Doggydaddy's Den: Doggy's Doghouse 3/18/2023

GO UCONN!!!!!

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I was supposed to be driving with my son and his family to a rental house in Georgia today. But the plans fell apart when I came down with something. Two Covid tests were negative. But I've had a fever on and off and a runny nose. I plan on flying to Atlanta on Tuesday. Hopefull I am better before then!!

The good news is I got to watch the UConn game live and many other games. It's been a great day for WCBB.

And I'll be home for the Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight games, if UConn gets that far.

I hate being sick!!

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Well, that couldn't have gone any better!! Other than the injury scare for Lou, it was as good as it gets.

Here is an update on Lou.

Lou Lopez Sénéchal said she "hyperextended" her leg and just wanted to be cautious since the team was up big and it was only the first game of the tournament
— Daniel Connolly (@DanielVConnolly) March 18, 2023

I believe this might have been the first game this season that everyone played and everyone scored. So much fun to watch.

The star of this game was Aaliyah Edwards. She hit her first 10 shots on her way to a 13-15 game scoring a career high 28 points in only 28 minutes. She a stat line for Edwards. She added 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks. Third team AA? Nah.....better!

UConn's front court dominated as Dorka Juhasz had 15 points and 10 rebounds for another double double. She also added 6 assists, 3 steals and 3 blocks.

Wow, those two are just a force.

Nika "Iron Woman" Muhl had a terrific game with 9 points and 10 assists in her team leading 35 minutes. Some of those passes were just amazing.And her on the ball defense was dominating.

Lou had a quiet game in her 20 minutes. Once she did something to her leg by stepping on Muhl's foot, she didn't re-enter the game. She was smiling ear-to-ear after riding the bike to loosen it up.

Azzi...oh Azzi. I can't wait until she finds the range again. 1-8 on threes is not something she does very often. And they were pretty open threes. But just the threat of her long range shooting opened it up for Edwards and Juhasz. She did score 5 points, with 4 rebounds, 2 assists and a steal. Eventually UConn is going to need to have her hit those open shots.

Caroline Ducharme said she was feeling great and ready to play. She wasn't kidding! In her 24 minutes off the bench she had 12 points going 4-4 from the field and 2-2 on threes. She also had 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal. A solid all around game. She looked as good as she has all season long. I'm so happy for her!

Aubrey Griffin clearly wasn't herself after suffering from back spasms. She only played 6 minutes scoring 4 points. Hopefully she will be doing better in 2 days. Her back spams were acting up. Despite getting treatment at halftime, Geno says she still wasn't playing well and wanted to rest her.

Ayanna Patterson was the only other player in the rotation and she earned more time. Once she got over the early jitters, Patterson played as good as she has all year. She actually took the ball to the basket! How about that! In her 14 minutes she had 6 points on 3-6 shooting, 3 rebounds and 1 assists. More than the stats, she looked to be making the correct plays. Good to see.

I just love Ina Bettencourt. She looks really comfortable in the offense and hit her only shot, a three pointer. She also added 1 rebound, 1 assists and one amazing block.

Even Amari DeBerry looked good in her limited time on the court. She had 4 points and 3 rebounds.

Whew...great job by the team. Their full court press and ball pressure was just outstanding. And their team defense was dominating.

UConn shot 62% from the field and had 27 assists. A great team effort.

They take on Baylor in the round of 32 on Monday at 9:00 on ESPN. More to come on that game. Here is my Pregame Report.

Baylor came back from an 18 point deficit to beat Alabama. It was the third larget deficit to overcome in NCAA tournament history. Both teams were hot from the outside. Alabama was 14-26 from deep and Baylor was 14-28. That is pretty amazing considering that Baylor shoots 32.2% for the season and Alabama shoots 38% so that great shooting was much more understandable. Alabama jumped out to a 20-4 lead in the first quarter but the Lady Bears slowly came back. Alabama jumped out to an 8 point lead in the fourth quarter, but Baylor just wouldn't give up. A great game to watch. I hope Baylor is really tired.

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Game Highlights

More Highlights

Full Press Conference

Dorka Interview

Azzi Interview

Geno Interview

Patterson Interview

Nika Interview

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A mixed day for the Big East. St. John's lost a tough game against North Carolina. They had a 5 point lead with 4 minutes remaining in the game but North Carolina scored seven straight points to take a 2 point lead 56-54 with 1:19 left in the game. St. John's tied it up but North Carolina took their final lead with 2 seconds left 61-58. St. John's was fouled taking a three point shot with 2 seconds left. That call was very questionable. But Patterson missed the first two foul shots and that was the final. Great game and too bad for the Red Storm.

Villanova beat up on Cleveland State, winning 76-59 in a game what wasn't that close. Maddy Siegrist scored 35 points to lead the Wildcats. They look like a tough out and with the upset by Florida Gulf Coast, they will not have to face PAC12 champion Washington State in the second round. I expect a tough game but Villanova should be favored to get to the Sweet Sixteen!

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A couple of 5-12 upsets Saturday.

12 seed Toledo beat 5 seed Iowa State 80-73 and will take on 4 seed Tennessee on Monday. I like the Lady Vols chances to get to the Sweet Sixteen.

12 seed Florida Gulf Coast beat PAC12 champion 5 seed Washington State 74-63 in a game I picked correctly in my brackets. They get to take on Villanova in the next round.

5 seed Louisville almost lost to 12 seed Drake 83-81 in a very exciting game.

Plenty of chalk games to round it out for the day.

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