Half-Dozen Hoopsters from Connecticut Seeking National Championships

SIMSBURY, CT - With March Madness in full swing, with the UConn women's basketball team seemingly set to steamroll through the NCAA tournament in its quest for an 11th national championship and with both the Huskies and Yale men's teams eliminated in the second round, Patch decided to find out how many Connecticut-bred players are still in the running for national titles.

Across Divisions I, II and III, the answer is six, not counting Paschal Chukwu of Westport and Fairfield Prep, who is on the Syracuse roster but ineligible to play this season following his transfer from Providence College.

The UConn women have just one Connecticut player on the roster: Tierney Lawlor. The 5-foot-7 junior guard from Ansonia was a walk-on player her first two seasons, earning a scholarship for her junior campaign. She has appeared in 26 games this season, scoring nine points and dishing out five assists during the Huskies' 33-0 season. UConn faces Duquesne in a second-round game Monday night.

Locally, Simsbury High School graduate Katie Martensen of Tufts University is heading to Indianapolis for the Division III championship game on April 4, where the Jumbos will take on defending champion Thomas More College. A 6-foot-1 freshman forward, Martensen has seen limited playing time, appearing in 21 contests and averaging 2.7 points and 1.3 rebounds per outing. Among her teammates is senior guard Michelle Wu of Masuk High School in Monroe, who averages 2.3 points and 1.5 rebounds per game.

Other Connecticut high school players whose teams are still competing for championships are:

• Kiah Gillespie, Meriden/Capital Prep High School, University of Maryland (D-I). The 6-foot-2 freshman forward, a two-time Gatorade Connecticut Player of the Year honoree, has played in 33 of 34 games for the Terrapins, including nine starts. She is averaging 5.2 points and 2.9 rebounds per game. Maryland (31-3), the number two seed in the Lexington Region, takes on Washington Monday night.
• Mike Robinson, New Britain High School, University of Miami (D-I). The only Connecticut male still playing, the 5-foot-10 freshman guard has appeared in eight games for the 27-7 Hurricanes, scoring 14 points, including 4-of-7 from beyond the 3-point arc. Miami is the number three seed in the South Region, and will face No. 2 Villanova in the Sweet Sixteen Thursday night.
• Amy McConnell, South Windsor High School, Bentley University (D-II). A 5-foot-4 freshman guard, she has appeared in all but one of the Falcons' 33 games, scoring 27 points. Bentley is 28-5, and will face Virginia Union in the Division II Elite Eight Tuesday afternoon.