Scouting the Huskies/Sun Devils/Aggies

Here's a look at Cal's third-round opponent, No. 1-seeded UConn, and its possible Elite Eight teams of Arizona State and Texas A&M.

A Look at UConn
UConn advanced to the NCAA Regional Semifinals for the 16th consecutive season and the 17th time overall in the program’s history. The Huskies defeated Vermont, 104-65, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament and Florida, 87-59, in the second round.

UConn earned an automatic bid in 2009 after capturing Big East Tournament and Regular Season Titles. The Huskies captured the tournament title with wins over South Florida, Villanova and Louisville following a 16-0 BIG EAST mark during the regular season. Connecticut currently stands at 35-0 overall and has been ranked No. 1 nationally in both the Associated Press and ESPN Coaches polls every week this season.

The automatic berth marks the Huskies’ second consecutive and the 15th in the program’s history. Connecticut has advanced to the Final Four nine times in the program’s history, including six of the last nine seasons overall.

UConn’s 35-0 start marks its best start to a season since finishing a perfect 39-0 in 2002. This season marks the 12th time overall and the third straight season that UConn has entered the NCAA Tournament as a No. 1 seed. The Huskies boast an overall mark of 47-7 in NCAA Tournament games when playing as a No. 1 seed and have captured four National Championships in those seasons. The Huskies were also a No. 1 seed last season when they advanced to the 2008 NCAA Final Four before falling, 82-73, to Stanford, a team with whom the Bears split the 2007-08 series, 1-1.

Sophomore guard Maya Moore, who is a national player of the year candidate, leads the Huskies, averaging 19.0 points per game and 9.1 boards per game. Also averaging in double digits are Tina Charles (16.7 ppg) and Renee Montgomery (16.1 ppg). The undefeated Huskies are winning each game by an average scoring margin of 31.6 points.

The two teams share three common opponents in 2008-09 in Rutgers, Oklahoma and Washington. Each squad has defeated Rutgers – Cal once and UConn twice – while the Huskies hold the advantage against Oklahoma. The Bears beat Washington three times this season while the Connecticut Huskies beat the UW Huskies once.

Cal-UConn Series History
The Bears are 1-1 in the all-time series with the Huskies. The last game was Dec. 28, 1994, when UConn beat Cal, 99-52. In their first meeting, the Bears dropped the Huskies, 76-60, on Nov. 24, 1991. This will be the first postseason meeting between the two teams.

UConn Postseason History
The Huskies, who have claimed three of the last seven NCAA titles (a total of five in the program’s history), their last coming in 2004, are making their 21st consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. The Huskies have advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament in each of the past 15 seasons (1994-present). They are currently 67-15 all-time in NCAA Tournament play and they have won 32 of its last 35 NCAA Tournament games overall.

Head Coach File
Geno Auriemma is in his 24th season at the helm of the Husky program, which he has led to five national championships, nine Final Fours and 32 Big East titles. He was named Big East Coach of the Year for the eighth time in 2008-09 and was recognized as the 2008 WBCA, Associated Press, USBWA and Naismith National Coach of the Year in 2008.

Probable Starters
No. Name Pos. Yr. Ht. ppg rpg apg
3 Tiffany Hayes G Fr. 5-10 7.9 4.2 2.5
20 Renee Montgomery G Sr. 5-7 16.1 2.0 5.2
23 Maya Moore F So. 6-0 19.0 9.1 3.4
31 Tina Charles C Jr. 6-4 16.7 8.5 1.0
32 Kalana Greene G Jr. 5-10 8.6 4.5 1.9

For more information: http://www.blogger.com/www.UConnHuskies.com

A Look at Arizona State
Arizona State will be playing to advance to the regional final for the second time in three years under coach Charli Turner Thorne, after reaching its first Elite Eight in 2007. The Sun Devils (25-8, 15-3 Pac-10) improved to 6-1 in NCAA Tournament first round games under head coach Arizona State is making its 10th all-time NCAA Tournament appearance and its seventh in the last nine seasons. ASU's overall record in the NCAA Tournament is now 11-9, including an 9-6 record under Turner Thorne.

The Sun Devils were ousted in the quarterfinals of the Pac-10 Tournament by tournament runner-up USC. ASU received an at-large bid an a six seed into the NCAA Tournament. The Sun Devils defeated No. 11 seed Georgia, 58-47, in first round action. They went on to upset third-seeded Florida State, 63-58 in the second round thanks to Danielle Orsillo's 3-pointer with 32 seconds remaining gave the Sun Devils a 57-54 lead.

Head coach Turner Thorne is in her 13th year at the helm in Tempe, Ariz. She became the all-time most winningest coach at ASU, and her seven NCAA appearances are four more than what ASU had in the 15 years prior to Turner Thorne's arrival in Tempe.

Cal-Arizona State Series History
The Bears and the Sun Devils are tied in the all-time meetings, 27-27. This season, the teams split the two meetings with ASU getting a 63-41 upset on March 5, 2009, in the last game. The Bears beat the Sun Devils, 54-53, on Jan. 4 in Tempe, Ariz. This would be the first meeting between the two teams in the NCAA Tournament.

For more information: http://www.blogger.com/www.TheSunDevils.com

A Look at Texas A&M
The No. 2-seeded Aggies are making their second-straight appearance in the Sweet 16 and their sixth all-time trip to the NCAA Tournament. Texas A&M earned a 73-42 win over No. 10-seed Minnesota in the second round and an 80-45 victory against No. 15-seeded Evansville in the opening round. With the win over Minnesota, the Aggies claimed their 27th overall victory of the season, which now stands alone as the second-most wins in school history behind its 29-8 run to the NCAA Elite Eight a year ago. They are now 8-5 in the NCAA Tournament.

For the second consecutive year, the ninth-ranked Texas A&M women's basketball team tied a program-best by earning a No. 2 seed. The Aggies boasted the fifth-toughest schedule in the nation this season. A&M earned an at-large bid after falling to Baylor in the Big 12 Tournament championship game.

Head coach Gary Blair has now led seven all-time squads to the Sweet 16 in his 24-year coaching career at Stephen F. Austin, Arkansas and A&M combined. He also picked up his 20th all-time NCAA Tournament game victory versus Minnesota.

Cal-Texas A&M Series History
Cal holds the all-time advantage, 1-0, against the Aggies. The teams have not met since Jan. 4, 1982, when the Bears defeated Texas A&M, 85-55

For more information: http://www.blogger.com/www.AggieAthletics.com