100 Facts About the Historic 100th Win by Women’s Basketball

# 9. ESPN’s Rebecca Lobo hooped it up on an empty Gampel court in the morning – like she had played there before.

UConn 100 straight wins and counting graphic

Fact #100: We get to go for 101 on Saturday.

One hundred things to know about the 100th win in row.

1. How cool was it to see Geno Auriemma on “Good Morning America” among all the Grammy coverage?
2. Husky great Kara Wolters was announced as an inductee to the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. Ok, that was the day before, but who is counting?
3. The New York Times (double coverage), Newsday, SNY, CBS News, NBC News were all here to cover #The6thBorough.
4. A hats-off to UConn’s Facilities Operations and Building Services staff for getting the campus and Gampel Pavilion clear of snow for fans to enjoy the game.
5. At 10:27 a.m., the hard-working Athletic Marketing staff was already well into putting a white rally towel on every seat in Gampel.
6. A full team of members from the ESPN College Sports Programming Team spoke to the UConn Sports Business Association before the game.
7. The great Mansfield public school system got some quality air time on ESPN about the number 100.
8. A great job by UConn Public Safety and other local agencies in getting fans to the game by resolving the detour issues on I-84 East!
9. ESPN’s Rebecca Lobo hooped it up on an empty Gampel court in the morning – like she had played there before.
10. American Athletic Conference commissioner Mike Aresco was all smiles watching one of the league’s most viable resources.
11. Auriemma on seeing the ESPN presence in Gampel – at the afternoon shoot-around – “Man, this is more than the Final Four.”
12. You know it’s a basketball event when legendary scribe Dick “Hoops” Weiss is in the arena.
13. Faces in the crowd: former Huskies Caroline Doty, Maya Moore, Kalana Greene, Maria Conlon, Ashley Battle, Sue Bird, Morgan Tuck, Tina Charles, Asjha Jones and Breanna Stewart plus Gov. Dannel Malloy.
14. ESPN had two production trucks with two satellite trucks and a separate power unit. Of the 145 single-game credentials issued to media, 90 went to ESPN. An additional 25 members of the media with season credentials also showed up.
15. UConn legend Dee Rowe held court at the shootaround, as usual.
16. Not a reservation to be had at Geno’s Grille in Storrs. They are running a special every day during the streak – Monday’s was $9.90…Tuesday’s will be $10.00.
17. UConn student-athletes got some real-life advice before the game with a seminar from Morgan Stanley.
18. #DuringTheStreak and #AndCounting have become just some of the neatest hashtags in town.
19. Coincidence? There’s a huge 100 on the cover of this year’s South Carolina women’s basketball media guide. It is their season theme.
20. A sure sign that spring is coming … ESPN’S Dave O’Brien was on the call tonight, and he also got plenty of Red Sox questions.
21. Saniya Chong was the lucky Husky to grace the lineup card for this game.
22. The game went North of the Border – TSN picked up the game in Canada … thanks Kia Nurse!
23. As early as 5:54 p.m., there were face-painted students in lines at the Student Union Food Court.
24. Headlines from Monday’s Daily Campus: “UConn Women’s Basketball Leaving Legacy On And Off The Court” and “Keeping It 100.” Wonder what Tuesday’s edition will bring?
25. You can get a UConn Dairy Bar Ice Cream Cake in a valentine shape for $15. Doesn’t have much to do with basketball, but sounds too yummy not to mention.
26. The early arrivals included a ton of students dressed in white – and one in Houston Astros Jose Valverde jersey.
27. Monday was the first of four White Outs this week – remembers to wear white Thursday for men’s basketball and Friday at both men’s and women’s ice hockey.
28. Every fan got their own white rally towel, as most fans dressed in white.
29. The Coventry (Conn.) Police Department presented the colors.
30. The UConn pep band played the national anthem, and the crowd joined in singing.
31. The beginning of the game was on ESPNews, due to a thrilling double-overtime finish of Texas’ win over Florida State.
32. A UConn student dressed as Abraham Lincoln, in honor of his birthday we assume, had a sign that read “Four Score and 19 Wins … And It Was Amazing …”
33. A group of UConn students who painted their chests “100 & Counting” were right behind the basket and got plenty of air time.
34. At 9:04 p.m., South Carolina took the court with the usual response from the Husky crowd.
35. At 9:05 p.m., UConn took the court, with the usual response from the Husky crowd.
36. At 9:06 p.m., Auriemma took the court, with the usual response from the Husky crowd.
37. South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley received a round of applause when she was introduced.
38. The tradition of fans using the light on their cell phones has really taken off.
39. The opening tip by referee Joe Vaszily went to UConn via Gabby Williams to Nurse.
40. The first bucket of the game was by UConn’s Williams, on a layup 1:07 into the game.
41. The first South Carolina score was by A’ja Wilson 26 seconds later.
42. The Huskies led 19-16 after the first quarter, as Williams had 10 points.
43. UConn football coach Randy Edsall got a big ovation when he was (re)introduced to the crowd.
44. When UConn trailed by three in the second quarter, it was the first time it had trailed by that much since the Dec. 7 game at Notre Dame.
45. The Huskies led 35-29 at halftime, as Williams had 16 points and Napheesa Collier had 13.
46. Williams led all rebounders, with nine in the first half.
47. The six-point lead was the largest of the game by either team in the first half.
48. Wilson led South Carolina with 12 points at the half.
49. UConn finished the half on a 7-0 run.
50. Crystal Dangerfield had four assists in the first half, in 12 minutes of action.
51. UConn’s Katie Lou Samuelson was scoreless at halftime.
52. “Whoever is coaching Lou this game is doing a really bad job,” said Auriemma to ESPN’s Holly Rowe heading into the halftime locker room.
53. Katie Lou hit a three early in the third quarter, and on her ninth shot of the game.
54. The crowd was treated to a performance from the world famous Red Panda at halftime.
55. Williams already had her ninth double-double of the season with 4:55 to go in the third quarter.
56. UConn led by double digits for the first time in the final seconds of the third quarter on a layup and free throw by Collier.
57. The Huskies led 51-39 after three quarters, as Williams had 20 points and Collier had 18.
58. Williams had 12 rebounds after three quarters, and Dangerfield had six assists.
59. Wilson led South Carolina in scoring through three quarters, with 14 points while Alaina Coates had eight.
60. “The name Geno Auriemma should roll right off your lips,” says ESPN’s Doris Burke, speaking about the great coaches in sports all-time.
61. Williams passed her career-high and had 24 points with over five minutes still to play.
62. UConn won the game by a 66-55 score.
63. Williams led all scorers with 26 points, and led the Huskies in rebounds with 14.
64. Collier scored 18 points, and had nine rebounds.
65. Dangerfield led the way with seven assists, and came off the bench to score 30 points.
66. South Carolina had three scorers in double figures, led by Wilson with 17 points.
67. Alaina Jackson had 10 points, and a game-high 15 rebounds for South Carolina
68. UConn shot 44.1 percent as a team (15-34), but were only 3 of 10 from three-point range.
69. South Carolina was 47.8 percent for the game at 11 of 23, and were 3 of 8 from three-point range.
70. The official attendance – no surprise – a sellout at 10,167. Thanks, fans!
71. The post-game celebration featured the UConn student section holding up cards that made the number “100.”
72. Special “$100 bills” that featured Auriemma’s photo were dropped from the Gampel Pavilion ceiling like confetti.
73. Players donned a 100-Straight Wins T-Shirt after the game. Those shirts are now available for sale at the UConn Bookstore and online at shop.uconnhuskies.com.
74. SNY, the television home of UConn women’s basketball, did live shots from the floor after the game.
75. A crew from HBO’s “UConn Huskies: The March To Madness” was on the court catching the post-game emotion.
76. Auriemma did a live interview with Steve Levy on ESPN Sports Center following the game.
77. Maya Moore and Breanna Stewart also did an interview for Sports Center.
78. After many interviews and photos, Auriemma finally got a chance to address the crowd in the arena.
79. “For our players to know that you are here means an awful lot to them,” he told a packed student section. “It means more than you will ever know.”
80. “It’s easy to come out to Gampel or the XL Center on the weekend, maybe in the afternoon,” he told the rest of the crowd. “But for you to come out on a night like this and fill this place to the rafters, that might be more amazing than the 100 wins.”
81. Finally, after all that, it was time for the usual post-game prize give-aways by Williams and Nurse.
82. The UConn pep band played the alma mater and sang it just a little louder than usual … or so it seemed.
83. With the number of media in attendance, an NCAA tournament-style post-game setup was used.
84. The UConn Foundation has set up a special “$100 For 100 Wins” where you can make a donation and receive a special pin.
85. The Hartford Courant quickly posted an editorial – “The UConn Dynasty Continues.”
86. The main headline of the Courant website was “UConn Wins No. 100 Just Like The Rest – With A Comfortable Margin Of Victory.”
87. “100! Huskies Hit Century Mark” from an Associated Press Tweet.
88. “I just thought that for 18 minutes of the first, it favored our game plan, and then we had those turnovers and they went and scored. It really deflated us,” said Staley, the South Carolina head coach.
89. “I don’t mind playing them every year,” Staley said of UConn’s trip to Columbia, S.C. next season.
90. “We had too many empty possessions where we got great looks, but we just didn’t come up with them,” said Staley.
91. ESPN had a great Big Monday, with three double-overtime games and UConn’s 100th consecutive.
92. “She’s an extraordinary talent, and you hear that word a lot, and you hear special a lot. There’s nothing special about Gabby [Williams]. What she is, is an extraordinary athlete who understands that she is, and then tries to live up to it – and not everyone does,” said Auriemma in his post-game press conference.
93. “There is no one else like her in all of college basketball,” said Auriemma of Williams.
94. “There were a lot of good players sitting behind our bench tonight,” said Auriemma of the former players in attendance, “and when I looked at the bench tonight, I almost called a couple of them down.”
95. “If this would have been done by last year’s team, I think it would have been less heroic,” said Auriemma.
96. “For this team to do it, given where we started and where people projected us to be … for them to do it I think is very appropriate. They feel better about it than maybe last year’s team would have,” Auriemma said.
97. As the clock struck midnight, Gampel was still abuzz with activity, with ESPN technicians packing up cameras and cable for their next stop.
98. At 12:09 a.m., a single Geno $100 bill fell from the rafters.
99. The Hartford Yard Goats sent a Tweet of congratulations at 12:14 a.m.
100. We get to go for 101 on Saturday.