Aubrey Griffin, part trois | Page 3 | The Boneyard

Aubrey Griffin, part trois

ShmiCO said:
I spent the first minutes of the game watching the opponent blow by CW on defense, over and over. I pondered whether she was feeling ok.

Then game turned fun when Aubrey came in. Anna too. Both came to play... defense. It matters. ;)

Then came Aubrey's rebounds and her finishing, especially at the free throw line. Of course getting fouled has value on it's own, but it's much more rewarding for me as a fan when a player decides to take back those points from the bully. Kick 'em while they're down, perfectly within the rules.

Great game, and great player in the making. She cares about her whole game.
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After last year I thought Williams would have a terrific sophomore season. So far she has been ok but far from what I anticipated. I don’t know whether she played to much summer ball and is tired or I expected to much. I thought her defense last night was a “D” at best. Those little Seton Hall guards just seemed to leave her in the dust.
 
Sluconn Husky said:
The rest of the perimeter defense outside of Griffin is terrible, and it's a big reason ONO has foul issues as she has to constantly come over to try and alter or block players' shots that get through. I don't know if there's an anecdote to that this season, but PB, Westbrook, and Mclean have to provide that next year. Griffin looks like a potential DPOY contender in the future though.
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Geno commented on this point in his postgame interview, and his diagnosis was the exact opposite of yours. He basically said that UConn made a conscious decision not to guard the 3-point line aggressively in this game, because (a) you have to give up something; (b) Seton Hall had not previously been a good 3-point shooting team; and (c) Liv's interior defense and ability to avoid fouls while playing effective defense is not yet at a level where UConn can afford to be aggressive on the perimeter. If they are aggressive, Liv will have to try to block too many shots and will get into foul trouble.

In other words, in his view the root problem is Liv's present inability to play adequate interior defense without fouling, and that causes the team to have to play more passively on the perimeter than he would prefer.

Last night, Liv committed at least two fouls that she did not need to commit. When she stops doing that, the perimeter defense will become more aggressive. That theory of Geno's makes perfect sense to me.
 
CocoHusky said:
Keep in mind that that new class next year will also likely include Evina. 3 of the 6 players (Paige, Aaliyah & Evina) will contend for a starting spot as Freshmen. Nika is not coming all the way to UCONN to be a spectator and Piath is the only other post presence on a team in which ONO is foul prone. In sum the UCONN rotation of players next year could be as deep as 11 unless someone can tell me who is not going to earn minutes.
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To be honest, I am skeptical about Nika. She has to greatly reduce TO's and improve her outside shots. I see her as a reserve whom may work herself into a level like Saniya by junior year.
 
UConnCat said:
3 of the top 5 are Aubrey's

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Expect a whole lot of this over the next four years. The woman is a seriously legit athlete from an elite athletic family. In my gut, I don't see this an aberration. That said, she is still a freshman who will be plagued with UConn learning curves and the maturity to truly understand her talents, harness them, and use them every night.

I don't want to crown her as the next coming of anything yet; that isn't fair to her. But damn, when she really figures it out...there might be no ceiling. Just my opinion...
 
I really liked her mini double fist pump when her 3rd 3pter went in. Even before game 1 Geno had listed shooting 3's as the things she was "allowed" to do. Her first step is so quick that at 6'1" she will get a lot of good looks.
But I'm not sold on her starting. Put her in when she has a favorable matchup. If ND plays a lot of zone her drives to the hoop might not be easy but zones are vulnerable to offensive rebounders. :rolleyes:
 
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I will make the same comparison I made earlier in the season. She reminds me of Diamond DeShields. The way she drives on a straight line to the basket keeping other players on a hip like a greyhound. She is probably better on the boards than Diamond and there is no reason she cant in her 4 years develop a similar offensive game.
 
I won't be surprised if Aubrey is top 5 in minutes played come tournament time.

In my eyes, Aubrey has more AA "potential" than any of the current UCONN starters. So nobody freaks out, that is meant as a compliment.
 
LoTrader said:
I won't be surprised if Aubrey is top 5 in minutes played come tournament time.

In my eyes, Aubrey has more AA "potential" than any of the current UCONN starters. So nobody freaks out, that is meant as a compliment.
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Meg has the advantage of having a much better outside game so she will always be able to hunt for points and scoring is such an important factor in these AA awards It is not easy finding 20+ points a game hitting the boards and running in transition. Besides, Geno has already ordained Meg an AA :)
 
CocoHusky said:
Keep in mind that that new class next year will also likely include Evina. 3 of the 6 players (Paige, Aaliyah & Evina) will contend for a starting spot as Freshmen. Nika is not coming all the way to UCONN to be a spectator and Piath is the only other post presence on a team in which ONO is foul prone. In sum the UCONN rotation of players next year could be as deep as 11 unless someone can tell me who is not going to earn minutes.
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I can tell you who is not going to earn minutes. The player or players who don't win Geno's trust in practice. If they don't do well in practice they won't get minutes. That's the UConn way.
 
Never watched Griff play until this year so my question.... does she have an outside shot? Or is that a work?
 
JoePgh said:
Geno commented on this point in his postgame interview, and his diagnosis was the exact opposite of yours. He basically said that UConn made a conscious decision not to guard the 3-point line aggressively in this game, because (a) you have to give up something; (b) Seton Hall had not previously been a good 3-point shooting team; and (c) Liv's interior defense and ability to avoid fouls while playing effective defense is not yet at a level where UConn can afford to be aggressive on the perimeter. If they are aggressive, Liv will have to try to block too many shots and will get into foul trouble.

In other words, in his view the root problem is Liv's present inability to play adequate interior defense without fouling, and that causes the team to have to play more passively on the perimeter than he would prefer.

Last night, Liv committed at least two fouls that she did not need to commit. When she stops doing that, the perimeter defense will become more aggressive. That theory of Geno's makes perfect sense to me.
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Aggressive, quality defense would help prevent players from getting into the lane where Nelson-Ododa is forced to contest them. Geno knows that. As far last night's game, I never said anything about strategy with regards to 3-point shooting. The fact remains that the perimeter defense is soft and passive as it has been all year, with the exception of Griffin.
 
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Sluconn Husky said:
Aggressive, quality defense would help prevent players from getting into the lane where Nelson-Ododa is forced to contest them. Geno knows that. As far last night's game, I never said anything about strategy with regards to 3-point shooting. The fact remains that the perimeter defense is soft and passive as it has been all year, with the exception of Griffin.
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What I saw in two viewings of the Seton Hall game was that their 3-point shooters were wide open and got easy looks, which accounted for most of UConn's defensive shortcomings. I did NOT see Seton Hall guards frequently getting into the paint after beating their defender off the dribble. It happened a few times, as it does in every game (and did in previous years as well), but it was not a conspicuous scoring pattern for Seton Hall.

Liv's fouls (all three of them) were dumb. If she had avoided contact, the shooter would have had a difficult shot, and if she missed it, Liv would have been in prime position to grab the rebound. Especially in the first quarter, it makes much more sense to let the difficult shot be taken, since there is no one behind you on the bench who can fill your role. I assume that is why she only got 14 minutes of playing time, because she was making that mistake repeatedly. She was removed for the last time immediately after her third foul, well before the game was decided.

The "soft and passive" perimeter defense this season is (per Geno) an attempt to protect Liv from her own bad habits, since this kind of defense reduces the risk of penetration at the cost of giving up 3-point shot opportunities. And for the most part, it has accomplished that -- penetration by guards has not been a major scoring pattern against UConn this year.
 
JoePgh said:
The "soft and passive" perimeter defense this season is (per Geno) an attempt to protect Liv from her own bad habits, since this kind of defense reduces the risk of penetration at the cost of giving up 3-point shot opportunities. And for the most part, it has accomplished that -- penetration by guards has not been a major scoring pattern against UConn this year.
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I'm sorry, but there is no way that perimeter defense is a strategy. The notion that Geno or any coach doesn't want strong perimeter defense is ridiculous. It's not like UConn sits back in a zone. UConn was trying to stop the threes last night--they were just late covering and re-covering on most of them.
 
Sluconn Husky said:
I'm sorry, but there is no way that perimeter defense is a strategy. The notion that Geno or any coach doesn't want strong perimeter defense is ridiculous. It's not like UConn sits back in a zone. UConn was trying to stop the threes last night--they were just late covering and re-covering on most of them.
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Listen to his interview.
 
DEpup said:
Listen to his interview.
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The best way to prevent penetration and the need for a center to cover for said penetration is to stop the penetration from the start. Geno may have some strategy to make up for poor perimeter defense, but it isn't with additional poor perimeter defense.
 
Having a ball watching Aubrey...the natural. If she can consistently hit 3’s, she’s a revelation.

Meg has become a serious AA...serious as a heart attack. She’s my cookie cutter for an athlete that takes control of her destiny. So many don’t...

Nobody has more upside than Olivia. If she stays on her current arc, she’ll be another revelation. If she gets Meg level serious, well that’s just scary...and cool.

Christyn is a hard read. She is uber talented, and has the ability to take over any game. She’s also a sweet spirit who defers naturally. At some point I see her realizing she can’t wait until the fat’s in the fire to turn it up...I want to be there when it happens.

Danger is a constant...defense, penetration, the 3, b-ball IQ...I hope she’s healthy for the deep tourney run she was made for...

I look at Ania and I see a very dominant player that needs to let the game slow down a bit mentally. I expect her offense to come on strong...unlimited range and finishing ability. Needs to prove she can stay in front of faster players...gets beat off the dribble a bunch.

Kayla assisting and popping 3’s like a natural. She’s a solid contributor now, and I probably don’t appreciate her intangibles. Heady...

Molly...bring it girl, Danger needs you and you can do it.

If our two power forwards can get into the mix, I see one of the most interesting tourney runs we’ve had in years. Edge of your seat stuff...
 
Fairfield Fan said:
So tell me why she isn't the fifth starter against Notre Dame and for the remainder of the season?

Hasn't she earned it now?
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Team chemistry, the need for a defensive stopper of the bench. The need for an offensive spark off the bench. The belief that a freshman needs to see the tone of the game and understand their objectives. The stability of the offensive flow provided by Kyla. AAAAND it is one game. (maybe :))
 
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CocoHusky said:
Keep in mind that that new class next year will also likely include Evina. 3 of the 6 players (Paige, Aaliyah & Evina) will contend for a starting spot as Freshmen. Nika is not coming all the way to UCONN to be a spectator and Piath is the only other post presence on a team in which ONO is foul prone. In sum the UCONN rotation of players next year could be as deep as 11 unless someone can tell me who is not going to earn minutes.
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I don't see Piath getting anything but mop up minutes the first year. at 6'3" and athletic Aaliyah can fill in in the post most times.
 
@Geew1992 it's more of a work in progress. But she hits one from time to time. No real consistency yet though. But the threat of it opens up lanes to drive to the basket.... (A la Gabby).

Which is not a bad thing because she's in good position to rebound if she misses. But her outside shot will come around. And when it does , look out!
 
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Many posters singing praises for Ania..I want to also but I'm not there yet...maybe by March..hopefully
 
bluedevil said:
Many posters singing praises for Ania..I want to also but I'm not there yet...maybe by March..hopefully
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I can see natural and innate ability in Ania, to me she's just going to keep improving her game as she calms down. Love her attitude. Now Aubrey, I'm off the charts happy because she's been my prime focus since she signed. I immediately started watching some of her highlight videos from High School and became enamored with her. Watching these two the remainder of the year (along with the rest of the team of course) should prove to be a delight. :D
 
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