Perhaps former UConn All-American guard Jen Rizzotti will be a bit reflective when she looks around Gampel Pavilion on Sunday afternoon but the University of Hartford coach was certainly not holding back her emotions when she met with the media on Saturday.

However, it was not memories of her playing days but the recollections of how one of Hartford's all-time great Erica Beverly's knee injury keeping her from experiencing the job of playing in the NCAA tournament one last time. As she watched her current group of seniors unable to contain their elation as securing the sixth NCAA tournament bid in Rizzotti's 12 years as Hartford's coach, the occasionally combustable Rizzotti began to cry.

"For different reasons, what we have to remember that last year was a little bittersweet to have (Beverly) be a part of it," Rizzotti said. You can obviously see how much it impacted us emotionally. She is a special kid and this one here (Jackie Smith) had to keep saying 'amazing' and 'awesome' for everything I asked her. It's been really fun the watch the seniors enjoy because we couldn't experience that last year. It was really hard to be there so it is a special group and they came a long way this year. I feel like I cry every press conference. Everyone of them. My heart goes out for Keyokah (Mars-Garrick) who is injured and won't be able to play in this game. I think about my sophomores about how they have no fear and they actually think there might be an answer to stopping Maya Moore and I don't have the heart to tell them that there is not. Then my freshmen who are like kids in a candy store taking 8 million pictures with the championship trophy the other day in Boston.

"It's been a really fun group and it's been really hard. They never gave up. I was rally man to them this year. I ran them, cussed them out and they never turned on me, never turned on each other. To have all that hard work pay off for them and see their faces, it is a special group."