Any chance of us falling to a two seed?

[Blakeon18]

Slim....imo....but possible. An early loss in the Big East tournament [to Rutgers in the quarters or St. John's in the semis] would be required. A Miami or Duke running the table at this point winning the ACC tourney would be required. If Miami does it, that might increase our chances of falling a notch since we have solidly beaten Duke at their court.

Far more important than getting a 1 or 2 is playing smarter, more carefully [TOs a continuing problem]. We are capable of winning it all but our inconsistency is a tad annoying. Even if we are a two, I would like our chances against anybody but Baylor.

 

[meyers7]

As long as we get to the BE Championship game, I don't think it will be a problem. Although as long as we are in Bridgeport does it matter? We'll either be the lowest #1 or the highest #2. So we would probably (assuming S curve) be playing the same team.

 

[jsloanjr]

Unfortunately, this team is mentally out of it right now. Someone on this team needs to have a team meeting and discuss why they are playing so poorly and make everyone accountable and regroup as a team. My #1 key is Bria, she needs to get her game back to Elite class.......WO Bria, UCONN is in deep trouble this season......Who is the leader now? Between now and Sunday night they need to find 1 voice........

 

[Blakeon18]

We'll be in Bridgeport no matter our seed....it will be a gathering of 1/16 and 8/9.....or 2/15 and 7/10.

 

[S1836]

Unfortunately, this team is mentally out of it right now. Someone on this team needs to have a team meeting and discuss why they are playing so poorly and make everyone accountable and regroup as a team. My #1 key is Bria, she needs to get her game back to Elite class.......WO Bria, UCONN is in deep trouble this season......Who is the leader now? Between now and Sunday night they need to find 1 voice........

In all our losses we were leading and lost it toward the end. Someone has to keep the juice pulsing in those last 10 minutes, along with more offensive bounds & fewer TOs.

 

[HuskyNan]

UConn was a #2 seed in Hartford in 2004, much to Penn State's dismay. I think this year's team mirrors that year's in many ways except for the, you know, Player of the Year candidate on the roster.

 

[MilfordHusky]

If we are in Kingston as a 1 or 2, it should not matter. Unless things really implode, we should be able to beat anyone other than the top 3 with a high probability.

I really don't think we'll win the BE tourney. We can't beat ND. Plus, we may be pi$$ed about losing to SJU, but that seems not to translate into better defense or fewer turnovers. It depends on our state of mind. If we lack smarts and aggressiveness, Rutgers could be a big hurdle, even though we destroyed them last time.

We need to play our best basketball for 40 minutes. I'll take the results if we do that. But we've had 3 games where we competed for about 35 minutes and li
Lost.

 

[UConnChapette]

If we are in Kingston as a 1 or 2, it should not matter. Unless things really implode, we should be able to beat anyone other than the top 3 with a high probability.

I really don't think we'll win the BE tourney. We can't beat ND. Plus, we may be pi$$ed about losing to SJU, but that seems not to translate into better defense or fewer turnovers. It depends on our state of mind. If we lack smarts and aggressiveness, Rutgers could be a big hurdle, even though we destroyed them last time.

We need to play our best basketball for 40 minutes. I'll take the results if we do that. But we've had 3 games where we competed for about 35 minutes and li
Lost.

I disagree. I think we can beat ND. The team just has to relax, play, and believe they can do it. Their self-confidence has taken a beating in the last few weeks. They need to get their heads back in the game. A sports psychologist might be a good idea

I think this teams biggest problem is quite a few of them have forgotten to let the game come to them. Last night Tiffany in particular seemed to be in a hurry to make something happen, make up the point differential in a single possession. As a result, she was careless with the ball, driving into the lane where there was no space. Was she hoping to draw the foul? Can't fault her for that, as it seemed like it works for other teams. But when the ball gets stripped before the contact, that plan goes out the window in a hurry. The high dribble both she and Bria use so often is ripe for pickoffs. I know Tiffany had a great offensive game - points wise. But taking care of the ball was not one of the things she did well last night. Fully one third of our turnovers were attributed to Tiffany. Half between Tiff and Bria. When your primary ball handlers aren't handling the ball well, it is tough to get the offense running.

In addition, Kelly and Caroline need to look to shoot more. The two combined for a total of 3 attempts last night. When you have 5 players on the floor, but only three of them are going to try to shoot, that makes the opponents defensive job so much easier. Dribble drive and dish, or don't settle for the three's move in a little closer and take a 12 or 15 footer. Kelly and Caroline do a lot of good things, but offensively they have become passive. For this team to succeed in the stretch run, they have to become an offensive threat. Even if they don't make the shots, the fact that they will attempt them will force the defense to defend them. If not, UConn will be easy pickens in both the BET and NCAAs.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Chapette, I wish I were so optimistic. We struggle with ND. Sure, we CAN beat them, but we've lost 3 in a row including one with Maya. I'd prefer to avoid then until next year. If someone else can beat them in the BE or NCAA, I'm all for it. I'll take our chances with Baylor or Stanford before I want to see ND again.

 

[huskybill]

It's hard to blame Tif for yesterday's loss. Sure she had 6 turnovers and seemed to play too fast on occasion. But except for Stef, she had little help on the offensive end most of the night. And she had 4 steals. I think yesterday Tif was justified in thinking she had to make things happen.

If any of the ACC big 3 run the table, they will be sitting there with 4 losses. Unless we win the Big East, we'll have 5. I wouldn't want to bet the house on the NCAA making us a one seed under those conditions.

 

[sparky]

Interesting that both the men's and women's teams lack the IT player-Maya & Kemba. They are ships with no rudder. I am conflicted as to why Geno is so hooked on Caroline? Her liabilities far outweigh her abilities and Bria should have been given more opportunities.

 

[HuskyNan]

Interesting that both the men's and women's teams lack the IT player-Maya & Kemba. They are ships with no rudder. I am conflicted as to why Geno is so hooked on Caroline? Her liabilities far outweigh her abilities and Bria should have been given more opportunities.

Geno has said that Caroline stabilizes the team and that she protects the ball well. As for Bria last night, she got two silly fouls early and had to sit.

 

[Sonny44]

I disagree. I think we can beat ND. The team just has to relax, play, and believe they can do it. Their self-confidence has taken a beating in the last few weeks. They need to get their heads back in the game. A sports psychologist might be a good idea

I think this teams biggest problem is quite a few of them have forgotten to let the game come to them. Last night Tiffany in particular seemed to be in a hurry to make something happen, make up the point differential in a single possession. As a result, she was careless with the ball, driving into the lane where there was no space. Was she hoping to draw the foul? Can't fault her for that, as it seemed like it works for other teams. But when the ball gets stripped before the contact, that plan goes out the window in a hurry. The high dribble both she and Bria use so often is ripe for pickoffs. I know Tiffany had a great offensive game - points wise. But taking care of the ball was not one of the things she did well last night. Fully one third of our turnovers were attributed to Tiffany. Half between Tiff and Bria. When your primary ball handlers aren't handling the ball well, it is tough to get the offense running.

In addition, Kelly and Caroline need to look to shoot more. The two combined for a total of 3 attempts last night. When you have 5 players on the floor, but only three of them are going to try to shoot, that makes the opponents defensive job so much easier. Dribble drive and dish, or don't settle for the three's move in a little closer and take a 12 or 15 footer. Kelly and Caroline do a lot of good things, but offensively they have become passive. For this team to succeed in the stretch run, they have to become an offensive threat. Even if they don't make the shots, the fact that they will attempt them will force the defense to defend them. If not, UConn will be easy pickens in both the BET and NCAAs.

Shoot more? Yes, if they score. We had two starters playing most of the game who combined for one point. How far can that take us?

 

[rington]

I disagree. I think we can beat ND. The team just has to relax, play, and believe they can do it. Their self-confidence has taken a beating in the last few weeks. They need to get their heads back in the game. A sports psychologist might be a good idea

I think this teams biggest problem is quite a few of them have forgotten to let the game come to them. Last night Tiffany in particular seemed to be in a hurry to make something happen, make up the point differential in a single possession. As a result, she was careless with the ball, driving into the lane where there was no space. Was she hoping to draw the foul? Can't fault her for that, as it seemed like it works for other teams. But when the ball gets stripped before the contact, that plan goes out the window in a hurry. The high dribble both she and Bria use so often is ripe for pickoffs. I know Tiffany had a great offensive game - points wise. But taking care of the ball was not one of the things she did well last night. Fully one third of our turnovers were attributed to Tiffany. Half between Tiff and Bria. When your primary ball handlers aren't handling the ball well, it is tough to get the offense running.

In addition, Kelly and Caroline need to look to shoot more. The two combined for a total of 3 attempts last night. When you have 5 players on the floor, but only three of them are going to try to shoot, that makes the opponents defensive job so much easier. Dribble drive and dish, or don't settle for the three's move in a little closer and take a 12 or 15 footer. Kelly and Caroline do a lot of good things, but offensively they have become passive. For this team to succeed in the stretch run, they have to become an offensive threat. Even if they don't make the shots, the fact that they will attempt them will force the defense to defend them. If not, UConn will be easy pickens in both the BET and NCAAs.

I like your analysis. However, beating ND is another thing. Sure, it can be done if you play a team several times. It did last year when ND beat us! Right now, I see ND as the National Champs. I think they are better than any team!

 

[Coler]

I really don't think we'll win the BE tourney. We can't beat ND. Plus, we may be pi$$ed about losing to SJU, but that seems not to translate into better defense or fewer turnovers. It depends on our state of mind. If we lack smarts and aggressiveness, Rutgers could be a big hurdle, even though we destroyed them last time.

In our defense we didn't have Rushdan, who really makes our team go, should be a totally different game this time around.

 

[Icebear]

Geno has said that Caroline stabilizes the team and that she protects the ball well. As for Bria last night, she got two silly fouls early and had to sit.

Bria and KML both had two fouls, one played 13 minutes and the other only 7. You are very right, Nan, Geno used Caroline as necessary.

 

[ed4ourgirls]

Even if we end up as a 2 seed, I like our chances of getting to
the final four (unless we're in Baylor's or ND's region). I don't
think Duke, Maryland, or Miami can beat us in Kingston.