Kelly’s competitiveness and drive. She wants to win a sprint. She’s not going to get beaten by a drill or lose when she’s being challenged. You can tell she loves the game and she wants to get better and learn. So I’m excited just to keep trying to help her and excited just to keep watching her play.’’
Faris generated 14 points, two rebounds, four assists and three steals and had only two turnovers in 25 minutes off the bench. Only Tiffany Hayes (28 minutes) played more for the Huskies.
Faris defended St. Rose’s point guard and was extremely active at that end of the floor. She was also aggressive offensively, making 6-of-8 shots (2-for-4 3-pointers).
“She’s taking it a little bit to heart when I said, `I don’t think you should pass up shots,’’’ Auriemma said. “So she’s being much more aggressive. I think she’s a really good offensive player. And because she’s such a good passer she can be effective every time she touches it and not just when she shoots it. She can make plays for herself and for other people.’’
Faris certainly provides Auriemma with another favorable chip to use in his rotation. He long has liked to bring a player off the bench that can immediately impact the game. That’s what Faris did last night.

One player who did not impact the game was Lorin Dixon, who was given the start at point guard. She finished with one point on 0-of-3 shooting, two rebounds and three assists in 19 minutes. Dixon did not commit a turnover, but she clearly did not cement herself into her role. She will need to play better Monday against Vanguard.

Auriemma has raved that he has seen offense come from a number of different spots in practice. The Huskies saw seven of their top eight players scored at least six points against St. Rose. They scored 85 points and Hayes was a dismal 1-of-11 from the field (1-of-9 3-pointers) and had just three points.

Moore never ceases to amaze. In a ho-hum performance, she still managed to finish with 19 points, seven rebounds, six assists, five steals and two blocks in 24 minutes. Just ridiculous.

Rich

Senior All-American Tina Charles was on the receiving end of plenty of passes into the lane from Renee Montgomery over the past three seasons. This spring it is a near certainty that the two will be reunited in the WNBA.
The Minnesota Lynx won the WNBA Draft Lottery Thursday and with it goes the No. 1 in the 2010 WNBA Draft in April. Charles is expected to be the first player taken, which would also reunite her with another former Huskies teammate – Charde Houston.
Montgomery left a voice message for Charles Thursday.
“She actually said., “Welcome to Minnesota,’’’ Charles said. “Of course, it would be awesome to play with Renee again. But I’m not really looking that much into it. Anything can happen. Anything can happen to me with the way I play. Nothing’s guaranteed.’’
Minnesota head coach Jen Gillom got an up-close look at Charles as an assistant coach with the U.S. Senior National Team in late September and early October in a three-game tournament in Russia. Charles, the only college player on the team, averaged 12.3 points, 6.7 rebounds in 16.7 minutes off the bench during the event.
The Sacramento Monarchs own the No. 2 pick. The Connecticut Sun will pick third.

Rich

It finally hit Caroline Doty Tuesday that she will get the chance to play in her first game in nearly 10 months Thursday when the Huskies open their exhibition schedule against St. Rose at Gampel Pavilion. And she is certainly excited about taking the floor.
Doty has not played in a game since tearing the ACL in her left knee in the final seconds of the first half against Syracuse Jan. 17. She credits strength coach Amanda Kimball and team trainer Rosemary Ragle for assisting her in her recovery.
“I’m definitely thrilled,’’ Doty said. “The whole preseason with Amanda Kimball, practices and our individuals I think really prepared me. Rosemary did a great job of getting me in there and having me do all my exercises. She still has me in there to stay strong, just kind of doing some more rehab. Just preventative stuff. I give all my thanks to her because she’s been getting strong and I feel stronger than ever.’’
Doty met with Dr. Robert Arciero Wednesday night following practice for “just a little check-up.’’
“We probably meet once a month just to kind of see how everything’s feeling, making sure there’s no kinks,’’ she said. “Just to kind of keep a heads-up on it.’’
Doty will come of the bench for the first time in her UConn career Thursday with coach Geno Auriemma electing to start junior Lorin Dixon and sophomore Tiffany Hayes in the backcourt and senior Kalana Greene, junior Maya Moore and senior Tina Charles up front.
Doty will still log plenty of minutes this season. And the role change doesn’t seem to faze her.
“Lorin worked her butt off all summer and Tiffany has improved tremendously just with every aspect of her game,’’ Doty said. “Whether I’m off the bench or starting I’m still going to be playing a good majority of the time and I’m excited for it.’’

Dixon took 600 to 700 shots a day over the summer to prepare herself for this season. In talking to her over the past few weeks, she clearly is a different player from a mental standpoint. She is as confident as she’s been at any point in her career and she truly believes in her ability to lead the Huskies this season.
“Last year I would just go and get down on myself and I would be like that day after day after day,’’ Dixon said. “And it’s just something I didn’t realize. It was just how I was last year because you had Renee (Montgomery) so there was no big pressure to be like, `Alright, you have to step up’ because (Renee) was there. Now I can realize it and say, `Oh, you can’t do it.’ It’s like you can’t just have relapses like that and snap out of it. Honestly, I do look at myself as the point guard of this team and somebody who has to be a leader for this team.’’

Rich

The Huskies’ untelevised exhibition games against St. Rose Thursday at Gampel Pavilion (7:30 p.m.) and Monday against Vanguard at the XL Center (7 p.m.) can be seen on HuskyVision at UConnHuskies.com.
A subscription to HuskyVision is required to view the games and is $9.95. It can be purchased at UConnHuskies.com.
The UConn men’s exhibition games against American International tonight at the XL Center (7) and Sunday against UMass-Lowell at Gampel Pavilion (1 p.m.) will also be available
All of the games will be archived on the site for future viewing by subscribers.

The Huskies were the unanimous No. 1 pick in the ESPN/USA Today coaches’ poll that was released today. They released all 31 first-place votes.
Stanford was No. 2. Ohio State, Baylor and North Carolina completed the Top 5. Big East rivals Notre Dame (No. 7), Louisville (No. 19), Pittsburgh (No. 22) and DePaul (No. 25) were also ranked.

Rich