STEVEN VALENTI/NEWSMAKERS Marci Czel of UConn, left, battles Nicole Conway of Boston College on the way to the Final Four.

UConn women able to survive and advance

Husky Mania is back and spreading around the University of Connecticut campus at Storrs. The women's basketball team has reached its first NCAA Final Four in four years. The top-ranked Huskies (34-1) will take on Penn State in Philadelphia at 9:20 p.m. on Fri., Mar. 31.

In a testament to Husky basketball success in the 1990s, UConn students, while excited, are not as ecstatic as they were this time last year, when the UConn men's basketball team reached its first-ever Final Four. The campus ecstasy reached a frenzy when the Huskies won the championship the following Monday by beating Duke in the final.

"I think people were more excited for the men because they had never won before," said UConn student Kelly Bannister '01, who holds season tickets to the women's team's home games at Gampel Pavilion. She added, "It's great any time our team makes it that far." UConn's allotment of tickets for the Final Four has already been sold out.

Despite not having reached the Final Four in four years, the Huskies are accustomed to making it this far. This year marks the fourth year out of the last nine that they have reached the Final Four. Bannister, who grew up in Hamden, Conn., and has followed the Huskies since middle school, thinks this year's team is as good as any she has seen in the past.

It is certainly one of the most dominant Husky teams ever, and perhaps even one of the most dominant college women's basketball teams ever. The Huskies went undefeated in conference play and have outscored opponents by an average margin of 31.1 points. They have outscored their four NCAA tournament victims by 146 points. For the season, the Huskies hit 54.1 percent of their shots, more than 20 percentage points better than their opponents.

Louisiana State managed to stay with UConn during the first half of its 86-71 loss in the East Regional final on Mon., Mar. 27. After the game, LSU Coach Sue Gunter said, "I would say they would have to be the prohibitive favorite."

If the Huskies defeat the Nittany Lions in Friday's game, it could set up a final against Tennessee on Sun., Apr. 2. The Volunteers dealt UConn its sole loss of the season, 72-71, on Wed., Feb. 2. UConn defeated Penn State on the road, 87-74, on Sun., Dec. 5. Tennessee would have to defeat Rutgers in the first game on Friday to set up the rematch.

The most terrifying thing for the Huskies' opponents may be that next year's team is likely to be better. All five starters will return, including first-team All Americans Shea Ralph '01 and Svetlana Abrosimova '01.

For now, though, this year's UConn team is terrifying enough for its opponents and good enough for its loyal and demanding fans. "Last year [after the men beat Duke] there was a bonfire, a DJ, and a pep rally," Bannister said. "I'm sure they'll do something this year if we win. When we win."

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