Connecticut Huskies
Big East (29-4, 13-3)
The 2011-2012 campaign has been a little odd for Connecticut. Falling to Notre Dame in the Final Four, and losing Maya Moore, took the target off of the Huskies and put it in on the Irish. Certainly Uconn would get every team in the Big East’s best shot, but the pressure was off a little bit. For a program that has won six national titles since 2000 and did not lose a conference game in the three previous seasons, this year was a little different than usual. The results have been the same though.
Big Wins: 11/21 Stanford (68-58), 1/30 at Duke (61-45), 2/13 at Oklahoma (73-55)
Bad Losses: 12/18 at Baylor (61-66), 1/7 at Notre Dame (67-74), 2/18 St. John’s (56-57)
Coach: Geno Auriemma (27 seasons at Connecticut)
Why They Can Surprise:
This is Tiffany Hayes’ team and she has had a superb senior season, averaging 15.1 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.2 steals. She is a great scorer from everywhere on the floor and will do damage outside the arc and attacking the basket. Sophomore Bria Hartley has emerged as great secondary scorer on the perimeter. She is not as efficient as Hayes, but Harltey can almost keep up with Hayes in the scoring column. Hartley tends to spend a little more time on the perimeter and is not nearly as aggressive attacking the basket, but she is developing into a great player who will be the leader of this backcourt once Hayes moves on. Coach Geno Auriemma will usually start fellow guards Kelly Faris and Caroline Doty along with Hayes and Hartley. Faris is a great ball handler and will find the more talented scorers and let them do what they do best.
Why They Can Disappoint:
There are not many weaknesses to be found on this Connecticut squad. But if we wanted to start getting picky, we would have to take a closer look at the frontcourt. Obviously running a four guard offense has worked perfectly fine for Uconn, especially since just about everybody will help out on the glass. However, center Stefanie Dotson has to do a lot of work on both ends of the floor. She is a good scorer and a decent defender, but she is not going to play 30 minutes a game. Superstar freshman Kaleena Mosquedea-Lewis, a 6-0 forward, is not a post player. She is a dynamic scorer and great offensive threat off of the bench, but she spends a lot of time on the perimeter and needs a post threat to work with. That pretty much leaves 6-3 freshman Kiah Stokes as the main backup to Dolson. Stokes has put up some great numbers considering she really does not play that much, but the Huskies do not want to have to rely on her should Dolson run into foul trouble against a bigger, stronger frontcourt.
Probable Starters:
Kelly Faris, Junior, Guard, 6.3 ppg, 4.2 apg, 5.3 rpg, 2.2 spg
Bria Hartley, Sophomore, Guard, 13.6 ppg, 3.8 apg, 4.0 rpg, 1.9 spg
Caroline Doty, Junior, Guard, 5.3 ppg, 1.9 apg
Tiffanny Hayes, Senior, Guard, 15.1 ppg, 3.5 apg, 5.7 rpg, 2.2 spg
Stefanie Dolson, Sophomore, Center, 10.2 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 1.3 bpg
Key Roleplayers:
Brianna Banks, Freshman, Guard, 3.7 ppg
Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Freshman, Forward, 14.8 ppg, 5.2 rpg
Kiah Stokes, Freshman, Center, 4.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 77.7 (5th in nation, 2nd in conference)
Scoring Defense: 45.9 (1, 1)
Field-Goal Percentage: 48.2 (2, 1)
Field-Goal Defense: 30.0 (1, 1)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.4 (13, 3)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 36.0 (15, 1)
Free-Throw Percentage: 74.5 (32, 4)
Rebound Margin: 10.4 (8, 1)
Assists Per Game: 19.8 (1, 1)
Turnovers Per Game: 14.7 (33, 3)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
Connecticut 2011 NCAA Round of 64 win over Hartford
Connecticut 2011 NCAA Round of 32 win over Purdue
Connecticut 2011 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Georgetown
Connecticut 2011 NCAA Regional Final win over Duke
Connecticut 2011 NCAA National Semifinal loss to Notre Dame
Connecticut 2010 NCAA Round of 64 win over Southern
Connecticut 2010 NCAA Round of 32 win over Temple
Connecticut 2010 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Iowa State
Connecticut 2010 NCAA Regional Final win over Florida State
Connecticut 2010 NCAA National Semifinal win over Baylor
Connecticut 2010 NCAA National Final win over Stanford
Connecticut 2009 NCAA Round of 64 win over Vermont
Connecticut 2009 NCAA Round of 32 win over Florida
Connecticut 2009 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over California
Connecticut 2009 NCAA Regional Final win over Arizona State
Connecticut 2009 NCAA National Semifinal win over Stanford
Connecticut 2009 NCAA National Final win over Louisville
Connecticut 2008 NCAA Round of 64 win over Cornell
Connecticut 2008 NCAA Round of 32 win over Texas
Connecticut 2008 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Old Dominion
Connecticut 2008 NCAA Regional Final win over Rutgers
Connecticut 2008 NCAA National Semifinal loss over Stanford
Connecticut 2007 NCAA Round of 64 win over UMBC
Connecticut 2007 NCAA Round of 32 win over Wisconsin-Green Bay
Connecticut 2007 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over North Carolina State
Connecticut 2007 NCAA Regional Final loss to LSU
*all team stats through 3/1
