A lift off the bench

In the past couple of weeks, Kaili McLaren and Lorin Dixon saw few minutes. As the regular season drew to a close, the No. 1 women's basketball team in the country relied on its starters for the bulk of play time.

McLaren and Dixon sat by, watching and waiting for their names to be called. Some nights it happened, other nights it did not.

All the hopes came back in November, as dying, brown leaves crumbled and fell to the ground - a sign that the college basketball season was underway. So began the hopes of a promising season.

Four months later, the media is dominated by debates of how this UConn squad matches up to the other great teams. Dixon and McLaren have yet to be singled out during those discussions, but analysts do occasionally allude to the "lack of depth" of this year's team.

On the other hand, if anything has changed as the Huskies headed into the NCAA tournament, it is that McLaren and Dixon are now being called on to rise up to the challenge in two very different ways.

"It's that time of the year where people know they have to step up and they have to do what they're good at," said Maya Moore. "So it's very key for everybody, at this point in the season, whether it's the starting five or the next five, to come in and contribute, you know, what they're best at."

"We need all the help we can get and if they come off and play their game and do the best that they can do, then that will be a good help to the team," said Tiffany Hayes.

At 5-foot-4, Dixon is one of the fastest players on the court, using her speed to her advantage. Earlier this season, in fact, she said that head coach Geno Auriemma stressed that due to her quickness, she should be one of the best defenders in the country.

McLaren, on the other hand, is a foreboding presence for the opponent when playing in the post. Though she may not have speed, Auriemma has lauded her in the past for her ability to make great passes in traffic. She also has one of the nicest techniques for jump shots.

"Renee [Montgomery] and Maya and Tina [Charles], we're going to need them a lot," Dixon said after the game against the Gators, "so when we can give them a rest or a breather, we have to come up and keep up the same thing that they [were] doing before we got in. So, I mean for me and Kaili, just coming in there and helping out any way we can, just try to give them a boost."

After the Huskies' win against Vermont Sunday, Auriemma said that Dixon is "a lot like Tina" in that she requires reminders to get her to perform to her potential. Maybe it's "something in the holy water at Christ the King," he said, referring to the two players' high school alma mater.

On a serious note, he said that, if Dixon played as well as she did against the North Carolina in January, the team has a chance to win. In fact, he said that when she dribbles past players, she is able to dish out passes and put them "on a silver platter," something she could not do last season.

It appeared that stepping up was contagious in the next game. Against Florida, McLaren recorded a season-high 27 minutes, allowing teammates such as Charles and Hayes some much-needed breathers. Dixon also saw plenty of game-action and demonstrated confidence in handling the ball. At the end of the night, McLaren led the team in assists.

"I didn't even realize, but it's pretty cool to be able to go out there and just have fun and enjoy playing with my teammates," she said.

Now, like the rest of her teammates, she is looking to build on her efficiency on the court.

"There'll be times where I kind of disappear in practice," she said, "but making sure that you can always tell that I'm on the court, in practice especially."

As for Dixon, there is a key difference in this year's experience thus far.

"I'm not star-struck in this tournament, it's just another game that we have to win to advance," she said. "So, I'm not really nervous at all. I'm not, like, in awe. It's just like I've been through this already, so I kind of know what to expect."