Just over 9,000 showed up Friday at Gampel Pavillion to welcome back Swin Cash, Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi and see how UConn matched up against the USABasketball team. Fans also got their first look at the freshman every Division I coach had been drooling over: Maya Moore.

In 1995, the National team put a whuppin' on Connecticut -- 83-47. This time it was a little closer: 90-74. Down by 17 in the second half, a furious push got the Huskies within 4. And then Kara Lawson ("She was a UConn killer tonight, wasn't she," said Taurasi) nailed a jump shot, followed by Bird and a Taurasi three, and suddenly the lead for the US was 12 and the win was secured.

"They look really good," Taurasi said. "And for stretches there they played really well. They were really patient and sometimes playing against people that are older and bigger, you kind of rush things. But they were poised and real patient, which most college teams at this point in the season aren't ready for that. So they look mid-season right now."

The game started out well for the Huskies -- 5'10" Kalana Greene, who has surgically implanted pogo sticks for legs, blocked Lisa Leslie's first shot. Then sophomore center Tina Charles made a sweet scoop move around Lisa. The team harassed the US into 8 first half turnovers, 7 of which were steals, and ended the half down 13.

But they also missed all 8 free throws... and there were other lessons to be learned. Charles (who went 4-6 in the first) sat most of the second half after letting Leslie beat her down the court in transition.

Said point guard Renee Montgomery:

“It’s tough guarding any of them because every time you make a little mistake on defense, whether it’s your foot’s up too high or you take a glance to see where the ball’s at,” Montgomery said. “you turn around and they’re gone. It seems like they’re always watching for you to make a mistake. It was hard. It was a hard game mentally (Friday).”

Moore, who went 6-14 (9 rebs, 14 pts, 2 steals), assessed her Husky debut at "60-70%." Reflecting on how well the Maryland freshmen did, and knowing the talent of the Tennessee youngsters the US plays today, this could be a fun season.

Notes of no particular note:

Every member of the US team got huge welcoming cheers -- even Tennessee's Kara Lawson.

Speaking of Kara -- truly, did anyone anticipate her molding herself into the player she's become?

Write this down: This college tour will probably be the only time you'll ever see Lisa Leslie huff and puff. That being said, she's still all but unstoppable: 6-15, 7-9 free throws, 6 rebounds in 26 minutes. "My focus is kind of split with having my baby obviously, and not being 100 percent, because it's only been four months," she said. "But I keep seeing glimpses of what I'm going to be capable of doing and that keeps me hopeful of coming back."

Really, someone should do a "How does she do that" Discovery channel piece on Simone's shot. Said Crystal Robinson, "She's the only one I know who shoots the ball on her way down."

Diana wondered if Geno was taking fashion tips from Kayne West.

Check out some great additional quotes here and photo gallery here.