Another Star Is Born! Badass Award vs. Baylor. . .

[Kibitzer]

No argument on anointing Crystal with her first of what will be many badass honors. Respectfully, I would suggest that team defense, which ultimately secured this amazing victory, ought to be recognized (has D ever gotten a badass award?). Baylor was fortunate to break 60, and the unrelenting aggression of our defenders took the starch completely out of the Bears.

Point well made. I vaguely recall that we gave one Badass Award to either "Team D" or "The Bench." Certainly worth considering but the bar can't be higher than 50.

 

[cferraro04]

One thing that should also be mentioned was Crystal's stellar defense on Alexis Jones...yeah...Jones scored 20 points and pretty much executed her jump shots by simply jumping over Crystal...however, Jones did not blow by Crystal... Crystal did a great job keeping Jones in front of her.

 

[DaddyChoc]

We have Crystal... and they don't!

 

[UConnNick]

Rodney just lost top billing on the last name Dangerfield.

I can see why he never got any respect.

I think Baylor gave her zero respect, to their extreme detriment. Either that, or she was such a nightmare matchup for them they had nobody who could guard her. If the No. 2 team in the country has nobody that can guard her, who does?

She could play for the Globetrotters right now.

 

[UcMiami]

OK ...No issue Kib with your first two badass awards - Napheesa and Crystal earned them fair and square, but ... I am going to make a special pleading. We have played two games, and in both games our 'big four' have let the side down with early and frequent fouls, and there is a secret weapon Geno has on his bench who has come in and performed brilliantly in both games - she is a player who is too slow, and 'disappointed' everyone last year, but has been the key to Uconn's current 2-0 record this year. She is only averaging 3.5 points in her 21.5 minutes per game, but has 12 rebounds and has played really good defense while committing only one foul in 43 total minutes. Uconn runs on its defense and she has been a key to that side of the ball. I know badass is for amazing performance, and she is maybe too blue color for such a lofty award, but in someways 'badass' is all about blue color.

I nominate the Butler for special consideration - she is just cleaning up the messes created by the foul crazy sports cars in the starting line-up! She is busting her butt out there.

 

[Eskapeesto]

Whoever creates her first highlight video must include this audio:

 

[Eskapeesto]

 

[willingtonfan]

I had a sneaky feeling she might have a good game tonight when....

During the radio pregame show, Bob Joyce talked to the radio play-by-play person (read his opposite number) for Baylor women's basketball. He asked if he expected any surprises in tonight's game, and the guest said, "Well, it will be interesting to see how Baylor covers your freshman point guard, Dangerfield. Kim Mulkey at her press conference the other night [after beating UCLA] when asked about this game told the assembled press that they had NO scouting report on Crystal Dangerfield. So we have no idea what to expect." (Emphasis mine.)

I don't know if the coaching staff had been informed of these comments or not (which were not "locker room material" -- she was not criticizing UConn, it was simply probably a statement of reality), but they certainly gave Dangerfield a chance to show what she could do, and boy did she ever!

 

[JavaMan]

Rodney just lost top billing on the last name Dangerfield.

I can see why he never got any respect.

Well, he doesn't deserve top billing anyway, because by his own admission, "I looked up my family tree and found out that I was the sap."

​

 

[Shorty Dee]

I don't know how I missed it, and no one else has mentioned it. In the 4th quarter at the 1:45 mark, Crystal did a move that broke Kristy Wallace ankles, it was a sweet move.

 

[Sonny44]

She's a freshman. She's going to have ups and downs. Last week in practice she was down. Tonight she was up. If she's going to be down this week, hopefully it's tomorrow and Saturday, and then she can be up for Sunday. It's too early to say if she is as good as Mo who just won four national championships. I get the excitement, but it's way too early, although I think it's going to be hard to not make her the starting point guard so that Kia can stick with playing the two spot.

Sure she's going to have ups and downs.
Sophs are going to have ups and downs.
Juniors are going to have ups and downs.
Seniors are going to have ups and downs.

I grow weary of these and other disclaimers (good as Mo?) regarding Crystal Dangerfield.
Those who saw last night's game and cannot clearly see what we have in her really need to have a vision check or at least their glasses cleaned.

 

[Suebird10fan]

Sure she's going to have ups and downs.
Sophs are going to have ups and downs.
Juniors are going to have ups and downs.
Seniors are going to have ups and downs.

I grow weary of these and other disclaimers (good as Mo?) regarding Crystal Dangerfield.
Those who saw last night's game and cannot clearly see what we have in her really need to have a vision check or at least their glasses cleaned.

There have been some comments re Crystal Dangerfield that strike me as too much, too soon. But on the whole I'm with you Sonny.

I haven't seen every game in UConn WCBB history. However, I would venture to say that outside of Maya Moore, this was the best performance ever by a freshman in November. And I doubt there are more than four or five players in UConn WCBB history who have played a better game as a freshman period. Breanna (NC game), Maya (many games), DT (I'm assuming though I don't have a specific recollection). After that, the pickings get slim. Just a really, really, really impressive performance. The future is hard to predict but it looks pretty damned good.

 

[UcMiami]

Suebird10fan - you forget how fast Stewart was out of the gates - her first ten games as a freshman were pretty amazing, and then it all came crashing down. She broke Moore's freshman scoring record for the first ten games as i recall.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Suebird10fan - you forget how fast Stewart was out of the gates - her first ten games as a freshman were pretty amazing, and then it all came crashing down. She broke Moore's freshman scoring record for the first ten games as i recall.

169 points in the first 10 games by Stewie surpassed Magnificent Maya's record.

 

[Kibitzer]

And I doubt there are more than four or five players in UConn WCBB history who have played a better game as a freshman period.

Add Nicole Wolff to your short list. IIRC, she dropped 18 points very early -- maybe first game -- as a freshman.