Baylor (1) @ Texas (12) - 2/04/19

[HopJim]

I'm saying that we may gain confidence by playing Baylor a tad closer than UConn. You should take that as a compliment. Yes, I know we were on our home court.

To DeeHusky. It's irrelevant, but Lashann Higgs was indeed a McD All-American. In my eyes and in the stat book, she got better every year. Sutton is far better than ever before (see stats, they are impressive this year). I agree, Charli looks pretty lost right now. Hope she comes along.

As a Texas resident, I receive all the UT and most Baylor games. One person's opinion on the confidence question. Baylor just took its foot off the gas since the game was not competitive-beating UT at every aspect of the game. Happy for you it got close but I doubt anyone on the UT women's basketball team thinks they have the skills to come close to Baylor (and likely most top 10 teams) in future.

 

[Carnac]

Baylor doesn’t lose to bad teams.
And they don’t lose to mediocre teams, average teams, or even good teams. Over the last three regular seasons, the Bears have only lost to great top 15 teams. Baylor also doesn’t lose at home: they’ve only done so once in the past five seasons.

Not too long ago, this was emphatically said about UConn. They seldom lost to anyone, anywhere. Not today. We all know where they are right now. The question is will they ever return to those "glory" days again?
If so, when?

[Article]

 

[DefenseBB]

Lauren Cox was the #1 recruit, Joyner Holmes was #2 in their class. Neither, to me, are playing like it. Crystal Dangerfield at #3, Ionescu at #4 and Jackie Young at #11 are all playing better.

You bring up a good point on “development” of skills, knowledge and evolution for success. In some ways, we, UConn fans have been spoiled by watching all the players who have developed into AA’s, NPOY, had pro careers or stayed involved in BB in coaching, administrative functions that we think this is the “normal or expected” process. It is not. Many think they will get better by simply playing just like any worker thinks they will get promoted by just coming to work each day. That’s not the case, a coach has to set goals, challenge the member and push them to reach their limits. Holmes, in particular still plays wildly out of control, relying too much on her sheer athleticism and it her development. That’s on both her and Aston. Cox is mildly inhibited due to Brown but also due to health and Mulkey’s lack of front court development process. Griner admits she didn’t really evolve her skills until later and relied on her athleticism during her Baylor days. Kim was a guard and is really good with them and the wings.
Sabrina May be the rare athlete due to her preexisting skills, that even without a great coach, she is evolving on her own. Muffet, has regularly developed great players so that, to me explains your correct observations.

 

[DeeHusky]

You bring up a good point on “development” of skills, knowledge and evolution for success. In some ways, we, UConn fans have been spoiled by watching all the players who have developed into AA’s, NPOY, had pro careers or stayed involved in BB in coaching, administrative functions that we think this is the “normal or expected” process. It is not. Many think they will get better by simply playing just like any worker thinks they will get promoted by just coming to work each day. That’s not the case, a coach has to set goals, challenge the member and push them to reach their limits. Holmes, in particular still plays wildly out of control, relying too much on her sheer athleticism and it her development. That’s on both her and Aston. Cox is mildly inhibited due to Brown but also due to health and Mulkey’s lack of front court development process. Griner admits she didn’t really evolve her skills until later and relied on her athleticism during her Baylor days. Kim was a guard and is really good with them and the wings.
Sabrina May be the rare athlete due to her preexisting skills, that even without a great coach, she is evolving on her own. Muffet, has regularly developed great players so that, to me explains your correct observations.

I agree with every point you made. I want to add that Griner has improved, but I still don’t think she gives enough effort or will ever reach her full potential. Imho, Griner should have been a league MVP by now and probably more than once. She should’ve dominated the league simply because there are no other players like her. Or Maybe her peak is coming —Sylvia Fowles had an MVP season her 9th or 10th season in the league.

 

[jonson]

You bring up a good point on “development” of skills, knowledge and evolution for success. In some ways, we, UConn fans have been spoiled by watching all the players who have developed into AA’s, NPOY, had pro careers or stayed involved in BB in coaching, administrative functions that we think this is the “normal or expected” process. It is not. Many think they will get better by simply playing just like any worker thinks they will get promoted by just coming to work each day. That’s not the case, a coach has to set goals, challenge the member and push them to reach their limits. Holmes, in particular still plays wildly out of control, relying too much on her sheer athleticism and it her development. That’s on both her and Aston. Cox is mildly inhibited due to Brown but also due to health and Mulkey’s lack of front court development process. Griner admits she didn’t really evolve her skills until later and relied on her athleticism during her Baylor days. Kim was a guard and is really good with them and the wings.
Sabrina May be the rare athlete due to her preexisting skills, that even without a great coach, she is evolving on her own. Muffet, has regularly developed great players so that, to me explains your correct observations.

I really think that you are underestimating Graves interactions with Ionescu. There is no question that her commitment and intensity is such that she would surely continue to develop on her own. That said, however, when she arrived in Eugene she (by her own account) didn't know how to run a pick and roll and, in fact, had never really had to learn how to run plays or played defense. That has all changed (the first two, anyway, the last at least a bit) over the past 2+ seasons. Likewise, there is no question that the development of Ruthy Hebard from a very raw basketball player who had never been challenged as an Alaskan high-schooler and even considered redshirting as a freshman to the player she is today occurred at Oregon, where she has improved every year. The same is true of Satou Sabally, who is twice the player this year that she was last. Although Graves may not be a great coach--there are very few of those--his track record everywhere that he has been (St. Mary's, Gonzaga, Oregon) demonstrates that he is a very good one. And, if Geno has set the standard for developing players, that doesn't mean, as sometimes seems to be assumed on this board, that other coaches can't do that as well, even in Eugene.