Delaware star Delle Donne has no regrets about leaving UConn

By DAVID GINSBURG Associated Press

NEWARK, Del. – Whenever Delaware's NCAA tournament run ends, Elena Delle Donne will look back on her college career with no regrets.

"Honestly, I think the happy ending has already occurred," Blue Hens coach Tina Martin said. "The happy ending is that Elena is happy."

After starring at Ursuline Academy in Delaware, Delle Donne accepted a scholarship to perennial title contender Connecticut in 2008. Almost immediately after arriving at the school, the 18-year-old got homesick and left in tears.

Saying she was burned out from basketball, the 6-5 Delle Donne enrolled at Delaware and played on the volleyball team during her freshman year. Eventually, she approached Martin and asked to join the basketball team.

And it's been a thrill ride ever since.

Delle Donne has become the most prolific scorer in Colonial Athletic Association history, was voted CAA player of the year three times and led Delaware to two consecutive league titles, the last coming Sunday to extend the team's school-record winning streak to 25 games. The Blue Hens became a fixture in the Top 25, and last year they recorded their first NCAA tournament victory.

"It's been great for me, and I think the state of Delaware has had a fine ride with this also," Delle Donne said. "Me being a hometown girl, staying home, really competing and getting us on the national scene has been pretty awesome for the state. They've been behind us the whole way."

None of this would have happened if Delle Donne had stayed at UConn.

"She could be playing at Connecticut right now, but that's not where her heart is," Blue Hens guard Lauren Carra said.

Delle Donne has the ability to drive to the basket, dominate the lane, pop a baseline jumper or nail a three-pointer. She might have won a national championship or two with the Huskies, but doesn't think about what might have been because it could never top what ultimately occurred.

"This is the best decision of my life," Delle Donne said. "When I made the decision a while back and I was playing volleyball, I never would have thought I would be here at this time. But it's been the most amazing ride ever. I wouldn't change anything.

The first obstacle Delle Donne had to overcome was the angst over abandoning UConn and the game of basketball.

"Elena did what society told her to: You're the No. 1 player, you should go to the No. 1 school," Martin said. "So she chose Connecticut. But bottom line, in her heart, she did not want to leave the state of Delaware."

Going home wasn't an immediate cure.

"I saw her on campus during her freshman year," Martin recalled. "She was walking with her head down, her shoulders were slumped. Talking to our volleyball coach, she told me the kid just really needs to be left alone. She said the kid is stressed out, she wants to enjoy college. Basketball has been such a burden for her, with so much pressure since the eighth grade."

Now she holds her head high on campus.

Delle Donne has been able to enjoy her basketball success a mere 15 minutes from where she grew up — and she puts family above everything.

Being at UConn, a five-hour trip from Delaware, would have been too much separation from her family — most notably older sister Lizzie, who is deaf and blind and has cerebral palsy.

"No doubt, Elena is one of Lizzie's favorite people," said her older brother Gene Delle Dolnne, who will be behind the Delaware bench Sunday when the sixth-seeded Blue Hens (30-3) face West Virginia (17-13). Delaware is in the same bracket as top-seed Connecticut, so there's a chance Delle Donne could face the Huskies down the road.