What UConn alumna do you most miss having at Storrs?

[alexrgct]

Honestly, I don't know how I came up with this topic, but somehow, the light bulb went off. I do think it has potential to be a good discussion. We are inching closer to WCBB season!

SO, I was thinking about the current WNBA season, watching some of the great performances some of the former UConn players are having, and just contemplating the monumental losses of talent (to graduation, that is) UConn has endured recently. Whether they're having great years in the WNBA or not, I think of the steak of Final Fours and healthy doses of national championships. Who was a part of all of that? Charde Houston, Maya Moore, Ketia Swanier, Tina Charles, Renee Montgomery, Tiffany Hayes, Kelly Faris, Bria Hartley, Stef Dolson, and so on- I mean, all of these young women helped get UConn to immense success from 2008 to 2014.

And so who do I miss the most? Well, of the alumnae I just mentioned, it's hard not to miss Maya the most, but I'll never forget Stef's 17-16-7 performance in the 2014 NC game, the heart and emotion Ketia Swanier showed against Rutgers in the 2008 regional semis, Tina's emergence as everything we hoped she'd be, Kelly belonging from the first game and getting to go out with the smile we wanted her to flash...I mean, there's no wrong answer here, is there?

No, there is no wrong answer; miss whoever you feel you should. At the same time, however, thinking about the current Golden Era got me to thinking about all eras. In other words, who do you miss the most of any era? Was one of these alumnae the least replaceable? Was there someone you admired in particular as a player and/or as a person? Someone you'd give your right arm to see suited up in UConn gear, ready to play for Geno in 2014-15?

By whatever standards, who do you miss the most?

 

[Beemer]

My all time favorite Husky is Jamelle Elliott. If I had played basketball I would have played the game the way she played it- hard nosed, physical, do whatever it takes to help my team win. A basketball player with the mindset of a football player. Not a huge star like her teammate Rebecca Lobo but still an indispensable part of that first undefeated NC team. Haven't seen anyone quite like her since.

 

[mike1989]

Stef Dolson - she is a very special player/person. i can totally see her coming back to uconn in some capacity (assistant coach?)

 

[alexrgct]

You know, as easy an answer as it may be, I have to go with Maya Moore. From her amazing swoops to the bucket to her dazzling rise and fire pull-up jumpers, from her tremendous interior passing to her spectacular defense, from her play in the 2010 NCAA tourney that made you positively cackle to her play in the 2011 tourney where her 36-point effort in a loss made you positively shed a tear, how could anyone help but love her? Her humility, her class, her academic achievements- I mean, she's pretty much everything you'd want your daughter to be, isn't she?

Funny story about Maya: I got to the November 2011 Stanford game early and had sprung for amazing seats on StubHub. Maya and her mom walked by, literally right in front of me. I didn't shout, but just excitedly called out, "Maya!" She looked over to me, smiled, and acknowledged me as if I were an old friend of hers. Well, she has been an old friend of mine...and always will be.

 

[rocky rococo]

Forever, we had Diana, and they didn't.

 

[RadyLady]

Diana - first choice.
Sue Bird - second choice
Stef Dolson - third choice.

 

[geneticrex]

DT and for me, it isn't close....

 

[2ndCity]

I wouldn't answer this question, even if I could. It's like asking which one of my
three daughters I missed the most.

After all, we do still call them "our girls." Don't we?

 

[alexrgct]

I wouldn't answer this question, even if I could. It's like asking which one of my
three daughters I missed the most.

After all, we do still call them "our girls." Don't we?

Understandable, but it's chance to give the spectrum of delightful young women for played for UConn a nice tribute in this thread.

 

[2ndCity]

Alexrgt said: "Understandable, but it's chance to give the spectrum of delightful young women for played for UConn a nice tribute in this thread."

I had absolutely no problem with anyone else's participation in this thread.
In fact, I think it's interesting to see which former players are listed and why.
And I certainly agree with the sentiment in your post.

My own problem is strictly a personal one. I've been a fan since 1991. So,
what about those hundreds of delightful young women who've played for
UConn, but aren't going to be listed? I can't possibly name them all, since
I am, after all, at an age when proper nouns are difficult to retrieve from a
sticky memory bank.

 

[tomcat]

Dolson would be my choice. I won't ever forget the exuberance she exhibited as a young player, her reinvention as a serious athlete, the goofy videos, her heroic play through injuries and her wonderful senior year.

Yeah, they're all our girls, I guess, but that one, she's special.

 

[j66kicker]

Diana - didn't even have to think about that one

 

[iamcbs]

Geno closed the book on this topic when he uttered those famous words in response to a question about why UConn was so dominant, "We have Diana and they don't."

 

[jdubct]

Kaili McLaren. Always a smile. Singing the National Anthem with Maya Moore.

 

[iamcbs]

Although, there will always be a soft spot in my heart for Caroline Doty. "Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, it might have been."~John Greenleaf Whittier

 

[alexrgct]

Even though my answer was Maya, I'll revive a Tiffany Hayes shout-out I wrote before the 2012 Final Four:

http://the-boneyard.com/threads/yes-one-more-tiffany-hayes-thread.16906/

 

[Bgillon]

From a basketball standpoint it has to be DT. She had the ability to force her will on the other team and Geno said it best when asked about how he felt the team would fare against a particular opponent he said "we have Diana and they don't".

From a spirit standpoint and representing everything good about WBB and UCONN, it has to be Stef. Her smile, dancing, and physical transformation to help her team.

 

[Beemer]

Although, there will always be a soft spot in my heart for Caroline Doty. "Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, it might have been."~John Greenleaf Whittier

Yes, Caroline & Shea Ralph. What might have been had they both been able to stay healthy.

 

[LesMis89]

The Ballhog Chick.

 

[VAMike23]

I miss Tiff on account of the fact that she always wore her heart on her sleeve and you could see how she always gave so much of herself every moment on the court. Something about her always seemed a little vulnerable , even though her body was (it seemed) *invulnerable*, what with all the collisions she withstood.....

 

[ABachelor6CR]

TASS .

 

[kjkj3]

Dee, Sue, Shea. Dee for her love of the game, Sue for being the perfectionist she seems to be, and Shea for her grit. I'll never forget the guy that ran down the stairs from his corner section and did a "Sue, Sue, Sue, cheer every time she hit a three point shot. He must have had the best calf muscles at the end of Sue's college career!

 

[AnotherVolFan]

Even tho im a LadyLike fan ....I'd have to say I miss watching Tina Charles play! I absolutely LOVED the way she developed at UCONN...that girl could bang with the best of them. I would have loved to see her go against Griner in college! And someone who I dont miss is DT! Such a pain in the rear for us!!! Lol

 

[Wally East]

Maya. I LOVED watching her finish with that finger roll. The joy she radiated in working hard during a game made it feel like a privilege to watch her for four years.

 

[HoopsFan21]

DT. Is there any other? Greatest woman basketball player to ever exist. I'm grateful she played for UConn.