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It's good to be home. We had a wonderful time with my son and his family in Florida, but it's always good to sleep in your own bed.
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High Point had a few high points, hitting 9 threes. But UConn really dominated the paint, out-rebounding the Panthers 52-24 and scoring most of their points on the inside. Not that this result wasn't expected.
Paige was outstanding in her first NCAA tournament game scoring 24 points, grabbing 9 rebounds and handing out 6 assists. She also had 4 steals. What a pleasure to watch.
The "other" freshman, Aaliyah Edwards is looking like an upper classman. It's hard to believe how young she is and how little college experience she has. She had 17 points and 12 rebounds. She did show some youth with some serious foul issues, but she was just outstanding while on the court. Her hands look like she has suction cups on her fingers. The passes just stick to them. And her ability to finish is just fantastic. Player just seem to bounce off of her.
The three juniors all had excellent games as well. Olivia had 21 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. She hit jumpers and post moves left and right. She added a step back jumper or two as well. Christyn started fast but had foul trouble of her own. But she still managed 13 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists. And finally, Evina showed her true leadership, leading the team in the huddles. Another solid game with 10 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
The two sophomores had solid games as well. Griffin was all over the boards and she had 9 points and 7 rebounds, 3 of those were offensive. And I loved how Makurat players. She only had 3 points but she added 3 assists on a few nifty passes.
The only downer is that Nika Muhl looked to have sprained her ankle again. She looked to be in a lot of pain when she first did it. They immediately iced it and then tape in in the boot. I will say that I will not count her out of the next game. Not again, anyway. And at the end of the game she was all smiles. so we shall see.
Syracuse is next and that should be an interesting game. The Orange have a very talented team, but they are really inconsistent. More on that game in tomorrow's blog.
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UCONN POSTGAME VIDEOS
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Man oh man, I was hoping for a couple of upsets in the first day of the tournament, but alas, it was not to be. Every higher seeded team won as you can tell by all the blue links in my results section.
There were a few close calls, with the closest being 12th seed Stephen F. Austin taking 5th seed Georgia Tech to overtime before losing 54-52.
I really though this would be the year where a little parity will show it's head. And maybe it will in the Monday games.
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MERCADO REGION
No. 8 South Florida 57 No. 9 Washington State 53
No. 5 Gonzaga vs No. 12 Belmont Monday 4:00 ET ESPN2
No. 4 Indiana vs No. 13 VCU Monday 2:00 ET ESPNU
No. 6 Rutgers vs No. 11 No. BYU Monday Noon ESPNU
No. 3 Arizona vs No. 14 Stony Brook Monday 2:00 ESPN2
No. 7 Iowa State vs No. 10 Michigan State Monday 6:00 ET ESPN
No. 2 Texas A&M vs No. 15 Troy Monday 6:00 ET ESPN2
HEMISFAIR REGION
No. 2 Maryland vs No. 15 Mount St. Mary's Monday 4:00 ET ESPN
No. 7 Alabama vs No. 10 North Carolina Monday Noon ET ESPN
No. 6 Texas vs No. 11 Bradley Monday 8:00 ET ESPN
No. 3 UCLA vs No. 14 Wyoming Monday 10:00 ET ESPN
ALAMO REGION
No. 1 Stanford vs No. 16 Utah Valley Sunday 10:00 ET ESPN
No. 5 Missouri State vs No. 12 UC Davis Monday 7:30 ET ESPNU
No. 4 Arkansas vs No. 13 Wright State Monday 2:00 ET ESPN
No. 2 Louisville vs No. 15 Marist Monday 8:00 ET ESPN
No. 7 Northwestern vs No. 10 UCF Monday 4:00 ET ESPNU
No. 6 Oregon vs No. 11 South Dakota Monday 10:00 ET ESPN2
No. 3 Georgia vs No. 14 Drexel Monday Noon ET ESPN2
RIVER WALK REGION
No. 1 UConn 102 No. 16 High Point 59 (Links in the UConn section)
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The Hoop Hall Awards is open for voting. It's a position by position ballot.
Paige Bueckers is on the list for the Nancy Leiberman Point Guard award.
Olivia Nelson-Ododa is on the list for the Lisa Leslie Center award.
I believe you can vote once a day per email address.
Here is the link.
And here is the link for the Naismith player of the year.
It's open now.
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By David in Naples
First Half Comments
The High Point game was over at the half. Can’t be happy with Nika down again w/ an ankle injury. Hoping it is not serious, but she looked distressed.
Why is the game over with 30 minutes still to play?
Why is the game over with 30 minutes still to play?
1. Our tall people can score anytime they want. Liv & Aaliyah have 21 points already, on 10-16 shooting.
2. HPU is fouling as often as they make a basket...9 to 10.
3. Paige can score 35 if she wants. Has 13 already....
4. High Point has made only 6 threes, and two were bank shots.
5. UConn has 53 points at the half. Probably get over 100.
The main goal is to win the early games and escape injury free. We will see...
Go Huskies..!
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UCONN LINKS
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Yall bought tears to my eyes h ou w the team rally around Saylor, That's FAMILY!!! your senior citizen fan from Bridgeport. I wish i could buy the team dinner of their choice. Love and Blessings.
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