JONESBORO -- Joe Foley settled into a chair and watched a bit of history Monday night.
The UALR women's basketball coach had, two days before, seen his team's 12-game winning streak snapped in a loss at Texas State when he watched Connecticut beat South Carolina for its 100th consecutive victory.
It was a feat not lost on the Trojans' veteran coach, who has 738 victories in 30 seasons as a college head coach.
"I am thoroughly fascinated by what he does," Foley said of Huskies Coach Geno Auriemma.
Foley knows his Trojans won't ever accumulate the talent of the Huskies, but a similar overall mindset is what he's always pushing for them to emulate.
When UALR (18-7, 12-1 Sun Belt) plays at Arkansas State (5-20, 3-10) at 5:30 p.m. today, it'll be trying to bounce back from its first loss in seven weeks while its coach continues to try to squeeze improvement out of a team that has, for the most part, dominated the league schedule. And now, after a recent dip in production, returning UALR to its previous form is his biggest task with five games remaining before the start of next month's Sun Belt tournament.
The Trojans, picked second in a preseason poll, won their first 12 Sun Belt games thanks in large part to an offense led by senior guard Sharde Collins, who had been averaging more than 20 points per Sun Belt game.
But, then Foley started seeing cracks in their offense as Collins was hounded by opposing defenses, and they sputtered to a 58-49 victory over Texas-Arlington on Feb. 9. Then came the loss at Texas State, which ended UALR's longest conference winning streak and gave it what Foley hopes is a reality check.
"We probably needed that," he said. "And it may not be over. Because you can't just snap out of that. We've been practicing like that for the last couple of weeks, so it doesn't just turn around."
Foley said he's not too disappointed in the loss. Maintaining an edge that was necessary for UALR's quality start over an 18-game league schedule would be "nearly impossible," he said, but also knows improvement is needed.
That starts in practices, he said, something that became even more clear two years ago when he was allowed to sit in on a handful of Auriemma's summer workouts with his team, which at that time had won 37 in a row.
"The enthusiasm they got in practice was just unbelievable," Foley said. "They're not worrying about winning games. They know they're going to win games. They're worried about making the right play every time.
"Other people are focused on winning and losing, they're focused on making plays."
Foley wants his teams to "compete against themselves," too, a thought echoed by a senior forward Kaitlyn Pratt after a Feb. 2 home victory over Appalachian State.
"That's when you become a good team, when you start competing against yourselves," he said.
Its next roadblock is ASU, which has lost three in a row while dealing with a young roster and injuries. The Red Wolves have lost three guards who were expected to contribute this season to lengthy injuries, which compounded their loss of five senior starters.
But Foley said ASU, which has won the last three games in the series at the Convocation Center, will be "geared up" and is "playing a lot better." Red Wolves Coach Brian Boyer agreed, saying Saturday's 69-58 loss at Texas-Arlington was one of their best performances of the year.
"I've been proud of this group," he said. "I have not seen this team quit. They've really battled in each individual game."
Foley isn't sure if the Trojans can return to their offensive level of the last month, when they scored 70 or more points in eight consecutive games. But, he doesn't think the 12-1 Sun Belt record will cloud judgment of their current success. If so, Foley can just flip on the film from last Saturday.
"That's what gives you the ammunition," he said. "Thank goodness there's film. So they know they're not playing well. They know they've got to get through things. That's part of it."
Sports on 02/17/2017