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Special night for Maya Moore
From fighting back tears when her seemingly endless string of accomplishments over the last four seasons or seeing her No. 23 added to the Huskies of Honor, this was a night that Maya Moore won't soon forget.
She will forever recall the unabashed enthusiasm displayed by her 81 year old grandfather and will never forget how incredibly well the top-ranked Huskies played in the final regular season home game of her collegiate career.
Once Moore saw fellow senior Lorin Dixon crying when she was introduced just before her, she knew there was no way she was going to be dry eyed when she made the walk to center court to embrace UConn coach Geno Auriemma before holding a framed No. 23 jersey over her head.
"I don't know what triggered it," Moore said of her emotional reaction before Monday's game against Syracuse. "To hear it, I don't think about it just the accomplishements and a lot of history is something I don't generally think about a lot. When it is said all at once, it was all overwhelming. I have been given so many opportunities and the fact that I was able to reach my potential with this team, reach moarks that nobody could have predicted. I think it started when Lorin went out and started crying and I started crying.
"He (her grandfather( made this night, I loved it. I was happy. I know it was our Senior Night but he was the happiest one in the building. I love seeing a smile on his face. Even if I wasn't here, if I was somewhere else, he would be just as proud. He just loves me unconditionally and I am glad he was able to be here, see it and be a part of it. I know he will never forget it and he brought so much joy to people around here. I get a lot of the way I treat people, I had a great exasmple from him. He is somebody who will go out of his way to make sure you will feel comfortable. I know when I do that, it makes him proud. I am just being like him when I try to do the same thing. He has a blast. I hope I can see some of the pictures."
UConn coach Geno Auriemma claimed no part in Moore's ascension to greatness, saying it would have happened no matter where Moore went to school but the fact is that the guidance of Auriemma and his assistant coaches have allowed Moore go from highly-touted recruit to become one of the sport's greatest players.
"If you try to put into words all the things she has done, you are not going to be able to do it," Auriemma said. "Trying to do that with Maya, it is going to take you, five, six, seven minutes non-stop 'and this, and she was the first one to do this.' On and on, after all of that is done and you look beyond that, how she did it, how she carries herself. What she has had to do this year has probably made it maybe a little more rewarding.
"She has gone through a whole gamut since freshman year of I am just going to run around and every time I touch it, I am going to shoot it to senior year 'I have to be a leader on this team. I am going to lead by example. I am going to show that I can do other things. Some players never make that jumop an that is why their teams struggle and she was able to make that jump. Everything that she gets, she deserves. I know I would have gotten all of the blame if she had turned out to be a schlep but I don't think I should get any credit. It is all her."
BIG EAST PAIRINGS
UConn earned the top seed and won't play until Sunday's quarterfinals. The game will start at 2 at Hartford's XL Center. Here's the unofficial schedule:
FIRST ROUND (FRIDAY)
Game 1: No. 12 Pittsburgh vs. No. 13 South Florida, noon
Game 2: No. 9 Syracuse vs. No. 16 Seton Hall, 2 p.m.
Game 3: No. 10 West Virginia vs. No. 15 Cincinnati, 6 p.m.
Game 4: No. 11 Providence vs. 14 Villanova, 8 p.m.
SECOND ROUND (SATURDAY)
Game 5: Pittsburgh/South Florida winner vs. No.5 Marquette, noon
Game 6: Syracuse/Seton Hall winner vs. No. 8 Georgetown, 2 p.m.
Game 7: West Virginia/Cincinnat winner vs. No. 7 St. John's, 6 p.m.
Game 8: Providence/Villanova winner vs. No. 6 Louisville, 8 p.m.
QUARTERFINALS (SUNDAY)
Game 9: No. 4 Rutgers vs. Game 5 winner, noon
Game 10: No. 1 UConn vs. Game 6 winner, 2 p.m.
Game 11: No. 2 DePaul vs. Game 7 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 12: No. 3 Notre Dame vs. Game 8 winner, 8 p.m.
SEMIFINALS (MONDAY)
Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner, 8 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Tuesday, 7 p.m.
She will forever recall the unabashed enthusiasm displayed by her 81 year old grandfather and will never forget how incredibly well the top-ranked Huskies played in the final regular season home game of her collegiate career.
Once Moore saw fellow senior Lorin Dixon crying when she was introduced just before her, she knew there was no way she was going to be dry eyed when she made the walk to center court to embrace UConn coach Geno Auriemma before holding a framed No. 23 jersey over her head.
"I don't know what triggered it," Moore said of her emotional reaction before Monday's game against Syracuse. "To hear it, I don't think about it just the accomplishements and a lot of history is something I don't generally think about a lot. When it is said all at once, it was all overwhelming. I have been given so many opportunities and the fact that I was able to reach my potential with this team, reach moarks that nobody could have predicted. I think it started when Lorin went out and started crying and I started crying.
"He (her grandfather( made this night, I loved it. I was happy. I know it was our Senior Night but he was the happiest one in the building. I love seeing a smile on his face. Even if I wasn't here, if I was somewhere else, he would be just as proud. He just loves me unconditionally and I am glad he was able to be here, see it and be a part of it. I know he will never forget it and he brought so much joy to people around here. I get a lot of the way I treat people, I had a great exasmple from him. He is somebody who will go out of his way to make sure you will feel comfortable. I know when I do that, it makes him proud. I am just being like him when I try to do the same thing. He has a blast. I hope I can see some of the pictures."
UConn coach Geno Auriemma claimed no part in Moore's ascension to greatness, saying it would have happened no matter where Moore went to school but the fact is that the guidance of Auriemma and his assistant coaches have allowed Moore go from highly-touted recruit to become one of the sport's greatest players.
"If you try to put into words all the things she has done, you are not going to be able to do it," Auriemma said. "Trying to do that with Maya, it is going to take you, five, six, seven minutes non-stop 'and this, and she was the first one to do this.' On and on, after all of that is done and you look beyond that, how she did it, how she carries herself. What she has had to do this year has probably made it maybe a little more rewarding.
"She has gone through a whole gamut since freshman year of I am just going to run around and every time I touch it, I am going to shoot it to senior year 'I have to be a leader on this team. I am going to lead by example. I am going to show that I can do other things. Some players never make that jumop an that is why their teams struggle and she was able to make that jump. Everything that she gets, she deserves. I know I would have gotten all of the blame if she had turned out to be a schlep but I don't think I should get any credit. It is all her."
BIG EAST PAIRINGS
UConn earned the top seed and won't play until Sunday's quarterfinals. The game will start at 2 at Hartford's XL Center. Here's the unofficial schedule:
FIRST ROUND (FRIDAY)
Game 1: No. 12 Pittsburgh vs. No. 13 South Florida, noon
Game 2: No. 9 Syracuse vs. No. 16 Seton Hall, 2 p.m.
Game 3: No. 10 West Virginia vs. No. 15 Cincinnati, 6 p.m.
Game 4: No. 11 Providence vs. 14 Villanova, 8 p.m.
SECOND ROUND (SATURDAY)
Game 5: Pittsburgh/South Florida winner vs. No.5 Marquette, noon
Game 6: Syracuse/Seton Hall winner vs. No. 8 Georgetown, 2 p.m.
Game 7: West Virginia/Cincinnat winner vs. No. 7 St. John's, 6 p.m.
Game 8: Providence/Villanova winner vs. No. 6 Louisville, 8 p.m.
QUARTERFINALS (SUNDAY)
Game 9: No. 4 Rutgers vs. Game 5 winner, noon
Game 10: No. 1 UConn vs. Game 6 winner, 2 p.m.
Game 11: No. 2 DePaul vs. Game 7 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 12: No. 3 Notre Dame vs. Game 8 winner, 8 p.m.
SEMIFINALS (MONDAY)
Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 6 p.m.
Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner, 8 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP
Tuesday, 7 p.m.
Labels: Lorin Dixon, Maya Moore
posted by Jim Fuller at
10:59 PM
1 Comments:
.
Thanks to CPTV's hoop streams INCOMPETENCE, countless UConn fans missed the senior night ceremony and most of the game.
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At least I was able to watch the excellent DePaul and Notre Dame battle on CBS CS.
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