I have been scouring the internet the past few days to see what’s going on with this whole canceling business. Their are plenty of rumors out there as to why Tennessee canceled it. Pat Summitt has been heard from saying it was the athletic department’s decision and meanwhile, Geno Auriemma has only said that he can’t talk about it. There are rumblings it is because UCONN broke some rules in their recruitment of Maya Moore but that remains unknown.
Here is a look at Summitt’s remarks:
“It was a decision made by the University of Tennessee – Joan Cronan, Dr. Petersen and myself,” Summitt said. “It was the University of Tennessee that made the announcement and made the decision.”
“It’s been a great series,” she said. “There’s more to women’s basketball than just this game. If you look at the growth of our game, this has been a big part of it. But this past year, you had Duke, North Carolina, Maryland and all those ACC matchups. I think women’s basketball is in a whole different state, in a positive way. You’ve got a lot of quality teams and quality games.”
More to women’s basketball than just that game Pat? Did you realize that the rivalry was voted the best rivalry in women’s college basketball recently. Is your athletic department happy about losing a potential big revenue game?
Whether or not you are fan of UCONN or Tennessee, it is one of the games in women’s basketball that you would probably turn on just because of the rivalry between the two schools. But now for whatever reason, it is no more.
Even ESPN tried to save the game but to no avail.
It was their first matchup on ESPN, that started this rivalry.
“That first game is often referred to as the dawn of a new, more popular era of women’s basketball,” said Mike Soltys, ESPN’s vice president of domestic network communications. “There was more media at Gampel Pavilion that day than there certainly had ever been before or after for any regular-season game.”
“The series was a known commodity for the casual sports fan who may not have ordinarily been interested in women’s basketball,” Soltys said. “The games were quality, the personalities of the coaches were strong and they often met at crucial times, particularly in the NCAA Tournament. It became the showcase rivalry in the sport and we were happy to have the majority of them [on ESPN].”
“There are other teams that have emerged. There are top games that we will put together, but it still doesn’t diminish our disappointment about the end of [UConn-Tennessee],” Soltys said. “Both schools and conferences know our interest in this rivalry. And it will be something we will revisit in the future with all the parties involved.”
When the Worldwide leader can’t save it, you know it’s doomed. Continue reading →
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