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Message: [QUOTE="Convert2016, post: 1997961, member: 7781"] This will be my first post, hopefully my longest, and thank you for your patience. I see where some of you have been Husky fans for years and have made thousands of posts. I guess it all starts with one.. In truth, I have only been a true U Conn women's hoop fan/Geno Auriemma fan for about a year. I have been a native Californian my entire life, my nephew graduated from Stanford, my sister (his mom) loves everything Cardinal, and I tried desperately to hate or maybe just ignore everything about Geno for years. I am a guy who loves sports: college and pro football, the NBA, the Oakland A's, etc. Women's college basketball wasn't even on my radar. It was my sister who got me watching Stanford because she liked Tara Vanderveer. She also hated Auriemma (naturally). She thought (still does) he was arrogant, pompous, and mean to his players. A funny thing happened. The more I watched, the more I realized how much better a coach he was than anyone else in the college game (not just Vanderveer). He wasn't being mean to his players, he was being honest. He wasn't being arrogant to the media, he was being honest. He wasn't pompous, he was demanding. Regardless of the score, his players were being held to a standard of excellence and it was very familiar. I would guess the majority of fans here are based on the east coast. Most of you have never heard of my high school (De La Salle) or the "streak" we accomplished from 1992-2003 (ended in 2004). Our football team won 151 games in a row for 12 straight years. Looking back as a player, parent and a fan, the program is vastly different than what everyone on the "outside" perceived it to be which is a school that gets all the best players. Nothing could be further from the truth. It's about commitment, accountability, and working harder than anyone else. Winning isn't a goal, it's an outcome based on doing all the other little things right. That's my perception of UConn Women's basketball. Yes, there have been great players. However, this year's team isn't filled with athletes and skilled All-Americans. Gabby is the only one I would put into that category. Geno and his staff demand more on defense, on making the extra pass, on blocking out, on helping each other, than any other program in the country. They are a joy to watch. I know how how difficult it was for Geno to say at a press conference that "we get all the best players" because that's what the media wants to hear. You all know differently. They get the "right players". The ones that will buy in and sacrifice. It doesn't matter what the scoreboard says, the staff knows how the team is playing and responding. If they play up to their potential, no one needs to be concerned about the scoreboard. Shooting sometimes takes a night off. Hustle and defense never has to.. Thank you for allowing me to post. I promise posts will be shorter now. [/QUOTE]

Verification: First name of men's bb coach

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