Maples Pavilion is where long UConn winning streaks go to die.
With a revamped offense and excellent guard play the 6th-ranked Cardinal overcame a 10-point deficit Monday in an electrifying 88-86 overtime win over the No. 1 defending NCAA champions.
And what a sizzling early start to the women’s college season it was. Earlier on Monday, Kentucky battled back after being down 14 points to Baylor for a 74-64 win before 22,075 at Rupp Arena, the second-largest crowd ever for a Wildcats home game.
That tip in Lexington was the first half of an ESPN2 doubleheader featuring two of the hottest current women’s rivalries.
Barring any truly shocking upsets, Dawn Staley’s South Carolina team figures to be the new No. 1 next week. The Gamecocks prevailed over gritty USC to open the season, and play Clemson and San Diego State this week.
In Palo Alto, Lili Thompson and Amber Orrange combined for 41 points as Stanford ended UConn’s 47-game winning streak. In 2011, Stanford put a halt to what had been an NCAA-record 90 consecutive wins by the Huskies.
Orrange drained a 3-point shot to tie the game with 1.4 seconds left in regulation, then hit the game-winning shot in overtime for Stanford, which didn’t let UConn get off many good shots after halftime.
In fact, the Huskies weren’t able to get off a shot at all in the final seconds of OT. UConn suffered from uncharacteristically poor play on both ends of the floor at key sequences in the second half and overtime.
Give quite a bit of the credit for that to Stanford. Without an Ogwumike sister for the first time in six seasons, Hall of Fame coach Tara VanDerveer ditched her revered triangle offense in the off-season. With the help of former Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni, she installed an attack led by Thompson and Orrange, quick guards who excel at pushing tempo.
They dictated the pace for much of the game, and Stanford got solid bench play from the Samuelson sisters. Bonnie had 14 points and Karlee added eight and played terrific defense as their baby sister, No. 1 Blue Star national senior Katie Lou Samuelson, a UConn signee, looked on from the stands.
UConn anticipated extra defending on national player of the year Breanna Stewart, who was triple-teamed at times. But the Huskies came up empty on several critical possessions down the stretch without Stewart getting a touch.
Stewart had 23 points and 10 points but did not score in overtime. Sophomore guard Saniya Chong had 20, but UConn struggled to find good open looks all night. That especially was the case with Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, who scored only 12 points. Guard Moriah Jefferson was not a factor on either end of the floor.
As UConn coach Geno Auriemma told reporters after the game about Stanford: “They had a really great game plan which I am sure everybody else is going to copy.”
In Lexington, Jennifer O’Neill missed her first 10 3-points shots before knocking down a long jumper from the corner as part of an 18-point second half showing for Kentucky. O’Neill had 43 points in last year’s epic 133-130 four-overtime win over 8th-ranked Baylor in the highest-scoring women’s game in NCAA history.
Her 22 points Monday were just enough for a guard-oriented No. 13 UK squad that’s turning up the pressure defensively on the perimeter.
Does UConn’s loss mean the women’s season might be more wide open than first thought? It’s a question raised whenever Auriemma’s team suffers a rare loss, and it was asked again Monday night.
While it’s clear he’s got some work forging together a new rotation after losing Stefanie Dolson and Bria Hartley, the Huskies still have Stewart, the best player in the game. Freshman guard Kia Nurse played a vital role off the bench in neutralizing Stanford’s backcourt, but both she and Morgan Tuck fouled out right before stretch time.
UConn beat writers are always quick to observe certain foreboding signs after a loss. Carl Adamec of the Manchester Journal-Inquirer noted that UConn has never won a national title when losing before January, and that the Huskies are 0-8 in games decided by less than eight points since Maya Moore graduated.
When you chronicle so much staggering winning, the razor-thin distinctions encoded in those few losses become all the more magnified.
It’s still mid-November, although Stanford looked in mid-season form. That’s a good thing, given No. 10 Texas comes calling on Thursday.
Coach Karen Aston has the Longhorns back, with touted freshman Ariel Atkins, and it’s sure to be another fun game to continue what’s already brewing to be an intriguing women’s college season.
