Can Ice have a big season this year?

[Bone Dog]

So many obstacles have fallen into her path the first three years, so many disruptions. But have the stars perhaps aligned for her this season?

The virtues she brings: strength, used to have an excellent midrange game and might be able to regain it, sets incredible solid screens, has a quick outlet pass, can move her feet well.

Her weaknesses: she’s not a sure handed rebounder, not a great rim protector, she is a reluctant low post shooter, and she tends to rack up handsy fouls in the post.

This seems to me to mark her out for a slot as power forward. She’ll have to make progress with that midrange shot and with her rebounding. Last season, when she subbed in for Sarah the team offense lagged. This limited her minutes.

But perhaps this season opens up more possibilities for her, either playing next to Serah or anchoring a smaller lineup next to Blanca, Caroline or Ayanna. A group like that, along with Azzi and another guard could pack enough scoring punch to take the pressure off Ice.

Whatever happens, I’m keeping my fingers crossed for Ice.

 

[Bigboote]

I said earlier today in the Sacred Heart thread:

I am guilty of having said this before, but I think Ice is going to have a really good season. . .

I was very excited when UConn signed Ice, and I still think the sky's the limit for her. I agree with you about her hands, but she does often tip rebounds to teammates. In practice video, and evidently at the practice yesterday, she's shown good moves near the basket, and she finishes with both hands. I hope that Geno and CD are able to make her more of a post player than she has been. Recall that Azura really wanted to be a guard at Duke, but played more inside at UConn, and is definitely a post player in the W.

 

[Bills Fan]

I hope Ice can continue on her path to physical recovery. Since we have not seen her in a Husky uni before her leg injury, I'm not sure if she ever elevated better to rebound or if she is still having difficulty jumping due to her FR year injury. Hope it's the latter and that she is better this year, because she brings a lot to the table.

 

[RoadWarrior]

So many obstacles have fallen into her path the first three years, so many disruptions. But have the stars perhaps aligned for her this season?

The virtues she brings: strength, used to have an excellent midrange game and might be able to regain it, sets incredible solid screens, has a quick outlet pass, can move her feet well.

Her weaknesses: she’s not a sure handed rebounder, not a great rim protector, she is a reluctant low post shooter, and she tends to rack up handsy fouls in the post.

This seems to me to mark her out for a slot as power forward. She’ll have to make progress with that midrange shot and with her rebounding. Last season, when she subbed in for Sarah the team offense lagged. This limited her minutes.

But perhaps this season opens up more possibilities for her, either playing next to Serah or anchoring a smaller lineup next to Blanca, Caroline or Ayanna. A group like that, along with Azzi and another guard could pack enough scoring punch to take the pressure off Ice.

Whatever happens, I’m keeping my fingers crossed for Ice.

Ice made a decisive pass to Sarah near the top of the key with 1:48 in the third quarter of the UCONN vs. UCLA Final Four match, and Sarah drained a three-pointer. I used the word decisive because, besides the weaknesses described by @bonedog, Ice has not looked comfortable or confident in many instances. I think she can have a much stronger season if she can maintain high confidence and execute. I hope she rises to the challenge, but this year’s depth in the post may lessen the chance for a big season. Clip below:

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

youtube.com

 

[LuvBball]

As a proud member of the Ice Bradiacs, yes! Yes, she can...and will! MIP Brady, incoming

 

[Charliebball]

The ability is certainly there........time to add the aggressive mindset......

 

[HopJim]

So many obstacles have fallen into her path the first three years, so many disruptions. But have the stars perhaps aligned for her this season?

The virtues she brings: strength, used to have an excellent midrange game and might be able to regain it, sets incredible solid screens, has a quick outlet pass, can move her feet well.

Her weaknesses: she’s not a sure handed rebounder, not a great rim protector, she is a reluctant low post shooter, and she tends to rack up handsy fouls in the post.

This seems to me to mark her out for a slot as power forward. She’ll have to make progress with that midrange shot and with her rebounding. Last season, when she subbed in for Sarah the team offense lagged. This limited her minutes.

But perhaps this season opens up more possibilities for her, either playing next to Serah or anchoring a smaller lineup next to Blanca, Caroline or Ayanna. A group like that, along with Azzi and another guard could pack enough scoring punch to take the pressure off Ice.

Whatever happens, I’m keeping my fingers crossed for Ice.

Not sure how anyone can accurately project Ice's upcoming success at UConn based on her past two years of injuries. Healing from surgeries on knees and shoulders tends to slow you down, hurt your ability to shoot, and make you more deliberate. On the other hand, while in pain and not at full strength, when UConn needed help in the past two championships, Ice showed a lot of heart and stepped up.

 

[DEpup]

Its all between her ears.... She has all the skill to be the starting PF. It depends on whether she can get out of her own way and accept that she isn't perfect and shorten her memory from one possession to the next.

 

[ec33]

The ability is certainly there........time to add the aggressive mindset......

Which is going to be the hard part. Being 3rd string isn't going to help as it plays into her natural passivity.

It is a shame because she has a world of talent.

 

[Bigboote]

Which is going to be the hard part. Being 3rd string isn't going to help as it plays into her natural passivity.

It is a shame because she has a world of talent.

She'll be playing against Sarah, Jana, Serah, Ayanna, Gandy, in practice every day (possibly Blanca, Caroline, and Morgan some days). I'm hoping that playing against that level of talent, strength, and aggression becomes the mindset and muscle memory.

 

[Huskee11]

The UConn 2025-2026 will be very good but we just don't know yet what it is going to look like. It might look different at different times during the season as things ebb and flow.

It is a function of a lot of things, different themes.

First and foremost there are 15 players, hence at least 15 storylines.

One theme is the "have we seen her at her best" theme. Ice fits within this category. Very heralded out of high school, missed her entire first season due to injury, has had her moments but entirely possible that she will be healthier than ever and ready to contribute on a more consistent basis. Sure hope so. She is a decent outside shooter, has good moves inside, and can be a physical presence on defense in the post even (or perhaps especially) against taller players. I would like to see her rebound better, do a better job just catching and holding onto the ball, stop committing silly touch fouls, and generally play with more intensity.

Others in that category are Caroline, Morgan, Ayanna and Jana. We have not seen Caroline at her best in a long time and have yet to see Morgan at her best. Hopefully, Morgan will be on the court before long. Caroline might be ready to write a truly epic comeback. And ditto with Ayanna, reports are very encouraging. Jana should also be better as the achilles injury moves further into the past.

Then there is the "but now ackshually, how good is she reeally" theme. Blanca (hint: amazingly good), Kayleigh, Kelis, Gandy. I suspect this will be a learning year for the latter two. Oh, and another really good one, Serah, but even she will need to adjust to playing at UConn.

Can Allie, who looks to be in very good shape, shoot the lights out and make the sophomore jump? Will it be KK or Kayleigh to start?

How will the old reliables, Azzi, Sarah and Shade, improve their games?

And finally, how on earth does Geno divvy up the minutes between many deserving players? I know Geno's montra, the players themselves decide, but this season may challenge that conventional wisdom if they are all killing it in practice.

This team is a sportswriter's dream. There are almost too many storylines to write about.

 

[pick6s]

To me, the question isn’t whether Ice can have a big season. The question is whether she can get on the court, outside of garbage time. She’s the third center after Serah Williams, who’s supposed to be very good, and Janna. The power forward minutes will almost entirely get taken up by Sarah Strong, and Ice is too slow to play the 4 in UConn’s system anyway, where they usually only play one big. How does that leave any minutes for her?

 

[rugbymate]

Ice has talent and I hope we get to see it consistently instead of flashes. Unfortunately, she is competing for minutes with at least two teammates that have shown high quality , consistent play. She is also competing with several other teammates that have considerable talent and competitiveness. If she has any chance of finding herself in that 7-8 player rotation during crunch time, she’ll have to show up every day in practice. In addition, when she does get game minutes she’ll have to play her heart out. Wishing her the best.
The downside of depth for we fans is that we may not get to see very likable players, perhaps our favorite players, get much courttime.

 

[tomcat]

There is little doubt that she has the skills, but....there have been times throughout the last season when I thought you could question her decision-making. I think consistency has been her biggest problem and may keep her out of the lineup in favor of more consistent forwards. As always, we'll have to wait and see. I certainly wish her well. She has had more than her share of obstacles, and looks like she might be overcoming at least some of them.

 

[Cuango]

Clearly the talent is there. The question is, how much of her struggles over these past two seasons can be attributed to the injury hangover that she clearly had. I am hoping all that is finally behind her and that she is going into this season fully confident in both her body and her ability. If that is true, then I like her chances of finally fulfilling the potential that Geno saw in her during her recruitment. She is clearly a high character young woman and I wish her all the best as she (apparently/hopefully) enters this season in top shape and free from any nagging doubts about her body. The talent level of this roster is truly remarkable!

 

[oldude]

I would love to see Ice step up and earn more playing time. I have to believe she will do everything she can to achieve that goal this season.

On the other hand, as several BY’ers have mentioned, there is so much talent up front on this year’s team that the battle for PT will inevitably leave some very talented players on the outside looking in. For Ice to crack the rotation she will need to bring something else to the table.

If we look at the 4 & 5 spots, I expect Sarah, Blanca, Jana & Serah to establish themselves as starters and/or regular rotation players. After that you have 3 players coming off of injuries, Caroline, Ayana & Morgan who will all be hungry to get on the court again. Then you have Ice who’s been a dependable reserve for the last 2 seasons. Finally you’ve got Gandy who’s probably got some development ahead of her before she gets meaningful minutes.

If Ice can secure more PT it will probably require her to be a more consistent 3-pt shooter. We know she can make shots from the arc. But let’s say she can knock down 2-3 from the arc every game, shooting somewhere around 40%. That would pretty much force Geno to play Ice regularly.

 

[Bone Dog]

She’s the third center after Serah Williams, who’s supposed to be very good, and Janna. The power forward minutes will almost entirely get taken up by Sarah Strong, and Ice is too slow to play the 4 in UConn’s system

She’s been playing the 5 for two seasons. But I don’t think it’s her best position. For better or worse, she’s will need to compete for the 4, not the 5 which will be fought over by Serah Jana and Gandy.

Yes, Sarah is a lock for starting and will get a lot of minutes at the 4. But she’ll also get minutes at the 5, as she did last season. Even if it’s only five minutes out of 25, that still means there’s a lot of potential minutes at the 4. Now, can Ice win many of those against Ayanna and maybe Blanca? That remains to be seen. Carol and Morgan may get some, but they’ll also be dividing time at the 3.

Oddly, the packed roster, especially with all the bigs and medium bigs, may work out in Ice’s favor this season. Her competition may end up at other positions now there are so many of them.

 

[donalddoowop]

I read where Serah is having trouble mastering the system. Some of you may be jumping the gun on some of the players who will play a lot. Remember, this is UConn where injuries come to live. Unfortunately, Ice found that out her freshman season. However, I believe Ice will exceed most BYers expectations this season. She is ready, imo.

 

[Skeets]

I read where Serah is having trouble mastering the system. Some of you may be jumping the gun on some of the players who will play a lot. Remember, this is UConn where injuries come to live. Unfortunately, Ice found that out her freshman season. However, I believe Ice will exceed most BYers expectations this season. She is ready, imo.

This may be true, but I cannot understand how anyone can make such a statement at this point in time. We probably are jumping the gun on 1 or 2 players who will have a less than spectacular season. Who these players are I have no idea, but it seems to work that way ever year. Finally, I hope that disappointing player is not ICE. I'm rooting for you, ICE.

 

[oldude]

I read where Serah is having trouble mastering the system. Some of you may be jumping the gun on some of the players who will play a lot. Remember, this is UConn where injuries come to live. Unfortunately, Ice found that out her freshman season. However, I believe Ice will exceed most BYers expectations this season. She is ready, imo.

UConn’s read and react system takes some time to master, particularly for Bigs. Everyone screens, cuts and passes while playing off each other. At WI Serah was the focal point of an offense that revolved around her. In two similar situations, both Z and Dorka struggled initially to figure things out at UConn. It will take a little time. But I have no doubt that Serah will figure it out.

 

[BBallF]

I would love to see Ice step up and earn more playing time. I have to believe she will do everything she can to achieve that goal this season.

On the other hand, as several BY’ers have mentioned, there is so much talent up front on this year’s team that the battle for PT will inevitably leave some very talented players on the outside looking in. For Ice to crack the rotation she will need to bring something else to the table.

If we look at the 4 & 5 spots, I expect Sarah, Blanca, Jana & Serah to establish themselves as starters and/or regular rotation players. After that you have 3 players coming off of injuries, Caroline, Ayana & Morgan who will all be hungry to get on the court again. Then you have Ice who’s been a dependable reserve for the last 2 seasons. Finally you’ve got Gandy who’s probably got some development ahead of her before she gets meaningful minutes.

If Ice can secure more PT it will probably require her to be a more consistent 3-pt shooter. We know she can make shots from the arc. But let’s say she can knock down 2-3 from the arc every game, shooting somewhere around 40%. That would pretty much force Geno to play Ice regularly.

Yes, it would and that is the point. If a player is playing well but does not exactly fit into a preconceived offense, Geno will find a way for that player to play. Ice is in control of her own destiny, not the structure of the offense or some rigid rotation. If she comes in, defends, knocks down shots from the outside, and now has quicker post moves and drives from the stripe, she will be playing quality minutes. She is also a very heady player which Geno always values. I see her as the back up to Sarah to start, despite any speed issues, and also part of a much larger rotation than we have seen in a long time here, maybe ever. She has been a very, very good team player over the years. I still remember her having to start when Aaliyah was out with the nasal injury in the BE tourney and being All Tourney. Plus, she is a defending national champion. That is a transformative event in the world of confidence.

 

[oldhusky]

Assuming everyone healthy and Blanca meets expectations, I suspect the positional battles to be pretty traditional, with most players getting their time at their best position. For me that means Sarah consumes maybe 30 of the 40 minutes at the 4, more in big games, and Ayanna and Ice are competing for the rest. If one clearly emerges as the best, the other drops out of the rotation.

But that is just the base case as I see it. Both of those players face additional potential competition from 5's and 3's. If neither advances their game much, the backup 4 could become on a loaded team, a relative weakness. If for example Jana is much better than the 4 backups, she could get more than backup 5 minutes and Serah could easily slide down to play the 4 when Sarah is out. In the other direction if Blanca gets starter minutes at the 3, and say Caroline looks like she did as a freshmen, she might be enough better than our backup 4's to justify increasing her minutes by playing her some at the 4.

So for Ice and Ayanna, with a healthy team, there probably isn't room for both to be in the rotation, and it is not a lock that either will be, if a backup 3 or 5 is way better than them. With injuries things can change of course. If we lose Serah or Jana then Ice or Ayanna might be a better option than a developmental Gandy, with Sarah playing some at the 5. If the backup 3 becomes the biggest issue, Sarah of course could be great there too, with Ayanna or Ice getting more time at the 4, but in that scenario I think the more likely fix is going small with a guard like Ash at the 3.

The main point is we have enough options and versatility that being the second best at a position doesn't guarantee a spot in the rotation. If healthy, every backup in the rotation should be way above average. If they aren't, we can move a player or two around and give more minutes to the best bench players.

I think the backup 4 is the second biggest question heading into the season. I consider the backup 3 to be a bigger question because although I project Blanca as the starter there, as a new player that is far from certain, and Caroline and Morgan have obvious questions. Even there, if some are injured or disappoint, we can move a 2 over (Ash), or slide a 4 down (Sarah) so we have pretty good plan B or C's for even our relatively weakest or questionable positions.

 

[donalddoowop]

UConn’s read and react system takes some time to master, particularly for Bigs. Everyone screens, cuts and passes while playing off each other. At WI Serah was the focal point of an offense that revolved around her. In two similar situations, both Z and Dorka struggled initially to figure things out at UConn. It will take a little time. But I have no doubt that Serah will figure it out.

I agree but the point I was trying to make is that I would think most UConn fans who post on this board should know about the initial struggles. That is why I wonder why so many, some as a matter of fact, state who the starters will be. Many are putting Serah ahead of all the other post players other than Sarah. Dorka did not get it completely until her second season at UConn. I believe she will eventually learn the system.

 

[oldude]

Assuming everyone healthy and Blanca meets expectations, I suspect the positional battles to be pretty traditional, with most players getting their time at their best position. For me that means Sarah consumes maybe 30 of the 40 minutes at the 4, more in big games, and Ayanna and Ice are competing for the rest. If one clearly emerges as the best, the other drops out of the rotation.

But that is just the base case as I see it. Both of those players face additional potential competition from 5's and 3's. If neither advances their game much, the backup 4 could become on a loaded team, a relative weakness. If for example Jana is much better than the 4 backups, she could get more than backup 5 minutes and Serah could easily slide down to play the 4 when Sarah is out. In the other direction if Blanca gets starter minutes at the 3, and say Caroline looks like she did as a freshmen, she might be enough better than our backup 4's to justify increasing her minutes by playing her some at the 4.

So for Ice and Ayanna, with a healthy team, there probably isn't room for both to be in the rotation, and it is not a lock that either will be, if a backup 3 or 5 is way better than them. With injuries things can change of course. If we lose Serah or Jana then Ice or Ayanna might be a better option than a developmental Gandy, with Sarah playing some at the 5. If the backup 3 becomes the biggest issue, Sarah of course could be great there too, with Ayanna or Ice getting more time at the 4, but in that scenario I think the more likely fix is going small with a guard like Ash at the 3.

The main point is we have enough options and versatility that being the second best at a position doesn't guarantee a spot in the rotation. If healthy, every backup in the rotation should be way above average. If they aren't, we can move a player or two around and give more minutes to the best bench players.

I think the backup 4 is the second biggest question heading into the season. I consider the backup 3 to be a bigger question because although I project Blanca as the starter there, as a new player that is far from certain, and Caroline and Morgan have obvious questions. Even there, if some are injured or disappoint, we can move a 2 over (Ash), or slide a 4 down (Sarah) so we have pretty good plan B or C's for even our relatively weakest or questionable positions.

One additional option that I have contemplated is the possibility of UConn going BIG with Sarah at the 3. Sarah certainly has the skill set to play the wing. Geno could then rotate some combination of Serah, Jana, Ice & Ayanna at the 4/5 spots. While I don’t necessarily see that happening on a regular basis, I would not be surprised to see UConn experiment with a BIG lineup from time to time.

 

[BBallF]

One additional option that I have contemplated is the possibility of UConn going BIG with Sarah at the 3. Sarah certainly has the skill set to play the wing. Geno could then rotate some combination of Serah, Jana, Ice & Ayanna at the 4/5 spots. While I don’t necessarily see that happening on a regular basis, I would not be surprised to see UConn experiment with a BIG lineup from time to time.

I see that as well. The temptation is just too great not to try it. If that occurs, who plays Sarah? She will be posting up against a smaller player and that is big time trouble to be sure. Also, Ice and Jana are both good passers so I see high-lows from Jana to Serah, Serah to Sarah, Ice to Jana, etc. Just take your pick. Plus the put backs. Nice to be the "big" team for a change.

 

[Bone Dog]

I see that as well. The temptation is just too great not to try it. If that occurs, who plays Sarah? She will be posting up against a smaller player and that is big time trouble to be sure. Also, Ice and Jana are both good passers so I see high-lows from Jana to Serah, Serah to Sarah, Ice to Jana, etc. Just take your pick. Plus the put backs. Nice to be the "big" team for a change.

I agree with you and @oldude on this prospect. It is possible and intriguing. But I’m not as sanguine as you seem to be about Jana and Ice as passers. I’m mainly thinking of the way Geno used them at the top of the key. From that position they did not often attempt to pass into the paint, which meant a dimension of the offense was unavailable with them at that position. This was a stark contrast to when Sarah ran the offense from the top of the key and the offense was really difficult to defend.

A BIG squad sounds intriguing, but Jana and Ice would need to develop their passing skills to play a significant role in it, I suspect. Of course, I can picture Ice playing down low with Serah while Sarah runs the passing game from the top of the key, and Ice’s interior passing was pretty good last season. But her comfort level seems to be higher when she’s not stuck in the low post. The virtues of a BIG squad seems most intriguing on defense given the speed of several of the 6’2” players.

And on a related note, I don’t get why folks think Ice is slow. She runs the court well, and moves her feet well. It’s true the fouling is a sign of not always moving quickly enough. But I think this is more a result of not really fitting into the low post all that well than of not moving her feet. She’s just not a natural there. On the other hand, she defends the midrange well and can close out on the perimeter when needed.

 

[BBallF]

I agree with you and @oldude on this prospect. It is possible and intriguing. But I’m not as sanguine as you seem to be about Jana and Ice as passers. I’m mainly thinking of the way Geno used them at the top of the key. From that position they did not often attempt to pass into the paint, which meant a dimension of the offense was unavailable with them at that position. This was a stark contrast to when Sarah ran the offense from the top of the key and the offense was really difficult to defend.

A BIG squad sounds intriguing, but Jana and Ice would need to develop their passing skills to play a significant role in it, I suspect. Of course, I can picture Ice playing down low with Serah while Sarah runs the passing game from the top of the key, and Ice’s interior passing was pretty good last season. But her comfort level seems to be higher when she’s not stuck in the low post. The virtues of a BIG squad seems most intriguing on defense given the speed of several of the 6’2” players.

And on a related note, I don’t get why folks think Ice is slow. She runs the court well, and moves her feet well. It’s true the fouling is a sign of not always moving quickly enough. But I think this is more a result of not really fitting into the low post all that well than of not moving her feet. She’s just not a natural there. On the other hand, she defends the midrange well and can close out on the perimeter when needed.

Ice is a natural 4, not 5. Fortunately, she will not have to play that 5 position except if Serah and Jana can't. The one thing different from last year with the passing from the high post will be a new target. I think Serah seals better than anyone in the country other than Betts. In fact, Serah got a good amount of her points by sealing her defender on her back so she was closer to the basket. Jana made that pass last year underneath to Sarah and Ice certainly can.

I have said this before and I will say it again. When Jana was just learning and really struggling, the first person to really highlight her baby steps improvements, which were more like fits and starts, was oldude. Many of us were just very frustrated with her especially after Geno's comments pre-season about her. Geno knew he needed her to develop quickly to win the NC with the likes of USC, South Carolina and UCLA coming. When she played against South Carolina in the first game, you saw the fruition of the plan. She still really gets overlooked and so does Ice for that matter.

They can both pass but even if they need large improvement, you can teach that way more quickly than other things, like driving with your weak hand, or shooting a pull up J from 15 feet. Jana is 6'5" and a space eater and has had only 1 year coming off an injury of college basketball in America and won a national championship. Ice has been through a lot but always seems to come through when needed the most. Both are going to be more confident, more aggressive players. It's not an out on a limb prediction. It's just what a national championship does.

 

[Bills Fan]

I read where Serah is having trouble mastering the system. Some of you may be jumping the gun on some of the players who will play a lot. Remember, this is UConn where injuries come to live. Unfortunately, Ice found that out her freshman season. However, I believe Ice will exceed most BYers expectations this season. She is ready, imo.

I wouldn't read any negatives into a discussion of how Serah is doing. She has proven herself with 3 outstanding seasons in the Big Ten, and lets remember that she has yet to even begin actual practices with instructions from JE, CD and Geno. It's hard to judge her fitting into the UCONN system when practice hasn't even started.

 

[Bone Dog]

Ice is a natural 4, not 5. Fortunately, she will not have to play that 5 position except if Serah and Jana can't. The one thing different from last year with the passing from the high post will be a new target. I think Serah seals better than anyone in the country other than Betts. In fact, Serah got a good amount of her points by sealing her defender on her back so she was closer to the basket. Jana made that pass last year underneath to Sarah and Ice certainly can.

I have said this before and I will say it again. When Jana was just learning and really struggling, the first person to really highlight her baby steps improvements, which were more like fits and starts, was oldude. Many of us were just very frustrated with her especially after Geno's comments pre-season about her. Geno knew he needed her to develop quickly to win the NC with the likes of USC, South Carolina and UCLA coming. When she played against South Carolina in the first game, you saw the fruition of the plan. She still really gets overlooked and so does Ice for that matter.

They can both pass but even if they need large improvement, you can teach that way more quickly than other things, like driving with your weak hand, or shooting a pull up J from 15 feet. Jana is 6'5" and a space eater and has had only 1 year coming off an injury of college basketball in America and won a national championship. Ice has been through a lot but always seems to come through when needed the most. Both are going to be more confident, more aggressive players. It's not an out on a limb prediction. It's just what a national championship does.

You don't need to defend Jana to me. I was her earliest adopter, as soon as I heard CD had gone to Egypt for her. I hunted down videos of her in high school, navigated websites in Arabic and games in poorly lit gyms. And I caught a lot of intemperate flak on the BY for reporting what I saw, a strong 5 with ball-handling skills and three-level scoring with a ferocious spirit who wasn't afraid to fight through low post double and triple teams. She often won games from the free throw line, since fouling was all defenders could do to stop her in the low post. That injury was a terrible setback for Jana, as was the unrelated injury to Ice. I really hope to see a second-year-post-injury leap from her. I think Jana is still working on the fitness trajectory and expect her to come back even stronger and leaner than last season. But Ice is already back into great physical shape.

I'm still wary of their passing abilities, judging from what we saw last season. I think you're right to say passing can be taught to some extent. But the truly great passers seem to have a gift that can't be taught. Right now, post-Paige, it may only be Sarah who has it, though Morgan and Carol may be close.

 

[DefenseBB]

I see that as well. The temptation is just too great not to try it. If that occurs, who plays Sarah? She will be posting up against a smaller player and that is big time trouble to be sure. Also, Ice and Jana are both good passers so I see high-lows from Jana to Serah, Serah to Sarah, Ice to Jana, etc. Just take your pick. Plus the put backs. Nice to be the "big" team for a change.

I would say Ice has certainly improved her passing to the tune of 1.96 Assist to turnover ratio (55-28 ) from her 1st year of .872 (41 to 47) but to say she is a good passer is still a bit of a stretch . Considering how often we use the high post (the ratio certainly is good but the raw number of assists is low), Ice has not utilized this position as well as you would think. Jana is similar to Ice in her first year with .830 Assist to turnover ratio (40/48) so I hope a big jump also occurs and am more bullish on Jana becoming adept in the high post than Ice. As noted, Ice has struggled with confidence and I am really hoping in year 4 of the program, she can gain what she needs.

That said, I would hope Geno and staff have learned their coaching lessons from when Dorka arrived and they couldn't figure out how to use a 2-time First Team Big Ten player in our lineup. Serah too, is also 2-time First Team Big Ten player so they need to find a way. Stop trying to make a square peg fit into a round hole.

I don't know what the final rotation will be at the end of the year but I certainly can guess. All the players will be given ample opportunity to prove they warrant playing time but in March, I see a rotation of 9-10 players with 10 or more minutes per game and the front-court is the biggest limitation as Geno likes to go small. Ice, Yanna, Gandy and even Jana may struggle for key minutes if they can't pass, shoot or defend at an elite level.

Like I have said previously, this team is extremely talented and unselfish so passing will be critical (and awesome to watch) but getting all the new pieces to work well together will take time. While this team is capable of 90+ points per game, Geno will make the team work on the half-court offense, utilizing clock and ball movement to limit the number of points. After Azzi and Sarah, I am still unsure about our 3 pt game as we need to hit a .350 clip as a team. Ash will help but CD, KK and K9 all have to hit shots when wide open. That will open up the inside for Serah, Jana and Ice. What I do know is I don't want Ice or Jana taking 3 point shots. I worry about the amount of quality minutes Allie will get to see how her shooting could aid us.

But as I said, the 15 story lines will be interesting to see how it plays out. Arguably our toughest OOC game is Tennessee in Feb so we should be hitting on all cylinders by then and People's Bank Arena will be rocking with 15,000+ fans.