Doggydaddy's Den: DoggyDaddy's Dailies 11/1/16

****************************************************************************

Well, it didn't take long for my first prediction to be wrong!

The starting lineup is out, and while I had 4 of them right in Chong, Nurse, Williams and Samuelson, I was wrong about the 5th starter.

My thought was that it would be Butler with the more flexible player in Collier coming off the bench. But looks like Geno is going with the smaller and quicker and more dynamic lineup to start the season.

I will have another chance to be right in the second exhibition game.

Hey, I was talking about the first regular season game.....yeah....that's it............

****************************************************************************

I found a write up on the upcoming exhibition opener from the IUP perspective.

The IUP women's basketball team opens exhibition play in 2016-17 with a trip to defending NCAA Division I national champion Connecticut on Tuesday before finishing exhibition play with a trip Sunday to Atlantic Coast Conference member Pittsburgh, which is coached head coach Tom McConnell's sister, Susie McConnell Serio. The Crimson Hawks were picked to finish second in the PSAC West. The Crimson Hawks are coming off a PSAC tournament runner-up finish and their third straight 20-win season. Picked fourth in last year's preseason coaches' poll, IUP went 16-6 in the league to finish second in the division, eventually falling to Cal in the championship game. IUP advanced to the NCAA Atlantic Region tournament for the second straight season. IUP returns one starter from last year's NCAA tournament squad in junior Megan Smith (Blain, Pa./West Perry). With the ability to play both the wing and the post, Smith averaged 12.7 points and 6.4 rebounds per game a season ago, also tallying 50 blocked shots and 25 steals. Smith shot 44.1 percent (143-of-324) from the field and 44.0 percent (37-of-84) from three-point range. Also returning is guard Lauren Wolosik (Pittsburgh, Pa. /North Catholic), who started and played in four games last year before missing the rest of the season due to injury. She transferred to IUP before last year after two seasons at Division I Central Connecticut State. Five more players who have seen extended time include: sophomore guard Carolyn Appleby (Greensburg, Pa. /Greensburg Central Catholic), junior guard Halle Denman (Beaver Falls, Pa. /Blackhawk), sophomore forward Kendall Hunter (Burke, Va. /Paul VI Catholic), sophomore forward Brittany Robinson (Harrisburg, Pa. /Central Dauphin East), and redshirt sophomore guard Courteney Storm (Hollidaysburg, Pa. /Hollidaysburg).

Click on the player's name to get more info.

The big thing I got out of this write-up is that they only bring back one starter. This can't be good for a Div II team playing the defending Div I champion.

It should be a good practice for UConn to start gaining it's own identity after the graduation of the big three!

If you want to watch, it will be on the web at this address. Video Stream

$9.99 per month. Just cancel after the two exhibition games.

****************************************************************************

ESPN came out with their top 25 rankings (Link in the UConn section). It looked pretty good with UConn at No. 1. Here is their write up about the Huskies.

1. Connecticut Huskies

2015-16 record: 38-0; national championPoints (highest/lowest vote): 95 (1/4); two first-place votesNotable returners: Kia Nurse (9.3 PPG, 2.7 APG); Gabby Williams (8.8 PPG, 5.6 RPG); Katie Lou Samuelson (11.0 PPG, 3.4 RPG)
A new era is dawning in Storrs, but that doesn't mean the level of success will change. The Huskies have won 75 consecutive games and four straight NCAA titles and, despite significant losses, are among the favorites to win again. Gone are Breanna Stewart, Moriah Jefferson and Morgan Tuck, but just as they grew from young players to dominant leaders, coach Geno Auriemma will be counting on elevations from Nurse, Williams, Samuelson and Napheesha Collier. Depth and youth could be an issue against the customary challenging early season schedule that includes road games at Florida State, Notre Dame and Maryland. How freshman and highly recruited point guard Crystal Dangerfield develops, or how Auriemma and his staff work around the loss of Jefferson at the point, could be the key to how far the Huskies go in 2017 and whether they reach a 10th consecutive Final Four.

A pretty good analysis. I don't understand how they left off Baylor (2nd game of the season) when talking about UConn's tough early season schedule. They don't mention Butler either. She will have to be make some impact for UConn to be successful.

You can read all about the other teams by clicking the link I have in the UConn section. I will mention one issue that makes it difficult to think they took the time to really do a good job on the team analysis.

They have Tennessee at No. 14. Not a bad ranking for a team that lost 14 games last year. And they lost their best rebounder in Graves to graduation and one of their top guards to bad knees in Carter. But here is the kicker. They say this - "Keeping the entire roster healthy, and improvement from Cooper at the point, will go a long way to the Lady Vols having the kind of regular season to which they are more accustomed.".

The problem is Cooper is out for the season with an ACL injury. I did just look at the write-up again and ESPN has removed that comment. Looks like they figured out they screwed up. I'm guessing it was from an earlier write-up, like from right after the season ended, before Cooper was injured. Sloppy, sloppy sloppy.

****************************************************************************

By David in Naples!!!!!

Today's Fun with Numbers is dedicated to my Mom, who passed away last week. Just like UConn, she was the best.

7. Seven is the number of years we lived in South America. Mom adjusted to living in foreign countries and made our lives carefree.
6. Six is the number of continents she visited. Mom's favorite expression was "Have bag, will travel."
5. Five is the number of languages Mom learned to help us live abroad and travel comfortably.
4. Four is the number of times she surprised me on my birthday at Williams College. (You would think after two I would have caught on..!)

3. Three is the number of kids she raised and devoted herself to...
2. Two is for the best two parents a kid could want - Mom and Dad
1. She was #1.

Glad the UConn season is starting..!!
Go Huskies..!!

*****************************************************************************