2001–02 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team

Intercollegiate basketball season March 2026 August 2023 Women's Basketball 2001–02 Connecticut Huskies Connecticut Huskies wordmark.svg 250 Big East Conference Big East 1 1 39–0 16–0 Geno Auriemma 17th Chris Dailey 17th Tonya Cardoza 8th Jamelle Elliott 5th Harry A. Gampel Pavilion NCAA Tournament, National Champions Big East Tournament champions Big East regular season championsPre-Season WNIT champions National Championship Game W 82–70 vs. Oklahoma The 2001–02 Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team represented the University of Connecticut in the 2001–2002 NCAA Division I basketball season. Coached by Geno Auriemma, the Huskies played their home games at the Hartford Civic Center in Hartford, Connecticut, and on campus at the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Connecticut, and are a member of the Big East Conference. At the Big East women's basketball tournament, the Huskies won the championship by defeating Boston College 96–54. The Huskies won their third NCAA championship by defeating the Oklahoma Sooners, 82–70.2002-04-01 HUSKIES WRITE PERFECT ENDING New York Post https://nypost.com/2002/04/01/huskies-write-perfect-ending/ 2026-03-23 en-US The starting five of Sue Bird, Swin Cash, Asjha Jones, Tamika Williams, and Diana Taurasi are generally considered the greatest starting lineup in Women's College Basketball history. On December 29, 2011, the team was recognized as one of the greatest in the program's history by induction into the Huskies of Honor.Auriemma Has High Praise For His 2001-02 Champions http://www.courant.com/sports/uconn-women/blog/hc-auriemma-has-high-praise-for-his-200102-champions-20111229,0,1825613.story Hartford Courant Tribune Corporation Altavilla John December 29, 2011 December 29, 2011 https://archive.today/20240525161514/https://www.webcitation.org/64J3EhakK?url=http://www.courant.com/sports/uconn-women/blog/hc-auriemma-has-high-praise-for-his-200102-champions-20111229,0,1825613.story%3Ftrack=rss May 25, 2024 dead mdy-all Roster changes Five players from the 2000–01 team (Shea Ralph, Svetlana Abrosimova, Kelly Schumacher, Christine Rigby, and Marci Czel) were seniors and are no longer part of the team. One sophomore player, Kennitra Johnson, decided to leave UConn to be closer to her mother, and transferred to Purdue. Two freshmen joined the team: Ashley Valley, younger sister of Morgan Valley, and Stacey Marron. Although Marron had received scholarship offers from other schools, she chose to apply to UConn and attempt to make the team as a walk-on. She succeeded, and eventually earned a full scholarship, the first Connecticut walk-on to earn a basketball scholarship. Two other players were not new to the program, but 2001–2002 was their first full season. Ashley Battle was a freshman in the prior year, but sustained an elbow injury in the fifth game of the season, and did not play the remainder of the season.Eagan Matt Huskies May Lose Battle https://www.courant.com/hc-battle1200-story.html Hartford Courant Hartford Courant November 26, 2020 Battle applied for a medical hardship, often called a redshirt. Jessica Moore also joined the team in the prior year, but elected not to play her first year. Roster Source w 2001 Connecticut Huskies y y w Ashley Valley n 2 G 5 9 Fr Colchester, Vermont Rice Memorial w Diana Taurasi y 3 GF 6 0 So Chino, California Don Lugo w Maria Conlon n 5 G 5 9 So Derby, Connecticut Seymour w Sue Bird y 10 G 5 9 Sr Syosset, New York Christ the King C w Stacey Marron n 12 G 5 9 Fr Albuquerque, New Mexico La Cueva w Asjha Jones y 15 FC 6 2 Sr Piscataway, New Jersey Piscataway w Morgan Valley y 20 G 6 0 So Colchester, Vermont Rice Memorial w Ashley Battle y 22 F 6 0 Fr y Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania The Linsly School, WVA w Jessica Moore y 31 C 6 3 Fr y Palmer, Alaska Colony basketball w Swin Cash y 32 F 6 2 Sr McKeesport, Pennsylvania McKeesport C w Tamika Williams y 34 F 6 2 Sr Dayton, Ohio Chaminade-Julienne Geno Auriemma Chris Dailey Tonya Cardoza Jamelle Elliott http://www.uconnhuskies.com/sports/w-baskbl/archive/conn-w-baskbl-2002-roster.html 2013-08-23 Schedule and results yes |- !colspan=9 style='Connecticut Huskies| Non-conference regular season November 9, 2001 7:30 pm CPTV yes 1 Fairfield Pre-Season WNIT – Round 1 Bird 21 Cash 10 Bird 12 Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut 93–50 10,027 1–0 November 11, 2001 2:00 pm CPTV yes 1 Florida International Pre-Season WNIT – Round 2 Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Taurasi 21 Jones 9 Bird 7 91–47 10,027 2–0 November 15, 2001 7:30 pm CPTV yes 1 North Carolina Pre-Season WNIT – Semifinals Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Bird 20 Williams 19 Taurasi 6 94–74 10,027 3–0 November 18, 2001 5:00 pm CPTV yes 1 Vanderbilt 3 Pre-Season WNIT – Championship Game Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Cash 19 Cash 10 Tied Bird, Taurasi 5 69–50 10,027 4–0 November 24, 2001 1:00 pm CPTV yes 1 Rhode Island Hartford Civic Center Hartford, Connecticut Jones 17 Cash 10 Bird 6 84–38 16,294 5–0 November 26, 2001 7:00 pm CPTV yes y 1 Wake Forest LJVM Coliseum Winston-Salem, North Carolina Tied Cash, Taurasi 14 Cash 9 Bird 7 88–38 1,137 6–0 November 30, 2001 7:30 pm CPTV yes 1 Ball State Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Jones 19 Moore 11 Taurasi 12 103–69 10,027 7–0 December 4, 2001 7:30 pm CPTV 1 St. John's Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Taurasi 15 Cash 9 Bird 9 88–28 10,027 8–0 1–0 December 6, 2001 7:30 pm CPTV yes 1 Holy Cross Hartford Civic Center Hartford, Connecticut Bird 25 Williams 9 Bird 5 97–54 16,294 9–0 December 9, 2001 4:30 pm ESPN2 yes 1 Louisiana Tech 8 Hartford Civic Center Hartford, Connecticut Taurasi 24 Williams 10 Bird 6 74–50 16,294 10–0 December 22, 2001 2:00 pm ESPN2 yes 1 Oklahoma 3 Hartford Civic Center Hartford, Connecticut Bird 21 Jones 18 Cash 7 86–72 16,294 11–0 December 27, 2001 7:30 pm CPTV yes 1 Cal State Northridge Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Moore 21 Cash 15 Bird 8 101–44 10,027 12–0 December 29, 2001 2:00 pm CPTV y yes 1 Old Dominion 23 Ted Constant Convocation Center Norfolk, Virginia Cash 29 Cash 12 Bird 8 84–70 5,236 13–0 December 31, 2001 2:00 pm CPTV yes y 1 Wright State Nutter Center Dayton, Ohio Tied Bird, Williams 20 Williams 8 Taurasi 8 97–39 4,762 14–0 |- !colspan=9 style='Connecticut Huskies|Big East Regular Season January 2, 2002 8:00 pm CPTV 1 Pittsburgh Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Cash 19 Cash 10 Taurasi 7 112–43 10,027 15–0 2–0 January 5, 2002 4:00 pm CBS y yes 1 Tennessee 2 Thompson–Boling Arena Knoxville, Tennessee 86–72 Taurasi 32 Williams 15 Bird 8 24,611 16–0 January 9, 2002 7:30 pm CPTV y 1 St. John's Alumni Hall Queens, New York Bird 17 Cash 9 Bird 6 84–43 2,014 17–0 3–0 January 12, 2002 1:00 pm CPTV 1 Miami (FL) Hartford Civic Center Hartford, Connecticut Tied Cash, Jones 17 Cash 15 Bird 8 96–50 16,294 18–0 4–0 January 15, 2002 8:00 pm CPTV y 1 Georgetown McDonough Gymnasium Washington, D.C. Cash 18 Cash 10 Bird 8 85–41 2,146 19–0 5–0 January 19, 2002 12:00 pm CPTV y 1 Villanova Finneran Pavilion Villanova, Pennsylvania Jones 19 Jones 9 Bird 8 93–60 5,127 20–0 6–0 January 21, 2002 3:00 pm ESPN 1 Notre Dame Hartford Civic Center Hartford, Connecticut Williams 17 Williams 11 Tied Bird, Taurasi 6 80–53 16,294 21–0 7–0 January 26, 2002 7:30 pm CPTV 1 Boston College 24 Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Bird 23 Jones 13 Battle 7 79–56 10,027 22–0 8–0 January 29, 2002 7:00 pm CPTV y 1 Virginia Tech 23 Cassell Coliseum Blacksburg, Virginia Jones 19 Jones 8 Taurasi 2 59–50 6,069 23–0 9–0 February 3, 2002 12:05 pm BETV y 1 Providence Alumni Hall Providence, Rhode Island Taurasi 20 Cash 7 Cash 6 85–61 2,574 24–0 10–0 February 6, 2002 7:30 pm CPTV 1 Seton Hall Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Jones 17 Cash 12 Bird 7 92–40 10,027 25–0 11–0 February 10, 2002 2:00 pm CPTV 1 Virginia Tech 23 Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Williams 15 Cash 6 Bird 6 77–42 10,027 26–0 12–0 February 13, 2002 7:00 pm y CPTV 1 Syracuse Manley Field House Syracuse, New York Taurasi 24 Cash 8 Taurasi 8 85–55 3,328 27–0 13–0 February 20, 2002 7:30 pm CPTV 1 Providence Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Taurasi 20 Bird 8 Taurasi 7 106–41 10,027 28–0 14–0 February 23, 2002 2:00 pm CPTV y 1 Rutgers Louis Brown Athletic Center Piscataway, New Jersey Cash 18 Cash 8 Taurasi 4 80–42 7,223 29–0 15–0 February 26, 2002 7:00 pm CPTV y 1 West Virginia WVU Coliseum Morgantown, West Virginia Jones 17 Cash 13 Taurasi 8 89–60 1,394 30–0 16–0 |- !colspan=9 style='Connecticut Huskies|Big East Tournament March 3, 2002 2:00 pm CPTV yes 1 1 Seton Hall 9 Louis Brown Athletic Center Piscataway, New Jersey Quarterfinals Jones 16 Cash 11 Bird 8 78–48 5,332 31–0 March 4, 2002 6:00 pm BETV yes y 1 1 Villanova 4 Semifinals Louis Brown Athletic Center Piscataway, New Jersey Taurasi 23 Jones 7 Tied Bird, Williams 5 83–39 3,533 32–0 March 5, 2002 7:30 pm ESPN2 yes y 1 1 Boston College 20 3 Championship Game Louis Brown Athletic Center Piscataway, New Jersey Jones 19 Jones 11 Bird 7 96–54 4,278 33–0 |- !colspan=10 style='Connecticut Huskies| NCAA Tournament March 16, 2002 1:30 pm CPTV yes 1 1 ME St. Francis (PA) 16 ME First Round Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Jones 18 Cash 11 Taurasi 7 86–37 10,027By 2011-03-23 UConn’s NCAA Tournament Attendance https://www.courant.com/2011/03/23/uconns-ncaa-tournament-attendance-2/ 2026-08-13 Hartford Courant en-US March 16, 2002 St. Francis (PA) 10,027 March 18, 2002 Iowa 10,027 34–0 March 17, 2002 9:00 pm ESPN yes 1 1 ME Iowa 9 ME Second Round Gampel Pavilion Storrs, Connecticut Bird 22 Tied Cash, Jones, Williams 9 Calhoun 5 86–48 10,027 35–0 March 23, 2002 12:00 pm ESPN2 yes 1 1 ME Penn State 24 4 ME Sweet Sixteen U.S. Cellular Arena Milwaukee, Wisconsin Bird 24 Williams 12 Taurasi 8 82–64 7,123 36–0 March 25, 2002 7:37 pm ESPN2 yes y 1 1 ME Old Dominion 15 7 ME Elite Eight U.S. Cellular Arena Milwaukee, Wisconsin Bird 26 Jones 7 Bird 11 85–64 6,997 37–0 March 29, 2002 9:34 pm ESPN yes 1 1 ME Tennessee 6 2 MW Final Four Alamodome San Antonio, Texas Tied Bird, Jones 18 Tied Jones, Taurasi 10 Cash 6 79–56 29,619 38–0 March 31, 2002 8:30 pm ESPN yes y 1 1 ME Oklahoma 4 1 W National Championship Game Alamodome San Antonio, Texas Cash 20 Cash 13 Tied Bird, Cash, Taurasi 4 82–70 29,619 39–0 AP Poll Eastern Time. ME = Mid-East, MW = Mid-West, W = West Source:2001-02 Women's Basketball Schedule https://uconnhuskies.com/sports/womens-basketball/schedule/2001-02 uconnhuskies.com University of Connecticut Athletics May 10, 20252001-02 Women's Basketball Media Center https://uconnhuskies.com/sports/2018/6/12/sports-w-baskbl-archive-conn-w-baskbl-2002-media-html uconnhuskies.com University of Connecticut Athletics May 10, 2025 Team players drafted in the 2002 WNBA draft Round Pick Player WNBA club 1 1 Sue Bird Seattle Storm 1 2 Swin Cash Detroit Shock 1 4 Asjha Jones Washington Mystics 1 6 Tamika Williams Minnesota Lynxhttp://www.insidehoops.com/wnba/wnba-draft-history.shtml WNBA Draft History Additionally, Diana Taurasi was also the first overall pick in the 2004 WNBA draft. In the 2005 WNBA draft, Jessica Moore was selected 24th overall, and Ashley Battle was selected 25th overall. Awards and honors Sue Bird, Naismith Awardhttp://www.naismithawards.com/History/NaismithTrophy/tabid/58/Default.aspx Naismith Awards - Naismith Trophy 2013-10-30 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20090302160347/http://www.naismithawards.com/History/NaismithTrophy/tabid/58/Default.aspx 2009-03-02 Sue Bird, Wade Trophy Sue Bird, Nancy Lieberman Award Sue Bird, Lowe's Senior CLASS Award Sue Bird Sportswoman of the Year Award Sue Bird Big East Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Year Sue Bird Honda Sports Award, basketball Swin Cash, Tournament Most Outstanding Playerhttp://www.midwestsportsfans.com/2004/03/ncaa-tournament-mvp-most-outstanding-player-mop-men-women-march-madness/ NCAA Tournament MVP | MOP List: March Madness Most Outstanding Player… https://archive.today/20110714092815/http://www.midwestsportsfans.com/2004/03/ncaa-tournament-mvp-most-outstanding-player-mop-men-women-march-madness/ 14 July 2011 dead Asjha Jones, Most Outstanding Player, Big East women's basketball tournament Geno Auriemma Naismith College Coach of the Year Geno Auriemma WBCA National Coach of the Year References EAGAN MATT St. John's At No. 3 Uconn February 23, 2001 https://www.courant.com/2001/02/23/st-johns-at-no-3-uconn/ Hartford Courant 5 Jan 2013 Elliott Rich December 24, 2009 KJ, Svet Back In The House http://blog.ctnews.com/elliott/2009/12/24/kj-svet-back-in-the-house/ Hearst Communications Inc. 5 Jan 2013 Wheelock Helen Stacey Marron – University of Connecticut http://fraser61.wordpress.com/2008/09/08/stacey-marron-university-of-connecticut/ Unintentional Journalist 8 September 2008 5 Jan 2013 GOLDBERG JEFF Moore: Forged By Mother's Strength February 22, 2005 https://www.courant.com/2005/02/22/moore-forged-by-mothers-strength/ Hartford Courant 5 Jan 2013 2001-2002 Women's Basketball Roster http://www.uconnhuskies.com/sports/w-baskbl/archive/conn-w-baskbl-2002-roster.html University of Connecticut 31 Dec 2012 The Wade Trophy http://www.wbca.org/pages/AWARDS_wade-trophy Women's Basketball Coaches Association 30 Jun 2014 July 15, 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140715035651/http://www.wbca.org/pages/AWARDS_wade-trophy dead Sue Bird http://www.seniorclassaward.com/athletes/sue_bird/ 5 Jan 2013 April 7, 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140407195037/http://www.seniorclassaward.com/athletes/sue_bird/ dead Sportswoman of the Year http://www.womenssportsfoundation.org/en/home/programs/awards/sportswoman-of-the-year Women's Sports Foundation 5 Jan 2013 31 October 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20151031071640/http://www.womenssportsfoundation.org/en/home/programs/awards/sportswoman-of-the-year dead Past Honda Sports Award Winners http://www.collegiatewomensportsawards.com/past_honda_award_winners.html Collegiate Women Sports Awards January 5, 2013 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20120322200805/http://www.collegiatewomensportsawards.com/past_honda_award_winners.html March 22, 2012 Naismith College Coach of the Year http://www.naismithawards.com/NaismithWinnersCollegeCoach.aspx Atlanta Tipoff Club 5 Jan 2013 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20130302132425/http://www.naismithawards.com/NaismithWinnersCollegeCoach.aspx 2013-03-02 Past Russell Athletic/WBCA National Coaches of the Year http://www.wbca.org/pages/AWARDS_coach-of-year_past Women's Basketball Coaches Association 30 Jun 2014 5 March 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160305093033/http://www.wbca.org/pages/AWARDS_coach-of-year_past dead Connecticut Category:UConn Huskies women's basketball seasons Connecticut Category:NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament championship seasons Category:NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament Final Four seasons Connect Connect Category:2002 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament participants