Batouly making progress

[RockyMTblue2]

At one point Batouly made a move to the basket from the foul line and I did a double take - though it was Meg; smooth as butter. Very happy to see her free of the brace and Doing It.

 

[Goodgood]

One of the reasons Lou loves Touly is that she gets to play with a real enforcer. While I was excited about Touly's play yesterday, my favorite play of hers occurred during the recent game at UCF. UCF was playing their physical style of play, roughing up several of UConn's key players. In the 4th qtr, with Touly in the game, one of the UCF players attempted to drive the lane. Touly layed her on her back with a hard foul that caused me to smile from ear to ear.

That is what I was looking for. The past couple of teams were extraordinary good, but they were missing an ingredient. Real toughness, street toughness. Don't get me wrong, they were tough enough. They were "nice" tough. That means that they would respond, not initiate. Touly brings it all the time. I think Geno sees that and don't be surprised to see her in the rotation soon.

 

[bags27]

Would really like to know how her knee is, whether it's getting back to full use, or whether she is permanently hobbled. Of course, we all hope for full recovery. But UConn isn't explaining anything.

Watched her in practice last Friday, and I can assure you she's fully recovered. She ran the court as aggressively as anyone (Lou and Crystal did not take part in full-court drills). She cut well. Shot fantastic. She is ready to rumble.

 

[Bascomfan]

Watched her in practice last Friday, and I can assure you she's fully recovered. She ran the court as aggressively as anyone (Lou and Crystal did not take part in full-court drills). She cut well. Shot fantastic. She is ready to rumble.

I am VERY optimistic about this. Sounds like good news to me.

 

[Crossover]

Watched her in practice last Friday, and I can assure you she's fully recovered. She ran the court as aggressively as anyone (Lou and Crystal did not take part in full-court drills). She cut well. Shot fantastic. She is ready to rumble.

Great to hear!

 

[Crossover]

The most recent information I could find on Brown with respect to her weight was updated in Aug 2017.
At that time, she tipped the scales at 245 lbs. She is a player that is NOT easily moved around. Azura is slight of frame. She has no chance of imposing her will on Brown. Gabby and Pheesa, forget it. Neither of them are over 180 lbs (if that much). Irwin, maybe. (The best way for UConn (or any team) to deal with Brown is to sit her down with early foul trouble).

And then there's Batouly. Camara is a NYC girl with a little "nasty" about her. I think she could possibly do something with Brown for a moment, maybe. At 6'2", Camara still gives away 5" inches to 6'7" Brown, and at least 40 lbs. (or more). Advantage Brown. Make no mistake about it, Brown is a force in the paint. She has learned how to put the ball in the basket from 5-7 feet out, and will will make you think twice about coming in the lane, just like Stewie did at 6'4" with those long arms, and that great timing and leaping ability.

UConn did manage to beat Brown and her mates last year, so it's possible that lightning can strike twice. Baylor chould be a #1 seed, as they are currently ranked 3rd in the USA Coach's poll and the AP. However, on the ESPN studio show today, Charlie Creme has UConn, Louisville, Mississippi State and Notre Dame as 1 seeds, with Baylor, Oregon, Texas and Florida State as 2 seeds right now. An unexpected surprise in the conference tournaments could change things, anything is possible. I expect the 1 seeds to prevail. Most of the top 10 seeds will knock each other off in games 3,4 & 5 before they can get to UConn.

Weight isn't everything . Center of gravity, lower body strength , and mechanics matter as well. Ever see a tugboat move a barge?

 

[EricLA]

One of the reasons Lou loves Touly is that she gets to play with a real enforcer. While I was excited about Touly's play yesterday, my favorite play of hers occurred during the recent game at UCF. UCF was playing their physical style of play, roughing up several of UConn's key players. In the 4th qtr, with Touly in the game, one of the UCF players attempted to drive the lane. Touly layed her on her back with a hard foul that caused me to smile from ear to ear.

Remember Stacy Hansmeyer? Batouly reminds me of her - physical, strong, not afraid to mix it up, and what not. She was a real enforcer. I LOVE having a player like that. It may help remind teams that the way to play UCONN is NOT to be overly physical unless they want it coming right back at them.

 

[RSHERMVIKES]

I posted this on the "who impressed you today" thread but it definitely applies here also!

I've been saying all season that we haven't seen the "real" Batouly Camara yet and just wait till she gets healthy!
She played above her pay grade her freshman year at KY, really banging on the boards and shooting inside and 10' to 12' with accuracy!
Today she moved like she did 2 years ago, for a big body, she moves well up and down the court, and shows some nice inside moves! Also she LIKES to bang inside, she won't shy away from contact.
If she can continue to stay healthy and get in better shape she'll expand the rotation to 8 which will really help us as we get to the Sweet 16, Elite 8, and Final 4!
She's an event waiting to happen!

 

[Coach]

I was most excited about her physical play and not backing down when I heard about her transfer. Don’t forget one of her best games was against South Carolina.

From that game. “ playing against some of the nation’s elite forwards in A’ja Wilson and Alaina Coates, Camara had a career-high 14 points and a team-best nine rebounds.

“She was so very aggressive … offensively and defensively,” (Kentucky head coach) Mitchell said. “Made a ton of mistakes, but she played. And when some kids were backing up against that big size, she was going at them. I love that.”

Let’s hope she cleaned up those “ton of mistakes” and able to give some physicality to Connecticut during the NCAA tournament.