ESPN home of the UCONN haters, you wouldn't know they are based in Connecticut.
Dead is not the word, but " over" might be. No one will ever do what UCONN once did. There are too many girls playing basketball now ( I use "girls" to mean 6,7 and 8 years olds ). and the popularity of the sport is no longer limited to a few areas of the USA. It is everywhere. ( UCONN women just this year have players from Croatia, France, Canada, Portugal and Egypt ). So the talent base has exploded, and the appeal ( "come play at a fine US university......get an education and maybe earn money" in the process )has broadened. More schools will have more great players. For those of you paying attention, there is a guard on Va, Tech who once played "Australian Rules Football, " and the BB player she remind me of is Paige. She does everything well, is tough as nails, and puts the team on her back. Taking a realistic view about where UCONN ( women ) currently sits in the competitive cycle, does not constitute a UCONN hater. We continue to love the Lady Huskies, but we are moving away from the assumption that " we either win the national championship, or consider the season a failure." From now on, we have to see who shows up healthy and ready to play, and enjoy how they perform against that day's opponent. We have already learned how easily any and all expectations can be dashed due to unforeseen circumstances.
Hopefully they can make SEVEN next year with their 12th National Championship. I hope that the injury bug passes the Huskies next season so that they can show how good this team can be with everyone available to participate for a whole season.
If that is the only thing that will make you happy, I hope you get lucky. But we saw this year, how easily hopes are dashed and trashed due to injury. You ( we) have no idea how Paige will perform next year. Or even if she will be healthy. Same holds true for every player. ND would have gone much further had they not lost their star point guard just before the tournament started. Without Boston, SC would not have been in the final. And we need not even contemplate how Iowa's year would have been without Caitlin. So, project away. But beware.
It is far harder to do this now than it was when UCONN did it. Many teams are much better. Iowa had to play the game of their life to edge out South Carolina, and that game could have gone either way.
As if UConn won all their perfect seasons against a bunch of scrubs! Let us not forget that, for example, they had to beat the reigning heavyweights Lady Vols TWICE in '94-95 to win it all. And their other seasons weren't strolls in the park. And you can beat every single team playing those UConn teams was giving it their all, since everyone wants to be the team to kill a perfect season.
Here’s the explanation. Our star is fading because ESPN (and some others) wants it to fade! They’ve had a bellyful of UConn and want a change. A reality has nothing to do with it. However, as usual, facts rule! UConn is not going anywhere and, barring a continuation of this unbelievable string of injuries, they are going to be very disappointed when they open their WCBB box next season and see Geno grinning back at them!
Is the UConn dynasty dead -- or on the verge of a resurgence?
The Huskies haven't won a NCAA title since 2016 but are two wins away from their 15th consecutive Final Four. Is this the season they breathe life back into their dynastic run?www.espn.com
I need someone to explain to me like I'm 5............ 14 straight final 4s and they're talking about is the dynasty dead? I hate the whole "they haven't won since 2016" line. No ever said it about Stanford until they won. They aren't talking about that Tennessee won since 2008. Yet.........UCONN hasn't won since...
Ask me that question a year from now.Is the UConn dynasty dead -- or on the verge of a resurgence?
The Huskies haven't won a NCAA title since 2016 but are two wins away from their 15th consecutive Final Four. Is this the season they breathe life back into their dynastic run?
