Sports

UConn Women Not Looking Past Opposition in Final Four

Published

9 years ago

April 2, 2015

South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley waves the net to fans after a women’s college basketball regional final game against Florida State in the NCAA Tournament in Greensboro, N.C., Sunday, March 29, 2015. South Carolina won 80-74. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

FRED GOODALL, AP Sports Writer

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Four No. 1 seeds are in the Final Four of the women’s NCAA Tournament for only the third time, yet there’s still a distinctive feel it’s really two-time defending champion Connecticut’s title to lose. Notre Dame, South Carolina and Maryland merely are a distant best of the rest.

The coaches of the teams, beginning with UConn’s Geno Auriemma, say that’s simply not true.

The Huskies (36-1) may be playing on college basketball’s biggest stage for the eighth straight year and seeking a record 10th national title, but Auriemma said the best teams in the country are still standing, and all of them are capable of returning home with the championship trophy.

“We’re not going down there thinking that we’re so good that it doesn’t matter. … We don’t buy into this nonsense that we’re the only team that can win this thing, any more than I’m sure the rest of the country thinks Kentucky can’t lose in the men’s Final Four,” Auriemma said Wednesday on a conference call. “That’s not the case at all. Things happen in the Final Four that you just don’t expect.”

With All-American and two-time Final Four most outstanding player Brenna Stewart leading a talent-laden roster, UConn has won consecutive titles three times in program history. A 10th national crown would lift Auriemma into a tie with UCLA’s John Wooden for the most NCAA basketball championships.

But before the Huskies’ coronation, there’s a matter of beating Maryland (34-2) in Sunday’s semifinals and facing either Notre Dame (35-2) or South Carolina (34-2) on Tuesday night.

The Huskies beat Notre Dame by 18 in early December, trounced South Carolina 25 when the Gamecocks were unbeaten and ranked No. 1 in February, and have won 35 straight since suffering a two-point overtime loss at Stanford in November. Maryland hasn’t faced UConn this season.

If Terrapins coach Brenda Frese has the formula to end the Huskies’ reign, she’s not revealing it.

“It’s going to take a collective team effort. Obviously in that Stanford game, they did a tremendous job collectively as a team,” Frese said. “Defensively, they’re a great scoring team and you’ve got to be able to take some things away. And then you have to have your own team that’s gotta be able to keep pace in terms of being able to score.”

No team has had more success against UConn recently than former Big East rival Notre Dame and coach Muffet McGraw has the Irish in the Final Four for the fifth straight year.

The teams have faced each other 14 times over the past five seasons, with each winning seven.

McGraw understands why there’s a perception that there’s UConn — and then there’s everybody else. She just believes women’s college basketball has outgrown that scenario, even if the Huskies remain the most dominant program in the country.

“I think this is one of the best tournaments that we’ve had in terms of parity. I feel like there were so many great games,” McGraw said. “There were upsets. There were great games that the No. 1 seeds advanced. … I think that was great for TV.”

“I think we’re definitely heading in the same direction as the men. I think we had almost the same number of upsets on the first day as the men had,” she added. “And even though the top seeds advanced, which is unusual … it seems as though there’s definitely more parity and more excitement about the tournament.”

McGraw and the Irish will take on South Carolina, coached by Olympian and former WNBA star Dawn Staley. The Gamecocks are making their first Final Four appearance.

Regardless of who else makes the Final Four, Auriemma rejects the notion that UConn’s dominance has been bad for the sport.

To the contrary, he believes the attention the Huskies receive, and the standard they’ve set, have influenced more schools to commit to building strong programs capable of having success in the tournament.

“All the naysayers are going to say it’s bad. I’m sure half the people in women’s basketball want us to lose, maybe more than half,” Auriemma said. “Some maybe are just tired of it. Nothing we can do about that. … My players work just as hard, if not harder than anybody else.”

And he’s certainly not apologizing for being the favorites again.

“The good teams are going to be good all the time because they have the culture of winning. And, it’s up to everybody else to catch up,” Auriemma said.

“I think the catching up is happening. We’re not invincible. We’re not unbeatable. I just think that we’ve been on an amazing run,” he added. “And it’s going to end. Somebody’s going to knock us off, maybe this weekend. Who knows? We’ll have to start all over at some point to build it back up.”

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Rajah Caruth: Young Trailblazer of NASCAR

Imagine you’re only 22 years old and already making a name for yourself in NASCAR, one of the most thrilling sports in the US. That is the life of Rajah Kirby Caruth, an American professional stock car racing driver.

Published

2 days ago

May 4, 2024

Oakland Post

Rajah Kirby Caruth, an American professional stock car racing driver. (File Photo)

By Tamara Shiloh

Born June 11, 2002, in Washington, DC, he was drawn to the sport as a child after seeing the Disney Pixar film “Cars.”

Caruth dreamed of tooling around the track like the main character in “Cars,” Lightning McQueen. His enthusiasm grew when his parents surprised him with a trip to the NASCAR Cup Series race at Richmond Raceway when he was 12.

In 2018, while keeping busy with school, sports and a summer job, Caruth and his family held fundraisers so that he could buy an iRacing simulator. Then, at age 16, he traded a real driver’s license to race virtually in the eNASCAR Ignite Series, which led to him being recruited by the NASCAR Drive for Diversity Program.

His first big opportunity came in 2019 when he competed in a “Legends” car at Charlotte Motor Speedway in the Bojangles’ Southern Shootout and recorded two top-third in the semi-pro points.

People began to recognize Caruth’s talents. In 2020, he stepped up to the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series and became the first African American to win at Greenville-Pickens Speedway in a late model race. The next year, he won at Tri-County Motor Speedway and picked up his fourth overall late model victory.

Then, he became the first person of color to win at the South Carolina track.

In 2021, Caruth announced he would compete full-time in the ARCA Menards Series East for Rev Racing, where he finished third in the standings, including a series of top-five finishes. He made his NASCAR Xfinity Series debut on a bigger stage as well.

Then, in 2022, thing really took off. A new chapter found Caruth at NASCAR’s unofficial Triple A league with GMS Racing, where he drives full-time for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, with a sponsorship from The Wendell Scott Foundation. After a few setbacks, he broke into the top 10 several times, finishing at a career-high 6th at Darlington Raceway.

Fast-forward to 2024, and Caruth’s took the third major step in his career. He is now driving full-time in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for Spire Motorsports and has been making the news for putting on stellar performances. Oh, and he won at Las Vegas: his first career victory.

From an impressionable young racing fan to a professional NASCAR driver, Caruth is charting a new path, creating history, and inspiring people to always remember that if you have the talent, the drive, and most of all, the heart, anything can be achieved.

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Salesian Coach Knew Angel Jackson Could Play in WNBA

Back in 2019, Salesian Girls Basketball Head Coach Stephen Pezzola made a bold prediction about one of his players, Angel Jackson. “If she keeps putting in the work like she did for us, she could be in the WNBA,” the coach said. That turned out to be very true. Last month, the Las Vegas Aces selected Jackson with the 36th overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft. She is the second player from an Historically Black College or University, or HCBU, to be selected in the draft in 20 years.

Published

3 days ago

May 4, 2024

Oakland Post

Angel Jackson. Photo courtesy of Jackston State.

The Richmond Standard

Back in 2019, Salesian Girls Basketball Head Coach Stephen Pezzola made a bold prediction about one of his players, Angel Jackson.

“If she keeps putting in the work like she did for us, she could be in the WNBA,” the coach said.

That turned out to be very true. Last month, the Las Vegas Aces selected Jackson with the 36th overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft. She is the second player from an Historically Black College or University, or HCBU, to be selected in the draft in 20 years.

Jackson’s success came as little surprise to Pezzola, who last year led the Pride to their 8th North Coast Section championship since he took over the program in 2008-2009. In 2019, Pezzola commended Jackson as “a very coachable kid” from the time she arrived at Salesian.

Tomekia Reed, her coach at Jackson State, shared similar sentiments, noting Jackson worked “very hard” to reach this moment.

“She came into our program doing great things and never looked back,” Reed told the Clarion Ledger. “She has trusted our leadership as we were able to develop her into an amazing player. I have watched her improve tremendously over the years.”

The 6’-6” Jackson played three seasons at the University of Southern California before transferring to Jackson State. She was ranked 10th in the NCAA in blocked shots and averaged 10 points per game in her final college season.

She finished her collegiate career with 1,047 points and was twice named Southwestern Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year.

As the 36th pick, Jackson was the final pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. In a television interview, Jackson said she didn’t expect to be picked, and called the moment “surreal.”

“It made me feel so appreciative that HBCU is getting back on the map again,” she said.

All she could do in that moment was cry.

“I called my mom immediately, and she started crying,” Jackson said. “It was the best moment you can feel as a young lady.”

There’s no stopping Jackson now. “The sky is the limit,” she said.

Her high school coach agrees.

“I knew that Angel could do it,” Coach Pezzola told the Richmond Standard this week. “We are so proud of Angel and what she has accomplished. It was an honor and joy to coach Angel at Salesian.”

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Oakland WNBA Player to be Inducted Into Hall of Fame

The Multi-Ethnic Sports Hall of Fame (MESHOF) announced that it will induct Dr. Alexis Gray-Lawson, a former WNBA player and Oakland Technical High School graduate at its inaugural Curt Flood Platinum Award Ceremony in February. Gray-Lawson’s Platinum Award is part of the Hall of Fame’s 24th Annual Bay Area induction and award ceremony, where four other retired professional athletes will be honored.

Published

2 weeks ago

April 20, 2024

Oakland Post

Photo Courtesy of Alexis Gray Lawson.

By Post staff

The Multi-Ethnic Sports Hall of Fame (MESHOF) announced that it will induct Dr. Alexis Gray-Lawson, a former WNBA player and Oakland Technical High School graduate at its inaugural Curt Flood Platinum Award Ceremony in February.

Gray-Lawson’s Platinum Award is part of the Hall of Fame’s 24th Annual Bay Area induction and award ceremony, where four other retired professional athletes will be honored.

The banquet and ceremony will be held from 5:45 to 10 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 24, at the George P. Scotlan Convention Center at Oakland’s Marriott Civic Center Hotel.

“I am truly honored to receive this incredible nomination,” said Dr. Alexis Gray-Lawson, who, along with college teammate Devanei Hampton, lead Oakland Tech to its second consecutive state title in 2005. “It took a village to raise me and get me here, and I truly am excited to continue the legacy.”

Gray-Lawson, a “second team” Parade All-American and an All-State honoree, as a senior in ’05, was chosen for the California Interscholastic Federation sportsmanship award. She only lost one game throughout her four-year career in high school. Her jersey was retired at Oakland Tech and placed in the National High School Hall of Fame as a four-time All-City recipient, averaging 17.2 points per game during her career.

Gray-Lawson received scholarships in volleyball, softball, and basketball before deciding to travel up College Avenue to the University of California, Berkeley. There, she played in more basketball games (143) than any other player in Golden Bears’ history. She finished her career as the Bears all-time 3-point leader (211), and she is ranked third in scoring with 1,982 points.

An All-Pac 10 and honorable mention All-American in 2010, Gray-Lawson also was the top player at 5’8” or under for the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award. Later that year, she was a third-round pick of the Washington Mystics in 2010 and played with the Phoenix Mercury of the Women’s National Basketball Association in 2011 and 2012. She also played professionally overseas in Turkey and Israel.

Other inductees are Clifford Ray (Basketball); Lee Lacy (Baseball); Spencer Haywood (Basketball); and Mohinder Singh Gil (Track & Field).

Organizers say the event promises to be a “historic and celebratory evening,” and iconic personalities from across the professional sports industry and its various disciplines will attend.

The no-host cocktail hour begins at 5:45 p.m.; dinner at 6:45 p.m.; and the ceremony at 7:45 p.m. All times are prompt. General tickets are $250.00; Seniors (65 and older) $150.00, and students $50. This includes dinner and the ceremony. Tables of 10 are available as well, and early purchase is recommended.

MESHOF is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization dedicated to honoring athletes from all corners of the globe who have made significant contributions to the world of sports and broadening the public’s understanding of the contributions people of color have made to professional sports; and to provide educational life skills and mentorship opportunities for deserving youth. Proceeds will help maintain the City of Oakland’s Curt Flood Field, Oakland Parks & Recreation, and MESHOF’s after school and mental health initiatives.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.multiethnicsportshof.com. For additional information, please contact: Arif Khatlib @ afrosportshall@aol.com or India Alston @ india@beamcreativehouse.com