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STORRS, Conn. -- With its road win over second-ranked Notre Dame on Wednesday, UConn has opened the 2016-17 season at 8-0 to extend its current winning streak to 83 games.The 72-61 victory over the Fighting Irish marked the second time this season the Huskies -- ranked third in the AP Top 25 preseason poll -- beat the nations No. 2 team.Prior to the Nov. 17 matchup with then-No. 2 Baylor, UConn coach Geno Auriemma said: Im somewhat realistic about what my expectation level is. Im realistic about what we can do, and I think the previous couple of years we would sit here and tell you that we were the favorite to win the national championship. Thats not the case this year. I know it, and I think everyone on our team knows it.But lets be realistic: Its time to talk about the Huskies being the favorites -- again.Weve seen this movie before. When Sue Bird, Swin Cash, Tamika Williams and Asjha Jones graduated after winning the 2002 national championship with a perfect 39-0 record, many thought the Huskies would be down on their luck the next year.The AP preseason poll ranked the 2003 Huskies fourth; the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll had UConn third. The Huskies werent supposed to extend a 39-game winning streak to 70. They werent supposed to go 37-1. They definitely werent supposed to win their second consecutive NCAA championship.Of course, a lot of things were different 14 years ago.The 2003 championship marked the programs fourth title. The Huskies now have 11. Their streak of 70 consecutive victories was the longest in Division I womens basketball history. UConn has since shattered its own record; it owns the top spot in all of Division I basketball, having unseated the 88-game streak the UCLA men put together (1971 to 74) with a 90-game winning streak from 2009 to 11.And most of all, in 2003, UConn had Diana Taurasi and no one else did.While Taurasi was the primary reason for UConns championship-level success in 2003 (and 2004), the defining characteristic of the 2003 squad was the fact that its composition worked (Taurasi averaged 17.6 points per game). It just so happened that its composition required Wonder Woman in the form of a basketball player.There is obviously no Taurasi at UConn this season, and quite frankly, there doesnt need to be. What makes this version of the Huskies work is how malleable they are. They create matchup difficulties all over the floor.Gabby Williams primarily plays inside but is increasingly stepping out to the perimeter, and she can guard pretty much anyone. Sophomore forward Napheesa Colliers movement off the ball and quickness make her difficult to guard for traditional forwards and centers.The perimeter doesnt get much more friendly with 6-foot-3 sophomore Katie Lou Samuelson and 6-foot junior Kia Nurse. Overall, size inside has the potential to be a big problem for UConn, but its quickness is a problem for everyone else.The most concerning thing for the Huskies is that their offense has stalled for atypical stretches, especially when Collier is not in the mix. Collier is averaging 19.1 points per game (Samuelson is right behind at 19.0 PPG), and when she is on the floor producing, Collier opens up the perimeter for Samuelson and Nurse. Without her on the floor, UConn struggles, as it did in the second quarter against Notre Dame (the Irish outscored the Huskies 20-11).And dont underestimate the intangibles. For the first time in years, UConn has gotten to play as the underdog. When the season started, few expected the Huskies to win another championship this year, and that has proven to matter.The differences my first two years and this year in the expectations people have for us, thats something that I play with a chip on my shoulder about, Nurse said before the Baylor game.Those expectations have already begun to shift, as reflected in UConn jumping Notre Dame for the No. 1 spot in the rankings this past week, despite the Irish remaining unbeaten at the time. It took the 2003 Huskies 13 weeks to top the rankings, doing so as the only remaining unbeaten team.This does not mean that UConn is somehow impenetrable. The Huskies still have to play at No. 4 Maryland (Dec. 29), home versus No. 6 South Carolina (Feb. 13), and home versus No. 12 Ohio State (Dec. 19). They could also lose unexpectedly, akin to the Huskies Big East championship loss to Villanova in 2003.In the grand scheme of things, 2003 probably doesnt matter that much to this crop of Huskies, but that teams success shows just how far they could go. Cheap Air Max 1 Mens . -- Five former Kansas City Chiefs players who were on the team between 1987 and 1993 filed a lawsuit Tuesday claiming the team hid and even lied about the risks of head injuries during that time period when there was no collective bargaining agreement in place in the NFL. Cheap Air Max 95 Mens . -- Whether Jeremy Hill deserves a prominent role in LSUs offence this early in the season is a matter for debate. http://www.airmaxsneakersonsale.com/cheap-air-max-tn.html . -- Jimmie Johnson held off a teammate, passed a pair of Hall of Famers, and dominated once more at Dover. Cheap Air Max 720 Mens .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. Wholesale Air Max 1 . SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. This story is part of ESPN The Magazines Oct. 31 NBA Preview Issue. Subscribe today!Columbus Blue JacketsOverall: 63 Title track: 110 Ownership: 69 Coaching:?56 Players: 102 Fan relations: 52 Affordability: 53 Stadium experience: 8 Bang for the buck: 55 Change from last year: -44Just a year ago, even despite never having won a playoff series, the Blue Jackets were a top-20 franchise in these rankings. This time around, they took big steps backward in six of the eight categories. Columbus is now the second-lowest-ranked team in Ohio, but, as many an NFL team has proved, pretty much anyone can beat the Cleveland Browns.Whats goodDespite having the fourth-lowest average attendance per game in the NHL, Columbus rose in the stadium experience rankings all the way to the top 10. Attendees are big fans of Nationwide Arena (and its super-cheap concessions and $7 parking, lowest in the league). The Blue Jackets also made a coaching upgrade in 2015 by bringing in John Tortorella after an 0-7-0 start to the season (he ranks 56th now). The team finished the season at the bottom of the Metropolitan Division, but Tortorellas teams have qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs eight times -- thats six more than Columbus has as a franchise.Whats badColumbus massive regression from wild-card team in 2014 to the worst in its grouup last year can no longer be attributed solely to injuries or youth and inexperience.dddddddddddd Fans clearly blame the roster to at least some degree, dropping the players ranking 56 spots, to 102nd. Soon, the Blue Jackets will start the rebuilding process all over again. Columbus will rely on draft picks (Pierre-Luc Dubois) and AHL call-ups (Zach Werenski) as some of its premier players this season. If those two cant produce and the offense regresses, itll be another bottom-feeding season for a team thats barely touched the postseason in its nearly 20-year history (see: title track, at 110th).Whats newAs the win total fell, so did the bang fans got for their buck from the Blue Jackets. The team still has one of the cheapest tickets in hockey, and it beats the average price of a game across the league by more than $20. Still, prices across many NHL franchises fell this past year, and Columbus slipped from the second-most-affordable game to fourth. The change was relative, but in a tough market already for ticket prices, it dropped the Blue Jackets 30 spots in affordability -- as if a tough-luck team needs to give fans more reasons to stay home.Next: Winnipeg Jets?| Full rankings ' ' '