Going for two in a row

... against UConn on Monday night.

Is one win enough to be deemed a streak? Why not? A streak has to start sometime, and this one had the sweetest start you could wish for.

The Huskies have dominated the Big East for two decades, but have been predicted to finish second this season (after Notre Dame). They are currently ranked #4 in the national polls, just a bit ahead of Stanford.

They haven't been challenged yet this season. Their first two games, which they won handily, were against Holy Cross and Pacific, whose respective ranks by Sagarin/CBS are 191 and 290.

The Huskies have a short bench again this season — minus Maya Moore and Lorin Dixon plus three freshmen equals eleven. Geno says, "We're one injury or one misfortune away from being a very average team ... by UConn standards."

The Huskies' starters this season are:

• #3, 5'10" senior guard Tiffany Hayes is UConn's only senior, and they will rely on her leadership this season. She started every game last season. She was UConn's second-best scorer with 14.7 ppg, made 1.3 3-pointers at a rate of 35% and 3.7 assists with a a good assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.5.


• #34, 5'11" junior guard Kelly Faris also started every game last season and played the most minutes (about 33 on average). She was second only to Maya in rebounds (6.7), steals (1.8), assists (3.7) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.65). Although she's listed as a guard, she played as a somewhat height-challenged power forward.


• #14, 5'7" sophomore guard Bria Hartley started all but four games last season as a freshman. She was UConn's best 3-point shooter (2.0 per game at a rate of 39%) and the third-best scorer (12.4 ppg). Her weakness was ball-handling — she made about three assists per game and almost as many turnovers. That should improve in her sophomore year — she's had eight assists and five turnovers in this season's two games.


• #31, 6'5" sophomore center Stefanie Dolson started all but two games last season. She was UConn's fourth double-digit scorer (10.2 ppg) and their most accurate shooter (62%). She got 6.1 rebounds per game.


• #5, 5'10" redshirt junior guard Caroline Doty is back in the starting lineup after missing last season with her third major knee injury. Teammate Stefanie Dolson says that Doty's return, "is going to mean everything to us. She's definitely that glue player that coaches always talk about. She brings everyone together, keeps them focused and on point with what we're doing on offense and defense. Her intensity on both ends of the floor is one of the highest on the team."

HoopGurlz ranked UConn's 2010-11 recruiting class second-best (to Tennessee) in the nation. The Husky pups are:

• #23, 6'0" freshman forward Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis was ranked the *1 overall recruit. She has drawn early comparisons to Maya Moore in more than her uniform number. Someday Geno may be saying, "We have Kaleena and you don't."


• #41, 6'3" freshman center Kiah Stokeswas ranked the #5 post. She is said to be a great shot blocker and rebounder.


• #13, 5'0" freshman guard Brianna Banks was ranked the #6 guard. She is especially noted for her quickness. She is tempted to say that, "[her opponents] might be surprised if I blow past them a couple of times.” Geno is pleased with her performance so far, but says that she, "is looking for the basket after she crosses midcourt. As we go on, she'll want to learn to pass it to somebody."

Here are the Huskies' 2011-12 statistics and their roster.