Women's Hoops Blog

Inane commentary on a game that deserves far better


Wednesday, March 09, 2005

Led by Ann Strother and Barbara Turner, UConn looked good last night.

Turner has the unusual mix of skills that can make her impossible to stop when she's healthy, but there's hardly been a point in her career when she's been injury-free. "Everybody knows I'm dealing with a lot of stuff," she said. "And nobody cares about them. I've got to brainwash myself that I'm 100 percent." Last night, it worked.

And UConn as a team was composed on both ends. "That was the biggest thing," Strother said. "Anytime they scored on us, we really tried to push it back and get a score on our end and then get a stop. We really took it possession-by-possession, took it real slow. Everyone was just focused on a different level tonight."

For the Knights, Pondexter and Ajavon both had some spectacular plays, but both also threw up some poorly conceived shots. They combined to shoot 13 for 40.

Rutgers relied too much on the individual offensive creations of those two stars, and Pondexter says her teammates need to join in the game. "I really wanted this Big East title, but I can't do it alone. It's not about me. For us to win at the highest level, our team has to be on the same page. Not just Cappie Pondexter. Not just Matee Ajavon. Everybody. Everybody wearing the scarlet and black has to be on the same page. Tonight that did not happen."

As for the postgame drama...

It sounds as if Geno was upset with a Matee Ajavon for what she said while Charde Houston was shooting free throws late in the game. Geno told the ref to shut Ajavon up.

Coach Stringer, however, sharply criticized Geno after the game for "insensitive" and inappropriate comments. "It seems that the UConn coach made a comment that is unbecoming for a coach to make to a player at any time," she said. "He was looking at her when he said it, so the assumption was it was directed to her."

Geno responded that CVS didn't know what she was talking about. "Vivian has no idea what I said. Zero idea."

Pondexter, who has played for Geno on the junior national team, said everything would be ok in the end. "I've played for him. He was recruiting me. I have a lot of respect for him. We'll work things out. We're cool with each other. We will talk."