Charde's Wild Ride

Charde Houston has been somewhat of a chameleon this season - and not just in terms of her hair.

First, she cut her hair to a 'fro. During that stretch, Houston saw herself struggle through practices and games, which resulted in a minimum amount of playing time - and left many fans wondering what happened to the player who last year averaged seven rebounds and 12.5 points a game.

Halfway through the regular season, she was back to sporting her longer hairstyle for the simple reason that it was "time to change it up."

And it appears change has happened again. Like the presidential hopefuls campaign for change, Houston may be looking at a new chapter this half of the season - becoming one of the key factors on the court and rising to the occasion once again in her last year in a UConn jersey.

Yet the path has been more of a tumultuous rollercoaster ride than smooth sailing for the senior.

As head coach Geno Auriemma said after the Jan. 21 game against North Carolina, when Kalana Greene and Mel Thomas were healthy and "all was right with the world," the team's main concern was about whether the then-struggling Houston would be able to make a comeback and be the player of old.

For Houston, her senior year has not been marked with memorable moments. She had lost her starting spot by the end of November and for a stretch was lucky to get 10 minutes of playing time in a game.

But then, something happened over a three-game stretch in late January. It was as if she had had an epiphany, or possibly inspiration from an outside source. That someone was Thomas. Houston said she wanted to show her that the game of basketball was important to her and that having her and Greene injured was something that "I hold very dear."

Auriemma said then that the turnabout may be due to the fact that Houston has been hearing things differently than she did before, and that maybe Thomas's and Greene's injuries were the things that she needed to see to help her play well again.

"Maybe this is the start of something," he said after the win over the Tar Heels when Houston scored 15 points.

It appeared that Auriemma may have been correct for a time. In UConn's win over Notre Dame the following Sunday, Houston recorded six points and eight rebounds in 20 minutes and logged more time in three games than she had in almost a month - the same amount of time that Thomas had been out. She also had three blocks, moving into eighth on the team's career block list and is just three shy of tying Swin Cash for seventh.

There have been moments, however, that Houston does appear to have difficulty. In the Huskies' game against South Florida on Jan. 30, she did not get off the bench all too often because Auriemma said that he thought she did not play well. Unfortunately, neither did most of the team, even though UConn won.

In the Huskies' first loss of the season to Rutgers on Feb. 5, Houston came out looking solid in the first half, but then fell by the wayside in the second, watching the remainder of the game from the bench. Auriemma voiced his frustration with her, saying he would rather have Kaili McLaren on the court and creating somewhat of a controversy with his remarks. He later said he was not being literal in saying that he could not play her, but that she needed to fulfill her role on the team.

Yet in the game against Providence, one that Auriemma said he expected fatigue to be a factor, Houston was once again hustling down the court with eight points and five rebounds in 12 minutes in UConn's 80-54 win against the Friars. Those points gave her enough to squeeze by Jessica Moore into 24th on UConn's all-time scoring list.

And in last Tuesday's game against the Hoyas, Houston made some defensive plays that resulted in turnovers and points for the Huskies.

Though she jammed her thumb two weeks ago in practice and twisted her ankle at Notre Dame, she said that she is determined to do well.

"With everything that's going on with the team, you know, it's really time for me to turn it up," she said last Tuesday. "Not to say that I hadn't wanted to in the beginning, but it's extremely important, you know. It's vital right now, especially during this time, for me to be at my best and I'm trying my hardest just to give him [Auriemma] everything that he wants."

She also said that when things are not going the way that people would like in a certain aspect of the game that it is important to make up for it in another facet. She added that her recent success is motivated by her desire for Auriemma "to be comfortable with me on the floor."

"Personally, I think it's just a mindset," she said. "It's something that I really want to do, very badly. I really want to play well and I know that in order for me to do so and to prove to him, it has to start in practice."

If she keeps up the intensity, Houston may be a factor in the upcoming weeks. After all, the Huskies do need her leadership heading into the end of the regular season.

Contact Brittany Perotti

Brittany.Perotti@UConn.edu.