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NEW ORLEANS - The participation of first-timers Minnesota (a No. 7 seed) and LSU (No. 4) in the Final Four are signs of increased parity.
But with Tennessee and UConn meeting in the title game for the third time in the past five years, many wonder how deep that parity runs.
NCAA Women's Basketball Committee chairwoman Cheryl Marra said it's not the final two teams that reflect the parity, but the close games along the way. "I ask you to reflect on how in the world did they get there? It was a much more difficult road than they ever had before," she said. "Would we like two different teams? You know what, if the best teams have played and gotten through to the championship, those are the teams we want out there on the floor."
AREA LOOKS: Former Clearwater forward Dominique Redding saw two minutes of time in the semifinal against LSU on Sunday, and she felt pretty good about it.
In that time, the Tennessee freshman and former Times Pinellas County player of the year kept LSU's Seimone Augustus from scoring. She said she wasn't nervous playing in her first Final Four. "Pat (Summitt) prepares you to be ready at all times," she said. "I go in every game ready to play."
Redding said her family wasn't able to make the trip, but as with the other Vols, she was peppered with calls from acquaintances wanting tickets. "That's always going to happen," she said. "I just take my cell phone and press "end' and that's it."
Former Brandon player and 2002 Times Hillsborough County player of the year Kiana Robinson, a UConn freshman, did not play Sunday against Minnesota.
Robinson, who transferred to a North Carolina prep school her senior year, listed her hometown as Bronx, N.Y., in the Connecticut team program. No mention of the Brandon Eagles.
NO LOVE LOST: Despite being two of the most powerful people in the sport, Summitt and Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma have a stiff, icy relationship that is limited to pregame and postgame "good lucks" and handshakes.
Auriemma jokingly calls Tennessee the "Evil Empire."
"We really don't have a relationship," Summitt said. "I don't have his cell phone number. We don't talk. That's the relationship Geno worked very hard to create.
"At one time, I thought we had a pretty good relationship. So I don't know why it went south, but that's the way it is. You would think as many times as he's beaten us, he would feel sorry for me and talk to me."