Article About Morgan Tuck

[JoePgh]

Did anyone notice this article about Morgan Tuck in today's links?

http://www.nhregister.com/sports/20141230/morgan-tuck-has-emerged-as-a-leader-for-the-uconn-women

In another article about why UConn plays harder than its opponents, Morgan was also quoted as making a comment about how they have built up a tradition of doing that, and if you don't play hard, you don't play at all. In that same article, Breanna was quoted as saying how she can tell when the other team has given up -- it might happen in the first 5 minutes or in the second half, but she can see it when it happens.

I agree with everything in the article about Morgan's play. What stands out to me is that while she sometimes makes some embarrassing physical errors (dribbling off her foot or dropping a pass in the paint), I have hardly ever seen her make a mental error or a bad decision during a game. I think her decision against Duke not to pass to Kiah when she was alone under the basket was possibly deliberate -- she didn't have faith in Kiah's ability to make the layup. But even if I'm wrong and that was a brain freeze, it is one of the very few all season. She always seems to be in the right place, making the right play. And she has a ton of moves to score around bigger players in the paint.

Now if you could combine her offense with Kiah's defense, you would really have something (maybe known as Tina Charles?).

 

[mysticmajor]

I don't believe that they ignore an open person because of fear that they won't finish the shot. Kiah can hit those shots and I think the team is coached to pass to the open person. I heard a coach earlier in the year say that they make plays in practice first , then they making them in live games. I wondered if this was what was going on with Moriah. She put a lot of work in to up her offensive game and it just took time to reflect in live games. IMO they are progressing in getting the ball into the correct person at the correct time, but they are a work in progress.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Joe, I don't think that even Tina was as good a defender as Kiah, but I like your hybrid player a lot.

As for Morgan, she's simply a complete player. And she was ranked ahead of Stewie 6 years ago. If Morgan wins 5 NCs, she will stand ALONE.

 

[DobbsRover2]

Interesting how the shot-blocking dynamic has changed with Stef gone. This year Kiah is blocking them at a 3.7 bpg pace that is second in UConn history only to Lobo's junior year 1993-94 pace of just about 4. But last year it was Stewie who led the team with 110 as she cleaned up on anyone trying to shoot around Stef, who had the second most at 93, 4 more than Kiah who had by far the highest rate of blocks per minute.

This year Stewie has relatively few blocks at about half the rate of last year, while Kiah has played Godzilla smacking the orb at about 1 every 5 minutes as opposed to last year when it was about 1 every 8 minutes. For almost half of every game, you're entering the Painted Desert and your bucket is dry if you go up against the UConn Terror.

 

[MilfordHusky]

I like that Dobbs--the paint is the Painted Desert!

 

[Geno-ista]

In the article, I love how she stated that they obviously respect and listen to the seniors, regardless of who emerges as the team leader/s. She is as complete a person as she is a complete player. Even her freshman year in March and April. When Stef was dealing with foot stress fracture issues- the offense ran like a clock when she was in. She facilitates offense. They either do or they don't. Even when she was making those instinctive offensive moves to the hoop- and didn't finish or took a few charges. She was attempting to make good solid plays. She's a winner in every spence of the word.

 

[ChicagoGG]

I am thankful that we get the rest of this season - and two more - to appreciate Morgan Tuck. I think when all is said and done, if her knees hold up,she will be on the Gampel Wall of Honor. At some point, and I hope sooner rather than later, she will be an All American. In Morgan, I trust.