By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay
UTSA players’ first look around in historic Gampel Pavilion on Friday raised their level of excitement for today’s NCAA tournament game against the defending national champion Connecticut Huskies.
But was it also intimidating? Asked that question in media interviews, UTSA forward Cheyenne Rowe politely brushed off the suggestion.
“I would have to say it’s thrilling,” Rowe said. “I wouldn’t say it’s intimidating at all. (To me), as a basketball player, playing UConn is just amazing.
“You know, it’s a chance to show us what we’ve got. Show the world what we’ve got. It’s definitely an exciting opportunity, so thrilling I would say is the word, instead of intimidating.”
Regardless, the Huskies will bring the most talent that the Roadrunners have ever seen from an opponent when they tip off today in an NCAA first-round game.
Top-seeded Connecticut and No. 16 UTSA will play today at 2 p.m., followed by eighth-seeded Iowa State and No. 9 Syracuse at 4:30. The winners will meet in the round of 32 on Monday.
The games are being staged in Storrs, Conn., at Gampel Pavilion, where legends such as Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi and Paige Bueckers have thrilled fans in the past.
Only last year, Bueckers was regarded as the nation’s best college player before she turned pro.
UTSA coach Karen Aston told the media in San Antonio that Connecticut could, in some respects, be more formidable this year.
She said the toughest thing about matching up with UConn right now is the team’s overall size, along with its defense. Aston said the Huskies have forwards who play with guard skills.
“And that makes their defense really daunting, because they pressure you (and) get you sped up,” she said. “They trap you in weird places, and they create quite a bit of havoc.
“You know, I think it’s something that I think everybody’s had trouble handling.”
The Huskies, she added, shoot the ball “really well.” Which is an understatement, considering they score 88.8 points per game on 52.5 percent shooting from the field.
From the 3-point line, they’re just as dangerous. The Huskies hit 39.6 percent from behind the arc.
Their scoring average ranks seconds in NCAA Division I, while their field goal and 3-point percentages are No. 1.
“I think their defense is giving them lots of open-floor opportunities that maybe they didn’t even get last year as a national champion,” Aston said.
Records
UTSA 18-15
Connecticut 34-0
Coming up
Saturday’s NCAA tournament games at Storrs, Conn. – (16) UTSA at (1) Connecticut, 2 p.m. (ABC); (8) Iowa State at (9) Syracuse, 4:30 p.m. Times are central.