UConn WBB Weekly: The pandemic experience at the Gampel Pavilion

Welcome to UConn WBB Weekly, a recap of everything that happened in the UConn women’s basketball world last week.

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Main links

From The UConn Blog and Storrs Central:

Marquette Penthouse

South Carolina coverage:

Seton Hall Penthouse

Weekly last week:

Somewhere else

Headlines

• Geno Auriemma received his COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday.
• Anna Makurat is “getting close” to a return of her right leg injury, but Auriemma still does not expect to have her back in the next two weeks.
• UConn-South Carolina had an average of 461,000 spectators on Monday, the most watched women’s basketball game of all time on FS1.
• Paige Bueckers, Olivia Nelson-Ododa and Christyn Williams were nominated for the Naismith Trophy midseason list, which included 30 players in total.

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An inside view of the Gampel Pavilion during the COVID season

The UConn Blog is fortunate to be one of the few media outlets with access to the Gampel Pavilion this season. Since fans are not allowed in the games, we decided to give you an idea of ​​what it is like to experience UConn women’s basketball games live this year.

On Monday, Storrs was visibly quiet. Driving to the Pavilion Gampel, there were few students to be seen. The normally busy campus seemed empty – as if it were winter or summer vacation – despite the spring semester already in full swing.

To make matters worse, UConn women’s basketball was just under an hour away from reaching the game against South Carolina No. 1, but it would be almost impossible to say.

In normal times, the days of basketball games are different. The center of the campus changes as people start lining up outside the arena hours before the game. TV stations are broadcasting across the street. Traffic is almost paralyzed on these roads and on the main exits to campus.

Which made Monday night even stranger. With only friends and family allowed as fans, along with a limited number of places in the media, this buzz was nowhere to be found. The streets and sidewalks were almost deserted and there was almost no sign that one of the biggest women’s basketball games of the year was about to take place.

There were no signs none The game was taking place inside the Gampel Pavilion until I started walking towards the north entrance and heard the music pulsing.

Some things don’t change, however. Before he could enter, he still had to go through a metal detector and then a security guard checks the temperatures. Instead of going straight through with a media pass, there is a check-in station.

The media seats are confined to section 12, with no access to the corridors below, where a workspace is usually set up. Two people are seated at each end of each table, with large acrylic dividers between each row.

At first, it didn’t seem so strange to be inside without fans – until I looked out on the court. The entire layout of the Gampel Pavilion has been changed to accommodate the necessary health and safety measures.

The stands on the side closest to the court (from the transmission perspective) are folded to allow the seats – usually on the opposite side line – to spread the seats. Giant jugs of hand sanitizer are mounted on any of the benches.

Flanking the cameras in the lobby – an area usually flooded by fans – there are long tables where the announcers and the operation staff sit.

Elsewhere, large tarpaulins cover the bottom half of the sections along the sideline on the other side, while cardboard cutouts from fans, dogs, celebrities and former players fill almost every seat in the bottom bowl. The few friends and family members present sit among the cutouts.

Daniel Connolly

Although some games saw few players and coach guests – I counted 16 in a previous game – the clash with South Carolina brought the biggest crowd of the season, including 2021 hired Caroline Ducharme and her family and the families of Evina Westbrook and Paige Bueckers.

The lack of a full house becomes more noticeable as the complaint approaches. When the team runs from the locker room to the court, the speakers play the fighting music instead of the animation band, creating a more empty and metallic sound.

In a few days, Gampel’s roof makes sounds that you would never notice, even with a small crowd. When the snow slips out of the silver dome, it looks like the roof is collapsing on itself. The same goes for windy days.

Reading the initial lineups comes with much less enthusiasm and emotion as well, even with a former player introducing the five UConn holders. The musical accompaniment drowns out any noise from the few people present, so Paige Bueckers or Geno Auriemma do not receive the loud shouts they would normally receive.

As teams take action to receive the tip, “Let’s get ready for Rumble” / “Are you ready for this?” plays, and the lack of 10,000 fans clapping in unison really becomes clear.

During some of Big East’s inconsequential games, it’s easy to be enchanted by the action and forget how bizarre it all is for a few moments. This was almost impossible against South Carolina, however.

In the opening minutes, UConn made some big steals that would normally have caused eardrum applause in the crowd. Instead, we just heard muffled screams from the UConn bank.

It is easy to hear court and side conversations, although it is almost inaudible on the second level. The exception is Auriemma. The more angry he gets, the easier it is to understand him. On Wednesday night, we heard Geno shouting “E! AND! ”After a change from Evina Westbrook.

As the game extended with the accumulation of swing moves, the crowd’s noise grew louder. It peaked after Bueckers’ incredible 3-point win, when the crowd let out a dull roar.

Almost immediately after the game is over, the music is cut off and Gampel quickly falls silent. You can listen to the radio and television announcers along with the operations team preparing the court for the volleyball team. After that, all that remains is the hum of the air vents.

It is an extremely bizarre experience to be in Gampel without any crowds, but at the same time, it is amazing how quickly it becomes a new normal. As I wrote this, I remembered the contests and promotions that usually take place during breaks – something that I had completely forgotten about. Many things are missing about “normal” games that would be easy to remember.

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The best of social media

Stef Dolson’s reaction to the sequence at the end of the regulation against South Carolina is gold:

How is the team’s post-game reaction:

If you thought Paige Bueckers’ 3 scores against South Carolina looked familiar:

Pleasant tribute to Renee Montgomery:

Party as if it were 2016:

Quotable

Geno on the importance of actors: “People make comments like ‘She will never be more than an actor’, as if it were some kind of illness or something. ‘She will never be anything but an actor.’ Yea? Good. I’d like to see what a concert would sound like if the guy who was supposed to bring Billy Joel’s piano didn’t do it. Yes, he is just an actor. Well, guess what? Everyone’s role is very, very important and you just need to play it to the best of your ability. So, if you’re going to be an actor, you need to be, as we say, a star in your role, whatever it may be. “

AP Poll

1. South Carolina (+1)
2. UConn (+1)
3. Louisville (-2)
4. NC State (-)
5. Stanford (+1)

Notable:

• As long as the Huskies don’t screw up against Georgetown on Friday, they should be the country’s No. 1 team as soon as the new AP poll is released on Monday.
• Tennessee is in 16th position.
• Arkansas fell two places to 18th.
• DePaul also dropped two positions to 22nd.