Tampa, Florida – Sarah Strong from the University of Connecticut is the best first -year student in university basketball – men or women. This could seem blasphemous in the season by which everyone said that the distinction belonged to the prince of the striker Cooper Flagg.

But while Duke was eliminated from the men’s tournament on Saturday, a 24-point 15-point performance against southern Carolina on Sunday, he helped raise Uconn to victory 82-59 and national championships.

In 40 seasons, Geno Aurimmy as a Huscus coach, Uconn had several well -known first -year students. Thanks to the Strong performance not only on Sunday, but in the entire tournament and the Uconn season, they left fingerprints throughout the school and the history of the tournament.

She became the first first 12 months student in history with 20 points and 15 rebounds in the national title game. Strong was the third first 12 months student with 20 points each in the national semi -final and the national match for the championship. She became the first first 12 months student in Uconn’s history with 4 20-point matches in a single NCAA tournament and the first first 12 months student of Uconn with three easy 20-point matches in the tournament.

She also set a record of points in a single NCAA tournament.

Paige Bueckers, who won its first national championship on Sunday, is clearly the star of Uconn. Azzi Fudd gives the tone to the team. But Strong was the Uconn Everything engine this season – bouncing with revenge, shooting him if mandatory and playing in a strangling defense for the best player of the opponent.

Auriemma said that he saw it strongly when he watched her as the tenth grader.

“When I saw Sarah played in high school, in the 10th grade, I couldn’t think of a woman’s player to compare her,” said Auriemma. “I said,” She is Charles Barkley. ” I said, “It is great that the game is playing.

“I just think that when you have a child who is so young-he knows the game so well and has the ability, regardless of the situation on the pitch, regardless of what part of the court, no matter what he calls, it has the opportunity to do this-it is very rare at professional basketball players, and even more so 19-year-old first year student.”

In the season, critics and a few coaches complained to a coach from South Karolina Dawn Staley for packing their team from All-Americans McDonald’s. Strong to All-American South Karolina didn’t get. She was the best recruit in school 2024.

In Sunday’s defeat for southern Carolina, a Sunday of Sunday appeared, when the difference between an actual first -year and wonderful student became visible.

The moment took place with 39 seconds in the third quarter, Uconn leads 59-40. A talented first -year student in Southern Carolina, Joyce Edwards, fouled strong and put her on the line. When Edwards left the game, clearly frustrated, strong – normally stoic – he sank two fouls coldly. At that moment, Strong already had 17 points, 14 rebounds and three blocked shots.

Then the distinction became visible: Edwards was an actual first 12 months student. Strong is wonderful.

She grew up in the game and around him. Mother Strong, Feaster Allison, is the vice chairman for team operations and organizational development in Boston Celtics. Feaster was a Harvard star and played WNBA. Father Strong, Danny Strong, played collegially in the state of North Carolina and abroad for 15 years.

During the tournament, colleagues from the Strong team consistently described her as a player who is smart and mature outside her years. They call her an excellent player who avoids the ups and falls.

She liked the unbelievable season of the first 12 months, and her statistics line screams: Big East Freshman of the Year. Associated Press the second ALL-American team. Medium 16 points, 8.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.3 thefts and 1.6 blocks per game.

Strong is strength.

When Feaster watched his daughter on the stage of the championship on Sunday, I asked her about the source of strongholds.

Feaster said he was going beyond basketball.

“I think it’s faith,” she said. “I think it is faith in this process, faith in his purpose. God has put her here for some reason. She is who she is and I am simply grateful.”

Asked how she felt watching her daughter experiences the moment of the championship, Feaster said: “The only emotion I have is simply pure gratitude for all this. You don’t reach this point, without going through some things and many victims, a lot of fights, a lot of conversations, a lot of joy and a lot of pain.”

When Father Strong observed the fall of confetti, he thought of all the years of sacrifice, the exertions by which his daughter put in.

“It took a lot of prayer, a lot of time and supervising the whole process,” said Danny Strong. “She knew that she wanted to be from the sixth grade there. It was in her heart. I am definitely glad that we had the opportunity to be here and on stage, as it is now.”

Strong journey is just starting and can probably be continued in Uconn. Unlike Flagga, which is to depart Duke after one season to the NBA, Strong will probably spend the next three years in Uconn competing for the championship and maybe developing in the next super -star of the program.

I asked Danny Strong what his expectations for his 19-year-old daughter.

“Be humble, stay hungry, continue working and continue working until you are ready to hang your shoes,” he said. “No matter what you do, no matter what you achieve, or grateful, stay praying and work hard. That’s all.”

He almost guaranteed that the next three years Strong can be spent in Storrs in Connecticut.

“Oh yes, definitely,” he said. “We brought her up to be a closed and loyal person. When you start something, you’ll end up. We won’t jump and do all these crazy things.”

This season was crazy enough. Their daughter is the best first -year student in university basketball. Period.

And now he is the country’s champion.

Juju Watkins, a sensational second -year student who led the southern California to the best season For almost 40 years he was honored on Thursday as a bascollegal Baskollegal -Baskollegal -College.

Watkins, whose Trojans won the title of the Great Ten Season for the first conference crown in 31 years, received 29 votes from the 31-person national media panel, which is voting AP TOP 25 Every week. Hannah Hidalgo from Notre Dame got the other two. Both were the first team AP All-Americans.

“I think that such a significant prize is that it was a year that had no talents and stars, and Juju found a way to raise himself and his team,” said Civil Lindsay Gottlieb coach.

Watkins became the fourth player who won the award in his second year, joining Oklahoma’s Courtney Paris (2007) and Uconn Stars Maya Moore (2009) and Breanna Stewart (2014). AP first began to award the prize in 1995, and Watkins is the first player of Trojans who won it.

“He does many things that are not easy,” said Gottlieb. “One thing is to say that it is a generational talent, but another to do this and endure the names such as Sten, Maya and Courtney Paris.”

Watkins is already in the top ten on the list of OPERATE OF TIME TIME, taking sixth place in only two years. It had a mean of 23.9 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists before cutting its season in the NCAA tournament with ACL injury He suffered in the second round against Mississippi State.

Watkins raised the game against the best opponents. In six matches with teams in AP TOP 10 scored a mean of 26.2 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.4 blocks during shooting 35.4% from behind the 3-point line.

“At the greatest moments she achieved the best of all,” said Gottlieb. “I thought that she really learned to dominate and strengthen the others throughout the year.”

Watkins is already one of the best draws in sport Support offers Fit and see her in person hotter ticket.

The average attendance at the Trojan house increased to 5932 this season from last year’s 4421. Stars resembling Snoop Dogg, Kevin Hart, Jason Sudeikis, Michael B. Jordan and Sanaa Lathan, who appeared in “Love & Basketball”, one of Watkins’ favorite movies, appeared. A year before the arrival of the attendance, it was a mean of 1037.

“It is difficult to miss Snoop Dogg in your non -standard jacket,” said Gottlieb. “It happened organically and genuinely. She decided to stay at home and care for her city and has magnetism to attract people. In this way she wears herself. She is confident, but very humble and faithful to her community. It is amazing that to see her influence.”

San Antonio – asked the way it is coaching against the guardian Auburn, Tahaad PettiFord in highschool, coach Roselle Catholic (NJ), Todd Decker, offers fast praise: “His heart, speed and ability to shoot the ball – is a complete package.”

Asked if there was a game, he saw all these attributes on the exhibition, Decker – his mood changes – he’s silent.

“I would prefer to talk about anything else in my life,” said Decker, his voice on the phone becomes softer. “So what happened in this game.”

In “That Game” PettiFord had a ball along with his Hudson Catholic team three time beyond regulation, just a moment after he tied the sport at the tip of the regulation with the 3-point questioned.

“We tried to deny the ball at the end of the first overtime, but he gets it, takes three drible and banks significantly outside the NBA 3-point line,” said Decker, whose team eventually lost in double time beyond regulation.

“I still regret that I don’t pollute him. Probably one of the stupidest decisions I’ve ever made.”

The PettiFord game within the NCAA tournament last month showed that perhaps Decker shouldn’t be so difficult for himself. PettiFord has a median of 17.3 points in his 4 NCAA tournament matches – he’s related to Johni Broome, a national player of the Sports Year, since the team wins the leader after the season – and provides a high level of trust for the first 12 months, which began just one colleague start.

“I’m ready for a moment,” said PettiFord after the victory of Auburn over Michigan State in the ultimate of the southern region last weekend. “I want to win it all.”

While PettiFord was replaced as a point guard at Hudson Catholic, where he finished the senior season on the thirty fifth place in ESPN 100, coach Auburn Bruce Pearl immediately predicted him within the role apart from a distributor.

“Tahaad is a shooter; he will be one of the fastest, fastest, most explosive guards I’ve ever had,” said Pearl Montgomery advertisers in April last 12 months. “I feel I’ll attempt to play with him from the ball and let him do what he does.

“Get buckets.”

In his opinion, PettiFord in 2024 turned out to be a prophet. When Auburn won Stan Michigan, winning over Michigan and Michigan State last weekend, PettiFord’s ability to twist the corner and lead the road was an art that could possibly be afraid.

“It can really go both ways, especially with his right hand,” said Jase Richardson, Michigan State Guard who had experience against PettiFord on the Aau track. “I feel that he is really solid on my right hand, so it is in a sense in a sense both of them.”

In addition to its fearless ability to guide the belt, PettiFord also showed coverage outside the arch.

“PettiFord easily shoots six feet behind the line,” said Creighton Greg McDermott coach before he saw PettiFord scored 23 points in Auburn’s win within the second round. “So it stretches the defense a little further.”

Playing within the experienced team of Auburn, PettiFord got here this season as the one team of McDonald’s All-American. What he didn’t bring is the first or inflated ego attitude.

“He came in, but he came, wanting to learn, wanting to compete and wanting to join what we built,” said Broome, the one chestnut player who won the National Player of the Year award. “This definitely makes him special. He enters the field every night, tries to win to win.”

And PettiFord has this influence without noise, which will be expected from the All-American highschool, which apparently has a talent for the starter.

“I don’t think I have ever had a player who was as good as Tahaad, who never started and had the least noise from the player or his family,” said Pearl of PettiFord, who began one starting this season. “It simply wasn’t a factor. His dad loves him and trains him hard and wanted him to play for someone he knew that he would train him hard.”

PettiFord’s achievements turned out to be an indignant guardian of the mix. While Auburn mentions him as 6 feet-1, PettiFord says he really has lower than 6-0, but its size isn’t an obstacle.

“This is the only thing his dad (Travis PettiFord, who played in the state of Montclair), when he grew up, he always played him, even though he was small,” said Pearl. “He played guys older than him all his life. So what is the difference in the NCAA tournament?”

There is not any difference since the NCAA PettiFord performance was on a par with each player on this 12 months’s 4.

“He is only a special player; few first -year students are built like him,” said guard Auburn Denver Jones. “Some people understand that. Tahaad has it.”

This “this” that PettiFord left many North Jersey victims.

“We, as the staff, one day said that he was the only child who puts us fear in us,” said Kevin Diverio, the predominant coach at Don Bosco High School in Ramsey, New Jersey. “We knew it would be good at a collegiate level. We didn’t know it would be so good, so fast.”

For Nick Mariniello, the predominant coach at Hudson Catholic, the scale has been obvious since he saw PettiFord within the eighth grade.

“He was always a bizarre athlete, he was always hard -working and always rats in the gym,” said Mariniello. “Lights are never too bright for him. It is simply unique.”

What Mariniello appreciates probably the most in PettiFord is his loyalty, a feature that disappears in an era through which continuous movement amongst players also increases at highschool level.

“Often, guys who are talented go to national scholastic programs that have the best players from all over the country,” said Mariniello. “On the day when loyalty is a one -way street, I never felt like I had to surround him with a wall. He remained in the same school for four years he was very impressive.”

It is apparent that PettiFord is built in a different way and that the respect he earned in Auburn and New Jersey is authentic.

Even amongst trainers he terrorized.

“I am still haunted by what happened in this game,” said Decker concerning the Catholic Catholic classic classic classic classic. “But I love it when a kid with a T -shirt is great, we all inflate. He is such a talented child and it’s nice to see how he is successful on the largest stage.”