After game (Oakland) thoughts.

[Kibitzer]

Count Lefty Banks as a member of the rotation.

I hope Kiah and Morgan get well very soon. I would hate to see such fine players get "Wally Pipped."

If you took Oakland and 71 points. you lost! Get some satisfaction in knowing that you lost your bet to an idiot -- no one in their right mind would give that many points.

We know Kaleena can shoot treys. But have you noticed how many garbage points she gets? (She sneaks in close for a missed shot, rebound plops into her waiting hands, quick putback for an easy deuce.)

Or (Kaleena again) how hard she works on defense? She seemed to be in on every loose-ball tie-up.

Breanna did not play all five positions, but when Dolson was in, she guarded guards and knocked down perimeter shots. When Dolson took a break, she played "D" by the basket andplayed with her back to the basket on offense.

I can almost hear the Oakland coach: "Look! They are up by 65 and still diving on the floor for loose balls! Let's learn from that!"

Great to see Husky Bill back and in mid-season form.

 

[ThisJustIn]

Bill looks ready for Christmas!

 

[meyers7]

Count Lefty Banks as a member of the rotation.

I think she has been for awhile. She's really looking comfortable out there. Almost picking and choosing when she wants to score.

I hope Kiah and Morgan get well very soon. I would hate to see such fine players get "Wally Pipped."

Don't think they can be. They don't start and I doubt Buck is going to move ahead of them in the rotation.

We know Kaleena can shoot treys. But have you noticed how many garbage points she gets? (She sneaks in close for a missed shot, rebound plops into her waiting hands, quick putback for an easy deuce.)

Or (Kaleena again) how hard she works on defense? She seemed to be in on every loose-ball tie-up.

Yea as has been noted by BYs and by Geno and staff, she came back this year wanting to expand her game. She's becoming a real all-around player. And she's got a good 2.5 more years to improve.

One thought you didn't have, Hartley looks like she is getting back into form. This is going to make UCONN really dangerous.

 

[Kibitzer]

To paraphrase Strother Martin's famous comment, "What we have here is a classic case of inverted communication!"

Meyers has proven to be the quintessential kibitzer, here and elsewhere on this board. As for me, I started this thread, an act that would never be undertaken by a true kibitzer, since a vital characteristic of this species is that they are devoid of original thoughts.

Now, let me get back to kibitzing. I did not mention Hartley because her return to form -- however welcome -- was so obvious that it was unworthy of comment. Sort of like saying, "UConn demolished an overmatched Oakland team, 97-25. Oy vey!"

 

[meyers7]

To paraphrase Strother Martin's famous comment, "What we have here is a classic case of inverted communication!"

Captain, my Captain.

Meyers has proven to be the quintessential kibitzer, here and elsewhere on this board.

hmmm, is that good or bad???

Now, let me get back to kibitzing. I did not mention Hartley because her return to form -- however welcome -- was so obvious that it was unworthy of comment. Sort of like saying, "UConn demolished an overmatched Oakland team, 97-25. Oy vey!"

Or like saying "Count Lefty Banks as a member of the rotation."

 

[MilfordHusky]

Kaleena wears #23 and knows that her predecessor played harder than anyone else. She has lofty goals and expectations. And performances.

 

[Tonyc]

KML and Bria hitting outside shots is a nitemare for any opponet. They will open things up for everybody else. If Caroline and Kelly are hitting open shots because of them it will open up the middle. This is the point we need to maintain againest top teams. We do that and we cant lose. When were at this point we force teams to play one on one defense and thats very difficult to do when were on. We are just too deep.

 

[ctfjr]

Yeah, it sure was a good scrimmage. . . I'm not sure I agree with one of the knowledgeable announcers who stated the Oakland coach and team will atke a lot away from this game & learn from it. When you take such an kicking exactly what do take away (besides some bruises and the knowledge you are no where near the other team's abilitiies)?

 

[sarals24]

Well, I coach a 6th grade team, and we played in an 8th grade tournament this weekend. We lost because the other teams were bigger and stronger and more experienced, but they also played harder than they had all season and weren't at all discouraged by losing. I saw a lot to gain from losing by 20 points (which is the NCAA equivalent of losing by 70 ) Oakland can look at the game film and take away a few positives, and it will make their league games seem that much easier

I say good for them for taking on UConn. Not all programs (even those in the top 10) will do that.

 

[JoePgh]

Did anyone notice that 40 of UConn's 81 shots against Oakland were 3-pointers, and that they made only 12 of those 40 shots (30%)? Is anyone concerned about that (as I am)?

The other side of that coin is that Stef was not exactly scoring in bundles in the game even before she got injured -- against a team without any real height. Not a balanced offensive output.

Despite the score, not all was good last night.

 

[vtcwbuff]

Did anyone notice that 40 of UConn's 81 shots against Oakland were 3-pointers, and that they made only 12 of those 40 shots (30%)? Is anyone concerned about that (as I am)?

The other side of that coin is that Stef was not exactly scoring in bundles in the game even before she got injured -- against a team without any real height. Not a balanced offensive output.

Despite the score, not all was good last night.

Joe, In games like these ,where overmatched is an understatement , I think the coaching staff recognizes that certain things are a given and they adjust their game plan accordingly. In this case Dolson probably could have put up 30 but there was little to gain from that so they decided to focus on the guards.

I also noticed all the missed 3's but actually the starters didn't do all that bad (except Faris - where did her shot go?). I think Jefferson and Stewart were 0 for 80, or something close to that, and it skewed the shooting percentage a bit.

 

[Bigpetunia]

For Breanna, this game was a reversion to many similar contests she experienced as a high-schooler, where her relative size and range permitted her to dominate. Unfortunately, we have upcoming games wherein she will be required to develop a whole lot more physicality and aggressiveness to be successful. This will come in time, but probably not this early in her career. I think we have to temper our expectations until she is more seasoned, and maybe more bulked up....not likely this year.

 

[magical2]

For Breanna, this game was a reversion to many similar contests she experienced as a high-schooler, where her relative size and range permitted her to dominate. Unfortunately, we have upcoming games wherein she will be required to develop a whole lot more physicality and aggressiveness to be successful. This will come in time, but probably not this early in her career. I think we have to temper our expectations until she is more seasoned, and maybe more bulked up....not likely this year.

Though we expected Stewie to put up double/doubles every game and dominate everyone She is leading the team
as a FR in scoring and rebounds! Yes physically she will have to wait till the off season to gain weight/strength/etal
I do expect her to progress as the season goes on!
Ira

 

[doggydaddy]

Did anyone notice that 40 of UConn's 81 shots against Oakland were 3-pointers, and that they made only 12 of those 40 shots (30%)? Is anyone concerned about that (as I am)?

The other side of that coin is that Stef was not exactly scoring in bundles in the game even before she got injured -- against a team without any real height. Not a balanced offensive output.

Despite the score, not all was good last night.

It was a tale of two halves and after building a 49 point first half lead, the team had less focus in the 2nd half. It happens all the time and is nothing to be concerned about.

They shot 9-18 on 3's in the 1st half and 3-22 in the 2nd half.

They shot 16-20 on 2's in the 1st half and 13-21 on 2's in the 2nd half.

Uconn had 56 rebounds to 26 for Oakland and UConn blocked 8 shots. They dominated due to their height.

And Stef, with her normal minutes would have scored 14 points and had 9 rebounds.

Not much to complain about this game.

 

[Husky68]

Did anyone notice that 40 of UConn's 81 shots against Oakland were 3-pointers, and that they made only 12 of those 40 shots (30%)? Is anyone concerned about that (as I am)?

The other side of that coin is that Stef was not exactly scoring in bundles in the game even before she got injured -- against a team without any real height. Not a balanced offensive output.

Despite the score, not all was good last night.

Yeh, lot of bad to worry about.

 

[Wonkster]

Count Lefty Banks as a member of the rotation ...

Count Lefty Banks: "One putback, ah-ha-ha! Two layups,
ah-ha-ha!! Three finger-rolls, ah-ha-ha!!! Four treys and
five foul shots, ah-ha-haa!!!!!"