HARTFORD, Conn. -- Jamie Carey can't shake the memory of
Texas' first meeting with Connecticut. It was a heartbreaker.
The Longhorns lost 71-69 in the 2003 national semifinal to the
eventual NCAA champions in Atlanta. The stakes won't be nearly as
high when they meet again Monday in a nationally televised game at
the Hartford Civic Center, but Carey is eager to even the score.
"Being a part of that team was amazing. It hurts that we lost
by one bucket," Carey said, adding that now, "this is two
completely different teams going at each other again."
Are they ever.
The 16th-ranked Huskies (10-4) have fallen from the Top 10 for
the first time in 11 years. No. 12 Texas (9-5) has already matched
last season's total losses.
"I don't think anyone envisioned Texas and UConn would both be
trying to find themselves when this game rolled around," Texas
coach Jody Conradt said.
The game pits two of the most successful coaches in the women's
game.
Conradt, a Hall-of-Famer with 856 wins and one NCAA title, is
second on the win list behind Tennessee's Pat Summit and is in her
29th year at Texas. UConn coach Geno Auriemma is in his 20th year
and has led the Huskies to five national championships, including
the last three.
Both have had unbeaten seasons -- Texas, 34-0 in 1986 and UConn,
35-0 in 1995 and 39-0 in 2002.
Yet both this year are trying to direct teams marked by
inconsistency.
Auriemma has been playing mix-and-match with his lineup all
season, searching for the right combination to replace the
leadership and offense of All-American Diana Taurasi. The Huskies'
67-50 win at No. 7 Notre Dame last week was their first victory
over a ranked team.
"We need four guys on the floor that can score," Auriemma
said. "Our offense has to be spread out among four guys. If it is,
then we have the chance to beat anybody on our schedule. We have to
identify who those four are every night."
Freshman Charde Houston, who set the California girls' scoring
record, has been making the most of her opportunity for UConn. With
leading scorer Barbara Turner out the last four games with a foot
injury, Houston has been coming on strong. She had a career-high 20
points in Saturday's 73-57 win over Villanova, her fifth straight
game in double-digits.
"She's too big for guards and she's too quick for the big
guys," Auriemma said. "She's stronger than pretty much anyone she
plays against."
Junior Ann Strother is the Huskies leading outside threat,
averaging 12.1 points a game and has a team-high 36 3-pointers.
"I think every day we need to work on something to get
better," Strother said. "Especially with Texas. They're big
inside, and they've got some really strong guards, so we're going
to have to rely on our defense a little more."
The Longhorns have lost two of their last three games. Tiffany
Jackson leads Texas with 16.2 points per game and Carey is
averaging 12.3 points. Heather Schrieber, Jackson and Carey were
all player-of-the-year candidates, but the Longhorns have yet to
find any real chemistry and have given up double-digit leads in
three losses.
"This team went into the season with high hopes and
expectations, a senior-laden team that should be one of the teams
to showcase our sport," Conradt said. "This is an opportunity for
us to go play in an environment that will be hostile and
competitive."