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Message: [QUOTE="Alydar, post: 2313252, member: 730"] I read the following paragraph from the OP and think it spells out why UConn loses semis but not finals. Since 2001, no team has beaten UConn in the semis and gone on to win the final. And IMO that's because the entire coaching staff and players spend the entire week before that game working out and practicing offensive and defensive plays specific to UConn and then have only 24 hours to prepare for the final. You can come up with a scouting report in 24 hours but it takes longer to prepare a team on the court, especially when they have just had what was likely the biggest win of their careers. UConn, more than any other team doesn't change their game plan much from game to game. Reminds me of the immortal Mariano Rivera of the Yankees. Batters always knew that the next pitch was going to be a cut fastball. I've often thought that that has been a factor in a lot of their losses, that UConn is very predictable. When great coaches know exactly what a team is going to do they can come up with schemes to limit its effectiveness. Geno's philosophy has been "[I]this is what we do, try and stop it"[/I]. It works almost all the time. Another factor, more relevant in the last 8-10 years, is that beating UConn has become most teams' "white whale". The celebration and accompanying emotional high that you can see whenever a team beats UConn comes close to the high of winning a championship. There is always a bounce after a win like that. And when the next game is less than 48 hours away there isn't enough time to come off the high and get ready for the final. I've observed that in all sports and especially in playoff situations. If I see a team celebrating a big win in a semi as if they just won the championship while their next opponent treats their win in a much calmer manner the winner of their matchup is clear to me. In their minds, Miss St won their championship when they beat UConn. They had nothing left for S Carolina. [/QUOTE]

Verification: First name of men's bb coach