Doggydaddy's Den: DoggyDaddy's Dailies 3/9/16

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Well, here we go. We have to wait until Monday at 7:00 to hear who UConn will be playing in the first round and who they could be facing in their bracket.

We know that UConn won't be leaving the state for the first 4 rounds, playing the first two in Storrs and the second two in Bridgeport. It's a big advantage, not that the games will be very competitive. The lack of travel will certainly allow the Huskies to be more rested.

Over the next several days, I'll be writing about different things that I find interesting going into the selection show. Some about UConn, their players, the coaches. And some about possible opponents. And certainly about the crazy fans that reside on the message boards.

Make sure you read the article on the two Bres in my UConn link section. A great read that focuses on Stewart and Pulido. Well written and a pleasure to read.

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So, how many teams will the AAC get into the tournament? I know it won't happen, but I believe there are only two deserving teams.

UConn - Enough Said

South Florida - They have been ranked all season. With a 23-9 record and a 14-4 conference record. Three of those losses were to UConn. They also lost to No. 4 Baylor by only 66-63, to St. Johns who beat ranked DePaul to make the Big East final against Creighton, Temple (see below), to Mississippi State, who has been ranked all season and lost in the SEC final to No. 2/3 South Carolina, to ranked Louisville, and Memphis in a great 88-87 game. Really, not a bad loss in the bunch. Their problem is they really didn't have a great win, and the only good wins were the two against Temple. They were 0-6 against the top 25. This will keep their seeding low.

Temple - I've been pushing for them all year. They have a good enough record to get in at 20-10 and a 13-5 conference record. They lost twice to UConn and twice to South Florida. But they did have a bad loss to SMU and an incredible 5 overtime loss to Memphis. And their best win was in their first game of the season against Florida, who has been ranked for much of the season. I just don't think it's enough. They were 1-5 against the top 25.

Tulane and Memphis are not bad teams and they need to toughen up their OOC schedule to get better consideration for the field of 64.

Overall, the top of the AAC is a pretty good group of teams. But other than UConn, their success against the top 25 is really bad. Going 2-20 is never going to impress the committee.

The bottom of the AAC is pretty bad. But if UConn is stuck here, I'm convinced the conference will continue to improve.

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Believe it or not, Tennessee got three votes to put them in the "other receiving votes" group. Crazy.

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From David in Naples

UConn now sits at 32-0, undefeated in the regular season and AAC champions. Ahead lies 6 possible games in the NCAA tournament and a trip to Indianapolis for the Final Four. Breanna Stewart and Moriah Jefferson have led the Huskies all season and are arguably the best two players in women's college basketball. But, they have had plenty of help from red-shirt senior Morgan Tuck and the underclassman. Consider:

1. Stewie and MoJeff scored 984 points this season, but the rest of the team scored 1,818 or 65%.
2. Katie Lou and Kia Nurse have made 68 and 45 three point baskets, which is more than Stewie (35) and Moriah (39).
3. The two best offensive rebounders on the team are Napheesa Collier (72) and Gabby Williams (65). Both have more than Stewie (63).
4. Freshman Collier and Katie Lou are the #1 and #3 most accurate free throw shooters at 92.1% and 83.3% respectively.
5. Stewie has 107 blocked shots, but the rest of the team has 93.
6. MoJeff and Stewie have 292 assists while the other players have 400.
7. Of the 1,099 baskets made by the Huskies this season, the two super seniors have 387 or 35.2%.

Despite the dominating performances of Stewie and Moriah, there is balance in scoring, rebounding and assists with the other three starters. The Huskies also bring incredible talent off the bench with Gabby Williams and Napheesa Collier. The 8th and 9th players for UConn, Natalie Butler and Saniya Chong give Geno depth that very few teams in the NCAA have.