UConn Women's Team

[WarriorHal]

Tonight they will "break" UCLA's record of 88 consecutive wins set by the men's team (The Walton Gang) between 1971 and 1974. NBC News did a segment about it tonight, and the UConn coach was complaining that they weren't getting the respect they deserved because they are a women's team beating a men's record.

I find the notion that they are breaking UCLA's record total nonsense--apples and oranges.

And I think any high school boys team ranked in USA Today's national top 25 would demolish the UConn girls. There's probably a hundred or maybe hundreds of high school boys teams that could beat them. Just no comparison in physical athletic ability. Not to mention size and strength.

[MauraDay]

I don't think that they think that they should be compared to men, or want to be. Obviously, men are better at basketball. What's impressive is not losing over such a long period of time, playing everyone and anyone possible in their sport.

[GGGG]

What I don't understand is why their record cannot be considered in its own right...and not only when compared to men.

[jficke13]

It's insulting to UCLA to compare them. The talent pool for women's ball is about 2 inches deep and UCONN gets about 99% of it.

[reinko]

Does UCONN pay the players like the boosters at UCLA did, that attracted all talent.

/oops

[ATL MU Warrior]

women play basketball? 

[jficke13]

women play basketball? 

+1

[mileskishnish72]

Give credit where credit is due - 89-0 is impressive as hell. They may be females, but they are certainly athletes. They have played a ton of ranked teams during the streak as well. There are so many ways to have an off day, a "trap" game, a loss of concentration, but it hasn't happened. Kudos to the organization and the kids that have bought into it - that kind of consistency is admirable in either gender.

[groove]

love how many times a game in women's college basketball that you see a missed shot hit the floor before anyone rebounds it. Most of the time three or four players swarm to it like kids playing pee wee soccer.

[ATL MU Warrior]

Give credit where credit is due - 89-0 is impressive as hell. They may be females, but they are certainly athletes. They have played a ton of ranked teams during the streak as well. There are so many ways to have an off day, a "trap" game, a loss of concentration, but it hasn't happened. Kudos to the organization and the kids that have bought into it - that kind of consistency is admirable in either gender.

every word of this is true.  I still don't care.  It's of zero interest to me. 

 

[GGGG]

Give credit where credit is due - 89-0 is impressive as hell. They may be females, but they are certainly athletes. They have played a ton of ranked teams during the streak as well. There are so many ways to have an off day, a "trap" game, a loss of concentration, but it hasn't happened. Kudos to the organization and the kids that have bought into it - that kind of consistency is admirable in either gender.

I do not have a single dispute with this, but until they stop comparing themselves to men, they will not stand on their own.

[ChicosBailBonds]

I do not have a single dispute with this, but until they stop comparing themselves to men, they will not stand on their own.

Same way I feel.  89-0 is great.  To compare it to what UCLA did is just wrong.  The talent pool is so much smaller that the streaks are not comparable.  No different than women's tennis, golf, etc.  On any given night, there are 50 to 100 men's teams that can knock off the top men's basketball team.  On that same any given night scenario, there are 5 or 10 women's teams that can do the same because the talent level drops off so quickly after you get through the first tier of teams.

[brewcity77]

Same way I feel.  89-0 is great.  To compare it to what UCLA did is just wrong.  The talent pool is so much smaller that the streaks are not comparable.  No different than women's tennis, golf, etc.  On any given night, there are 50 to 100 men's teams that can knock off the top men's basketball team.  On that same any given night scenario, there are 5 or 10 women's teams that can do the same because the talent level drops off so quickly after you get through the first tier of teams.

But to UConn's credit, they play those teams. This year they have 7 ranked teams on their schedule that are non-conference opponents, including #2 Baylor, #3 Duke, #8 Stanford, and #10 North Carolina. Last year they played 5 ranked teams in non-con games. The talent level may drop off, but this team goes out of their way to play the teams that have a chance to knock them off as often as they can. It's a different era, but outside of tournament and conference play, I only noted one top 25 team in this breakdown of UCLA's streak, that being #6 Ohio State on Dec. 30, 1971. So in that regard, you're right, comparing UConn to UCLA is wrong. UConn sought out the teams that had a chance to beat them, while UCLA did not.

Whatever you think of this UConn team, and while they certainly couldn't compete on the court with UCLA or any of the NCAA men's teams, their accomplishment is one of legend. In the NCAAs, especially these days, you don't just compete against who's on your schedule. You compete against who's on your schedule in conference and against who you choose in non-con. UConn chooses the best, and I'm happy to give them respect for that. Teams have to compete on the playing field they are placed upon. UConn does that, and still goes out of their way to make the road even more difficult. Their accomplishment is among the greatest in NCAA history, for any sport or any gender, and deserves the recognition it's getting.

[ChicosBailBonds]

Brew, agree that they play those teams.  I'm just of the opinion that "on any given day" happens much much less at the women's level in most sports than at the men's level because the talent pools are so much narrower.  This is why the upsets (historically) of lower level seeds in the women's tournament don't compare to the men's tournament.  Sure, they happen on occasion, but not with the same regularity.  The score differentials are also so much larger in the women's game because the talent levels are so compounded with the top 5 to 10 teams.

[Shanunu]

Growing up as a UConn fan both men and women (season tickets to both), I find it impossible to compare the two. I also think that the team, and Geno, don't really want to compare themselves to UCLA, but the media (ESPN) needs something to talk about, so this gives them at least 3 or 4 days of topics to cover. I was even at the game against Ohio State on Sunday in which they tied the record, and although I didn't want them to taint the record at all, it was a special environment in MSG, because there was a streak at stake. However, like I said, it is impossible to compare the two sports; doing so would be like comparing a college football streak to the NFL. As has been said over and over this week, apples and oranges.

[brewcity77]

Brew, agree that they play those teams.  I'm just of the opinion that "on any given day" happens much much less at the women's level in most sports than at the men's level because the talent pools are so much narrower.  This is why the upsets (historically) of lower level seeds in the women's tournament don't compare to the men's tournament.  Sure, they happen on occasion, but not with the same regularity.  The score differentials are also so much larger in the women's game because the talent levels are so compounded with the top 5 to 10 teams.

Well, I'd say that's why the big upsets in the women's tournament are more notable than in the men's. Hell, over there a 10-7 upset is comparable to a 14-3 in the men's game. It simply doesn't happen. I fully realize that it's not the same, but I also feel that it merits a comparable level of respect. I'm not saying the men's game is the same as the women's game, it's not. But I respect Michael Jordan in a similar way to how I respect Walter Payton. Different sports, different accomplishments, but both were the best that ever existed at what they did. UConn is undoubtedly the best women's basketball team ever, and one of the most dominant teams in team sports ever. For that reason, it's fair to mention them alongside the likes of UCLA, the Russell/Auerbach Celtics, the 1970s Steelers, and the USA Women's Softball team. Not the same sports or gender, but comparable in terms of dominance over their respective sport.

[TallTitan34]

Impressive.  Nowhere near as impressive as UCLA but impressive. 

[willie warrior]

Who cares about Chick basketball, except the liberal press and some chicks.

Now, women's golf, softball or tennis is really something we should devote lots of chat to. After all, we must remain PC.

[groove]

Brew, agree that they play those teams.  I'm just of the opinion that "on any given day" happens much much less at the women's level in most sports than at the men's level because the talent pools are so much narrower.  This is why the upsets (historically) of lower level seeds in the women's tournament don't compare to the men's tournament.  Sure, they happen on occasion, but not with the same regularity.  The score differentials are also so much larger in the women's game because the talent levels are so compounded with the top 5 to 10 teams.

And until recently, the top seeds in the tournament were able to play a lot of the early round games at home (on campus).

[ATL MU Warrior]

I do not have a single dispute with this, but until they stop comparing themselves to men, they will not stand on their own.

I think the comparisons are being made by the media covering the team (ESPN), not by the team itself. Although, with as little attention as I have paid to it, I could be wrong. 

And the media do it in an attempt to get more people to care and to have something to fill 3 minutes on Sportscenter and probably drive traffic to their website to have people to vote in some stupid poll about which accomplishment is greater. 

[GGGG]

ATL, google up some quotes by coach Geno and you'll see how much he cares about this.  It's honestly kind of pathetic.

[ATL MU Warrior]

ATL, google up some quotes by coach Geno and you'll see how much he cares about this.  It's honestly kind of pathetic.

ok.  Obviously I am not following this particular story line.  My bad.  And you are right...it is pathetic...I guess he's got an inferiority complex. 

[LON]

ATL, google up some quotes by coach Geno and you'll see how much he cares about this.  It's honestly kind of pathetic.

He went on PTI and said it was foolish to compare to the men's record, but then after the game has a shirt on that says 89...

[hdog1017]

ESPN is really trying to shove this UConn story down our throats.  I'd have to guess that most sports fans don't care one bit.  I am a really big sports fan, and I couldn't name one player that played on UConn's team during this stretch. 

[MerrittsMustache]

ok.  Obviously I am not following this particular story line.  My bad.  And you are right...it is pathetic...I guess he's got an inferiority complex. 

If you'd been coaching women's basketball for 25 years, wouldn't you be a little bitter too?