I told my wife the day Cam committed that this would be our year. Of course, at that time I was assuming Dijonai would be playing at an all-american level and Maya would be a defensive force and capable offensive contributor.
Right out of the gate, with Fran's improvement, I felt fairly comfortable that this would be our year and I was always worried more about South Carolina than UConn. I thought it was great that we lost two games in a row, as I thought that would be the perfect motivation for us to continue to improve along the way.
That said, it was brutal watching the first half against Louisville -- but that angst made the joy of the second half even that more rewarding. The South Carolina game felt like the national championship game and while we deserved to win, the last play involved a lot more luck than I had hoped.
Frankly, my first thought after the championship game ended was that I needed a shower. It was such an ugly defense-oriented game that it detracted from the outcome, at least initially. Right after the horn went off, a camera panned to Kiana and she looked somewhat lukewarm about the outcome and I empathized with her. I know it was a team win. Perhaps part of the muted reaction was a sense that McDonald had earned the right for that shot to go in. The fact that she was even able to hit the rim with a very deep fadeaway jumper over our big three wall was a miracle in itself. I replayed that play over and over again and I loved the way Lexie and Cam clamped down on the double and triple-team trap -- without fouling.
Still, it took a long time for that championship glow to register. It helped that this was for Tara and that it bridged 29 years of great coaching, great teams and some excellent memories. It's too bad that this victory will not expand the available recruiting pool like it would for other schools.
Finally, I'm excited to see the next freshman class and also what Lauren Betts can do, presumably with a polished Cam roaming the high post in one of the best high-low combos NCAA women's hoops has ever seen. Now let's nail down the right point guard to bring home another natty, whether it's next year or a couple of years from now.
Right out of the gate, with Fran's improvement, I felt fairly comfortable that this would be our year and I was always worried more about South Carolina than UConn. I thought it was great that we lost two games in a row, as I thought that would be the perfect motivation for us to continue to improve along the way.
That said, it was brutal watching the first half against Louisville -- but that angst made the joy of the second half even that more rewarding. The South Carolina game felt like the national championship game and while we deserved to win, the last play involved a lot more luck than I had hoped.
Frankly, my first thought after the championship game ended was that I needed a shower. It was such an ugly defense-oriented game that it detracted from the outcome, at least initially. Right after the horn went off, a camera panned to Kiana and she looked somewhat lukewarm about the outcome and I empathized with her. I know it was a team win. Perhaps part of the muted reaction was a sense that McDonald had earned the right for that shot to go in. The fact that she was even able to hit the rim with a very deep fadeaway jumper over our big three wall was a miracle in itself. I replayed that play over and over again and I loved the way Lexie and Cam clamped down on the double and triple-team trap -- without fouling.
Still, it took a long time for that championship glow to register. It helped that this was for Tara and that it bridged 29 years of great coaching, great teams and some excellent memories. It's too bad that this victory will not expand the available recruiting pool like it would for other schools.
Finally, I'm excited to see the next freshman class and also what Lauren Betts can do, presumably with a polished Cam roaming the high post in one of the best high-low combos NCAA women's hoops has ever seen. Now let's nail down the right point guard to bring home another natty, whether it's next year or a couple of years from now.