SENIOR GUARD MEL THOMAS

Transcription

1 SENIOR GUARD MEL THOMAS IN THIS SECTION Quick Facts/Info Sheet Schedule Roster TV/Radio Chart Season Preview WBB Support Staff

2 QUICK FACTS AND INFO SHEET QUICK FACTS PREVIEW COACHES THE HUSKIES REVIEW RECORDS Location:...Storrs, Conn. Founded: Enrollment:...28,481 Colors:...National Flag Blue (Navy) & White Nickname:...Huskies Conference:...BIG EAST President:...Michael J. Hogan Director of Athletics:...Jeffrey A. Hathaway SWA:...Pat Babcock Home Courts (capacity):...gampel Pavilion (10,167)...Hartford Civic Center (16,294) WOMEN S BASKETBALL STAFF Head Coach:...Geno Auriemma... (West Chester 81) Overall Record: (.838) 22 yrs. School Record: (.838) 22 yrs. Associate Head Coach:...Chris Dailey...(Rutgers 82) Assistant Coaches:...Tonya Cardoza (Virginia 91)...Jamelle Elliott (Connecticut 96) WBB Office Phone:...(860) WBB Office Fax:... (860) SEASON IN REVIEW Overall Record: Home: 16-2; Away: 11-1; Neutral: 5-1 BIG EAST Record (finish): (1st) Final Ranking:...No. 5 (ESPN Coaches Poll)...No. 4 (Associated Press) HISTORY All-time record: (.717/33 yrs.) Gampel Pavilion record: (.931) Hartford Civic Center record: (.874) All-time BIG EAST record: (.792/25 yrs.) BIG EAST Regular Season Titles:...15 (1989, 1990, 1991, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007) BIG EAST Tournament record: (.806) BIG EAST Tournament Titles:...13 (1989, 1991, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006) NCAA Tournament appearances:...19 NCAA Tournament record: (.813) National Titles:...5 (1995, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004) ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS Asst. Dir./WBB Contact:...Randy Press Cell:...(860) randy.press@uconn.edu Phone:...(860) Fax:...(860) Gampel Press Row Phone:...(860) Hartford Press Row Phone:...TBA Internet Address:...UConnHuskies.com Husky Hotline:...(860) >> UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT WOMEN S BASKETBALL PRESEASON INFO SHEET Letterwinners Returning/Lost: 12/0 Starters Returning/Lost: 5/0 Newcomers: 2 (Lorin Dixon, Maya Moore) STARTERS RETURNING (5) PLAYER POS. CL./ELG STATS Tina Charles C So./So ppg, 8.2 rpg,.590 fg%, 81 blocks Kalana Greene G Jr./Jr ppg, 7.5 rpg,.499 fg%, 57 steals Charde Houston F Sr./Sr ppg, 7.0 rpg,.542 fg%, 68 steals Renee Montgomery G Jr./Jr ppg, 4.5 apg, pt%, 70 steals Mel Thomas G Sr./Sr ppg,.911 ft%, pt %, 24 steals OTHER LETTERWINNERS RETURNING (7) PLAYER POS. CL./ELG STATS Jacquie Fernandes G So./So. 0.4 ppg, 0.6 rpg,.900 ft% Meghan Gardler F So./So. 1.3 ppg, 1.4 rpg,.235 fg% Brittany Hunter C/F Sr./Sr. 5.6 ppg, 3.9 rpg,.614 fg%, 19 blocks Cassie Kerns C/F Jr./Jr. 0.7 ppg, 0.6 rpg,.438 fg% Kaili McLaren F So./So. 3.6 ppg, 3.5 rpg,.398 fg%,.818 ft%, 22 blocks Ketia Swanier G Sr./Sr. 5.3 ppg, 2.2 rpg,.481 fg%,.828 ft%, 70 steals Tahirah Williams G Jr./Jr. 1.8 ppg, 1.2 rpg,.556 fg%,.667 ft% NEWCOMERS (2) PLAYER POS. YR. HOMETOWN (HIGH SCHOOL) Lorin Dixon G Fr./Fr. Springfield Gardens, N.Y. (Christ the King) Maya Moore F Fr./Fr. Lawrenceville, Ga. (Collins Hill) TEAM NOTES The Huskies enter having won either the BIG EAST Regular Season or Tournament titles in each of the last 14 seasons. Connecticut returns all five starters and 12 letterwinners from last season s squad which posted a perfect 16-0 mark in the BIG EAST and advanced to the NCAA Fresno Regional Final. All five returning starters averaged double-figure points last season, marking the first time that UConn has had all five starters average in double-figures since 1995 and the first time having any five players average double-digit scoring outputs since the 2002 campaign. The last time the Huskies entered a season with everyone returning from the previous year was in , their most recent national championship season and the final of a stretch of three straight. UConn has posted at least 25 wins in each of the last 14 seasons and at least 30 wins in 12 of the last 14 seasons. Since , the first season the program captured the national championship, UConn boasts an overall mark of (.917) by far the best winning percentage in Division I women s basketball over the last 13 seasons. Senior Mel Thomas will enter the season with 189 career 3-point field goals - good for sixth on UConn s all-time list. Incoming freshman Maya Moore was named as the consensus National High School Player of the Year following her senior prep season and is one of only two players in history to win the Naismith National High School Player of the Year Award in back-to-back seasons. Seniors Charde Houston and Mel Thomas spent the summer competing for the USA Pan American Games Team - where they captured the gold medal. This is UConn... Women were first admitted to the college in 1891.

3 UCONN SCHEDULE HONORS HISTORY ALL-TIME RESULTS UCONN DATE OPPONENT SITE TV TIME NOVEMBER Fri. 2 USA NATIONAL TEAM (EX.) Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) CPTV 7:30 p.m. Tues. 6 SO. CONN. STATE (EX.) Hartford, Conn. (Hartford Civic Center) :00 p.m. Sun. 11 STONY BROOK Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) CPTV 2:00 p.m. Wed. 14 HOLY CROSS Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) CPTV 7:30 p.m. Thurs. 22 vs. Stanford U.S. Virgin Islands (Sports & Fitness Center) CPTV 8:30 p.m. Fri. 23 vs. Old Dominion U.S. Virgin Islands (Sports & Fitness Center) CPTV 8:30 p.m. Sun. 25 vs. TBA U.S. Virgin Islands (Sports & Fitness Center) CPTV TBA Thurs. 29 BYU Hartford, Conn. (Hartford Civic Center) CPTV 7:00 p.m. DECEMBER Wed. 5 VIRGINIA Hartford, Conn. (Hartford Civic Center) CPTV 7:00 p.m. Mon. 17 SOUTH CAROLINA Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) CPTV 7:30 p.m. Fri. 21 at San Diego State San Diego, Calif. (Cox Arena) CPTV 11:00 p.m. Sat. 29 HARTFORD Hartford, Conn. (Hartford Civic Center) CPTV 12:00 p.m. Mon. 31 ARMY Hartford, Conn. (Hartford Civic Center) CPTV 12:00 p.m. JANUARY Thurs. 3 at Villanova* Villanova, Pa. (The Pavilion) CPTV 7:00 p.m. Sun. 6 at Purdue West Lafayette, Ind. (Mackey Arena) CBS 1:30 p.m. Wed. 9 WEST VIRGINIA* Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) CPTV 7:30 p.m. Sat. 12 at Louisville* Louisville, Ky. (Freedom Hall) CPTV 4:00 p.m. Tues. 15 at Syracuse* Syracuse, N.Y. (Carrier Dome) CPTV 7:00 p.m. Sat. 19 CINCINNATI* Hartford, Conn. (Hartford Civic Center) CPTV 12:00 p.m. Mon. 21 NORTH CAROLINA Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) ESPN2 7:00 p.m. Sun. 27 at Notre Dame* South Bend, Ind. (Joyce Coliseum) ESPN2 7:00 p.m. Wed. 30 SOUTH FLORIDA* Hartford, Conn. (Hartford Civic Center) CPTV 7:00 p.m. FEBRUARY Sat. 2 PROVIDENCE* Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) CPTV 7:00 p.m. Tues. 5 at Rutgers* Piscataway, N.J. (Brown Ath. Center) CSTV 7:00 p.m. Sat. 9 at Seton Hall* South Orange, N.J. (Walsh Gym) CPTV 2:00 p.m. Tues. 12 GEORGETOWN* Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) CPTV 7:30 p.m. Sun. 17 at Pittsburgh* Pittsburgh, Pa. (Petersen Events Center) ESPNU 2:00 p.m. Wed. 20 MARQUETTE* Hartford, Conn. (Hartford Civic Center) CPTV 7:00 p.m. Sat. 23 ST. JOHN S* Storrs, Conn. (Gampel Pavilion) CPTV 4:00 p.m. Mon. 25 at LSU Baton Rouge, La. (Maravich Center) ESPN2 7:00 p.m. MARCH Sat. 1 at DePaul* Chicago, Ill. (DePaul Athletic Center) CPTV 8:00 p.m. Mon. 3 RUTGERS* Hartford, Conn. (Hartford Civic Center) ESPN2 7:00 p.m. Sat.-Tues BIG EAST Tournament Hartford, Conn. (Hartford Civic Center) ESPNU/ESPN2/ ESPN * - BIG EAST Conference game This is UConn... The first bookstore on campus was opened in >> FIVE-TIME NATIONAL CHAMPIONS 37

4 UCONN ROSTER PREVIEW COACHES THE HUSKIES REVIEW RECORDS CONNECTICUT Women s Basketball Roster No. Name Pos Cl./Elg. Hgt. Hometown (High School) 2 Tahirah Williams G Jr./Jr. 6-0 Montclair, N.J. (Immaculate Heart Academy) 11 Ketia Swanier G Sr./Sr. 5-7 Columbus, Ga. (Columbus) 13 Jacquie Fernandes G So./So. 5-9 Pawcatuck, Conn. (Stonington) 20 Renee Montgomery G Jr./Jr. 5-7 St. Albans, W. Va. (South Charleston) 22 Meghan Gardler F So./So. 6-0 Springfield, Pa. (Cardinal O Hara) 23 Maya Moore F Fr./Fr. 6-0 Lawrenceville, Ga. (Collins Hill) 24 Charde Houston F Sr./Sr. 6-1 San Diego, Calif. (San Diego) 25 Mel Thomas G Sr./Sr. 5-9 Cincinnati, Ohio (Mount Notre Dame) 30 Lorin Dixon G Fr./Fr. 5-4 Springfield Gardens, N.Y. (Christ the King) 31 Tina Charles C So./So. 6-4 Jamaica, N.Y. (Christ the King) 32 Kalana Greene G Jr./Jr Saint Stephen, S.C. (Timberland) 41 Kaili McLaren F So./So. 6-2 Washington D.C. (Our Lady of Good Counsel) 44 Brittany Hunter C/F Sr./Sr. 6-3 Columbus, Ohio (Brookhaven) 51 Cassie Kerns C/F Jr./Jr. 6-3 Valparaiso, Ind. (Valparaiso) Head Coach:...Geno Auriemma (23rd season, West Chester 81) Associate Head Coach:...Chris Dailey (23rd season, Rutgers 82) Assistant Coaches:...Tonya Cardoza (14th season, Virginia 91)...Jamelle Elliott (11th season, Connecticut 96) Director of Basketball Operations:...Jack Eisenmann (7th season, Saint Mary s University 77) BY ELIGIBILITY SENIORS (4) Houston, Hunter, Swanier, Thomas JUNIORS (4) Greene, Kerns, Montgomery, Williams SOPHOMORES (4) Charles, Fernandes, Gardler, McLaren FRESHMEN (2) Dixon, Moore ALPHABETICAL Name No. Tina Charles...31 Lorin Dixon...30 Jacquie Fernandes...13 Meghan Gardler...22 Kalana Greene...32 Charde Houston...24 Brittany Hunter...44 Cassie Kerns...51 Kaili McLaren...41 Maya Moore...23 Renee Montgomery...20 Ketia Swanier...11 Mel Thomas...25 Tahirah Williams...2 BY POSITION Guard (7) Dixon, Fernandes, Greene, Montgomery, Swanier, Thomas, Williams Forward (4) Gardler, Houston, Hunter, McLaren, Moore Center (3) Charles, Hunter, Kerns PRO-nun-see-a-shuns GENO AURIEMMA ORE-ee-emm-AH KALANA GREENE KA-lay-NA CHARDE HOUSTON Char-DAY KETIA SWANIER Key-sha SWAN-yeah TAHIRAH WILLIAMS TA-hear-AH KAILI McCLAREN Kie-LEE 38 >> UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT WOMEN S BASKETBALL This is UConn... The University of Connecticut school colors are National Flag Blue and White.

5 TV/RADIO CHART HONORS HISTORY ALL-TIME RESULTS UCONN #2 TAHIRAH WILLIAMS #11 KETIA SWANIER #13 JACQUIE FERNANDES #20 RENEE MONTGOMERY #22 MEGHAN GARDLER Jr. 6-0 G Montclair, N.J. Sr. 5-7 G Columbus, Ga. So. 5-9 G Pawcatuck, Conn. Jr. 5-7 G St. Albans, W. Va. So. 6-0 G Springfield, Pa. #23 MAYA MOORE #24 CHARDE HOUSTON #25 MEL THOMAS #30 LORIN DIXON #31 TINA CHARLES Fr. 6-1 F Lawrenceville, Ga. Sr. 6-1 F San Diego, Calif. Sr. 5-9 G Cincinnati, Ohio Fr. 5-4 G Springfield Gardens, N.Y. So. 6-4 C Jamaica, N.Y. #32 KALANA GREENE Jr G Saint Stephen, S.C. #41 KAILI MCLAREN So. 6-2 F Washington, D.C. #44 BRITTANY HUNTER Sr. 6-0 C/F Columbus, Ohio #51 CASSIE KERNS Jr. 6-3 C/F Valparaiso, Ind. GENO AURIEMMA Head Coach 23rd season CHRIS DAILEY TONYA CARDOZA JAMELLE ELLIOTT JACK EISENMANN Associate Head Coach 23rd season Assistant Coach 14th season Assistant Coach 11th season Dir. Basketball Ops. 7th season This is UConn... Benjamin Franklin Koons was named the first president of the college in >> FIVE-TIME NATIONAL CHAMPIONS 39

6 SEASON PREVIEW PREVIEW COACHES THE HUSKIES REVIEW RECORDS EXPERIENCE AND FRESH FACES POISED TO LEAD HUSKIES TO NEW HEIGHTS IN The UConn women s basketball team returns a wealth of experience while adding an infusion of new talent as it begins its quest towards advancing to the program s ninth Final Four and beyond. Fresh off a season which saw all five starters average double-figure points for the first time since , the Huskies are feeling confident that they can reach the lofty goals they have set for as they return all 12 letterwinners and five starters from the squad that advanced to the 2007 NCAA Fresno Regional Final. In addition to the returning nucleus of talent from a year ago, Connecticut also will welcome a pair of McDonald s All-Americans in freshmen Maya Moore and Lorin Dixon. Moore was a consensus national player of the year during her senior prep season and became only the second player in history to be honored with the Naismith Award, which recognizes the National High School Player of the Year, following both her junior and senior seasons. Dixon also brings a winning past to Connecticut as she was a member of back-to-back Christ the King H.S. squads that won USA Today National Championships, with current UConn teammate Tina Charles. Charles was a major reason for UConn posting a perfect 16-0 BIG EAST record in and earning the program s 15th BIG EAST regular season title. Charles shattered the UConn freshman records for blocks, rebounds and ranked second in points en route to winning BIG EAST and National Freshman of the Year honors. While Charles is expected to lead the Huskies in the post, first team All-BIG EAST performer junior Renee Montgomery is back for her third consecutive season as the starting point guard and should be a stabilizer in the backcourt. Montgomery averaged a team-best 13.3 points and 4.5 assists per game in addition to swiping 70 steals. 40 >> UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT WOMEN S BASKETBALL This is UConn... The Husky Dog is named after Connecticut s Revolutionary War-era governor, Jonathan Trumbull.

7 SEASON PREVIEW HONORS HISTORY ALL-TIME RESULTS UCONN Senior Mel Thomas returns at the off-guard and should continue her cement herself as one of the nation s top 3-point shooters. As a junior, Thomas knocked in 87 treys, which ranks as the third highest single-season total in UConn annals. Returning on the wing is junior Kalana Greene. In addition to the rapid development in her offensive game a year ago, which saw her average 12.5 ppg, Greene established herself as one of the top rebounding guards nationally. She started all 36 games for the Huskies last season and is expected to be one of the team s top playmakers in The final of the five returning starters is senior Charde Houston, fresh off her most well-rounded season which saw her rank among the BIG EAST Conference s leaders in scoring, field goal percentage, rebounding, steals and blocks. The offensiveminded forward should prove to be a vital cog in the Huskies well diversified offensive attack this season. Depth-wise at guard the Huskies boast one of the best change-of-pace guards in the country with the return of senior Ketia Swanier. Swanier, who regularly is the first guard off the bench, offers Connecticut a solid ball handler with tremendous speed and quickness. Swanier made her mark last season while filling her role as she ranked among the BIG EAST s leaders in assists, assist/turnover ratio and steals while appearing in each of UConn s 36 games as a reserve. Adding to the Huskies reserve options at guard will be Tahirah Williams, an athletic player who has the ability to give the Huskies an energy jolt at both ends of the floor. Sophomores Meghan Gardler and Jacquie Fernandes also will compete for extended playing time during their second seasons at the guard and wing slots. A trio of players return in the post, with a range of experience. Senior Brittany Hunter is back for her third and final season at UConn and despite a nagging knee injury, will be looked to provide some key minutes for the Huskies in the paint this season. Hunter was productive last year in limited time as she posted averages of 5.6 points and 3.9 rebounds while playing just 8.9 minutes per contest. Providing the Huskies further depth in the paint will be junior Cassie Kerns and sophomore Kaili McLaren. McLaren, a BIG EAST All-Freshman Team selection a year ago, should see increased playing time after a solid summer of off-season work that has added a new element to her game that already included the ability to consistently knock down the mid-range shot. Kerns is another post option with the capability of shooting from the perimeter and should have increased opportunities to see floor time in This is UConn... Since Jonathan II, all UConn mascots have been purely white Huskies. >> FIVE-TIME NATIONAL CHAMPIONS 41

8 BASKETBALL SUPPORT STAFF PREVIEW COACHES THE HUSKIES REVIEW RECORDS BRUCE COHEN CPIA Director The University of Connecticut is committed to each of its basketball players, and all of its student-athletes, as a total person. Participation in athletics is important, but it represents only one aspect of a basketball player's college experience. At the University of Connecticut, academic achievement is the primary concern. Impressively, the UConn student-athlete retention rate has been 99.0 percent. The University's commitment to the student-athlete is a dual one. Participation on the basketball court is not viewed as an obstacle to the attainment of one's educational goals, rather it is seen as a complementary activity. Each supports the other. Athletic excellence is stressed, but academic achievement is never compromised - indeed, it is given the utmost priority. The University realizes that basketball players and all student-athletes, due to their academic involvement, are required to commit a large percentage of their personal time to University sponsored athletic activities. For this reason, the University recognizes the need for a support program for its intercollegiate athletes. The Counseling Program for Intercollegiate Athletes (CPIA) constantly assists all student-athletes in achieving their academic goals. The CPIA staff serves as a liaison to the academic faculty, the Division of Athletics, and the student-athlete. In serving as a liaison between the UConn student-athletes and University faculty and staff, the CPIA counselors also provide assistance in securing appropriate support services available with the University. These include orientation for student-athletes, supervised study halls, individual tutors and tutorial centers (an English/Writing Center, Math Center and Reading Center) and learning skills seminars. The writing lab and computers are networked to a national database which allow all student-athletes to do research at their actual computer stations. A counselor is assigned to work with each intercollegiate team and working directly with the UConn women's basketball program as a Faculty Advisor within CPIA is Bruce Cohen, Director of the Counseling Program for Intercollegiate Athletes. Cohen monitors all aspects of each UConn basketball player's academic life, including class schedule, arranging for tutors and progress toward a degree. The study lab used by the UConn women's basketball team is located adjacent to the Alumni Court in the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. ROSEMARY RAGLE WBB Athletic Trainer The Department of Sports Medicine in the University of Connecticut Division of Athletics works as an integrated multidisciplinary team whose purpose is to provide the optimal, safe environment for the basketball student-athletes to train and participate in their sport. The staff takes great pride in the individual attention paid to each student-athlete. They are devoted to preventing injury, rapidly diagnosing and treating injury, and maximizing athletic performance. The disciplines of athletic training, strength and conditioning, sports medicine, orthopaedic sports medicine, optometry, nutrition, exercise physiology, and psychology work in concert to provide comprehensive care for the basketball student-athlete. The team is spearheaded by Rosemary Ragle, MS, ATC, the women s basketball Athletic Trainer and Assistant Athletic Trainer. Ragle, who has worked with the women s basketball program since the season, earned her Masters of Science from LSU in Physician coverage is led by Jeffrey Anderson, M.D., the Director of Sports Medicine and Team Physician Thomas Trojian, M.D.. The Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Specialists for the team include Dr. Michael Joyce of the Orthopedic Sports Specialists in Galastonbury, Dr. Barry Messinger of Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Surgery and Dr. Robert Arciero and Gus Mazzocca of the University of Connecticut Health Center Department of Orthopaedics in Farmington. The Department of Sports Medicine works intimately with the Departments of Kinesiology and Nutritional Sciences on the University of Connecticut campus. This affords the student-athletes with the input of several nationally recognized exercise scientists. This cooperation also keeps the sports medicine staff at the cutting edge of developments in the fields of human performance and sports nutrition. Members of the sports medicine staff are actively engaged in research that directly benefits the care of the basketball student-athletes. The UConn Basketball Sports Medicine team is housed in state-of-the-art facilities in the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion, which were completed in October of The Department of Sports Medicine at the University of Connecticut plays a critical role in assuring that all UConn studentathletes have 24-hour access to the finest medical support and quality health care possible. Through patient care and ongoing research and education, the department continues to provide Husky teams a competitive edge from the medical perspective. SARAH DARRAS Program Aide AMANDA HUGHES Program Aide PEGGY MYERS Program Aide CHRIS WEST Strength & Conditioning BILL SEHL Gampel Pavilion Engineer KEITH ANDERSON Assistant Director of Video Services MELISSA WIELANDT Ticket Manager DR. TROYAN Team Doctor VINNY BRUNO Manager STACEY GORDON Manager STACEY NASSER Manager 42 >> UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT WOMEN S BASKETBALL This is UConn... Four-year degrees were first made available in 1914.