AFTER THE FALL
Auriemma knew his young Huskies were prone to some not so well-oiled moments
Kathy Auriemma consoles Kia Nurse and Gabby Williams outside the UConn locker room Friday night as head coach Geno Auriemma, back left, heads to the postgame news conference after the Huskies’ loss in NCAA Tournament Final Four semifinal action. More coverage,
Through all the moments of celebration this season, the accolades, the All-America honors, the “best-ever” distinctions, the laurels, the pats on the back, UConn women's basketball coach Geno Auriemma was grateful, sometimes flat out incredulous.
“With them, you know, they're just a well-oiled machine,” Mississippi State coach Vic Schaefer said of UConn before the Final Four. “I mean, that's the only way to put it. They are a machine. Geno is a great coach. Not only do they have great players, I mean, we talk about being attached all the time, chemistry. That's why they're so good.”
Then came Mississippi State's buzzer-beater Friday night in overtime, an upset of UConn and its historic 111 straight victories, an upset if only because in their last meeting UConn annihilated the Bulldogs by 60 points just a year ago. Mississippi State 66, UConn 64. And it was what Auriemma already knew, that sometimes the Huskies, who finished the season 36-1, were prone to their not-so-well-oiled moments.
UConn, despite its struggles from the game's start, had the ball with 26 seconds left, the score tied and the opportunity to do just what Mississippi State would soon do. End it. UConn's Saniya Chong, a senior, raced to the basket with 14 seconds still remaining and became entangled with her defender, losing the ball out of bounds.
Enter Mississippi State's charismatic guard, Morgan William, who floated over UConn's Gabby Williams — not easy to do — for the game-winning jump shot at the buzzer.
That left Auriemma to do something he hadn't done in 865 days, explain a loss.
“I'm proud of what they've been able to do. ... These kids were way older than they were supposed to be.”
UCONN’S GENO AURIEMMA
He did so pridefully of what the Huskies accomplished, reaching their 10th straight Final Four without the services of Breanna Stewart, Morgan Tuck and Moriah Jefferson, who graduated after last season's fourth straight championship only to become the WNBA's top three draft picks.
Was Auriemma surprised to see his players struggle with composure late in the game?
“Late in the game?” Auriemma said with a chuckle. “We struggled with it in the beginning of the game. I think a lot of it is we kind of lived a charmed life for a long time, for a whole five months. Pheesa (Collier, a sophomore) played like a fifth-year senior and today she struggled. (Katie) Lou (Samuelson) has been incredibly consistent all year long. Today she struggled.
“You know what? When stuff like this happens, it kind of makes me shake my head and go, 'You know how many times this could have happened and it didn't happen?' The fact that it never happened, that doesn't mean I went home thinking it's never going to happen. I knew this was coming at some point. I'm just shocked it took this long to get here.”
Auriemma said Chong was trying to make a play to win the game.
He's said it over and over regarding Chong. She averaged 10.2 minutes per game in the NCAA tournament prior to the 2017 Sweet 16 against UCLA, yet came with a much-needed 16 points, five rebounds and three assists in 38 minutes against UCLA in an 86-71 victory. A success story.
“Normally, we go over that scenario 1,000 times,” Auriemma said of the Huskies' final possession. “It's the easiest thing to do. Look at the clock. … Saniya just tried to make a great play, God bless her. There was a collision and nothing happened. She's pretty good at drawing fouls. Just impatient a little bit, that's all.”
Chong played three minutes in last year's championship game victory over Syracuse in Indianapolis.
Collier? Played 15 minutes in that game and was 2-for-3.
Samuelson? Didn't play in the 2016 championship game due to injury.
This team transformed itself and will return three All-Americans next season in Collier, Samuelson and Williams to compete for an 11th straight Final Four bid and a 12th national championship.
The Huskies, by the way, will also have 6-foot-6 Duke transfer Azura Stevens and 6-2 Kentucky transfer Batouly Camera next season, both of whom sat out this year. To put that in perspective, Stevens was a first team All-ACC selection as a sophomore at Duke.
They'll also add Gatorade National Player of the Year Megan Walker, a 6-foot-1 guard from Monacan High School in North Chesterfield, Va.
And the Huskies will take these les- sons.
“I'm proud of what they've been able to do,” Auriemma said. “How much they changed from last October. These kids were way older than they were supposed to be. They should have shown their age early on in the season, November, December at some point. We just kept playing like older, older players, more mature players.” “Throughout my career, I created so many memories with so many different girls,” said Chong, who graduates with three national championship rings. “Just go back and look and what I've done and actually having the opportunity to do it. We made it this far. I'm going to look back at the four years and I wouldn't trade it for the world.”
“Late in the game? We struggled with it in the beginning of the game. I think a lot of it is we kind of lived a charmed life for a long time ...” UCONN COACH GENO AURIEMMA