How safe is UConn’s conference dominance?

[HuskyNan]

Big East preview: How safe is UConn’s spot atop conference with Creighton and Marquette knocking?

The gap between the Huskies and the rest of the Big East has slowly closed since they rejoined the conference for the 2020-21 season.

sports.yahoo.com

 

[Bone Dog]

I like the look of Marquette and Creighton. Lots of experience on those squads and excellent coaching. Villanova took a big hit in the draft, but Lucy Olsen is poised to become a star and Christina Dalce is playing well again this year.

Our primary weakness this year, as has been repeated so often, is a thin front court. But none of these teams has the size to capitalize on this. What Creighton has is a really crisply coached team of ball hawks -- that hasn't changed from last season. What Marquette has is strong guard play in King and Nkumu and strong power forwards in Karlen and Hottinger. However, I think Paige and Aaliyah will feast on both teams and the freshmen should approach these games like puppies with a new chew toy.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

We are not safe. Injury could make us very vulnerable. Now I'm going to go burn some sage.

 

[CL82]

I think our vulnerability is pressure around the guards.

 

[Plebe]

Creighton and Marquette are decent teams, but let's be honest, if we fail to win the conference then it truly is a historically bad year for UConn.

 

[huskeynut]

Creighton and Marquette want to challenge for the top spot. Either would love to supplant UConn as the top of league. So would many writers I think.

Despite injuries, I don't see it happening. Our freshmen are the real deal. We have Paige, Nika, Aubrey and Aaliyah. Too much for the others to contend with.

 

[and one]

Our conference dominance absolutely is not safe.

Parity building in women's basketball is slow but steady. When UConn became a dominating power in the 90s, no matter old BE, AAC or new BE, it has been pretty much assumed UConn would win out in conference including the tournament. ND is the only team that for awhile made a clean sweep less assured. The very occasional loss (I still remember that loss to St. Johns) was very rare.

Over the last 5 years or so the assumption we'd be almost unbeatable has disappeared. Yes, our 3 year string of injuries to starters has contributed that. It is also true that slowly, slowly women's bball teams have gotten better. In conference we'll meet fewer bad teams and more that are solid to good. I suspect that for the next 10 years or so UConn will continue to be the team to beat in the NBE. At some point it will be more like men's basketball, where even the best teams/programs have their up years and down years. It's coming folks. If I'm wrong, the effort to interest more young girls in basketball, to get them playing and getting skillful, to get college scholarships to play in college and even making a living playing basketball will not have been as successful as we had hoped it would be.

 

[BRS24]

We are not safe. Injury could make us very vulnerable. Now I'm going to go burn some sage.

Wearing my Everybody Eats shirt for the rest of the games and might also have to buy a STFU and win shirt.

 

[hoophuskee]

This year UCONN could lose. Let's face it, basically UCONN hasn't gotten a recruit for their soph and jr years in that Amari and Ines don't see time. They've lost too much to assume no problems when they have had problems to a degree the past few years.

 

[DefenseBB]

I would hope that yes, eventually, the league gets better to challenge UConn but maybe many of the naysayers on this thread have not seen either Marquette or Creighton play this year. I, for one, am not worried about our dominance ending this year or even next year. I don't get this crowd, one minute everyone is up in arms that Geno is being disrespected as a coach, the next minute they are worried about 18-26 ranked teams and losing to them.

 

[Charliebball]

UConn could get outmuscled by Marquette or out "threed" by Creighton but I sense that won't happen.......

 

[Next 12]

Uconn is Uconn. The 3 freshmen this year with Paige,Aaliyah, Audrey and Nika are more than enough to handle the improved rest of the BE .Uconn has who no one else has and that is Geno. Does any Bone Yarder believe any other coach could have made the record Geno achieved with all the injuries his players suffered the past 3 years? I think not. I believe with all the new recruits coming in , in the next 2 years will insure Uconn's dominance for the foreseeable future in the BE and beyond. I hope I live long enough to see it. GO HUSKIES!!!!!!

 

[hoophuskee]

Uconn is Uconn. The 3 freshmen this year with Paige,Aaliyah, Audrey and Nika are more than enough to handle the improved rest of the BE .Uconn has who no one else has and that is Geno. Does any Bone Yarder believe any other coach could have made the record Geno achieved with all the injuries his players suffered the past 3 years? I think not. I believe with all the new recruits coming in , in the next 2 years will insure Uconn's dominance for the foreseeable future in the BE and beyond. I hope I live long enough to see it. GO HUSKIES!!!!!!

This year is probable but still in some degree of doubt than any year in recent memory. Geno doesn't score baskets. I recall vs Az in Final Four UCONN missed a lot of layups/inside baskets. This year is arrguably their weakest team, and I beleive the past 2/3 yaers not every year has been a walkover.

As far as the freshmen, it's not like every game their performance will improve. It doesn;t work like that. I fear some might go "over-the-top-critical" for any game that they might lose in the Big East when in fact freshmen over the course of the season are more apt to be up-and-down.

 

[oldhusky]

If you define it as how dominant the program is in the Big East, there is no change. we are the dominant program year in and year out. One reason I think that is not in danger of changing is recruiting. the other Big East teams are generally happy if they can get one top 100 recruit in a year, and many get none.

In general top 100 recruits go to a power conference school or Uconn. The rest of the Big East can't do much to narrow the gap behind the top conferences until that changes.

This year of course there is some chance we could fall short of what is normally a foregone conclusion, but it is not because of a dramatic rise in a couple of teams in the conference, or our program falling back towards the next tier, it is just because of injuries. If Azzi, Caroline, Jana and Ayanna were healthy this year, it wouldn't even be much of a concern, as it won't be if we are healthy next year.

 

[HopJim]

While on paper, Edwards and Paige in particular give UConn the advantage in every league game, we are thin in many spots. If Edwards gets in foul trouble, if one of our guards sprains an ankle, etc. our advantage gets measurably reduced. That being said, would rather be in the leader position and take my chances that Geno can plug any holes as needed.

 

[HuskyNan]

While on paper, Edwards and Paige in particular give UConn the advantage in every league game, we are thin in many spots. If Edwards gets in foul trouble, if one of our guards sprains an ankle, etc. our advantage gets measurably reduced. That being said, would rather be in the leader position and take my chances that Geno can plug any holes as needed.

Aubrey is a matchup nightmare when she’s playing to the best of her ability

 

[JellyBean]

I believe our dominance is safe, especially this season. Now will we have our usual undefeated run through the Big East regular season? Probably not but I still believe that we will be Top Dogs in the Big East regular season and in the tournament.

 

[Plebe]

A lot of this is semantics, but I certainly wouldn't say we “dominated” the Big East last year. We had a rough and ragged February where we lost to Marquette and St. John's and won several close games, including against Georgetown and (gulp) Xavier. We won the regular season by a mere one game.

To me the more apt question isn't “is our dominance safe?” but rather “can we re-establish our dominance?”

 

[Rowdy831]

The top teams not named UConn don't have the size to give UConn problems. The challenge for UConn will be when they play a team you can't beat playing 6 guards, Ice and AE. Match ups are so important is sports and for many years UConn just had too many weapons along with equal or greater size. The have lost that advantage nationally but still have it in conference so I would be very surprised if they lose 1-2 games in conference and that would be good enough for the top spot.

 

[HuskyNan]

The top teams not named UConn don't have the size to give UConn problems. The challenge for UConn will be when they play a team you can't beat playing 6 guards, Ice and AE. Match ups are so important is sports and for many years UConn just had too many weapons along with equal or greater size. The have lost that advantage nationally but still have it in conference so I would be very surprised if they lose 1-2 games in conference and that would be good enough for the top spot.

You seem really fixated on size. Repeating that UConn is too small this season won’t make them any bigger so I’m wondering what your purpose is

 

[oldude]

Eventually, there will come a season when UConn WBB loses a BE championship. But that’s not happening this year, absent a major injury or two to key players. Honestly, I am not sure that the rest of the BE is better this season. Aside from UConn, the league has lost its “star power.” Players like Morrow, Siegrist and several “high profile” transfers are gone.

While Marquette & Creighton are solid, well-coached teams, they don’t really match up well athletically with UConn, and they don’t have the size to give UConn any real trouble in the paint. After those two teams, there is a real drop off in talent. Columbia, my Alma Mater, starts a 5-guard lineup that has already taken down Seton Hall, Providence & Villanova, the 3 BE teams on their OOC schedule.

Finally, and obviously, we have Paige Bueckers and they don’t….

 

[RedStickHusky]

ND is the only team that for awhile made a clean sweep less assured. The very occasional loss (I still remember that loss to St. Johns) was very rare.

I seem to remember years where C. Viv and the Rutgirls were a tough out.

 

[and one]

I seem to remember years where C. Viv and the Rutgirls were a tough out

There was a stretch when Vivian had a very physical team that was no bed of roses to play, like Central Florida was in the AAC. I think this was before ND joined the BE and Rutgers was the only team we really had to worry about.

 

[sun]

UConn could drink a keg of beer before each game & still run the table of the Big East.

 

[Kat]

Big East WBB is improving but it is still a second-tier conference. UConn will dominate, again.