Just was reacting to your emphatic statement that it isn't what I prefer that matters when it comes to, well, what I prefer. Seemed rather odd to be told I can't have a preference. I might not get my preference, but I like shrimp better than I like hot dogs, so given a choice that is what I prefer. It doesn't mean I don't like hot dogs. I do agree that a stretch of games like these can boost the confidence of someone like Kia who has struggled to find consistency. The true significance will come when she is challenged.
As far as spectator sports go, they charge a fee to watch, it qualifies as a spectator sport. Don't take this the wrong way, but I think it should be understood that watching a team like UConn dismantle a team like St. Bonaventure is not necessarily a thing of beauty, if only because as artistic as it might appear to be, given the huge skill differential, not beating them every which way til tomorrow would make us look like Tennessee. Geno's team trademark is that his teams pretty much never play down to the level of their competition. It is to his credit that his players play full out no matter the score. I get the feeling that a lot of UConn's women's fans are not big fans of the men's team or at least the men's game in general. There is scarcely a game the men play that the margin of victory can be predicted in advance. I think a lot of people would have heart failure watching them play. Can it be aggravating to the fan, yes. But it sure makes every shot important, every turn over big, every foul shot possibly the difference. Of course that's a function of the fact that a lot of mid-level to lower level teams are capable of throwing a scare into a good team unexpectedly in ways that are far more rare in the women's game. Good teams can be disrupted by lesser teams much more frequently in the men's game, so long stretches of beautiful basketball don't happen very much.
As for teams that are trounced enjoying the trouncing, the memory of playing against a lot better teams and super star players certainly will be cherished by some of the players. But just a little part of me suspects that kids on a St. Bonaventure who have lost only one game, have some hope of acquitting themselves better than they did even if they had no expectation of winning. If they feel rewarded and feel it was a growth experience, its possible they were only going through the motions or someone has done a good job of getting them to consider the trouncing to be a positive of some kind. I understand that the coach can say "see what it takes to play winning basketball". Or maybe it's the coach that has the learning experience.
We all want them to win, and we all know that they will annihilate a number of teams even in a non-NC year. We can marvel at their margin of victory even over some of the better teams. I suspect that the UConn players, as competitors, don't mind a stern test, because they think they are up to it. We know the "regulars" love to see the end of the benchers (this year that is limited to walk-ons) get in and contribute. We all do. I think we are lucky to have a Geno as coach, that he is so good, we are a spoiled fan base. I think that if there had never been a Geno, UConn women would probably be as much a second thought as the women's teams are at a very big number of schools. Just my humble opinion and it does not represent the views of this website. Go Huskies and Happy Holidays.
I remember thinking that one of the ND losses last season was one of the better games they played and one of the best games I watched last year . . . and no it wasn't the OT debacle.