UConn women's basketball

Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis was named the Big East Freshman of the Week today for the second straight week and for the sixth time in 10 weeks this season. She averaged 16.7 points and 6.7 rebounds in wins over No. 21 North Carolina, Cincinnati and No. 21 DePaul.

Mosqueda-Lewis, who matched her season-high with 25 points in an 88-44 win at DePaul Saturday, is now tied for third all-time in Big East history in Freshman of the Week honors. Former UConn All-American Maya Moore set the record of 10 in 2007-08.

Rich

DePaul junior Anna Martin came into Saturday’s game as one of the hottest players in the country, let alone in the Big East. Forced into a leadership role offensively due to the loss of leading scorer Keisha Hampton to a season-ending knee injury, Martin has thrived.

She was second in the Big East in scoring at 19.2. She had scored at least 20 points in nine of the first 19 games this season for the Blue Demons. She had scored 52 points combined in the previous two games and was averaging 21.6 over the previous seven.

You had to figure Martin would get her points against the Huskies. Maybe she would not match her season-average, but the likelihood that she would again reach double figures was pretty solid. But anchored by a gritty effort by Kelly Faris, not only did Martin fail to reach her average she failed to score at all in 30 minutes on the floor.

“That’s not the same DePaul team that started the season,’’ UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. “So you kind of put yourself in their shoes and offense is hard to come by now since Keisha got hurt. So a lot of it’s directed towards Anna. And anytime that’s the case it’s difficult on a kid because everywhere she went you had a hand on her. And Kelly’s tough enough to play against when you’ve got two or three options, but when you’re pretty much the single most important option it’s difficult. And what we wanted to do was make sure that we pushed her out of her little comfort zone where she wanted to catch the ball. We tried to make her be a playmaker rather than a shooter. But we’ve got a couple kids on our team that take their defensive assignments very seriously and they knew they were going up against a really good player (Saturday). She had some open looks too that she didn’t make and I think then you get frustrated. So I think she probably contributed to this as much as we did.’’

Martin finished 0-of-6 from the field (0-of-5 3-pointers). She was shooting 50.4 percent overall and 46.2 percent from 3-point range (43-of-93). It was only the second time in her 89-game career that she has failed to score. UConn also held her scoreless Feb. 10, 2010.

“I think the coaches do a good job scouting,’’ UConn sophomore Bria Hartley said. “They told us that she would be their go-to player. So we concentrated on guarding her and I think we take a lot of pride in our defense. Kelly did a great job on her.’’

Shutting down Martin was a highlight in yet another dominant defensive performance by the Huskies. They held DePaul to a season-low 27.8 percent shooting from the field and forced 23 turnovers.

UConn set McGrath-Phillips Arena opponents records with 18 steals, including a career-high six by Hartley, and nine blocks shots (three by Faris and Stefanie Dolson).

The Huskies scored 33 points off of turnovers. They have now scored 94 points off of turnovers in the last three games.

“Our defense always creates our offense,’’ Hartley said. “We work so hard in practice on keeping our hands in the passing lanes, tipping passes and someone else get a steal and just going down and scoring.’’

Overall, UConn leads the nation in scoring defense (43.7), which would be a team single-season record if the season ended today, and field goal percentage defense (.302), which would rank second all-time in team history.

The Huskies are forcing an average of 22.4 turnovers and are averaging 13.5 steals, which would also account for a team single-season record.

“UConn never gets credit for their defense,’’ DePaul coach Doug Bruno said. “Because they’re such a well oiled machine offensively they never get credit for their defense. And they are really a good defensive basketball team. I was totally concerned about what was going to happen on our offensive side of the ball because they have players that can play every spot so they’re going to switch every screen. So screens aren’t just necessarily going to get you open. They do a good job of identifying what your strengths are and taking that from you. So they were out in our face all night long. They’re just really, really good defensively. And they do have enough size. They do have size in their players. This is not one of the bigger teams in UConn history maybe, but they still have enough size with (the 6-foot-5) Dolson. And the overall size of their team… It’s just a hard team to get looks against. Anna had a tough night, but our entire offense … Everybody had a tough night. It was just a hard night to get good looks.’’

Here are Auriemma’s thoughts on Bruno, his close, long-time friend being named one of his three assistant coaches on the 2012 U.S Olympic women’s basketball team.

“People like to say, well, there’s a committee for everything,’’ Auriemma said. “There’s a player selection committee. There’s a coaches selection committee. There’s a steering committee. Here’s all kinds of committees when it comes to this sort of thing. But the opportunity for me when I was named the coach was to just immediately say, `This is the guy that I want on my staff.’ Whatever committee looked at his qualifications there was never any, `Why him?’ He’s given his life to the game. He’s done USA Basketball from coaching the youngest kids. He’s won gold medals as a head coach. I just felt like he deserved it because of what he’s done and what he’s given to the game. And he’s a really smart guy and he knows a lot about the game that helps me and I think helps our players. So for me it was the first thing I did when I got the job.’’

Rich

UConn guard Caroline Doty, who has three times torn the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee, left tonight’s 88-44 win at No. 21 DePaul game with 17:40 left in the first half and went directly to the locker room. Team doctor Tom Trojian joined her. She would return to the bench with 11:08 left in the first half, but she did not return to the game due to left knee soreness.

A UConn spokesman said that the soreness has been developing over the last week, likely due to the fact that the Huskies have played six games since Jan. 7 and four in the last eight days. Doty’s knee was stable when examined by Trojian.

“Caroline’s knee is sore every single day and it’ll probably be sore every single day for the rest of her life when you’ve had three operations on it,’’ UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. “But I don’t know what happened. I didn’t see it happen. She said that she just felt something. There was a little bit of swelling in it, which is really not that unusual. But both (team athletic trainer) Rosemary (Ragle) and Tom Trojian, our doctor, said, `Let’s just keep her out.’ And they’re not that concerned about it. There’s no alarm, for sure, at all.’’

Said UConn guard Bria Hartley: “I actually didn’t see what happened to her, but we just had to keep playing. I know she’ll be alright.’’

Rich

UConn guard Caroline Doty, who has three times torn the anterior cruciate ligament in left knee, left the game with 17:40 left in the first half and went directly to the locker room. Team doctor Tom Trojian joined her. She returned to the bench with 11:08 left in the half, but did not return to the game due to left knee soreness.

A UConn spokesman said that the soreness has been developing over the last week, likely due to the fact that the Huskies have played six games since Jan. 7 and four in the last eight days. Doty’s knee was stable when examined by Trojian.

Rich

With little fanfare senior Tiffany Hayes continues to maker her mark on the Huskies’ record book. She moved past Asjha Jones, who will begin her 11th season in the WNBA this spring, into 17th place all-time in scoring with 1,507 points.

Jones was a key cog on UConn’s 2001-02 team that finished 39-0 and is considered to be the greatest in the history of the sport. She was drafted fourth overall by the Washington Mystics in 2002 WNBA draft and is currently a member of the Connecticut Sun.

Hayes also moved into a tie with Kerry Bascom, UConn’s first All-American, for ninth place in team history with 161 made 3-pointers. Bascom was the focal point of the Huskies’ first Final Four team in 1990-91.

“Tiffany’s been fortunate,’’ UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. “She’s been here during an era when we play a lot of games. I would hate to think how many points Kerry would’ve scored if she played 40 games a year. But I think you have to give Tiffany a lot of credit because she’s been pretty consistent the whole four years that she’s been here. Yeah, she’s had her moments when she’s been great and then she’s had her moments when she’s not been great. But for the most part you don’t get to be on the list of most things at Connecticut unless you’ve been pretty consistent. She’s up there with some good players, for sure. And that’s a couple games in a row now where she’s played really well. All three games this week I think she’s played really well. And I hope she’s got one more in her on Saturday (at No. 21 DePaul).’’

Hayes, who is averaging 17.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.7 steals in the first three games of a four-game, eight day stretch, is flattered to be mentioned in the same breath as some of the top players in the rich history of the program.

“It feels good to even be placed in the same category with them,’’ Hayes said. “ Just knowing that I’m up there with those names it feels good. I just hope that I can have as big an impact as they did when they were here. It feels good to be noticed with those type of players. I just pretty much do what’s needed, like the rebounding or the ballhandling sometimes, the scoring sometimes. Whatever the team needs that day, that’s what I try to do.’’

Hayes is averaging 14.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.2 steals this season. She has reached double figures in scoring in a season-high seven straight games.

With as many as 21 games remaining, Hayes is on pace to score 1,816 career points. That would place her 10th in team history and move her past such players as Jennifer Rizzotti (1,540), Swin Cash (1,583) and Shea Ralph (1,678).

Hayes is also on pace to make 184 career 3-pointers, which would place her eighth all-time.

“I say all the time I would absolutely hate to guard her because she can shoot the 3 and her first step is quicker than anybody I’ve ever played against,’’ UConn junior Kelly Faris said. “She’s always finding some way to score and some way to impact games. She’s gotten a lot better at driving in and kicking out. Going in under control. I remember just last year that was a big issue. She could get to the basket but it was out of control and she would get charges. She just constantly works on things she knows she has to adjust, and it’s fun to watch her.’’

Stefanie Dolson produced 14 points (7-of-10 FG), eight rebounds and two assists in 19 minutes in Thursday’s 80-37 win over Cincinnati. She was aggressive inside offensively and active on the boards at both ends as she finished with a season-high five offensive rebounds.

The performance had her feeling good about herself afterward.

“Every day is a battle for me inside,’’ Dolson said. “So I’m always looking to just play as hard as I can, get the ball inside and just finish. And reading the defense has always been a big thing for me. (Associate head coach Chris Dailey) told me that I did a better job in the game (Thursday) of staying low. I tend to stand up a lot. So, yeah, I definitely am happy with the way I played (Thursday).I’ve just got to keep it up and get better with it in practice and the next games.’’

Dolson has now scored in double figures in back-to-back games for the first time since a season-high run of four straight games Nov. 26 through Dec. 6.

Rich

Here is my advance for tonight’s game …

UConn freshman Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis was the consensus national Player of the Year last season at Mater Dei High in California. She set team career records with 2,744 points, 872 rebounds and 337 made 3-pointers.

Mosqueda-Lewis could have gone to any school in the nation. She could have demanded to start, demanded to play as many minutes as her physical conditioning would permit in every game.

For some elite players around the country, starting and receiving immediate playing time are important when it comes to deciding where they will play collegiately. For Mosqueda-Lewis, it was irrelevant.

“Here at Connecticut you can’t really have an ego,’’ Mosqueda-Lewis said. “It’s just not the mentality of the way the players are brought up here. And if you have an ego problem on this team I guarantee you’re probably not going to be here very long or you wouldn’t have been here in the first place. So you’ve got to come into Connecticut feeling like `I just want to contribute to the team and whatever the team needs is what I’m going to do.’ And you’ve got to be happy with that. If you’re working hard enough then Coach (Geno) Auriemma’s going to reward you with what you deserve.’’

Mosqueda-Lewis, the Preseason Big East Freshman of the Year, has not started one game this season for the third-ranked Huskies (16-2, 5-1 Big East). Yet, as UConn’s sixth man, she occupies one of the biggest roles on the team.

She has not played less than 21 minutes in any game. And that came during a 92-31 rout of Towson Nov. 30. There have been five games where Mosqueda-Lewis has played at least 32 minutes, including a season-high 33 in an overtime loss at No. 2 Notre Dame Jan. 7.

“I think she wants to play, that’s No. 1,’’ Auriemma said. “And kids that want to play I don’t think they really get caught up in who starts, who doesn’t start. I think they just want to play. And Kaleena’s the same way. She just wants to play. She’s a good basketball player. She wants to win and she wants to keep getting better.’’

Mosqueda-Lewis wasted little time in making an impact for the Huskies, scoring at least 21 points in four of the first seven games. She generated 25 points against Pacific in her only her second game Nov. 15 before following that with another 25-point performance against No. 4 Stanford six days later.

Entering tonight’s game against No. 21 DePaul (15-4, 3-2) at a sold-out McGrath-Phillips Arena (8; CPTV), Mosqueda-Lewis ranks third on the Huskies in scoring (14.2), rebounding (5.1) and minutes (27.8) and first in made 3-pointers (45). She is also averaging 2.1 assists, 1.6 steals and has a 1.7 assist to turnover ratio.

“I think we try to recruit guys that understand, and we’re very honest with them, how it is here,’’ UConn assistant coach Shea Ralph said. “You do have to check your ego at the door when you get here because you’re part of a team. You’re going to help the team win and it’s not about you. Kaleena is that type of kid. She’s been fine with not starting. Some of the other things we’ve asked of her have been tougher to adjust to but she’s getting there.’’

The hype surrounding Mosqueda-Lewis when she joined the program centered on her shooting ability. And, while she is shooting a modest 42.5 percent from the field (.375 from 3-point range), she has proven to be a well-rounded player.

“It’s really important for myself and for the team,’’ Mosqueda-Lewis said. “Coach keeps telling me, `Great players are players that can’t be guarded and great players are people that don’t want them guarding them.’ So in order to make yourself unguardable you’ve got to be willing to do everything. You’ve got be versatile. You’ve got to go get offensive rebounds. You’ve got to be able to score at the high post, the low post. And that’s what Coach has been harping on me for the longest time is that I can’t just be a 3-point shooter. I’ve got to mix it up sometimes. I’ve got to move around and not stand.’’

Mosqueda-Lewis has made at least three 3-pointers in nine games. However, she has had at least five rebounds in 12 games; at least two steals in eight games; and at least three assists in seven games.

She said that she takes great pride in both rebounding and passing, relishing the instances when she can battle multiple defenders for a rebound, secure it and put it back up for a hoop or reward a teammate for a well-set screen with a pass for a layup.

“I think she wants to be the kind of kid that can be counted on to do a lot of things for your team rather than just make shots,’’ Auriemma said. “I think when you appeal to her … `Get involved more defensively. Get involved more offensive rebounding. Get involved more in cutting, screening. Get involved more in getting open rather than waiting for someone to bring you the ball.’ And that’s I think who she is, and I think she wants to be even more of that.’’

The Huskies are 3-2 against ranked teams this season. Mosqueda-Lewis has also been reliable in these types of games, averaging 15.2 points and 4.0 rebounds in 31.2 minutes. Only Bria Hartley is averaging more points against ranked teams for UConn (19.8).

There has been no sign of an ego or any sense of entitlement since Mosqueda-Lewis first put on a uniform for the Huskies. There has only been steady production off the bench.

“She doesn’t give up,’’ UConn senior Tiffany Hayes said. “She doesn’t give up on herself, and she doesn’t give up on us. Whenever she’s not knocking down shots she’s going to get you a rebound or get you an extra possession somehow. She sets good screens. She flashes when you need her. There’s just no giving up in her. When she’s knocking down shots she’s high in confidence and when she isn’t she’s doing other things. So it’s always an asset for us to have her on the court.’’

Rich

DePaul coach Doug Bruno, Olympic gold medalist and Washington Mystics assistant coach Jennifer Gillom and Atlanta Dream head coach Marynell Meadors have been selected as assistant coaches for the 2012 U.S. Olympic women’s basketball team, USA Basketball announced today. UConn coach Geno Auriemma is the head coach of the U.S. National team.

The selections were made by the USA Basketball Women’s National Team Steering Committee and approved by the USA Basketball Board of Directors. They are currently pending approval by the U.S. Olympic Committee.

All three coaches also served as assistants under Auriemma on the 2010 U.S. World Championship Team that won the gold medal and qualified for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

“The fact that Doug, Jen and Marynell and I got to spend time working together at the World Championship certainly is a huge help because we were successful,’’ Auriemma said. “We worked very well together. The coaches and players responded very well to each other. It’s just going to be an extension of all the work we did leading up to the World Championship. I’m thrilled that we were able to keep the staff together. I know how much it means to Doug, Marynell and Jen, and I know they look forward, as I do, to winning a gold medal in London.’’

The 2012 U.S. Women’s Olympic Basketball Team will be named at a later date. It will be selected from the previously announced USA National Team pool.

“It’s an honor,’’ said Bruno, who coached USA Basketball junior teams to gold medals in 2006 and 2007. “I’m honored and humbled to be working with a great head coach in Geno, great assistant coaches in Marynell and Jen, and most of all, the best female basketball players in the world. To be asked to be a part of that team is just a thrill and an honor.’’

Said Gillom, a 1988 U.S. Olympic gold medalist who also captured gold medals on two U.S. World Championship teams and served as an assistant coach on the 2011 USA Pan American Games Team: “I thought it was exciting as a player to be a part of an elite group like an Olympic team. But, to then become a member of the coaching staff and being a part of an elite group on an Olympic staff nearly 25 years later, it’s amazing. I’m just ecstatic about it all. The emotions are pretty much the same. My first time as an athlete was one of the highlights of my career, but now that I’m coming into it in a totally different area, as a coach, it is even more exciting. It’s from two different aspects of the game, and I’m proud of this accomplishment and overwhelmed to be able to do this.’’

Said Meadors, who led the Dream to the 2010 and 2011 WNBA Finals: “It is a tremendous honor to be selected. I’m really excited to have the opportunity to work with Geno, Doug and Jen again. It is a great feeling for me because we were so in tuned to each other when we were at the World Championship and things just seemed to flow. I thought it was good that we had a great rapport with the players and coaching staff. To be chosen as one of the coaches for the Olympics is just a great honor for me.’’

Rich

Here is my advance for tonight’s game against Cincinnati …

Tiffany Hayes tries not to think about the end. She admits that she can be an emotional individual at times. And with her career at UConn now reduced to a precious number of weeks and not years, she opts not to ponder its finality.

It has been a career that has seen Hayes, who possesses exceptional skills and athleticism, dogged by inconsistency. Preparation has not been one of her strengths, especially for practice. Her mindset has simply been that it is only practice. Sometimes she gets things right. Sometimes she does not.

However, longing to produce a positive finish, Hayes has developed a renewed mindset. She is focusing on such things as sprinting harder up the court for layups, fighting more for rebounds and not falling asleep defensively when the ball is passed into the post. And the change that she has made in the last two weeks has seen her assemble one of her best stretches of the season.

“When you’re a senior you’d like to be able to be thought of as someone who’s consistent, consistent in their effort, consistent in their approach to the game and then consistent in what you actually do and what you actually get done,’’ UConn coach Geno Auriemma said. “That’s the difference between someone who’s a senior and someone who’s a freshman or sophomore. So this is a really good week for Tiffany to put together four or five games in a row where she’s getting a lot of stuff done. And she approached (Monday’s) game like I would hope she would. And all that is … you can trace it back to she’s kind of found her niche at practice. `This is what I’m going to do. This is how I’m going to do it. I’m going to get myself ready.’ And it’s showing up in games. She’s not always been the best at preparing herself and that’s changed a little bit. Now I think the results are going to change too.’’

The third-ranked Huskies (15-2, 4-1 Big East) will continue their four-game, eight-day odyssey tonight when they host Cincinnati and former UConn assistant coach Jamelle Elliott at Gampel Pavilion (7:30; CPTV). Hayes has been rock-solid in wins over Villanova Saturday and No. 24 North Carolina Monday.

Hayes scored 10 straight points for the Huskies at one point in the second half Saturday as they subdued the Wildcats. She finished with a game-high 22, five rebounds, three assists and three steals.

Hayes scored five points during a 15-0 run in the first half Monday that ignited a 51-point rout of the Tar Heels. She finished with 13 points, seven rebounds and two assists.

“It’s just a mindset that you have to have going into practice,’’ Hayes said. “Just knowing that those things can actually happen in the games so you have to work hard at it in practice for it to go right in the games. So you kind of want to have more good things happen in practice than bad.’’

Hayes has tied her season-high by scoring in double figures in six straight games – 12 of 13 overall. She is averaging 16.6 points (35-of-56 FG), 5.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.0 steals in this span. And she has twice scored at least 22 points and had 19 in another game.

“I think she wants to have as much of an impact as possible,’’ UConn junior Kelly Faris said. “And I think Coach got on her a week or two ago, and I think she’s responded well. And she’s realizing I think that this is the end for her. So she’s got to do something. You want to go out with a bang, and she’s doing real well with that.’’

Hayes is averaging career-highs in scoring (14.6) and rebounding (5.5) as well as 3.4 assists and 2.1 steals in 28.4 minutes this season. She is shooting 52.7 percent from the field and 36.7 percent from 3-point range.
Hayes, who owns a career record of 129-4, is second on the team in scoring and tied for the team-lead in rebounding.

“She’s just talented,’’ Auriemma said. “She can do so many things that we’re always disappointed when she doesn’t do all the things that she can do. But I think she’s in a pretty good place right now, which I’m kind of happy about.’’

Hayes ranks 18th all-time in UConn history in scoring (1,490). With as many as 22 games remaining, she could potentially rise into the Top 10.

Hayes has made noticeable progress of late to the point where she has been a consistent producer for the Huskies. But she knows that in order to finish her career the way wants by winning a national championship in Denver April 3 there is still much growth that she needs to achieve.

“I would say a lot because I know myself,’’ Hayes said. “I definitely haven’t had the best couple games in the past. It’s getting better, but at the same time it has to keep progressing. So you can always get better. You can always improve on things. So I definitely just have to keep going forward and not back up.’’

Rich