Ball St Postgame Thread

[TCC Kid]

The substitution of Ashlynn Shade for Aubrey Griffin was unexpected. But, look at the results the freshman came up with 17 points...however, her freshman status showed up in the box score...uneventful with regards to assists, steals, and rebounds.

Meanwhile, Aubrey comes off the bench and has a very good game...14 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 steal.

Paige only played 21 minutes but, despite committing 2 fouls in the first 2 minutes of the game, she filled the stat sheet: 15 minutes; 2/3 from 3 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 1 block.

Aaliyah did not disappoint...she got a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds.

Ice Brady...not bad: 4 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal.

KK...needs to take care of the basketball better...4 turnovers aren't horrific but if she is going to have the ball in her hands she needs to make good decisions.

I had this game at 96 to 52...I expected a better offensive output from UConn than what we have been seeing from them lately. 90 points is a good sign for the future...but, scoring 37 in the first quarter and only averaging 20 per quarter after that is an example that UConn has difficulty sustaining their energy and aggressiveness for the entire game. This is something we have to work on as we move towards March.

I did not expect Ball State to put up 63 an accomplishment that is even more impressive given their top scorer went down in the first half with a twisted ankle and did not return for the rest of the game.

Great story-line for the Muhl family to come to America to see their daughters play against each other...to have their niece join them for the game and to see all fans showing their support for Nika and Hana by waving Croatian Flags during the game.

The FRESHMEN and recovering Sophs--deserver lots of credit. KK attacks the basket like no one we've seen since Montgomery. This is what her 3rd or 4th Division one game? I wish I learned that quickly, or had KK's talent. Q and Ashlynn have the heart of lions and they score. That is exactly what this team needs--consistent shooters willing to shoot.
Geno in the early days was unique in that he expected shooters to shoot even when they missed 4 or 5. Knowing shooters eventually make up for the misses.

 

[TCC Kid]

I think it has been tried.

I would expect, after 2 years, Geno et al knows what she'll do in any game. But for DeBerrys Psyche, it would be nice, in big leads, to see her in a few games.

 

[boscolino]

As I already said,all that simple:
1- whether she still suffers of some injury
2 - or she is not a good baskeball player.

 

[Hedge]

Last night I went to see the South Carolina v Morgan State in person then watched MJL243's replay this morning.
We left the arena with South Carolina up by 57 at the end of the third. I was very impressed with their size, speed and style of play. I was feeling a bit of doom and gloom for UConn's season.
This morning watching the replay I was surprisingly happy. I realized I'm excited to see how the freshmen will develop. It'll be interesting to see how Paige integrates with the team as the players start to develop chemistry. Just as much, I'm intrigued with how Geno and the coaching staff try to figure this out. Even if it isn't successful I'm going to enjoy the journey
I guess this is a roundabout way of saying my perspective is changing. More than winning and losing; this season I'll be happy to be watching a group of young women I admire and like strive to improve, develop chemistry with each other, and figure out a very unusual situation. Nika's "homecoming", Azzi's family supporting her and the team and Evina during the pandemic are the things that keep me coming back

 

[Lynx23]

I am late to the party and missed most of the thread. But...

-the 37 point first was vintage UConn of old.
-Ball State is well coached and will win a lot of MAC games. Losing their top scorer early was killer.
-Great night for the Muhls. Hana played well and gets the title as the youngest looking college player ever.
-Aaliyah is backing off taking that 15 footer. Would help a lot if she could shoot and make a decent percentage of those.
-maybe the reason for Aubrey's inconsistency is her health. Another ball that Geno has to juggle...
-Count me among those who thought Ashlyn would have limited minutes. Injuries allowed her opportunity and she is talented enough to take full advantage.
-KK has a great pull up mid-range jumper. Just wish she would shoot it more.
-Geno is being unusually patient with his freshmen. Just can't imagine how Amari and Ines are in practice because they continue to get no run at all.
-Never imagined that I would see Paige playing a 4 in a UConn uniform.
-Not seeing Azzi and Carol on the bench makes me sad.

LOU!

 

[ABCDFE]

Just watched the game. W me are a work in progress, but I liked what I saw from A. Shade. She didn’t take any bad shots, and hope more of her 3s fall as the season goes on, but this gives the team another mid range and 3 or threat in addition to Paige and Q.

Way too many bad turnovers and I thought our defense was poor for many stretches in the game. KK played poorly for her standards. She needs to attack and or pull up close to the hoop. This will collapse defense and will allow her to kick out to open shooters or find a post player for a layup.

Ice needs to work the ball down in the blocks, she is too much of a shooter right now with no inside presence. We need her to contribute down low otherwise Aedwards is going to hane a tough time in the post with multiple defenders on her.

Opponents game plan will be to deny Paige and to collapse on AEdwards. Others will need to provide that scoring ability on a consistent basis

 

[Mandoo]

Fun game watching Shade do her thing and UConn looking more like a team in the hunt....I'm a little concerned about Paige: She took 7 shots and played well, but if you compare her Freshman season to this one, you will see two different players. Could be she is still on her way back, we'll see. I would like to see Amari get big minutes against not so good teams to find out if she is able to be a good post player, too much height not to give it a try.

Paige has a very different supporting cast compared to her nonpareil freshman season. Duplication or even approaching that season with today's supporting cast is virtually impossible. Still time to get in the groove and excel, but........

 

[Dynastic]

All this reminds me of how frickin' amazing the 2003 championship was....

So true, so amazing… no NIL or transfer portal like today. So nutty.

 

[Florida Fan]

Geno rolls out his 6th different starting lineup in 8 games, inserting both KK and Ashlynn along with the 3 seniors. A couple thoughts.

• The small lineup that UConn went with today played with great energy to start the game. Clearly all 3 freshmen are under orders to be AGGRESSIVE on offense. I doubt Geno can go small against everybody. But against a good mid-major team, the small lineup worked well to start off the game.
• Aubrey has not been giving Geno the production he needs as a starter. The solution, have Aubrey come off the bench where she almost always provides instant energy. Aubrey was exceptionally productive tonight.
• OK, who had Hanna to outscore her big sister tonight?
• Geno used this game to do a lot of mixing and matching while giving all his young players PT. They are making plays, and they are making mistakes. But the most important thing is that they are gaining game experience that will hopefully pay big dividends down the road.

Have to agree with all this, BUT Aubrey has to get a pullup jumper or the bigger defenses will sag off her, daring her to shoot or set up a brick wall into which (we've seen this) she will risk serious injury.

 

[oldude]

Have to agree with all this, BUT Aubrey has to get a pullup jumper or the bigger defenses will sag off her, daring her to shoot or set up a brick wall into which (we've seen this) she will risk serious injury.

Aubrey is in her 5th year at UConn. I don’t think we’re going to see some miraculous development of a midrange jumper at this point in her career. As far as injury is concerned, I’m not particularly worried. Aubrey’s lower back surgery has been a success and she is probably the fittest she’s ever been.

 

[Tonyc]

It’s somewhat ugly because Geno told them to play the way they did in high school. This is to simplify things for the young players for now. The freshmen are still learning.

People need to be patient while the team evolves because it’s going to be a long process. Expecting the players as they are today to look like the UConn teams we’ve seen in the past is unrealistic.

I would think that what Geno is saying play your game and we will tweek you as we move forward. Shade can create her own shot which is huge for this team because she bring us another scorer. Q is a 3 pt threat. Both will help this team tremendously.

 

[RoadMaster]

 

[RoadMaster]

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