NO. 16 SAINT FRANCIS (PA.) AT NO 1 UCONN
NCAA tournament first round Location: Gampel Pavilion Tip: 11 a.m. (ESPN2).
Records: Saint Francis 24-9 overall; UConn 32-0.
Last game: Saint Francis beat Robert Morris 66-56 in the Northeast Conference tournament final March 11; UConn beat South Florida 70-54 in the American Athletic Conference tournament final March 6.
Probable starters: Saint Francis, 6-2 Sr. F Ace Harrison (10.9 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 2.8 spg), 5-9 Jr. G Jessica Kovatch (24.9 ppg), 5-10 redshirt freshman guard Caitlyn Kroll (13.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 3.1 apg), 5-11 Sr. F Maya Wynn (5.6 ppg), 6-4 Jr. F Courtney Zezza (7.2 ppg, 4.9 rpg).
UConn, 5-5 So. G Crystal Dangerfield (9.6 ppg, 3.9 apg), 6-0 Sr. G Kia Nurse (13.8 ppg), 6-3 Jr. G/F Katie Lou Samuelson (17.9 ppg, 4.4 rpg), 5-11 Sr. F Gabby Williams (10.6 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 5.2 apg, 2.6 spg), 6-1 Jr. G/F Napheesa Collier (15.4 ppg, 7.5 rpg).
Noteworthy: UConn plays its first NCAA tournament game since a loss last season in the national semifinals in Dallas, falling 66-64 to Mississippi State, a defeat which crushed the then-unbeaten Huskies' hopes of a 12th national championship and broke their unprecedented 111-game winning streak. UConn coach Geno Auriemma said his team, while watching the NCAA selection show Monday, was counting how many times Mississippi's State's game-winning shot and ensuing celebration was shown on the broadcast. “They lost track,” Auriemma said. “For us,” Nurse said Friday from Gampel Pavilion, “last year is not something you can forget and it's not something anyone is going to let you forget. We have to use that in the right way, but at the same time (go) into this tournament the same way we approach everything this season. Whatever is going on that day is our focus.” … UConn enters the NCAA tournament undefeated for the third straight season and the 10th time in program history. … Saint Francis, meanwhile, is led by Kovatch, the nation's second-leading scorer. Kovatch, who hails from Phillipsburg, N.J., is 141-for-365 from 3-point range this season to lead the country in both makes and attempts from long range. Kovatch has 2,149 career points, the first junior in NCAA history to break the 2,000-point barrier. “He gave me the green light ever since I stepped on the court for him,” Kovatch said of coach Joe Haigh, “… just these crazy shots you wouldn't want your player to take, but he embraces those shots.” Said Haigh, whose team has taken 1,095 3-pointers in all this season (compared to UConn's 659): “(Kovatch) does make some crazy shots. She has a great shooting touch and has the ability to change her release point, her body angle, her arm angle. She has the ability to get the ball in the basket in unique ways.” … UConn is 2-0 all-time against Saint Francis, with both wins coming in the NCAA tournament. … For the first time in program history, UConn has four players with more than 1,500 career points, with Samuelson (1,638), Nurse (1,615), Williams (1,510) and Collier (1,505). Azura Stevens is next up with 1,410. … The NEC tournament title for Saint Francis was its 12th in program history. The Red Flash are 0-11 in the NCAA tournament.