Banks should get more PT

[earl the pearl]

Think we could be much better if Banks got more playing time, she deserves it. Although I love CD's spunk and leadership, Banks is so much better.

 

[sTu]

Have you attended a practice and watched Banks play with other players for three hours and compared the players' overall effectiveness with Banks vs. Doty? I have and I would choose Doty without hesitation.

 

[earl the pearl]

Have you attended a practice and watched Banks play with other players for three hours and compared the players' overall effectiveness with Banks vs. Doty? I have and I would choose Doty without hesitation.

No haven't seen a Husky practice. My observation is from watching the games this year. Obvious Banks is much quicker, better going to the basket and has been shooting the three as well if not better. Are you saying Banks has a bad attitude?

 

[EricLA]

Banks is a terrific player and most improved this year. But Caroline is a 5th year senior and has a more steadying influence on the team when she's running the point. Also, if you go back and watch the Stanford game and pay attention to Caroline, she was everywhere, and not in a spastic way.

She was in passing lanes, diving to the floor for loose balls, and being really disruptive to Stanford's offense. Yes Caroline is limited by her repaired knees, but while not as athletic as Brianna, I see her as a superior floor general. Brianna's time will come.

I've not seen any practices, but I am with Stu on this one. I spoke with my father over the weekend about the game, and the player near the top of his list of most impressive was Caroline. Not saying that means anything, but like Kelly in the past when she wasn't scoring, Caroline is doing things that don't show up on the stat sheet...

 

[sTu]

Are you saying Banks has a bad attitude?[/quote]


Absolutely NO to the attitude and that does not come from me. The offense runs smoother with CD-people going to the right spots, less turnovers.

 

[ThisJustIn]

They play totally different roles, and how mipuch they play will depend on the moment, the game and the needs of the team. Oddly enough, three are times whenyou earn your minutes, but those minutes don't suit the moment.

 

[CL82]

I expect that her minutes this year will vary depending on match ups. Playing at UConn almost always means sacrificing playing time. That's just how it is. Brianna's time will come. I'd expect her role to dramatically increase next year.

 

[Wbbfan1]

Next year, it wouldn't surprise me if Banks is not starting when CD graduates. Starting guards will be Bria and Brianna, won't the announcers have fun. IMHO Starting lineup will be Dolson, Stewart, KML, Banks and Hartley. However, I agree I would like to see her game more minutes and I suspect she will as Geno tries to limit minutes the starters play and get more experience for everyone else on the team.

 

[UConnCat]

I think Brianna's minutes will increase in big games based on her performance against Stanford. For Geno, it's about trusting players in certain situations. Brianna showed she can play well against ranked teams on the road. She hadn't showed that yet. This is what Geno had to say:

“I thought (Banks) gave us some good minutes. You can’t go from not playing at all last year in these kind of game to all of a sudden thinking that you’re going to be able to do a lot more than she did (Saturday). But just the fact that she looked a little bit comfortable out there and contributed I think that makes her feel better. And Stewie, that first half she came out and was like gangbusters. Then in the second half she kind of disappeared a little bit. So even in games like this you start to see things that are going to help these young guys because they’re only going to get better. It’s not like they’re going to get any worse from this. So I was happy with all those guys.’’

Her teammates echoed Geno's comments (he probably said it to them!). The Stanford game should be another confidence booster for Banks.

 

[Icebear]

Banks is a terrific player and most improved this year. But Caroline is a 5th year senior and has a more steadying influence on the team when she's running the point. Also, if you go back and watch the Stanford game and pay attention to Caroline, she was everywhere, and not in a spastic way.

She was in passing lanes, diving to the floor for loose balls, and being really disruptive to Stanford's offense. Yes Caroline is limited by her repaired knees, but while not as athletic as Brianna, I see her as a superior floor general. Brianna's time will come.

I've not seen any practices, but I am with Stu on this one. I spoke with my father over the weekend about the game, and the player near the top of his list of most impressive was Caroline. Not saying that means anything, but like Kelly in the past when she wasn't scoring, Caroline is doing things that don't show up on the stat sheet...

Your dad's eyes are still good, Eric. Caroline had an excellent game doing everything except what shows up on a stat sheet.

 

[JoePgh]

There is no question that Brianna has more athleticism than Caroline (not sure that would be true if Caroline had never been injured). But against an opponent such as Stanford, decision-making counts as much or more than sheer athleticism.

Brianna made an initial appearance rather late in the first half, and only stayed on the floor for a couple of minutes. Although I did not notice anything specific, I have to believe that the coaches noted some poor decision-making or saw her not executing the game plan. She came right out again, until the second half when she did do some scoring and made that great backcourt steal and assist to Kelly.

Remember in the first Baylor game in Hartford that UConn won by one point? In that game, which was one of freshman Bria Hartley's first games, Geno commented afterwards that if Caroline had been available (she was not, due to injury), a lot of Bria's freshman mistakes in defending Sims could have been avoided, and Bria could still have been available for her shooting at the end of the game. I think the same thing applies in this case.

 

[OneTrickPony]

It's tempting to want to see Brianna with more minutes because she is so athletically gifted...but the mental aspects are so important in these big games that Caroline...even the slowed down version...was a big factor in our fast start. We haven't talked much about it, but the Stanford players looked incredibly tight in this game...Kokenis missing everything with her first free throw and passing off from the key when her defender fell down were two of the most obvious tells, but all of the clanged shots and passed up shots from normally excellent shooters when open briefly were consistent throughout the game. Stanford just didn't seem to be able to shake off the first big punches of the fight...something a Caroline Doty, a Kelly Faris et al can do...remain the calm in the eye of the storm. Brianna just got a little baptism with that fire...and looked great in the audition, too!

 

[pppggg]

I think Geno would do what's best for the team-like CD starting and Stewie coming off the bench as the 6th man. He tried it the other way and didn't like what he saw.

And the worst thing a coach could do is have a player earn more playing time and not get it. You lose the player's respect. So I think Geno is handling Banks just the way he wants to and I bet Banks knows exactly where she stands in that regard.

One more thing, as a mechanical engineer, I never tell an electrical engineer how to do his or her job. I figure they know more about it than I do, if you get my point.

 

[earl the pearl]

I think Geno would do what's best for the team-like CD starting and Stewie coming off the bench as the 6th man. He tried it the other way and didn't like what he saw.

And the worst thing a coach could do is have a player earn more playing time and not get it. You lose the player's respect. So I think Geno is handling Banks just the way he wants to and I bet Banks knows exactly where she stands in that regard.

One more thing, as a mechanical engineer, I never tell an electrical engineer how to do his or her job. I figure they know more about it than I do, if you get my point.

I guess you never question anyone about anything except electrical engineering because they know more about it than you, if you get my point.

 

[pppggg]

I guess you never question anyone about anything except electrical engineering because they know more about it than you, if you get my point.

a really igrnorant response. I will question an expert becuase he knows the an answer to somethiong I don't know. So when the expert answers my question, I figure he know what they are talking about and when they do or same something, it is usually for a well thought out reason. They don't run their mouths about things they don't know about becasue then they lose credibility. At least that's how it is where I work and that' s why we pay them 6 figure salaries.

Kind of like Geno knowning more about BB than anyone on the forum. When he plays or doesn't play a girl, I figure he knows more about it than I do and there must be a reason for it. That's why he makes 7 figures a year.

Does Geno strike you as a man who does something for the heck of it?

 

[HuskyNan]

CD has 6 points, 7 assists, 9 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks and only one TO at the end of the first half vs Oregon. Brianna is also playing as Bria is having a tough game. However, the youngstars seem to have deer-in-the-headlightitis (starting to hit the wall?) and the upperclassmen are stepping up to compensate.

As TJI said, each player has her role. Brianna is, at this point, a valuable role player. Her day to be the star will come.

 

[earl the pearl]

a really igrnorant response. I will question an expert becuase he knows the an answer to somethiong I don't know. So when the expert answers my question, I figure he know what they are talking about and when they do or same something, it is usually for a well thought out reason. They don't run their mouths about things they don't know about becasue then they lose credibility. At least that's how it is where I work and that' s why we pay them 6 figure salaries.

Kind of like Geno knowning more about BB than anyone on the forum. When he plays or doesn't play a girl, I figure he knows more about it than I do and there must be a reason for it. That's why he makes 7 figures a year.

Does Geno strike you as a man who does something for the heck of it?

Kind of fixated on the salary thing, eh. And you might want to correct your cute "Never put off until tomorrow" ending

If we didn't express our opinions and just agreed with everything about the UConn women, there wouldn't be a Boneyard.

 

[herbiep]

Think we could be much better if Banks got more playing time, she deserves it. Although I love CD's spunk and leadership, Banks is so much better.

Did you check out the game today (Oregon), Doty 14 pts, 12 rebounds and 7 asst.. Gotta go with experience and quality.

 

[earl the pearl]

Did you check out the game today (Oregon), Doty 14 pts, 12 rebounds and 7 asst.. Gotta go with experience and quality.

I surrender!

 

[ThisJustIn]

It's not just about expressing opinions (though it's amusing to see how often that develops into a pi$$ing match instead of a discussion). It's about occassionaly responding to the observations in the responses.

You said BB deserved more time (taking away from Doty) because the was quicker and shooting the three better. As of the last game (before Oregon), Banks was already averaging more minutes that Doty. So, considering what people have countered with, what is your counter and/or response. Do you agree with anyone's points?

 

[earl the pearl]

It's not just about expressing opinions (though it's amusing to see how often that develops into a pi$$ing match instead of a discussion). It's about occassionaly responding to the observations in the responses.

You said BB deserved more time (taking away from Doty) because the was quicker and shooting the three better. As of the last game (before Oregon), Banks was already averaging more minutes that Doty. So, considering what people have countered with, what is your counter and/or response. Do you agree with anyone's points?

My original post stated how much I admire Doty's spunk and leadership. I love CD, just think Banks gives us a better chance to win it all. We will be facing some very good guards and fast guards go right by Doty. I didn't mean to stir things up, was just making a comment. I apologize to all Doty fans!

 

[Blueballer]

I would think if the matchups dictate the use of Banks she will play a lot. Also if (God forbid) there is an injury to someone.

 

[ThisJustIn]

My original post stated how much I admire Doty's spunk and leadership. I love CD, just think Banks gives us a better chance to win it all. We will be facing some very good guards and fast guards go right by Doty. I didn't mean to stir things up, was just making a comment. I apologize to all Doty fans!

Again, they play two diff roles. Do you see BB spelling Hartley at the point guard position?

 

[earl the pearl]

Again, they play two diff roles. Do you see BB spelling Hartley at the point guard position?

I think BB is a 2 guard so I don't think she will spell Hartley. I am thrilled with our team and the options we have. Most people would love to have our "problems".

 

[HuskyNan]

I think BB is a 2 guard so I don't think she will spell Hartley. I am thrilled with our team and the options we have. Most people would love to have our "problems".

Bria has also been spending a lot of time at the 2, hence Caroline at the point. However, Bria, Caroline and Brianna are all interchangeable in that they can play either guard position. Geno loves versatile players.