TheOpenThread: UConn women vs. #3 Notre Dame
Because hey - why not? We'll have a preview up for the UConn men's game against Michigan sometime late tonight.
In the meantime, use this thread to talk about the ESPN Saturday night game of the week, from Gampel Pavilion.
It's hard to write previews for a team that's never tested, and hasn't been tested at all during their 55-game win streak. So I will add my customary note that the UConn women are awesome at basketball.
As for Notre Dame, they have several talented players to keep an eye on - freshman Skylar Diggins (13.5 ppg), and seniors Melissa Lechlitener and Ashley Barlow. All three are guards, though, and Notre Dame will be extremely vulnerable in the post. Tina Charles is likely to have a pretty big game, and Maya Moore is not likely to score 4 points again like she did Wednesday.
Prediction: UConn 80, Notre Dame 69
Join me, and possibly Porter, starting at around 9:00. I swear it's pretty much the last women's basketball game you need to pay attention to until late February.
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Comments
While I am incredibly bitter
that UConn played four straight road Gamedays when I was a student, I’m still happy to see it back in Gampel. Also, apparently the women’s team is pretty good.
According to the AP reporter
This is the most students he’s ever seen for a Gampel women’s game. I’m impressed. Apparently all it takes to get our students fired up is the promise of being on national television.
I was thinking that was a possibility
The only game I could imagine matching was the #1 Tenn #2 UConn game in ’95.
by Andrew Porter on Jan 16, 2010 8:44 PM EST up reply actions
The State Farm College Gameday Bus is a sham
Sure, it may have rolled into Storrs, but it clearly missed the turn for Gampel in that clip.
But you repeat yourself
By the way, isn’t it going to be awesome having a conversation between just the two of us for the next two hours (or until UConn gets up by 25)?
At least you have an excuse
I’m WATCHING you 2 talk amongst yourselves for 2 hours. Under the excuse that I have work at 6 AM, of course.
Wilbur Cross Building lit up at night is the balls. Makes me feel like we have a real campus.
Well, join in then
Plus, this way we can all bail together when its 17-3 and we’re bored.
by Andrew Porter on Jan 16, 2010 8:52 PM EST up reply actions
And by "all bail together"
I mean, you and I can, Meacham will still be here, because Meacham is a sports absorbing freak/machine.
by Andrew Porter on Jan 16, 2010 8:52 PM EST up reply actions
Hey, we have a real campus
Tell me Arjona and Monteith aren’t among the seven wonders of the world.
by Kevin Meacham on Jan 16, 2010 8:54 PM EST up reply actions
I wonder
how much the student section will behave tonight. In my experience, there is a littler more decorum expected at women’s games — but I’m betting a good part of the student section is at a women’s game for the first time tonight.
Prediction time
Tina Charles: 40 points, 27 rebounds, 8 blocks. I’m only half-exaggerating. Notre Dame does not appear to have anyone that can stop her. And by Notre Dame, I mean “no team in America”
So do you think
that the analysts love basketball so much that they will simply watch women’s hoops when its on and as such have at least a casual knowledge of the game and what they’re talking about, or is this entirely scripted by an intern?
Bilas probably did his homework
Rece seems like he’d be a women’s basketball fan. Digger probably goes out for drinks with Muffett McGraw once a week. Hubert I think has said two or three sentences about this game all day, so he clearly has no idea what’s going on.
by Kevin Meacham on Jan 16, 2010 8:59 PM EST up reply actions
Kind of wish Raftery was calling this game
Just for the awkward conversation that would ensue when he yelled “MAN-TO-MAN”
And I'm only half joking
It’s nice to see at least one of these guys admit that this isn’t their forte.
by Andrew Porter on Jan 16, 2010 9:02 PM EST up reply actions
So that means
he’ll be ignoring most of the action and talking about whatever passes his fancy, like the average fan? Truly this will be a new day.
(And I say this as a guy who loves Vitale)
by Kevin Meacham on Jan 16, 2010 9:03 PM EST up reply actions
ND Wearing Green
Because it works so well for their football team.
(Waiting for the first Just Like Football chant since the MBB game)
Quite.
Crowd sounds really into it as well.
by Andrew Porter on Jan 16, 2010 9:06 PM EST up reply actions
Maya Chucking
Big stage…eh, she’ll score 40 anyway.
Pat Summit
Think she’s watching this with a gin in a dark, solitary room, knowing what could have been?
AAAAH TIE GAME OMG
I like to imagine her making her own moonshine
by Kevin Meacham on Jan 16, 2010 9:08 PM EST up reply actions
Because that
is the only stereotype I know about Tennessee
by Kevin Meacham on Jan 16, 2010 9:08 PM EST up reply actions
Different State, But F It, It's A Great Joke
All I wanna do is race, daddy.
LOL
peatonrobb
Jonathan the Husky, the real dog, got spooked during player intros, but managed not to have an accident.
Fantastic.
I think this is as good a place to mention that our original choice of a logo for the new blog was a picture of the real-dog version of Jonathan XIII looking absolutely mortified.
by Kevin Meacham on Jan 16, 2010 9:09 PM EST up reply actions
Also important to mention
The University of Connecticut lost track of the dog naming at one point. This is either the 12th or 14th Jon (I forget which).
by Andrew Porter on Jan 16, 2010 9:10 PM EST up reply actions
Other Jonathan trivia
1) The family who watches Jonathan is prohibited from living by a major road because of the amount of mascots who have met their end by running into the street.
2) As a protest against the Vietnam war (somehow), the Student Government moved to get rid of the dog. Only by student petition was he kept on.
by Andrew Porter on Jan 16, 2010 9:11 PM EST up reply actions
Including Jonathan I
It’s like a tradition. Cars.
If I read by UConn history books right
Jonathan I lasted about two months, correct?
Also, that Vietnam story is hilarious.
by Kevin Meacham on Jan 16, 2010 9:13 PM EST up reply actions
If Muffit McGraw was smart
She’d call a TO here and try and break up any UConn momentum.
Resistence is futile.
They're so good at shooting the ball
It’s a joy to watch compared to the Dyson Dash offense. And Geno actually runs plays to get his good shooters open.
Elephant In The Room
Let’s say UConn does what we think they’ll do, and they’re up 49 at the 3rd TV timeout. Can you imagine Vitale with 30 minutes of game time to have to use filler on? Seriously! I’m expecting him to break down the Rays offseason.
This is actually more entertaining than Colts-Ravens
3-3. Addai just made an easy 4 yard pickup look like Calculus.
Needs more Donald.
I don't own a TV remote
so I need to pick one channel and stick with it. ESPN is looking like it might lose the battle in about 10 minutes.
WHO WANTS TO SEX CHARLES
Wait, it has a totally different, akward feel than Hasheem did.
/snerk
Tina Charles is a woman among girls out there
My goodness. I obviously haven’t watched much of them this year, but she’s light years better from where she was even last season.
Well, I did bring it up
In the ol’ running diary this afternoon.
by Kevin Meacham on Jan 16, 2010 9:22 PM EST up reply actions
This just
shows the depth of your jealousy.
by Andrew Porter on Jan 16, 2010 9:22 PM EST up reply actions
Hey, that U-C-O-N-N chant
sounded much faster than your average women’s basketball chant. Way to push that pace, youngins.
OK, since it's 24-6
UConn vs. combined all-star team made up of players from the 10 next-best teams in America. Who wins?
Thats unfair
you know there is no way on Earth I have even a small percentage of the information I’d need to blindly guess.
But in the interest of being a homer…. UConn
by Andrew Porter on Jan 16, 2010 9:26 PM EST up reply actions
UConn would have
The two best players on the floor, no?
by Andrew Porter on Jan 16, 2010 9:26 PM EST up reply actions
Which team is Geno coaching?
Even it up and have him coach the all-stars. He can spend 40 minutes telling them how much they suck and why he didn’t recruit him.
Yeah.
Stanford would probably have two of the starting five of the all-star team.
by Kevin Meacham on Jan 16, 2010 9:27 PM EST up reply actions
Stanford
Stanford outplayed UConn for 20 minutes. They then got ripped to shreds the next 20, but hey…
Also, Oregon WBB won a Pac-10 game 119-112…WTF!?!!?!
Amusing Note About ND Basketball
The men’s team net lost almost a million in revenue last year. It amazes me how they do not care. You’d think with their poor football team…
Eh, the NBC contract probably more than makes up for it.
And if there’s one thing that you can count on, it’s an NBC contract lasting in perpetuity
by Kevin Meacham on Jan 16, 2010 9:27 PM EST up reply actions
It's Women's Basketball
If you can’t hit free throws, really, what’ the point?
Is That A Gail Goesternkos Dig?
Do you get the reference?
Allow Me To WBB Nerd For A Moment
As you probably know, she was the coach at Duke. She couldn’t ever win the title despite having the best team in the country a few times.
The first was 1999. Heavy favorites against Purdue in the National Championship, they play bad in the first half. Goesternkos’ big halftime adjustment was to (it was shown on TV) yell at her players to go out there and just have fun!
They lost by 17.
The gap between Geno/Pat and the other coaches was never more apparent.
Yikes
I did know she has a reputation for choking in March, but yikes.
by Kevin Meacham on Jan 16, 2010 9:33 PM EST up reply actions
So it's 26-6 with 9:54 left.
Will the women win by more points than are scored in the Colts-Ravens game?
So far it’s UConn’s lead 20, Colts/Ravens 13
Hypothetical time
What happens when Geno/Summit retire? Is there such a thing as a “destination” program in WBB? Or can you just build up anywhere by being an awesome coach?
Well, thanks SBNation server
Now it’s 57-31 UConn with 10:00 to go, and I don’t even want to talk about the game anymore.
Stupid jerk server.
Funny Moment In Colts Game
Donald missed an assignment after 14 audibles at the Ravens 14 yard line. As he was running for his life, he screamed “G-DDAMMIT DONALD!”
Awesome.
I wonder if DB is confused by being part of a offense that passes the ball well.
by Kevin Meacham on Jan 16, 2010 10:40 PM EST up reply actions
Dickie V just mentioned that WNBA trade
Where the Connecticut team sent a former U-Minnesota star to Minnesota, and they sent Renee back to Connecticut along with the draft pick that will bring them Tina Charles.
It’s good to see the WNBA admitting that it is a niche product and that college basketball is the only level it could theoretically be profitable.

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