A day later, the dachshund and I are still reeling.
The good news is ... the good news is that it wasn't the
championship game.
There have been plenty of other tournament and play-off
thuds across sports. Being a Denver Broncos (fan), I have
witnessed several Super Bowl losses that were hard to
believe.
___
Harry and I watched the margin grow from 10, to 20, to 30,
eventually giving up.
As for Close: She has made UCLA basketball relevant again.
I'm still waiting for that to happen in our football program.
She was out-coached vs. UConn, just as the players were
out-played. Fudd, Strong, and Bueckers are formidable -
and I fully expect them to coldcock South Carolina.
We have all seen the Bruins have a lousy quarter - often
the second. But this was different.
The one constant that has plagued Close-led teams?
Turnovers. Forced passes, passes to no one, balls stolen
(from Betts), on and on. There were (18?) yesterday. UConn's
points on turnovers at one point reached 19 - before I stopped
counting.
No seniors, so the lot will be back, unless someone decides
to portal.
I have "picked on" Jones all season. She did have (at least)
one brilliant game, and she is "plucky", but she always worries me.
What happened to Jaquez (on offense) vs. UConn? One of our
best and most tenacious players was Oh-for Tampa.
I have no idea what the pressure was like. Other than MLB games,
UCLA-UConn was the premier televised sporting event in its
time slot in the country.
Would I rather lose the way the men's team has to Gonzaga, or
by 34 points?
I'll take Gonzaga.
Go Bruins.