Husky fever alive as UConn plays for Big East title
By TIM CASEY
Sports Writer
STORRS, Conn.
It's nearly an hour before the start of the Connecticut-Boston College semifinal game of the women's Big East tournament on Monday.
Steve and Karen Wilson stand in front of the South entrance of the Gampel Pavilion, their elbows resting on a three-foot high concrete wall. The married couple, residents of nearby Chaplin, Conn., are finishing the last drags of their cigarettes before entering the arena.
Steve in his UConn hat and Karen in her blue "Connecticut basketball" sweatshirt with XXL emblazoned across the middle, are getting ready to see their beloved Huskies compete against their neighboring rivals. This is the second time they have seen Connecticut live this year, the first being a 72-71 loss to Tennessee on Feb. 2, the Huskies' only defeat of this season.
Lying on the concrete wall is a white poster with alternating blue and white letters spelling UConn. Below the UConn, in black letters, is the word "Rocks."
"I got on TV the last time I had a poster," explains Steve with a grin.
UConn Rocks. That phrase expresses the feelings of many in Husky Nation.
With their state located between New York and Boston, Connecticut professional sports fans' loyalties are divided. There are Red Sox supporters and Yankee fans. Some prefer the Patriots; others like the Jets or Giants. Both Celtics and Knicks, Bruins and Rangers fans populate the Nutmeg State.
But when it comes to college basketball, there's only one team in town.
And for good reason.
The Huskies have won the last seven Big East regular season titles and six-straight tournament championships. In the 1990s, they participated in three Final Fours and six Elite Eight appearances. The 1995 team finished the season at 35-0 en route to the national title.
Five Husky alums are currently in the WNBA, including three former national college Player of the Year recipients — Rebecca Lobo, Jennifer Rizotti and Kara Wolters.
These feats haven't gone unnoticed by the locals.
All of the Connecticut regular season games sold out during the summer. Eighty members of the media regularly attend each home game, be it a January date with West Virginia or a nationally televised game against Tennessee.
Getting a ticket for a game is as tough as predicting the weather in South Bend during the winter. The Wilsons were lucky enough to get their tickets through Karen's brother's company. Without those connections, they would be sitting on their couch, watching the game with their three daughters.
"We watch all the games," the Wilsons said. "We were fortunate tonight [getting tickets]."
The Wilsons weren't the only Connecticut fans getting ready to enter Gampel before the warm-ups began.
As thousands entered the North entrance, they were greeted with high-fives by the team's mascot, the aptly named Husky.
Buses transported fans from cars parked miles away from the stadium.
Ticket scalpers searched for any interested buyers. There were plenty. Sellers are scarce before Husky games. It's a far cry from the Irish home games, where you can't give away enough tickets to fill the Joyce Center.
The scene is reminiscent of that an hour before an Irish home football game.
Except the crowd at Gampel is an eighth of the size of Notre Dame Stadium.
College basketball to them is what college football means to many Irish fans.
It's the biggest game in town.
And it's not limited to just the women. The men's team, the 1999 National Champions, regularly sell out all their games. The crowd still chants an ever-present "U-C-O-N-N, UConn!, UConn!, UConn!"
To witness the atmosphere of Husky Nation, take Route 195 North from Storrs, follow 84 west to 91 South and you'll be in New York City, home of Madison Square Garden, the site of this weekend's men's' Big East tournament.
Once there, you'll be surrounded by a swarm of blue and white tee-shirts, hats, sweaters, sweatshirts — anything with a UConn logo. They could sell Connecticut toilet paper and these fans would be willing to pay for it.
In last year's conference championship game against St. John's, you could have sworn it was a Husky home game. Never mind that St. John's is located a few miles from the Garden.
Tonight, the Connecticut women face Rutgers in the tournament final.
Rutgers, eighth in the nation beat a very good Notre Dame team 81-72 in overtime on Monday night. The Scarlet Knights play an aggressive defense and feature one of the conference's top players in Shawnetta Stewart. The last time the two teams met, the Huskies squeaked out a 65-60 victory.
But this is different, this is the Big East championship, a title the Huskies have won each of the previous six years.
And it's at home, where the Huskies have won 73 Big East games in a row.
Tune in tonight at 7:30 on ESPN2 and look for a "UConn Rocks" poster.
Steve and Karen Wilson were able to get tickets for the final.
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
All Sports Stories for Tuesday, March 7, 2000
