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Can you believe it? People are talking about women's college basketball. In March. While there is still men's basketball being played!
The reason for the uproar is this tweet:
UConn Women beat Miss St. 98-38 in NCAA tourney. Hate to punish them for being great, but they are killing women's game. Watch? No thanks
— Dan Shaughnessy (@Dan_Shaughnessy) March 26, 2016
He has a point. I tried to watch that game and turned it off and cleaned the house. It was unwatchable.
However, it was not unwatchable because of UConn's dominance. It was unwatchable because of how painfully the Huskies exposed the differences in fundamental play between them and a good team.
What if we look at UConn as the standard that all women's teams should try to emulate? What if they are not hoarding all the recruits (they're not)? What if accurate shooting and lockdown defense is something you can develop (it is)? What if UConn is not driving a stake into the heart of their sport?
What if they are throwing down the gauntlet instead?
By way of example, Texas lost to UConn in the 2015 tournament by 51 points. Give the Longhorns credit, they came back this year a better team. They played the Huskies in the game after the one mentioned in the tweet above and lost 86-65. It may sound like a blowout, but this Texas team stood toe to toe with UConn. They were aggressive and shoved the Huskies around and played some pretty good ball.
Were they going to make up the entire deficit in one year? No, but they look like a team ready to pick up the gauntlet and answer the challenge. The question is, how many other teams will?
The Husker women lost to UConn earlier this season in an 88-46 blowout. They played with the Huskies for a quarter and then had to reset as the game got gradually more and more out of reach. How will our Huskers respond? Will they watch that film and see what makes UConn great, and try to be as well? I hope so.
Is UConn Killing Women's Basketball?
UConn ignores critics, dominates way to ninth straight Final Four | SI.com
But the musings of outsiders didn’t divert the Huskies’ focus away from head coach Geno Auriemma’s message in the midst of the controversy over the past 48 hours. "We are where we are. We are what we are. ... We do what we do," Auriemma said Sunday in response to the detractors.
Women’s College Basketball Is Better Than Men’s | FiveThirtyEight
When I found that upsets are much less common in the NCAA women’s tournament than in the men’s, my mind jumped to what seemed like a logical explanation: Perhaps the lack of upsets is caused by a lack of depth in the women’s game.
The article above is a year old, but I just found it and really like it. I admit to having the same mindset as the author originally held in the article above. If this analysis is accurate, I am really excited to see how the sport develops.
Geno Auriemma rips Dan Shaughnessy for saying UConn women are bad for game - Business Insider
UConn's women's basketball coach, Geno Auriemma, ripped Globe writer Dan Shaughnessy for claiming they were bad for women's basketball. Was Tiger bad for golf?
Husker Sports....
BOWDEN: Present remains in doubt despite Huskers’ bright future | Sports | dailynebraskan.com
I became an uncle last May. This weekend, I watched my nearly 10-month-old nephew take two and a half steps all by himself.
7 Huskers hoping to climb this spring | College | columbustelegram.com
It's not advised to make any great conclusions off the six spring practices already in the bank (two of which were in no pads), but let's do a quick review of some guys who have caught our eye for different reasons so far.
Freedom Akinmoladun comfortable at defensive end this spring | Huskers - KETV Home
Andy Kendeigh reports.
[Baseball] As Offense Covers Up Shortcomings, Coach Says Huskers Need ‘Whole Package’ | Big Apple News Radio
It should have been a familiar postgame feeling for the Huskers, whose 9-8 win Sunday was their 13th in the last 14 games. But by the time the players had high-fived one another, shaken the hands of the defeated Boilermakers and huddled around their coach, the rush of excitement was gone.
Nebraska forward Jake Hammond to transfer | Huskers - KETV Home
Sophomore forward Jake Hammond has played his final game as a member of the Nebraska Cornhuskers, head coach Tim Miles announced Tuesday.
Former Huskers....
The only people that seemed to care about this move were from Texas and Nebraska. I found nothing in any Indiana publications. Go figure.
Former Texas play caller Shawn Watson hired as Indiana offensive QC coach - Burnt Orange Nation
After two high-profile gigs under Charlie Strong, Watson will now have to work his way up the coaching ladder again.
Joba Chamberlain makes Cleveland Indians' roster
Relief pitcher Joba Chamberlain, who was brought to spring training as a non-roster invitee, will break camp with the Indians.
On #Colts front, team waived cornerback Josh Mitchell today. Spent 2015 season with the team on injured reserve.
— Zak Keefer (@zkeefer) March 30, 2016
Former Husker Pat Kelly is coming back to Lincoln. The Saltdogs announced his signing Wednesday. #huskers
— Clark Grell (@LJSSportsCG) March 30, 2016
Elsewhere in sports...
Gov. John Kasich jokes he wants to tear down Camp Randall Stadium | Dr. Saturday - Yahoo Sports
From Yahoo Sports: Kasich, Ohio's Governor and a noted Ohio State fan, claims his beloved Buckeyes can't win there.
U.S. men's Olympic bid ends in red card-marred defeat to Colombia | FC Yahoo - Yahoo Sports
From Yahoo Sports: For the third time in the last four Summer Games, the U.S. will not be sending a men's soccer team after losing its qualifying playoff to Colombia.
Americans won't be pretending to care about #USMNT this Olympics.
How a smartphone app and $15 piece of cardboard are taking on football concussions - SBNation.com
Concussions and their symptoms are hard to diagnose with the naked eye, resulting in a lot of players playing when they shouldn't be. A new app hopes to change that.
Just because...
Hmmm, MTV (sort of) for millenials?
Fullscreen targets the YouTube generation with new streaming service launching in April | TechCrunch
Fullscreen, a media company whose creators' videos reach 600 million subscribers across YouTube and other social networks, today announced the launch date..
Have a great Wednesday everyone!