Spring Break
Catamounts pose first tournament test
Brittany Perotti
Issue date: 3/20/09 Section: Sports
In 1993, Bill Clinton served the beginning stages of his first term as president. Geno Auriemma, in his eighth season as head coach of the women's basketball team, watched his team lose in the NCAA Tournament first round in Storrs to Louisville. He came back later that year to start anew, ultimately leading Rebecca Lobo and the rest of the Huskies to the Big East regular season and tournament championships.
It was also the last time that UConn and Vermont faced each other, on Nov. 30. The Huskies won, 96-66.
Nearly 16 years later, the two will play again, this time in a noon showdown to start the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Gampel Pavilion.
Of course, much has transpired in that time. The Huskies are one of the perennial powers in the NCAA. The Catamounts just won their first America East conference title in nine years.
Yet, each team is the only thing standing in the other's path. History is on UConn's side: A No. 1 seed has never lost to a No. 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Due to the length of time between meetings, Auriemma and his team had not seen many tapes of UVM up until Selection Monday. When asked what they knew about the Catamounts, the answer often was along the lines of "not much."
Still, players and Auriemma remained unconcerned that there were some unknowns, instead focusing on what they needed to do to get the win.
"I told the players, they're not going to announce the brackets and then say, 'here's the brackets and let's just eliminate all the nonsense.' You still have to play your way through the field and you have to play well," Auriemma said. "And we don't care who we play, we don't care where we play, we don't care what time we play. I'm anxious to get started and I know the players are as well."
Renee Montgomery and Kalana Greene said that they are not looking past this game. If they did so, Greene said, they could lose.
Greene also said that everyone has seen pretty much everything that these teams can do, so that there will not any new strategies thrown at players in the tournament.
It was also the last time that UConn and Vermont faced each other, on Nov. 30. The Huskies won, 96-66.
Nearly 16 years later, the two will play again, this time in a noon showdown to start the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Gampel Pavilion.
Of course, much has transpired in that time. The Huskies are one of the perennial powers in the NCAA. The Catamounts just won their first America East conference title in nine years.
Yet, each team is the only thing standing in the other's path. History is on UConn's side: A No. 1 seed has never lost to a No. 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Due to the length of time between meetings, Auriemma and his team had not seen many tapes of UVM up until Selection Monday. When asked what they knew about the Catamounts, the answer often was along the lines of "not much."
Still, players and Auriemma remained unconcerned that there were some unknowns, instead focusing on what they needed to do to get the win.
"I told the players, they're not going to announce the brackets and then say, 'here's the brackets and let's just eliminate all the nonsense.' You still have to play your way through the field and you have to play well," Auriemma said. "And we don't care who we play, we don't care where we play, we don't care what time we play. I'm anxious to get started and I know the players are as well."
Renee Montgomery and Kalana Greene said that they are not looking past this game. If they did so, Greene said, they could lose.
Greene also said that everyone has seen pretty much everything that these teams can do, so that there will not any new strategies thrown at players in the tournament.
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