Spring Break
Hayes scores career-high 23 off bench in win
Brittany Perotti
Issue date: 1/27/09 Section: Sports
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That changed with an ACL injury to Doty that left her sidelined for the rest of the season. Lorin Dixon, who was often lost in the shuffle of the media's attention to Maya Moore last season, became the starter.
On Monday evening, as she entered Gampel Pavilion prepared to face No. 6 Louisville, she was averaging 6.6 points per game.
By game time, it was Hayes' time to shine.
Few people may have predicted it, though.
"I said this afternoon, I think to Rebecca [Lobo], that we need to get 25 great minutes out of Tiffany Hayes tonight," said coach Geno Auriemma. "The question was: what constitutes great minutes?"
She had scored 10 points in the last three games combined and had gone 1-for her last-24 in 3-point attempts.
It was no wonder why the Cardinals' game plan was to leave her open and force her to hit shots from the perimeter.
Monday night, watching Hayes play, no one would have guessed that she had struggled. In fact, it was a career night. Last year's Miss Florida Basketball and McDonald's All-American dropped six 3's and 23 points in the women's basketball team's 93-65 victory in front of 9,428 of fans at Gampel Pavilion.
"She just got hot," said Louisville forward Angel McCoughtry. "That was the game plan and she made 'em. That was a chance we took."
Hayes' family sat in the stands, watching it all unfold.
She entered the game quietly, but made her presence known almost immediately, hitting a 3 within 1:30 of subbing in for Dixon. It was a shot Auriemma said she had told him that she did not want to take.
It was also the shot that she said told her that she had the right touch that night.
"They're UConn, they're No. 1," said Louisville forward Candyce Bingham. "They had somebody step up and she stepped up."
By halftime, Hayes had 10 points.
In the second half, Hayes became an integral part of breaking open the lead. In fact, within a one-minute span, Hayes padded the Huskies' lead and hit three straight 3's.
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