A not-so-friendly hoops rivalry
We called it “The Game.” It was such a good rivalry, Uconn and Tennessee, fueled by the success of the programs and the personalities of the two coaches, even when the teams were ranked 10th (Tennessee) and 15th (Uconn), like they were in 2005. It lasted 12 years, encompassing 22 games, starting with Uconn’s 77-66 win in Storrs Jan. 16, 1995 and ending with Tennessee’s 70-64 win at the Civic Center Jan. 6, 2007. In 1997, the Uconn women played their first game (against Tennessee) at the Civic Center because Gampel Pavilion sold out and fans were complaining they couldn’t get tickets to the game.
The rivalry was rekindled in January 2020 after a 13-year hiatus, and the Huskies have won the three meetings since (60-45 in 2020, 67-61 in 2021, 75-56 in 2022), with the next installment set for Thursday night in Knoxville, here are some favorite memories:
The Blizzard Game
There was some talk that the Dec. 30, 2000 game — a rematch of the national championship, which Uconn won - might have to be postponed due to the forecast but both teams were in Hartford and so was the CBS television crew. A state transportation official said the 4 p.m. tipoff of the game would come “at probably the worst time” of the storm.
But 15,500 people, including thengov. John Rowland showed up. The hotel lobbies downtown were overflowing with fans. The Civic Center was loud. Said one Uconn fan: “I wanted to see Pat Summitt lose in real life.” He got his wish: Uconn won, 81-76.
The streaks
In the third game of the series, Jan. 6, 1996, Uconn beat Tennessee in Knoxville 59-53 to break the Lady Vols’ 69-game win streak. Uconn lost to Syracuse a few days earlier. There was also a snowstorm that day. “Right after playing so poorly up at Syracuse, we fly down there to Tennessee and play a great game,” Auriemma told The Courant then. “We got stuck in a snowstorm [after the game]. Thank God we won. Could you imagine being stuck down there after a loss?”
Tennessee didn’t break this Uconn streak but the Lady Vols were the last home loss the Huskies had between Feb. 2, 2000 and Jan. 3, 2004 when Duke beat them on a last-second shot at the Civic Center. Tennessee beat Uconn 72-71 when Semeka Randall hit a shot with 4.4 seconds left on Feb. 2, 2000. Uconn won 69 straight home games until the Duke loss.
The color orange
Shea Ralph once described Tennessee’s garish orange Thompson-boling Arena as looking like “somebody puked orange everywhere.” There were 18,000 orange seats, orange banners, an orange map of Tennessee on the floor, orange baselines, orange-clad fans. The padding around the basket supports (also orange) had the years of Tennessee’s national championships listed on them and that’s what Taurasi punched in 2002. Pat also famously wore an orange pantsuit for the 1996 national championship game which is now in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
Pat and Harry and Geno
“It’s nauseating,” Auriemma said. “If I see them one more time together on ESPN, I’m going to throw up.”
It was 2003, the year Villanova, coached by Geno’s friend Harry Perretta, beat Uconn for the Big East championship. Villanova was having one of its best seasons ever and was in Knoxville for the regionals while Uconn was in Dayton. Harry and Pat had become friends in the offseason and ESPN made much of their friendship, including the fact that Pat had given Harry an orange tie (which he wore in the regional semifinal) and that Harry and his team had visited Pat’s house before they were to play each other in the regional final.
Geno was irritated that his friend had cozied up to his biggest rival.
Dueling books
In 1998, after Tennessee went undefeated (39-0) and won its sixth national championship, Pat Summitt came to enemy territory in April to promote her first book “Reach for the Summit” and drew a crowd of 669 people at Borders in Farmington. It was the biggest crowd ever at the store at that point bigger than book signings featuring Dr. Laura Schlessinger, Rebecca Lobo and Oksana Bauil — and Pat went through four markers that day.
“I teased them about it,” Summitt said that day of coming to Connecticut. “I said, ‘Yeah, so are you going to give me a police escort?’ ”
Auriemma went to the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in January 2006 tosigncopiesofhisbook“geno:inpursuit ofperfection.”hewroteabouthisrespect for Summitt but there was still some lingeringanimosityafterthe2003season.
At the 2004 Final Four, a reporter asked Pat if she would pick up Geno if his car was broken down and she said yes. Geno says he would rather walk.
Bueckers’ dagger 3
The two teams went 13 years without playing each other, but the series resumed just before the pandemic, on Jan. 23, 2020, with Uconn winning, 60-45. The following year, it was like old times as the No. 3 Huskies had a dogfight on their hands in Knoxville. No. 25 Tennessee had hung with them all game, and Uconn freshman Paige Bueckers was having an uncharacteristically cold shooting night. After Uconn finally earned a nine-point lead in the fourth, Bueckers rolled her ankle and left the floor to get it taped, during which the Lady Vols stormed back to make it a two-point game. The rest, as they say, is history: A hobbling Bueckers returned to the court and hit a 3-point dagger to ice the game with 25 seconds remaining, her first 3 of the night. She only scored nine points on 3 for 14 shooting, but her clutch shot on a bum ankle gave Uconn the win. This story was originally published in January 2020 and has been subsequently updated.