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Tuesday, February 13, 2001
Pondering postseason predictions
ESPN.com
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ESPN.COM'S TOP 10
As of Feb. 5
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1. Notre Dame: First 21-0 start. First win over a top-ranked team. First Big East title?
Record: 21-0. Last week: 1
2. Tennessee: Lady Vols are 6-0 since TC joined injured list. Eagerly awaiting Feb. 11 date with Florida.
Record: 23-1. Last week: 3
3. Connecticut: All eyes on Taurasi now that another one of nation's best gets caught by injury bug.
Record: 18-2. Last week: 2
4. Duke: Game vs. Clemson one of best performances of the season.
Record: 21-1. Last week: 4
5. Purdue: Tough without her, but needs Douglas back in lineup to keep climbing.
Record: 21-3. Last week: 6
6. Florida: There's a new second-best team in the SEC this week.
Record: 19-2. Last week: 9
7. Iowa State: Cyclones holding steady in tight Big 12 race.
Record: 18-2. Last week: 8
8. Georgia: Something besides Deanna Nolan is missing from the Lady Bulldogs.
Record: 19-4. Last week: 5
9. Louisiana Tech: Continues to stomp Sun Belt foes.
Record: 19-4. Last week: 7
10. Oklahoma: Looking to build on two easy wins last week.
Record: 15-5. Last week: 10
Dropped off: None.
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| 20 QUESTIONS |
 If you could be any any super hero or cartoon character, who would you be? What does ESPN stand for? Western Kentucky's ShaRae Mansfield, who had a career-high 33 points in a 74-69 upset over No. 13 Southwest Missouri State on Monday, stood tall to ESPN.com's 20 Questions. |
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With just a handful of regular-season games remaining -- and March Madness just a month away -- it's time to take a gamble. ESPN's Nancy Lieberman-Cline and Beth Mowins, and ESPN.com's Mechelle Voepel have done just that, taking a guess at who might be named player of the year, or which teams will find a way to St. Louis.
 MVP all about the life of Riley
Ruth Riley (18.2 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 3.0 bpg, 64.5 percent FG) will be named the national player of the year. The 6-foot-5 center -- who has helped the Irish get off to their best start ever at 21-0 -- has tremendous post moves and is a very skilled player and competitor. She has developed her game in many areas over the past year, and most importantly, has been able to avoid foul trouble (after getting whistled for at least 100 personal fouls in each of the past two seasons -- and fouling out of five games in 1999-2000 -- Riley has been committed just 53 fouls and fouled out of one game this season). There's no doubt Riley has a better understanding of the game this season, and as we continue the march to madness, she'll continue to mature. Then this top-five draft pick can look forward to a great career in the WNBA.
 Meet me in St. Louis.
That's what Florida, Oklahoma, Southwest Missouri State and Rutgers -- four Final Four sleepers -- might be saying right now. Although none of these teams are ranked among the top eight in the ESPN/USA Today top 25, they all have the potential to reach the national semifinals. Not only will a tough schedule have the Gators battle-tested for NCAA Tournament time, Florida's guards -- the well-known Brandi McCain and the underrated Tombi Bell -- have tremendous heart and talent. In Stacey Dales, Oklahoma has a very solid point guard, which is crucial in the postseason. The Sooners also have a very balanced attack, which is tough to defend. Southwest Missouri State, on the other hand, has one big-time scorer, and if Jackie Stiles gets hot at the right time, she'll be incredibly tough to stop. As for Rutgers, C. Vivian Stringer showed us last year what the Scarlet Knights are capable of. They play incredible team defense, and Stringer's teams always seem poised to go far in the postseason.
 Mechelle Voepel: AP shuts out Huskies, Lady Vols
Although it's likely Sue Bird or Shea Ralph will be included, this might be the year that neither Connecticut or Tennessee will have anyone on the Associated Press All-America first team. Instead, it will be Notre Dame's Ruth Riley and Niele Ivey, Georgia's Kelly Miller, Purdue's Katie Douglas and Southwest Missouri State's Jackie Stiles.
| SPEAK OF THE WEEK |
| "I cried. I cried all night. My husband, he's a man, so he didn't cry, but he was very sad, of course." -- Svetlana Abrosimova's mother, Ludmila Abrosimova, by phone on Tuesday from St. Petersburg. Ludmila and Oleg Abrosimova had saved for an entire year on Oleg's shipyard worker's salary -- the equivalent of $3,000 -- to make the trip from Russia to see their daughter play for the first time in college.
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| THE FINE LINE |
| G |
FG |
3FG |
AST |
PTS |
| 20 |
48.6% | 41.5% |
2.7 | 9.7 |
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Folks who aren't fans of the Connecticut Huskies got a glimpse of what will be making their stomachs turn over the next three seasons. UConn freshman Diana Taurasi, the 2000 national high school player of the year, is living up to her billing. She went 6-for-9 from 3-point range and scored 24 points in 27 minutes in a loss to Tennessee last week. |
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| NUMBER OF NOTE |
| Old Dominion is just 12-7 overall this season, but with an 8-0 start in the Colonial Athletic Association, the Lady Monarchs have extended their CAA win streak to 110 consecutive games. ODU has won nine straight CAA championships. |
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