Moore, Huskies go for three-peat

Tonight the University of Connecticut women's basketball team look for the three-peat, and Jessica Moore will try to go 3-for-3.

Moore, a 2000 Colony High School graduate, and the Huskies face Tennessee with the national title on the line. The game is televised on ESPN, airing today at 4:30 p.m. AST.

With a win, UConn will earn its third consecutive NCAA Division I title, with the Huskies winning the crown during Moore's freshman and sophomore seasons.

Moore, who started every game for UConn during her junior season, was key to the success of the Huskies during the 2004 tournament. She scored six points and grabbed eight rebounds in a 67-58 win over Minnesota that placed UConn in the national title game, but more importantly, Moore was praised for her defense in the paint as the Huskies shut down Golden Gopher All-American Janel McCarville.

Moore also notched a pair of double-doubles in the tourney.

UConn is 30-4 this season, reaching the 30-win mark for the fifth straight year and the 10th time in the last 11 years.

Moore, who is a two-time 4A girls' state player of the year in Alaska, is one of several Valley athletes to participate in postseason college basketball this season.

Former Palmer standout C.J. Hooker and his North Carolina TarHeels advanced to the second round of the NCAA men's tournament. Former Wasilla Warrior Ray Schafer's Oregon Ducks squad advanced to the semifinals of the National Invitational Tournament.

Wasilla's Adam Fitt-Chappel (Alaska Anchorage) and Brittany Kroon (Seattle Pacific) and Palmer's Zac Forsythe (Alaska Fairbanks) helped lead their squads to the Division II national tournament. Kroon and the Falcons were a win away from the Division II Final Four and Forsythe and the Nanooks advanced to the Division II Sweet 16.

Chuck Martin, formerly the head boys' basketball coach at Houston, Colony and Wasilla, helped lead Liberty to a berth in the NCAA tourney. Martin is an assistant coach on the Flames staff.