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Dance Card: Connecticut, Big East

Who? The Huskies of Connecticut. Seriously, stop calling them the Lady Huskies; that's not how UConn rolls. If you can't tell them from the men, please join our esteemed officials at the LensCrafters.

What? Unlike many of his counterparts across the NCAA, Jonathan is a Siberian husky, pure white instead of gray and white.

Where? Storrs, Connecticut, Slate's pick as America's best place to avoid death due to natural disasters. Geno's wrath, one presumes, does not count as a natural disaster.

When? March 6th, at the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut. It's still the Hartford Civic Center to me, damnit!

Why? They won the Big East Conference tournament.

How? Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis epitomized super-sub for the Huskies, coming off the bench with 19 points and eight rebounds to power UConn to a 63-54 win over Notre Dame.

Surprise? Well, technically, by the numbers and seeds, it's somewhat of an upset, but... it's UConn. In Hartford. I mean, really.

RPI (as of 3/5): 5

SOS (as of 3/5): 4

Record: 29-4 (13-3 Big East)

Good wins: Stanford, Texas A&M, Duke... look, it's hard to credit a titan with a good win, but the Huskies have more than their fair share of notches on their belt.

Bad losses: Does your intrepid blogger even have to say it?

Who's running this show? Geno Auriemma, since 1985. Now available in 140-character bites.

Extra, Extra! The Hartford Courant, The New Haven Register, The New London Day... in The Same River Twice John Walters described Connecticut as a state of many small, well-read towns- and there are very few other sports to write about in the Nutmeg State, especially in winter. There's a reason they're called the Herde.


The Huskies' stifling defense, merciless and multi-faceted, leads to an eye-popping +30.5 differential in scoring. Two-thirds of their field goals are assisted. They take care of the ball. They hit their free throws. And the stats go on.

Senior guard Tiffany Hayes leads the team with 15.1 points, but four Huskies score in double figures. Much of this team's success will depend on the streaky shot of sophomore guard Bria Hartley and the fate of sophomore center Stefanie Dolson.