Blogging the Women's NCAA Tournament, Day One

So, last week, I posted ten players in the women's tourney I was keeping my eye on at my True/Slant site. Let's take a look at how those players did in Day 1 of the Women's action in the order in which they played:

Nadirah McKenith, St. John's. McKenith's Red Storm team beat up on Princeton. McKenith had four assists, a couple rebounds, two steals and 10 points. That's a pretty good day for McKenith, not her best, but good. Perhaps she's saving her best for the later rounds.

Kelley Cain, Tennessee. Double-Double. Nuff said. Oh, what the hell. Cain had 18 points, 12 rebounds, two blocks and shot 82% from the floor, and even got a smile out of The Grand Summitt. I'd say she served notice on the rest of the teams in Tennessee's region.

Jacinta Monroe, Florida State. 16 points and seven boards. And she drew a key blocking foul that was the turning point in the game.

Danielle Adams, Texas A & M. Danielle Adams is not a starter. She is a bench player. A bench player who routinely takes over games in the second half. Yesterday, she contributed 23 points, six rebounds, three assists, three steals. When she is on, she is on.

Jayne Appel, Stanford. The Tree rolled U.C. Riverside, but Appel rolled her already gimpy ankle and played only 15 minutes. She had a serious hitch in her giddy-up. I'd hate to see her end a magnificent college career limping up and down the court ineffectually. Stanford can get to the Sweet Sixteen (probably the Elite 8) on the shoulders of Pederson and Ogwumike, but they'll need a healthy Appel to go any further. Get well soon, Jayne. And by soon, I mean, tomorrow.

Courtney Vandersloot, Gonzaga. She looked every bit the player I thought she was. She's an assist machine: Bounce passes, cross court passes, behind the back passes, no look passes. On the other end of the court, she seems to always break up passes or at least re-direct them. She's like watching a great hockey player and, in all honesty, she reminds me of Sidney Crosby in terms of her style. She gets Texas A & M and Danielle Adams next round.

Kalana Greene, Liz Repella, Monica Wright and Amanda Thompson go on Sunday. More then.