Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico set to face UConn for first time in 13 years
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Kim Barnes Arico has fond memories of her last time coaching against Geno Auriemma and UConn13 years ago.
The Michigan coach was still at St. John’s and the Red Storm went up to Connecticut and ended the Huskies’ 99-game home winning streak. That was back in 2012. Now they’ll meet on Friday in the Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase at Mohegan Sun.
“I wanted it to be forever,” Barnes Arico said laughing of not playing UConn again. “Geno texted me (Sunday) morning and joked that we should cancel the game and just have a couple drinks at the casino.”
All kidding aside, Barnes Arico knows that it’s a chance for her sixth-ranked Wolverines to see where they stand against the top team in the country.
“Connecticut is really, really good,” she said. “I think our kids want to compete against the best, I always have a stomach ache when those games are on our schedule.”
The young Wolverines are led by a talented sophomore trio of Syla Swords, Olivia Olson and Mila Holloway.
“I think our best players are not prima donnas, they are the hardest workers,” the coach said. “They will run through the wall, lead the sprints, dive on the floor. take the charges. When you have the most talented kid willing to do that it sets the example for everyone else.”
The trio had combined for 43 points and 22 rebounds and 10 assists in the 93-54 win over then-No. 18 Notre Dame last Friday in the Shamrock Classic. It was the biggest margin of victory over a ranked team in Michigan’s history.
“They are all incredibly unselfish. they don’t care who scores the basketball,” Barnes Arico said of her group. “The really good teams like UConn and South Carolina are the same way, they don’t care who scores the points.”
Auriemma has been impressed by what he’s seen from the Wolverines so far this season.
“Based on what I’ve seen from Michigan they will be, for sure, the best team we play this year, by a long shot at this time in the season,” he said.
Frequent fliers
Oklahoma had a busy week, traveling over 5,400 miles while going coast-to-coast and playing four games. The eighth-ranked Sooners went 3-1 with the lone loss coming to No. 3 UCLA in Sacramento to open the week. Oklahoma flew home and beat Kansas City and North Alabama before heading to the east coast to play Western Carolina on Sunday. The Sooners won that game in a rout. The schedule lightens up with just one game over the next 10 days.
Struggling Irish
Notre Dame fell six spots to No. 24 after the loss to Michigan. The Irish have been ranked for 79 consecutive weeks — the third longest active streak behind only UConn (608) and South Carolina (250). The schedule doesn’t get any easier for Notre Dame as the Irish host No. 11 USC on Friday night. They’ll need a win to keep their Top 25 streak alive.
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Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball