Geno says UConn heading to Sweet 16 'more confident' than last year

[BRS24]

Geno: Year after '23 exit, UConn in 'better' place

Three-seed UConn can surpass last year's NCAA tournament result with a win Saturday over 7-seed Duke in its regional semifinal. And while it may not necessarily translate to a win, coach Geno Auriemma said "it doesn't feel the same" as last year either.

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"We don't seem to be as mentally or physically worn out like we were last year at this time," Auriemma told reporters Friday. "I think having Paige [Bueckers] makes us a little more confident than maybe we were last year at this time. I think KK [Arnold] gives us a different element that we didn't have last year at this time. I would say those two things probably are the biggest difference.​

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"I think our practices and everything that we've done leading up to this feels a little bit different than it did last season. The whole month of February last year was a real, real, real, real grind for us. I think our last hurrah was the Big East tournament. We did our best to win that thing. Then we had a huge struggle with Baylor [in the second round], and we just didn't have anything left. We ran into the wrong team at the wrong time."​

 

[hoophuskee]

IMO the game vs Duke is pick-em.

 

[Blond D.]

One of the big differences this year is we have the same starters and bench. Last year we had people in and out and it was confusing and very hard to control. It made practice a nightmare.
This year we know who we are and what we have. The rolls are defined and everybody knows what each other is gonna do. That makes playing a whole lot easier and more fun.

 

[Cuango]

Worried but truthfully, I’m completely bumfuddled as to who will win this game! It could (most likely) be a brutally close game that goes right down to the wire. That seems most likely. However, I also would not be totally surprised if we beat the snot out of them! Or, if we have foul trouble, they beat the snot out of us! They (Duke) are a difficult team to read! They’ve had some real stinkers but they also just beat the number two seed pretty handily! I just have no feel for this one. I figure we’re playing with house money now though. As devastating as a loss would be, I am floating in a cloud of optimism about next season and the following several seasons! I want to win, I’ll be sad if we lose, but good times are on the horizon and I have a warm, fuzzy feeling about the next few years!

 

[Bald Husky]

The big question is, who is going to step up? We know Paige will be the target for double teams and their best defender, but who will take over the scoring if Paige is neutralized? I know Paige cannot be completely neutralized but Duke can make it very difficult for her. If Shade can keep going, and KK doesn't keep getting stopped in the paint, and Aaliyah can get her game going, we will have a good chance to win. Nika has to add about 8-12 points and have a good, smart floor game, and of course, don't foul out. Let's face it, we are better than them, so if we don't make too many stupid mistakes, we will move on.

 

[HuskyNan]

It’s interesting that Duke and Iowa were the teams UConn played at the PK80 in Portland last season.

 

[omshanti]

Last year Lou was limping into the tournament. She was THE player to take them. This year the starters are relatively healthy. Not much of a bench yet Paige is the go to. Gonna be a grind. They can do this.

 

[Rowdy831]

One of the big differences this year is we have the same starters and bench. Last year we had people in and out and it was confusing and very hard to control. It made practice a nightmare.
This year we know who we are and what we have. The rolls are defined and everybody knows what each other is gonna do. That makes playing a whole lot easier and more fun.

As a team they didn't elevate their games last year like a typical UConn teams does in the tournament. I also think having Paige out there really makes the whole team better and she is the best player in the country so that is a plus. With that said they still have some limitations and they will need to play their best every game to stay alive.

 

[Huskee11]

No doubt UConn was worn down physically and mentally by the end of last season.

However, I was at the Baylor game last year and I did not remember that particular game as being a huge struggle. We were down six after the first quarter but ended up winning 77-58.

Interesting to look at the box score of that game. Azzi led the way with 22 points. Caroline had 10 off the bench. We outrebounded them 42-31 and there were 13 fouls called on each team. Baylor was a guard oriented team and I don't remember that game as being unusually physical.

The year before against UCF was the real struggle in the second round, a 52-47 win but a typical UCF rock fight. We shot 14-48 from the field.

 

[Zonepress]

No doubt UConn was worn down physically and mentally by the end of last season.

However, I was at the Baylor game last year and I did not remember that particular game as being a huge struggle. We were down six after the first quarter but ended up winning 77-58.

Interesting to look at the box score of that game. Azzi led the way with 22 points. Caroline had 10 off the bench. We outrebounded them 42-31 and there were 13 fouls called on each team. Baylor was a guard oriented team and I don't remember that game as being unusually physical.

The final score is not indicative at all, as to how hard game that was
Sarah Andrews, and the other guard whose name escapes me, killed us with threes in the first half an early end of the third-quarter
Eventually, our size wore them down, but that was a very, very difficult game

 

[donalddoowop]

What I don't understand is why anyone with good basketball sense and knowledge who has watched UConn all season, would predict they will win the NC. I can understand really wanting them to win but I believe UConn is still missing the pieces that they need to beat the remaining teams. It is going to be a struggle to make the Elite Eight and even harder to make the FF. However, if Shade can continue to score and get help from Arnold and Muhl, the struggle will be easier to overcome. jmo.

 

[GoUconn7961]

What I don't understand is why anyone with good basketball sense and knowledge who has watched UConn all season, would predict they will win the NC. I can understand really wanting them to win but I believe UConn is still missing the pieces that they need to beat the remaining teams. It is going to be a struggle to make the Elite Eight and even harder to make the FF. However, if Shade can continue to score and get help from Arnold and Muhl, the struggle will be easier to overcome. jmo.

Oh, you’re most likely right, but watching SC on,y win by 5 and Iowa needing some friendly calls against WV gives more teams than UConn a little hope.

 

[Huskee11]

The final score is not indicative at all, as to how hard game that was
Sarah Andrews, and the other guard whose name escapes me, killed us with threes in the first half an early end of the third-quarter
Eventually, our size wore them down, but that was a very, very difficult game

Andrews was 2 for 13 including 1-8 from three, 5 points in 35 minutes.

As a team they did shoot it well from three, 12 for 29, but only 21 for 61 overall with only 8 foul shot attempts.

Most games in the NCAA tournament will present challenges of one sort or another, but the Baylor game was far easier than UCF the year before or Syracuse the year after.

 

[Zonepress]

Andrews was 2 for 13 including 1-8 from three, 5 points in 35 minutes.

As a team they did shoot it well from three, 12 for 29, but only 21 for 61 overall with only 8 foul shot attempts.

Most games in the NCAA tournament will present challenges of one sort or another, but the Baylor game was far easier than UCF the year before or Syracuse the year after.

Agree with the last paragraph for sure