Dein erstes Forum » Wham, bam. These are two biggest hitters in t

STORRS, Conn. -- Perhaps its fitting that UConns freshman point guard is named Dangerfield.Like Crystal Dangerfields namesake Rodney, the four-time defending national champions feel they arent getting enough respect.UConn enters the season on a 75-game winning streak, but is ranked third behind Notre Dame and Baylor in the preseason AP poll.I think its going to let us play with a little chip on our shoulder, junior Kia Nurse said. Its a little different look for us, but definitely something that gives you motivation.Nurse and the other Huskies say they want to prove the UConn dynasty didnt end in Indianapolis in April, when stars Breanna Stewart, Morgan Tuck and Moriah Jefferson capped their careers with an 82-51 win over Syracuse and an unprecedented fourth straight title.UConns Big Three won an NCAA-record 151 games during their college careers. Their departures leave the Huskies without a superstar, but not without top talent.Starters Nurse, who was a key cog in Canadas Olympic team and sophomore sharp-shooter Katie Lou Samuelson, who averaged 11 points per game last season, both return.They will be joined by athletic junior Gabby Williams, who already has nine career double-doubles, 6-foot-1 forward Napheesa Collier, who also saw significant playing time last year, and 6-5 senior Natalie Butler, in her second season with the Huskies after transferring from Georgetown.Senior guard Saniya Chong and the freshman Dangerfield are expected to run the point, and another top recruit, guard Molly Best, is expected to get plenty of playing time.Still, coach Geno Auriemma is among those taking a wait-and-see approach to the season. He said none of his core players has ever before had to wake up on a college game day knowing that if she doesnt play well, the team likely will lose.They come to practice every day. They see the difference, he said. They see there is a huge gap in what it was and what it is and I think they are smart enough to realize that the average person out there has been waiting for four years to see anybody else win.Here are some other things to watch for as the Huskies try to win a fifth consecutive national championship and 12th in their history:EARLY TESTSUConn, which plays in the relatively weak American Athletic Conference, has again loaded up its nonconference schedule with ranked opponents. The Huskies open at No. 12 Florida State on Nov. 14 before returning home to take on No. 2 Baylor on Nov. 17. They also have games in November and December against top-ranked Notre Dame, No. 6 Maryland, No. 7 Ohio State, No. 8 Texas and No. 21 DePaul. The Huskies have won 114 of their past 118 nonconference games.CHONGS CHANCEChong says shes aware this will be her last chance to make an impact on the program. Auriemma has chided the senior guard for inconsistent play and is taking a show-me approach to this season. Shes always great in November, he said. So Im expecting Saniya to play great in every game of November. Beyond that? Ive got my fingers crossed.HEIR APPARENTDangerfield says Moriah Jefferson has taken the time to talk to her several times, advising her on how to handle coming into the program as her heir apparent. She says the advice was simple, to be herself and not the next Moriah Jefferson. When Moriah came in she wasnt the player that she was her senior year, Dangerfield said. Were two different players as it is. So the comparisons, I dont really think about them. Dangerfield says shes been focused on gaining the respect of the upperclassmen, so they will trust her to make the right decisions in key game situations.SAMUELSONS HEALTHSamuelson missed the national championship game after breaking her left foot in the semifinals. She spent eight weeks in a boot, but says the rehabilitation went well. Made me work harder too, she said. I wanted to expand so many different things in my game. I worked a lot harder this offseason and summer than I did last year. She opened the preseason on Tuesday with 24 points in an exhibition win over Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Fake NHL Jerseys . Laudrup revealed Thursday he was notified of his dismissal in "the briefest of letters which gave no reasons why such hasty and final action was deemed necessary. Cheap NHL Jerseys Authentic . -- Charline Labonte couldnt have asked for a better homecoming. https://www.chinanhljerseys.us/ . Colin Wilson had two goals and an assist, and Mike Fisher scored a goal and helped set up two others in the Predators 6-4 victory over the Red Wings on Monday night. Wholesale NHL Jerseys .S District Court against Major League Baseball, the Office of the Commissioner and his own union, the MLBPA. Clearance NHL Jerseys . - After leading the Saints to a fourth playoff appearance in five seasons, Drew Brees expressed confidence in the direction of his team and, perhaps more importantly, showed a willingness to listen to contract proposals if the team needs his help getting under the NFLs salary cap. NEW YORK -- From the seasons first major, Down Under back in January, Serena Williams and Angelique Kerber have been the two best players in womens tennis. If they can win their semifinal matches against worthy opponents Thursday night, they will advance to a tantalizing winner-take-all final on Saturday that offers a Grand Slam title, a $3.5 million pay day and, perhaps most important, the No. 1 ranking.Watch the womens semifinals ThursdayAt 11 a.m. ET, all play on the outer courts (juniors and doubles) will begin on ESPN3. Click to watch?multicamAt 7 p.m. ET, ESPN and WatchESPN, No. 1 Serena Williams plays No. 10 Karolina Pliskova. Following that match, No. 2 Angelique Kerber takes on Caroline Wozniacki.?Click to watchTo view starting times of upcoming days at the US Open, click here.?Live scoringOur real-time scoreboard, updated stats and social handles can be found in one spot: US Open CourtCast.?Thursdays womens semifinals breakdownNo. 1 Serena Williams versus No. 10 Karolina Pliskova, 7 p.m. ET on ESPN & WatchESPNCase for Serena: This was precisely the spot a year ago where Williams melted down, a victim of the pressure she felt chasing a rare calendar-year Grand Slam. Roberta Vinci handed Serena her first Grand Slam singles loss of the season in the semifinals. Her trip through the draw this year has been marked by poise and composure, even though the stakes are nearly as high. On the line: a 23rd Grand Slam singles title, which would break the Open era record she shares with Steffi Graf, and the No. 1 ranking, something she has held for 186 consecutive weeks.Case for Pliskova: Right now, she has some absurdd momentum working for her.ddddddddddddHer Wednesday straight-sets win against Ana Konjuh in the quarterfinals was her 10th match win in a row, something she has never done. The run includes four wins over top-10 players (Svetlana Kuznetsova, Garbine Muguruza, Angelique Kerber and Venus Williams). Pliskova won the title in Cincinnati and is already into her first career major semifinal.Notable stat: Wham, bam. These are two biggest hitters in terms of aces. Pliskova leads all WTA players with 439. Serena is a distant second with 320.Prediction: Williams in two.No. 2 Angelique Kerber versus Caroline Wozniacki, following Serena-Pliskova?Case for Kerber: The sturdy 28-year-old has already been to the final of the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the Olympics and, most recently, Cincinnati. And while she lost in the past three -- to Serena Williams, Monica Puig and Karolina Pliskova -- getting there is half the battle. Kerber has a 7-5 head-to-head edge over Wozniacki; the two havent met in 2016, but a year ago, Kerber won two of three.Case for Wozniacki: New York seems to be Wozniackis kind of town. The 26-year-old Dane owns a posh apartment here and ran the New York City Marathon two years ago (in a sporty 3 hours, 26 minutes). She has also reached two US Open finals, in 2014 and 2009 -- the only times shes ever reached a major final.Notable stat: Wozniacki has been to at least the semifinals here four different times, while Kerber has only done it once, in 2011.Prediction: Kerber in three. ' ' '