UConn coach Geno Auriemma has been in this situation more than once when the nation was wondering what it would take to beat the Huskies during a particular season. Teams are now asking the same questions about Baylor as the 2012-13 season is set to begin.
Led by 6-foot-8 senior center and reigning national Player of the Year Brittney Griner and junior All-American point guard Odyssey Sims, the Lady Bears return all five starters from last season’s 40-0 team. They also return 90.4 percent of their scoring and 86.8 percent of their rebounding and were the unanimous No. 1 pick in The Associated Press preseason national poll that was released Saturday.
Baylor earned all 40 first-place votes, totaling 1,000 points.
“I think we were in that situation, obviously, when Tina (Charles) was a junior and we won the whole thing and we came back with Tina and Maya (Moore in 2009-10),’’ Auriemma said. “And, obviously, it was very difficult to beat us. So if you’ve won every game and you haven’t lost and you don’t know what it feels like to lose I think your team plays with a certain sense of, `We’re going to win.’ And then when you have a player that is so different like they do, it’s a pretty tall order to beat them. No question. Because they’ve got all the things that you need to win. There’s no one area that you can say, `Well, they’re vulnerable here.’ They just have all the pieces together. I think beating them is going to take an extraordinary effort. That’s not to say it can’t be done, but you’re going to have to play close to a perfect game to beat them.’’
UConn was No. 2 in the poll with 951 points. Duke (909), Stanford (854) and Maryland (827) rounded out the Top 5. The Huskies return four starters, including junior All-American Bria Hartley, junior Stefanie Dolson and sophomore Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, and usher in talented freshmen Breanna Stewart, Morgan Tuck and Moriah Jefferson.
Baylor and UConn will meet at the XL Center Feb. 18. The Lady Bears’ winning streak could stand at 65 at the time of the meeting.
“I think Baylor is by far the favorite (to win the national championship),’’ ESPN analyst Rebecca Lobo said. “And I think UConn’s up there too. I think UConn’s the only team that most people probably think can challenge Baylor.’’
There are five Big East teams in the poll. Notre Dame (No. 7) and Louisville (No. 9) join UConn in the Top 10. St. John’s and DePaul are ranked No. 14 and No. 25, respectively.
As is the case every season, Auriemma is not concerned where the Huskies are ranked in the preseason. In winning seven national championships, he knows the lone ranking that matters is at season’s end.
“It doesn’t really matter anymore,’’ Auriemma said. “I think we’re trying to win the Big East championship, and then after that we’ll see what happens. I think it’s great to be picked at the top of the polls. That’s something I think every kid that comes here takes for granted. If you told them, they would say, `Of course. Why would we be picked anywhere else? That’s why I came here.’ So I’m happy that we are and I’m happy for our kids and I’m proud for our program. But long term …”
Here is the entire preseason AP Top 25 poll …
1. Baylor (40) 1,000
2. UConn 951
3. Duke 909
4. Stanford 854
5. Maryland 827
6. Kentucky 767
7. Notre Dame 754
8. Penn St. 676
9. Louisville 657
10. Georgia 599
11. Delaware 545
12. Oklahoma 476
13. California 428
14. St. John’s 422
15. Texas A&M 370
16. Vanderbilt 361
17. West Virginia 335
18. Nebraska 297
19. Ohio St. 273
20. Tennessee 256
21. Purdue 223
22. Georgia Tech 140
23. Oklahoma St. 139
24. Miami 110
25. DePaul 104
Rich
