4th Quarter scoring

[CocoHusky]

I agree. It's very unusual, and against Geno's philosophy, not to play aggressively for the entire game. Possible reasons for the slower approach that have been posited are: 1) not over tax the tired starters, 2) not embarrass Dawn Staley, 3) experiment with a slower style of play in case it's needed in the future, 4) not risk losing the game. It's unfortunate that no interviewer seems to have asked Geno about his approach to the fourth quarter, which started with a 21 point advantage and never dropped below 15. Whatever he was thinking, and you can be sure that he was, an alternative approach could have been to run up the score to 30 or so with the starters and give some of the players on the bench a little big-game experience.

Is it really a big game experience anymore when the lead is 30 Points? This was UCONN's worst shooting game of the season 42%. In the 3 quarter alone UCONN missed 4 layups (1 Moriah, 1 Morgan, 2 Gabby) and missed two other shots right at the basket yet finished the quarter with a 21 point lead. Our players are super but human so I guess I'll go with your #1 but I still don't see the need for the 4th quarter to play out any differently than it did.

 

[j66kicker]

Nah, that strategy is for timid teams and coaches, afraid to lose. It's not about jacking up the score; it's about playing your game no matter what. Keep doing what got you there. Fear of failure seldom leads to optimum performance. Geno (usually) plays to a standard, not a score. Everyone knows that. He just got a little, shall we say conservative, in this one instance. But if he did want to tone it down a little he could have played his reserves a little more.

I think if he put in the reserves they would want to come off the bench and play hard (as they have been coached). He didn't really want to play hard, so why not milk the clock with the starters, who are more reliable to control the ball, not give up turnovers, keep it in the hands of the best foul shooters, etc.?

 

[carpe diem]

Did Geno call off the dogs during fourth quarters of both the Notre Dame game and this game in respect to MM and DS?

Who knows for sure but the players and coaches. However, there is nothing to suggest in his philosophy, strategy, pre and post game comments, his show, his former and current players comments, and what we know about his personality, that he would let up the pressure to not embarrass the opposing coach. If he "lets up" it is part of his strategy, for whatever reason makes sense given the game situation and future game situations. It just is not in his DNA to do that because it is in exact contrast to what he is all about - perfection.

 

[hoophuskee]

Nah, that strategy is for timid teams and coaches, afraid to lose. It's not about jacking up the score; it's about playing your game no matter what. Keep doing what got you there. Fear of failure seldom leads to optimum performance. Geno (usually) plays to a standard, not a score. Everyone knows that. He just got a little, shall we say conservative, in this one instance. But if he did want to tone it down a little he could have played his reserves a little more.

Nah I don't agree at all.

It has nothing to do with being scared. It has to do with ensuring that you are going to win.

Playing your game no matter what" is for coaches that eventually lose their job. Playing to win is the best formula. I'd rather see my team win more than anything else. Sure once in a while - if the coach needs to make a point. But in this case- the seniors are playing for an undefeated season. You can't blow it for them because you want to imprint your ego and style over winning vs a top 2/3 team.

Geno does usually play to a standard not to a score but it doesn't mean he does it all the time which imo is the trap many fans/media might fall into believing. When he plays for example Baylor, do people really think he is going to play the standard way of "inside-out?" When they played at Baylor - I recall Geno said at halftime that the team that figures out a way to score is going to win. That's not playing "to a standard."

A coach trying to win - and when his team wins by over 10 points in which the lead never gets below 10 in the 2nd half playing the number two in the country is NOT too conservative.

Jim Calhoun once was asked why he didn't play a German center - a guy that was real big- more minutes. He said to paraphrase "I can have the kids share minutes and concentrate more on each player sharing minutes or .... I can coach to the best of my ability for the team to win. Which do you want?" In this case - sure Geno could have played his reserves. And he could have lost . . . The way he coached in the 4th quarter, he had no chance to lose. The opposing team never came close despite horrid officiating.

 

[Geno-ista]

I'm with Big Bird and a few others above- we controlled the entire game. We dominated most of the game. I think it's absurd that Geno tried not to run up the score for any of the reasons outlined above. Why the change from last year's 25 pt game? When we got a big lead, and So Car was having a difficult time scoring, he figured this was the safest path to victory. SC low % shooting and less future possessions ensured victory. Morgan isn't 100%. Butler is not ready for that game yet. If everyone has problems with this game and the "way we won", you may want to consider a "sabbatical" next season!