NC State Post Game Thread

[Atleast5char]

was that Shea Ralph supporting Paige's mom in the last minutes?

Good question; it really don't think that person was Shea, though. I'd love to know if there were former players there besides Megan.

 

[Atleast5char]

Hi, could not recognize the person.

Thanks

 

[uconnfan68]

Epic game and one of the best basketball games I've ever watched, although I pretty much watched the entire second half in 5 second score update glimpses. After it ended, I went back and watched the whole thing to the end. Too nerve-wracking to watch that without knowing the ending.

• CW was 4-8 on FG in Q1 alone. I remember thinking, she's going to end up taking 30 shots and carrying the team.
• Happened to catch the Dorka injury in real time, and those anguished cries said everything without the video (which was tough to see). It was so good to see her out there on the bench and I think that proved as a solidifying force for the team down the stretch. Win it for Dorka.
• Someone please put McNutt and MM on a slow boat to nowhere. At least keep them off national telecasts. I detest ESPN studio coverage and have to mute it.
• Wes Moore is a class act, and I hate it that he had to be the loser in this one. Great to see him and Geno hugging, there's clearly a bond and mutual respect between the two.
• Paige. IMHO she needed a game like this where she no longer had the luxury of deferring to teammates or thinking about her recovery. She was in Full Autopilot Paige Mode, which will pay dividends next weekend because she proved to herself that she's back.
• ONO managed to hang in there with 4 fouls for about 20 minutes. Never thought I'd see that. Probably as important as Paige's impact just for that alone. AE stayed in the game until under a minute in the last OT when it no longer mattered. Huge props for knowing the simply could not foul out.
• Nika a +8 in 8 minutes. Over the summer if she can develop a consistent 3 point shot, learn to shoot FTs and develop her drive to the basket skills she will be a fixture in the rotation. Her energy, defensive prowess, and infectious intangible impact on a game aren't enough when you need all 5 players to score if necessary.
• Azzi is as good of a pure shooter as there is in the game. Shooters shoot. If she's "on" there's no ceiling to what this team can do. Playing 49 minutes as a frosh in a Final Four games says it all.
• Caroline, if she's smart, will pester Geno to take Dorka's role in the front court rotation. Sure she's a wing but her reach and post play make up for that, and she can stretch the floor and get out on breaks. She's a finisher, use her.

Wish we got Louisville instead, 'cause Stanford and SC in the next 2 games is a brutal long weekend.

The one thing that stood out to me was Evina comforting Dorka while waving the trainer out. You could see the love.

 

[Superhuskies]

I despise nonstop crowd shots of family members. But Paige's mom seems like a hoot! LOL...Paige did not inherit her poise from Mom!!

 

[UcMiami]

Nice write-up on #14s meaning:

UConn's unprecedented Final Four run stands the test of time

UConn's dynasty showed no signs of stopping as the Huskies clinched their 14th consecutive Final Four appearance.

www.ncaa.com

 

[HuskyNan]

Does anyone know why Mechelle is a bit anti-uconn? not to the extent as McNutt, but pretty obvious now over the last few years...

She’s not. She just doesn’t gush over UConn. Some see that as dislike

 

[CTBballfan243]

Watch: Final 10 seconds of UConn vs. NC State featured a questionable no-call - Sports Illustrated

The Huskies survived a double OT thriller to advance to its 14th straight Final Four.

www.si.com

 

[CTBballfan243]

Watch: Final 10 seconds of UConn vs. NC State featured a questionable no-call - Sports Illustrated

The Huskies survived a double OT thriller to advance to its 14th straight Final Four.

www.si.com

UConn haters really reaching now. They’re going for missed 3 second calls. Seriously

 

[Bama fan]

I was PO'd at the play-by-play announcer last night when he stated "Paige hasn't missed a shot in overtime, she's 8 for 8, then Paige missed the next shot right when finished the statement.

She got fouled on that missed attempt , but no call.

 

[mudcat]

The refs, the refs, the refs, the refs.....................Give it a rest. The players determine the result.

That was my point

 

[housekeys]

Watch: Final 10 seconds of UConn vs. NC State featured a questionable no-call - Sports Illustrated

The Huskies survived a double OT thriller to advance to its 14th straight Final Four.

www.si.com

If you really want to go that route, check out the 3 point shot to send the game into OT by NCST. If you look close the NCST player's right heal could have been out of bounds. Replay the video in slow motion and see how very close she is to the side line. But....whatever.

 

[nastynatty]

It's too bad some need to drag down others to make their point. Paige is wonderful and even better than that sometimes, as she was last night. It was mind-blowing and inspiring to watch Paige being Paige once again.

Still, to say that Caitlin isn't close to Paige's level is, pardon the bluntness, just wacky. You either haven't seen Iowa play often or don't understand what it is that made the Hawkeyes the Big Ten regular season c-champs and tournament champs. Ask Clark's teammates if she makes them better... heck, every game, every one of them gets wide-open shots often because the opposing team is focusing on Caitlin.

"When she isn’t scoring, her other contributions just aren’t enough to warrant her being on PB’s level," you say? How about that she was second in the nation in assists last year and led the nation this year. To boot,she clearly is the team's fiery leader on the court (maybe occasionally too fiery for her own good). Creighton took down the Hawkeyes in the tournament, a credit to Flannery and Co., but that shouldn't lessen what Iowa accomplished this year.

All that said, I'm thrilled Paige is a UConn player for two more years and, during that time, when the Huskies aren't playing, I'll frequently watch Iowa to enjoy watching the incredibly talented Caitlin Clark.

I’ve watched several Iowa games and I don’t think Caitlin is terrible. She’s among some of the best in WCBB. It’s just no one is on Paige’s level. When the going gets tough for Iowa, they look to Caitlin to do anything and everything and when that doesn’t work out they are practically doomed. All I am saying is that Paige doesn’t even need to be making shot to make her team better. Anyways, like someone else mentioned…CC is not on Wes Moore’s team so this may be a conversation for another thread.

 

[Coach J]

While Paige's clutch shooting was one of the great performances I have seen in any game, championship or in season, not sure why Azzi isn't getting more love on the Boneyard. Prior to Paige taking over, Fudd was also unstoppable for several critical periods. Kept UConn in the game so Paige could be Paige in the Overtime.

Makes sense, I had no idea she shot so poorly from the line. She does change the flow of the game defensively when she is in there. I love that hard nosed hustle.

 

[npignatjr]

Aside from the obvious, here are a few highlights for me;

1. That flying put back basket by Edwards.
2. The "magical"pass from AZZI to Evina, whilst totally trapped by two NC State players.
3. Evina's alertness to get the ball to an open Williams for the killer lay-up. Williams calmly making the lay up.
4. Nika Mühl forcing a turnover on an in-bounds attempt by NC State.
5. Paige and AZZI hitting free throws with the pressure of the world on their shoulders. And Edwards hitting two free throws.
6. Paige's 8-9 was it in overtime?

A game for the ages. Don't forget; NC State stole a victory from Notre Dame. And ND ( much to my dismay ) is a terrific young team, who was "playing lights out ." ND scored more than 100 points against strong Oklahoma team, and have two of the best freshman guards in the country. So NC State, with three 5th year seniors and one fourth year senior ( plus a junior ), is experienced and formidable. They did us a favor beating ND ( helped themselves as well, of course ).

A huge win for UCONN to enjoy. Our " bracket" was monstrous. Loaded with excellence.

Add Just before #3 Christyn scoring over Cunnane.

 

[npignatjr]

Makes sense, I had no idea she shot so poorly from the line. She does change the flow of the game defensively when she is in there. I love that hard nosed hustle.

Small sample 2-8. Last year 73%

 

[jayfromfla]

One geno move was at about 5 minutes in regulation time he took out Paige and inserted Nika .her tenacious defense on the guard lead to a turnover and a missed shot. Gave Paige a breather and changed momentum of the game.

 

[Tonyc]

We grew up alot in the NC State game. We showed fight determination relentless effort and poise and execution. Paige and Azzi stepped up it was their time. Stanford will be all over them when we face them. We will need others to step up as well. Christyn Evina and maybe Caroline need to hit some shots and dribble drive. We need to get a handle on Lexie Hull and Jones and Im sure we will. Stanford does make turnovers and we need to score on them. This is gonna be another great game.

 

[npignatjr]

A lot of turnovers. Two seasons 4.8 a game.

 

[Forego]

If you really want to go that route, check out the 3 point shot to send the game into OT by NCST. If you look close the NCST player's right heal could have been out of bounds. Replay the video in slow motion and see how very close she is to the side line. But....whatever.

Thank you. I thought I was the only one to see that during the live broadcast. I can only watch the replay on my cell phone and need a larger screen to review it closely. I assumed that she did not step out of bounds because Monica didn’t mention the play after the game.

 

[hookshot]

Watch: Final 10 seconds of UConn vs. NC State featured a questionable no-call - Sports Illustrated

The Huskies survived a double OT thriller to advance to its 14th straight Final Four.

www.si.com

Ono was in enough trouble with the two missed foul shots, fortunately appears to have gotten the benefit of a slightly long count here.

 

[CTBballfan243]

Ono was in enough trouble with the two missed foul shots, fortunately appears to have gotten the benefit of a slightly long count here.

Won’t be the first or last time that a ref had a long 3 second count. How many 3 second violations were called during the game? Maybe the ref(s) were using long 3 second counts all game for both sides. You need to go back and review every possession of the game and see if anyone else was in the lane longer than 3 seconds. Maybe that’s just the way the refs called the game.

 

[Cuango]

Opposing Big East coaches think otherwise. Until the end the team was shooting 10% from the foul line. The whole team.

So putting the worst free throw shooter in is the solution?

 

[jazz]

I live in the south of France. Over the last couple years the lockdowns and mask mandate have made France a lot less appealing to visit. But the covid situation is better now, and the government recently lifted the mask mandate except in medical settings. May is the perfect month to visit. Warm and before the rush of tourists.

you opening up your place Baller. Im in portsmouth, england..spent about 10 weeks cruising around france, swiss, germany and italy 2 summers ago. still need to get to southern france though, missed out on this as i ran out of time...