No. 4 Syracuse (30-7, 13-3 Atlantic Coast) could only celebrate its Final Four victory for so long on Sunday night because it enters the national championship game as a miniscule David.

The Goliath it faces, top-seeded Connecticut (37-0, 18-0 American), has been a sustained juggernaut to the point where outlets like National Public Radio have asked: “Is the UConn’s women’s dominance bad for the sport?”

To beat Connecticut would be to stop arguably the sport’s greatest player ever from winning her fourth consecutive national championship in the sport’s greatest program ever.

Everything written about Connecticut women’s basketball sounds like hyperbolic fluff, but it’s all true.

But never mind that now. Here are 10 fun facts for your perusal before the game:

1. Homegrown Foe

Breanna Stewart is the best women’s college basketball player right now. In her three years at UConn, she’s won three national championships, three Final Four most outstanding player awards and nearly every other conceivable award. It all started on a Syracuse, New York driveway where her father, Brian Stewart, encouraged his 6-foot-4 daughter to dribble the ball behind her back around the block to cover a mile to gain ball-handling skills.

At Cicero-North Syracuse (New York) High School, she averaged 5.8 blocks per game … as an eighth grader while starting occasionally on the high school team.

2. Imported goods

The architect of UConn’s success, Geno Auriemma, has been coaching the Huskies since 1985 and presided over perhaps the most dominant stretch ever in team sports. The 62-year-old emigrated from southern Italy to Norristown, Pennsylvania at seven. He now has an exclusive line of Italian wines, sauces and restaurants in Connecticut.

3. Waves

After getting through Stewart and Auriemma, there’s someone else to worry about. Senior Moriah Jefferson has won defensive player of the year and nation’s best point guard awards in the last week, just before she broke UConn legend Diana Taurasi’s record for assists (648).

4. Move over, Pat Summitt

To put UConn’s perpetual dominance in context, consider this: Under legendary coach Pat Summitt, Tennessee lost fewer than two games once in a season. Under Auriemma, the Huskies have done it 10 times.

5. Large, intimidating numbers

Margin of victory by Connecticut women in 2016 NCAA Tournament: 52, 46, 60, 21 and 29.

6. Dear Jonathan

All the Connecticut mascots are named Jonathan after Jonathan Trumbull, the former state governor and one of the first revolutionary patriots.

7. The Rock — not Dwayne Johnson

Since the 1940s, Connecticut has allowed anyone to participate in the tradition of “Painting the Rock.” The rock, which is covered thousands of layers of paint, is meant for student organizations and to foster school spirit.

8. There must be something in the water

Connecticut’s rich basketball history covers both the men’s and women’s team. Former Huskies include NBA stars like Ray Allen, Andre Drummond and Rudy Gay, and the WNBA’s Maya Moore, Diana Taurasi and Swin Cash.

9. Farms are cool

The school was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School, named after brothers Charles and Augustus Storrs who donated the land. The original mascot was the “Aggies” until the school became the Connecticut State College Statesmen in 1933 and then, finally in 1939, the University of Connecticut Huskies.

10. Large, intimidating numbers, part II

In UConn’s last 122 games, the Huskies have a record of 121-1. The team hasn’t won any of those games by fewer than 10 points.

Published on April 5, 2016 at 1:18 am

Contact Sam: sjfortie@syr.edu | @Sam4TR