Avoiding Tunnel Vision & Keeping a Big Picture Focus

The University of Connecticut women's basketball team will try for its 71st straight win Monday night when the top-ranked Huskies face sixth-ranked Notre Dame in the Big East conference semifinals. UConn tied the record the program set from Nov. 9, 2001, to March 11, 2003, with its 77-41 rout of Syracuse on Sunday.

Moreover, UConn is 18 wins from the overall NCAA Division I record, which was by set by John Wooden and UCLA from 1971 to 1974.

And while there is usually a great deal of pressure that comes along with an undefeated streak, UConn coach Geno Auriemma and the players insist they don’t talk about it. The Huskies are so good, that they are constantly bombarded by questions about their pursuit of the national record for consecutive victories.

They could easily get caught up in the debate over where they stand in the history of the game and such a distraction could shackle their ability to play freely.

Instead UConn keeps winning, because the Huskies keep the same approach, free from thoughts of grandeur and full of focus on playing the perfect game. It's a good lesson.

They don’t use the streak as motivation every day in practice or during every timeout. Instead, they talk about not giving up threes, not fouling, not giving up offensive rebounds. They can’t let an obsession over a record consume them by trying to figure out where it fits into the cosmic world of sports.

“When you get an obsession that kind of gives you some tunnel vision, and tunnel vision is not good,” Auriemma said. “You need to be able to take the blinders off and be able to see everything that’s going on in front of you. You can’t just obsess about one thing. And that’s why I don’t talk about it. I don’t think about it..."

Tonight the Huskies face Notre Dame (27-4) - which rallied to beat St. John's, 75-67, Sunday - for a chance to break the wins record and a chance to win their 16th conference tournament title.

'You shouldn't have to ask them to have energy'

Illinois entered Sunday's game against Wisconsin knowing it needed to make something happen to improve its chances at the NCAA tournament.

The Illini, who have four Top 50 wins and sit just 5-11 vs. the RPI Top 100, looked flat against the Badgers as they fell behind big in the second half of their 72-57 home loss.

With a shot at the Big Dance on the line, you'd think the last thing a coach would need to worry about was his team's energy level.

Yet throughout the game, Wisconsin beat Illinois to loose balls, fought for offensive rebounds and it really looked as if the Badgers were the team playing with their season on the line.

Coach Bruce Weber said in a situation like the Illini find themselves in, it shouldn't be difficult to get up for a game.

"You shouldn't have to ask them to have energy," Weber said. "That's probably one of the problems, I think. To be honest, that's got to come [from] within. It's the little extra hustle plays, it's jumping after the ball, going after the long rebound."