I know. She’s a HOF coach who’s been at Geno’s side for all of his 36 seasons at UConn. She’s never lost a game filling in as HC. But sometimes I wonder if UConn fans think Chris Dailey’s primary responsibility is wrestling Geno on the sideline to keep him from getting Tee’d up.
Last night against Creighton Chris Dailey proved once again why she is invaluable to UConn WBB. With Geno ailing, the Huskies short-handed, on the road, against a good Creighton team, Dailey took the reins as HC.
Dailey did an absolutely brilliant job guiding the Huskies last night. Creighton came out like a tidal wave at the start of the game leading by double digits in the first quarter. Dailey settled the team down with her characteristic calm demeanor (the anti-Geno), and made some adjustments that had UConn back to within 2 at the half.
During halftime, Dailey made some more adjustments and UConn came out firing on all cylinders in the second half. Throughout the game, Dailey pushed all the right buttons with her substitution patterns. At times UConn had anywhere from 3 to 5 guards on the floor, which prevented Creighton from getting back into their comfort zone at either end of the court.
While focusing on the game and substitutions, Dailey still managed to coach players on the bench during play, demonstrating that she is a master multi-tasker. Geno will tell anyone that listens just how important Chris Dailey has been to the success of UConn WBB.
We may take her for granted from time to time. But there is no denying that when the history of UConn WBB is written, Chris Dailey’s influence on the success of the program can never be underestimated.