North Babylon's Hartley learning how to lead at UConn

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. -- Bria Hartley's ponytail fluttered behind her as she pushed the ball up court.

Anxious to extend UConn's 17-point lead on Prairie View A&M in the first round of the Kingston Regional in the NCAA Tournament for women's basketball Saturday, Hartley looked for an open teammate.

The North Babylon native saw a tiny opening in the paint and went for it, trying to throw a bounce pass through a thicket of legs. Her pass, however, never made it to the intended target. Instead, it ricocheted off a player's foot and resulted in a Huskies turnover. Geno Auriemma stood with his arms outstretched on the sidelines, staring incredulously at his point guard.

A media timeout following the next possession gave the UConn coach just enough time to voice his displeasure. But in typical fashion, Hartley responded.

She hit a three-pointer from the top of the arc immediately after the timeout to balloon the Huskies' lead to 20. And her 18 total points and 4-for-6 shooting from downtown helped lead No. 1 seed UConn to an 83-47 win over 16th-seeded Prairie View A & M.

The Huskies will face No. 8 seed Kansas State Monday in the second round.

For 36 minutes, Hartley orchestrated the Huskies' offense, dishing the ball in transition and spotting up for threes that demoralized the Lady Panthers (17-16).

Up-tempo games are Hartley's forte. Fast break points, her specialty.

But she's still learning to listen and take constructive criticism, she admitted.

"The growing pains with Bria are more . . . ," Auriemma began, before pausing slightly. "She's just stubborn. She's just stubborn. She just doesn't listen a lot of the times. You know, it goes in one ear and out the other. Little by little we're trying to get her out of that.

"But that's probably what makes her good too."

Individual success is nothing new for Hartley. Neither is winning.

Named Newday's Long Island Player of the Year and the New York Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior in high school, Hartley earned Big East freshman of the year honors last season. But her time in Storrs, Conn., hasn't always been easy, she said.

Despite playing alongside two-time NCAA champion Maya Moore last season, Hartley was charged with leading the Huskies' offense.

"We didn't have a lot of All- Americans on our team when she came in," junior Tiffany Hayes (seven points) said. "We had one with Maya, but it was still a lot of pressure on [Hartley] to do well every game."

UConn finished 36-2 last season, but there were plenty of days Hartley said were filled with frustration. "It was definitely tough," she said. "But I've learned to keep working when I'm frustrated and to keep working when I'm tired."

She's also learning how to push Auriemma's buttons less and less.

" Shae [Ralph] tells me that Bria is really, really good when we're both on the same page," the coach said following the team's victory over Prairie View A&M.

"I try to do that, but sometimes we're not even in the same library, much less on the same page."

Hartley smiles when discussing the "love-hate relationship" she says she has with Auriemma.

"With a lot things that I really care about the most, there's always love-hate relationship," said the 19-year-old, who's emerged as a vocal leader this season. "But I know Coach is trying to make me better. I know I'm stubborn at times. I try to get better at it and try not to be so stubborn."

Both Hartley and Auriemma credit her experience playing for the Team USA Women's U19 World Championship Team this past summer in Chile. Under the tutelage of Jennifer Rizzotti, a former point guard great at UConn and current University of Hartford head coach, Hartley won a gold medal abroad and later returned to campus more confident, more focused and with more moves.

"When you're a freshman, you don't necessarily go to college and expect to start every game and play 30 minutes every night for a team that goes to the Final Four," said Auriemma. "That's asking a lot. And I thought she handled that unbelievably well . . . She's matured an awful lot."

And with Saturday's win over the Lady Panthers, UConn -- the Big East tournament champion -- is now 66-6 in Hartley's tenure. But there still is more work to be done. After falling to Notre Dame in last season's Final Four, the Huskies won't be satisfied with anything less than a national title.

"I never really imagined anything like this," said Hartley, who was cheered on by former North Babylon teammate Jeanette Scott at Wester Bank Arena Saturday.

"This is just a dream come true. A lot of people dream of coming to UConn, playing here, being a really good player. I think it's just hard work that got me here, and there are great coaches around me, from high school to now, motivating me to get better."