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It's game day
It's the day that seemed inevitable from the time that Notre Dame and UConn began practice back in the middle of October.
UConn and Notre Dame will square off. for the eighth time since Jan. 8, 2011 and 11th time since Jan. 16, 2010. It will also be the second straight time the Big East rivals will meet in the national semifinals and record-tying third time they will square in the semis. Naturally UConn happens to hold that record as well as there have been three Stanford/UConn national semifinal meetings.
What makes this meeting so interesting is that the three previous showdowns between the two teams could not have been more different. In the first one in South Bend UConn had the ball and a two-point lead in the final minute before a costly turnover allowed Notre Dame to send the game into overtime where the Fighting Irish prevailed.
When they met in Hartford in the regular season finale Notre Dame simply outclassed the Huskies handing UConn a rare second straight home loss (although it did not snap UConn's 99-game home winning streak as I believe I may have written at least once in the days leading up to today's game). In the Big East championship game it was UConn which rolled to victory.
"It is going to be a great game," ESPN's Kara Lawson said. "I have no idea who is going to win, I think I picked Baylor and Notre Dame to play in the finals. I think that is the fun of it. Who knows?"
I believe the battle in the post will be a huge key. If either Notre Dame's Devereaux Peters or Stefanie Dolson of UConn gets into early foul trouble it could swing the balance to the other team. I hate to have to say this but I also think the officials could have a major say in the outcome. If the officials call the fouls that actually happen as seemed to be the case in the last meeting between the team I think that favors UConn. The veteran Notre Dame players are very skilled at selling foul calls and if they get the calls which they did in last year's Final Foul I would think that the Fighting Irish will prevail.
The game is scheduled to tip shortly after 4:30 p.m. here which is 6:30 in Connecticut and will be carried on ESPN.
UConn and Notre Dame will square off. for the eighth time since Jan. 8, 2011 and 11th time since Jan. 16, 2010. It will also be the second straight time the Big East rivals will meet in the national semifinals and record-tying third time they will square in the semis. Naturally UConn happens to hold that record as well as there have been three Stanford/UConn national semifinal meetings.
What makes this meeting so interesting is that the three previous showdowns between the two teams could not have been more different. In the first one in South Bend UConn had the ball and a two-point lead in the final minute before a costly turnover allowed Notre Dame to send the game into overtime where the Fighting Irish prevailed.
When they met in Hartford in the regular season finale Notre Dame simply outclassed the Huskies handing UConn a rare second straight home loss (although it did not snap UConn's 99-game home winning streak as I believe I may have written at least once in the days leading up to today's game). In the Big East championship game it was UConn which rolled to victory.
"It is going to be a great game," ESPN's Kara Lawson said. "I have no idea who is going to win, I think I picked Baylor and Notre Dame to play in the finals. I think that is the fun of it. Who knows?"
I believe the battle in the post will be a huge key. If either Notre Dame's Devereaux Peters or Stefanie Dolson of UConn gets into early foul trouble it could swing the balance to the other team. I hate to have to say this but I also think the officials could have a major say in the outcome. If the officials call the fouls that actually happen as seemed to be the case in the last meeting between the team I think that favors UConn. The veteran Notre Dame players are very skilled at selling foul calls and if they get the calls which they did in last year's Final Foul I would think that the Fighting Irish will prevail.
The game is scheduled to tip shortly after 4:30 p.m. here which is 6:30 in Connecticut and will be carried on ESPN.
posted by Jim Fuller at
11:09 AM
3 Comments:
Jim -
I am all for refs not buying into what Diggins and Novasel are selling.
But if the refs call charges on those 2, then in all fairness, Dolson should get called for moving screens and excessive Shaq-ing in the post causing displacement of the defenders.
What say you?
No arguments there. Not only does Dolson need to hold her spot but the UConn guards need to be a better job of using the screen properly so she can set legal screens.
Jim -
Thanks for the reply.
You are spot on about the guards using the screen proprerly.
Do you get to watch the Baylor-Stanford game? Or will you be busy writing after the UConn-ND postgame pressers?
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