Caroline Conundrum

[The deacon]

The fact that Caroline was the #5 player in the class is irrelevant because the best player on either team (Shyanne Sellers) in that game was ranked several spots behind Caroline #22 by ESPN. Wether it was due to fatigue ( playing 39 minutes) or the nagging injuries or lack of ability or BBIQ the reality is Caroline made some uncharacteristic and costly mistake in the fourth quarter of the MD game. As far as the coaching staff calling a time out, UCONN was forced to use its last time out at the 4:20 mark of that quarter when Caroline made one of those mistake by picking up her dribble in the corner right in front of the UCONN bench. Despite the coaching staff calling that time out Caroline still managed to commit 4 turnovers in the 4th quarter and was tied up for a jump ball twice in that quarter as well. As far as her teammate moving towards her, they absolutely tried to do just that. Caroline had an open teammate on each of the possessions where she was trying to advance the ball and committed a turnover.
Fatigue was certainly a factor. Lack of ability was certainly a factor because Caroline does not have the ability to consistently advance the ball by changing hands or direction with the dribble when closely guarded. The the lack of basketball understanding is applicable because Caroline attempted to do this unsuccessfully several times in that quarter. Better basketball understanding would dictate a) That you recognize your individual BB limitations b) don't repeat the same mistake in a pressure situation c) rely on your teammate that has that skill set that you are clearly lacking. Quite candidly Caroline should have been ,at best case, the 4th UCONN option for advancing the ball in the 4th quarter of that game.
Now before some of you try and start to clap back at me, keep in mind that that I have already acknowledged that Caroline was fatigued and this was perhaps the biggest factor. Shyanne Sellers also played 39 minutes in this game dishing out 6 assist and 1 turnover and absolutely go it done at crunch time-which was not bad considering she replaced an AA PG for MD who decided to transfer. For those that maybe a little squeamish about me questioning a players basketball understanding you can readily substitute the words poor decision making which was the result of fatigue.

Coco, Lou was on the bench at times with foul trouble, Geno had apparently lost trust in Ines at that point... so who are the three players you'd rather have advance the ball? Amari? Aubrey (who had five TOs in the game) or Ayanna? Possibly Aaliyah, who already was burdened with too many responsibilities?

I tend to agree with most of your posts on the BY, Coco, but it surely seems you're having a bad day and taking it out on Caroline.

You seriously believe Caroline doesn't have a basic understanding of basketball? Oh, my gosh! I could argue that but it's so wacky as to not deserve a debate. You need to go back and watch the game and observe all the good things Caroline does for the team. She is turnover prone and might always be, but so are a lot of really good players. Caroline's status and her performances have presented somewhat of a conundrum, but I am pretty sure we're past the worst of it.

 

[CocoHusky]

Coco, Lou was on the bench at times with foul trouble, Geno had apparently lost trust in Ines at that point... so who are the three players you'd rather have advance the ball? Amari? Aubrey (who had five TOs in the game) or Ayanna? Possibly Aaliyah, who already was burdened with too many responsibilities?

I tend to agree with most of your posts on the BY, Coco, but it surely seems you're having a bad day and taking it out on Caroline.

You seriously believe Caroline doesn't have a basic understanding of basketball? Oh, my gosh! I could argue that but it's so wacky as to not deserve a debate. You need to go back and watch the game and observe all the good things Caroline does for the team. She is turnover prone and might always be, but so are a lot of really good players. Caroline's status and her performances have presented somewhat of a conundrum, but I am pretty sure we're past the worst of it.

Aubrey, Lou, Ines, AE and Ayanna were all better options for advancing the ball than Caroline. The only other player to play with Caroline is Amari. 4 turnovers in 1 quarter just trying to advance the ball was not acceptable for any player on the UCONN rosters. I'm not having a bad day nor am I taking it out on Caroline. I don't expect you to agree with everything I post because half the time I don't agree with myself.

Caroline played poorly in that 4th quarter and made some poor decisions. As I said in the prior post those mistakes were "uncharacteristic" of Caroline and probably due to fatigue but they did happen repeatedly.
Repeated mistakes is a fair reason to question BB understanding IMO-but please feel free to disagree.

 

[The deacon]

Aubrey, Lou, Ines, AE and Ayanna were all better options for advancing the ball than Caroline. The only other player to play with Caroline is Amari. 4 turnovers in 1 quarter just trying to advance the ball was not acceptable for any player on the UCONN rosters. I'm not having a bad day nor am I taking it out on Caroline. I don't expect you to agree with everything I post because half the time I don't agree with myself.

Caroline played poorly in that 4th quarter and made some poor decisions. As I said in the prior post those mistakes were "uncharacteristic" of Caroline and probably due to fatigue but they did happen repeatedly.
Repeated mistakes is a fair reason to question BB understanding IMO-but please feel free to disagree.

As I'd mentioned, Lou wasn't in the game for stretches of the second half due to fouls, and Geno had pulled Ines... as you said, we'll just have to agree to disagree when you say Aubrey and Ayanna are better options to advance the ball than Caroline.

 

[Skeets]

The fact that Caroline was the #5 player in the class is irrelevant because the best player on either team (Shyanne Sellers) in that game was ranked several spots behind Caroline #22 by ESPN. Wether it was due to fatigue ( playing 39 minutes) or the nagging injuries or lack of ability or BBIQ the reality is Caroline made some uncharacteristic and costly mistake in the fourth quarter of the MD game. As far as the coaching staff calling a time out, UCONN was forced to use its last time out at the 4:20 mark of that quarter when Caroline made one of those mistake by picking up her dribble in the corner right in front of the UCONN bench. Despite the coaching staff calling that time out Caroline still managed to commit 4 turnovers in the 4th quarter and was tied up for a jump ball twice in that quarter as well. As far as her teammate moving towards her, they absolutely tried to do just that. Caroline had an open teammate on each of the possessions where she was trying to advance the ball and committed a turnover.
Fatigue was certainly a factor. Lack of ability was certainly a factor because Caroline does not have the ability to consistently advance the ball by changing hands or direction with the dribble when closely guarded. The the lack of basketball understanding is applicable because Caroline attempted to do this unsuccessfully several times in that quarter. Better basketball understanding would dictate a) That you recognize your individual BB limitations b) don't repeat the same mistake in a pressure situation c) rely on your teammate that has that skill set that you are clearly lacking. Quite candidly Caroline should have been ,at best case, the 4th UCONN option for advancing the ball in the 4th quarter of that game.
Now before some of you try and start to clap back at me, keep in mind that that I have already acknowledged that Caroline was fatigued and this was perhaps the biggest factor. Shyanne Sellers also played 39 minutes in this game dishing out 6 assist and 1 turnover and absolutely go it done at crunch time-which was not bad considering she replaced an AA PG for MD who decided to transfer. For those that maybe a little squeamish about me questioning a players basketball understanding you can readily substitute the words poor decision making which was the result of fatigue.

Harsh, but basically accurate. Caroline can do a lot of things but ball handling is not one of her best skills.

 

[HopJim]

Harsh, but basically accurate. Caroline can do a lot of things but ball handling is not one of her best skills.

Caroline played the entire game and appeared gassed the 4th Q. Agree that ball handling is not what you expect from her but frankly, with UConn setting turnover records the past two games, not sure who I would go to with our normal options on the bench. Short term, Lou staying the game minimizes this issue.

 

[JoePgh]

In the 12/16 interviews, both Geno and Caroline herself confirmed (I believe for the first time) that Caroline currently has physical limitations that she did not have during the peak of her season last year. From what they both said, it appears that this relates to her hip surgery rather than her neck issue. Geno said that she is accustomed to moving at a certain pace, and hasn't fully adjusted to the fact that she can't move quite the same way now as she could for much of last season. Then Caroline herself said that she isn't physically back to where she was in the middle of last season, but that she is getting closer to that every day,

It didn't sound like a permanent limitation -- or at least Geno and Caroline do not wish to think that it is.

But those of us (including me) who attributed her inconsistent play this year entirely to "rust" and to her not having played basketball during the summer were not entirely correct -- there still is a physical limitation that didn't previously exist.

So I think we have to bear that in mind when we optimistically declare that Caroline is "back" or soon will be. It may take a while, unfortunately.

 

[Tonyc]

Bottom line is we need to get healthy and up to spee. That’s it. We have really good players who have been injured. Therefore they are not what they were. They will need time to get back to where they were. That takes time and we don’t know how much time

 

[TeamFirst!]

None of us like to speculate about someone being overweight or slow because of hip surgery or whatever but it has been clear for some time that Caroline has not had the same explosiveness on her moves to the basket...right? It was just not our place to speculate with any certainty as we are not privy to the real situation. Having a loss of plosiveness from the hip surgery would make a ton of sense though wouldn't it? It does seem that Caroline is making progress and I'm glad they have determined a logical cause. With continued work, and we all know Caroline will do the rehab work, she should continue to get back to where she was last year...on the edge of becoming an all American.

 

[blkkirk]

I think Caroline has agreed with most of what people are saying in the pregame video. She references her injuries and that she is still dealing with them. Not as an excuse but as a reality. She takes responsibility for not being herself and playing up to her and the teams expectations. In my opinion she says all the right things. We don't know what is really going on with her. Whatever it is is clearly affecting her mentally and physically. She is a fierce competitor. If healthy I doubt seriously we would be having this conversation. I can remember last year saying to myself. Caroline is amazing dribbling through the press. While not being the quickest player she used her basketball IQ to make quick responses both mentally and physically. I pray for her good health to return.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

In the 12/16 interviews, both Geno and Caroline herself confirmed (I believe for the first time) that Caroline currently has physical limitations that she did not have during the peak of her season last year. From what they both said, it appears that this relates to her hip surgery rather than her neck issue. Geno said that she is accustomed to moving at a certain pace, and hasn't fully adjusted to the fact that she can't move quite the same way now as she could for much of last season. Then Caroline herself said that she isn't physically back to where she was in the middle of last season, but that she is getting closer to that every day,

It didn't sound like a permanent limitation -- or at least Geno and Caroline do not wish to think that it is.

But those of us (including me) who attributed her inconsistent play this year entirely to "rust" and to her not having played basketball during the summer were not entirely correct -- there still is a physical limitation that didn't previously exist.

So I think we have to bear that in mind when we optimistically declare that Caroline is "back" or soon will be. It may take a while, unfortunately.

I thought she was completely recovered the hip surgery and that the surgery was a success and that it was supposed to make her a better player? The more we get into this season the more I feel the player who was easily the best player in the Big East last season after Paige went down is now but a mear shell of her former self. Where is girl who was averaging 20ppg last year for a large part of the season?

 

[Conndog]

nd

I thought she was completely recovered the hip surgery and that the surgery was a success and that it was supposed to make her a better player? The more we get into this season the more I feel the player who was easily the best player in the Big East last season after Paige went down is now but a mear shell of her former self. Where is girl who was averaging 20ppg last year for a large part of the season?

Geno said that she is accustomed to moving at a certain pace, and hasn't fully adjusted to the fact that she can't move quite the same way now as she could for much of last season. Then Caroline herself said that she isn't physically back to where she was in the middle of last season, but that she is getting closer to that every day,

Caroline may be my favorite player on the team, so anything I say may be biased, but I am optimistic about her. Hearing from Caroline herself that she is getting closer every day to her previous health is great- just imagine how much more dangerous UConn will be when this happens and she does indeed start scoring again 15-20 points per game. She has a unique skill set on the team- a tall player that can score around the basket, and also someone who can shoot it from outside with very deep range. She gets rebounds and makes assists and disrupts the other team with her height and long arms, Yes, this year she is making a lot of turnovers, but last year when healthier (never 100% though) it wasn't a concern, so I think this is uncharacteristic of her. Each game of this season, I always hope that today will be the day when we see the real Caroline. Sunday against FSU will be no different- come on, Caroline, you can do it!

 

[AmeriConn]

Journal Inquirer

Serving towns east of the Connecticut River

www.journalinquirer.com

 

[Conndog]

AmeriConn,
Thanks for the Ducharme school article, it was informative and interesting to read!

 

[oldhusky]

I thought she was completely recovered the hip surgery and that the surgery was a success and that it was supposed to make her a better player? The more we get into this season the more I feel the player who was easily the best player in the Big East last season after Paige went down is now but a mear shell of her former self. Where is girl who was averaging 20ppg last year for a large part of the season?

Your first sentence was exactly what I thought heading into this season. That the surgery was to make her better than last year when she was hampered by the hip, that while there might be a gradual easing into form, that she would be 100% by the first game and better.

I don't understand any details of the hip surgery, but I believe the impression given was that it was relatively minor. Whether it was the normal expectation for this kind of surgery or not, the reality of being this far into the season and not having Caroline anywhere near 100% is a pretty major surprise and disappointment.

Providing more details on her recovery and health at this point in time may simply be a reaction to the "what's wrong with Caroline?" commentary, that many including me have been part of. If we knew the true health situation some of those comments would have been unduly harsh, but we didn't know.

If the operation wasn't a complete success, we didn't know it. If the operation was far more uncertain than portrayed, we didn't know that. If the normal recovery time was well into the season, we certainly didn't know that either. I'm sure many of us might regret some of our comments given updated health information, but to a certain extent those opinions were allowed to fester because of the lack of good information on her health.

The team and Caroline have the right to keep health information as close to the vest as they want, but when poor performance is due to an unknown health issue, it is probably better to reveal it, or other uncomplimentary conclusions may be reached.

 

[Centerstream]

Journal Inquirer

Serving towns east of the Connecticut River

www.journalinquirer.com

The actual interview is posted in this thread

UConn Media Availability Dec 17 (merged thread)

the-boneyard.com

 

[JJTB]

I love the fact she took it to the basket, although the results weren’t the desired ones. Her “handle” could improve, but she’s tough to stop. What annoys me is how often she’s missed on cuts to the basket. She can be my “Super Sub” anytime!

 

[CONN78SEJ]

I thought she was completely recovered the hip surgery and that the surgery was a success and that it was supposed to make her a better player? The more we get into this season the more I feel the player who was easily the best player in the Big East last season after Paige went down is now but a mear shell of her former self. Where is girl who was averaging 20ppg last year for a large part of the season?

Why the negativity from “The deacon” and “HopJim”? I’m one of her biggest fans.

 

[Cuango]

I seem to remember Geno saying, last year, that Caroline was (paraphrasing) pretty shook up about the two consecutive situations where she apparently suffered some sort of head injury/knock. I’ve read about how players often, once they are physically recovered, go through a period of regaining trust in their body’s reliability/ability to function as it did prior to the injury. We are seeing that, to a somewhat lesser degree, in Dorka’s return from her thumb injury. She was physically cleared some time ago but needed time to fully trust it. How much more, for a scary head injury? If, as Geno suggested, she was worried/scared of another head injury, (as she would have every reason to be) perhaps what we are seeing,, in addition to the physical results of surgery/injury, is her gradual emergence from that concern. I know from my own life experiences that it is virtually impossible to perform at one’s best when you are preoccupied or concerned about things beyond the immediate task. Hopefully, she will continue to feel better and become more able to fully access the talent we all saw last season.

 

[The deacon]

Why the negativity from “The deacon” and “HopJim”? I’m one of her biggest fans.

'A mere shell of herself?'

Caroline has turned the ball over quite often in a couple of recent games and clearly isn't at her best. Yet your description is a bit harsh for a player who had 15 points in a game recently and then had 13 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists, and generally played good 'D vs. Maryland while physically extending herself well beyond what Geno would have preferred for her.

Hence my dislike for your post. I can't speak for HopJim, but I'm sure we'll all agree Caroline can and hopefully will do better.
However, Geno wouldn't have a player who's a 'mere shell of herself' on the court for 39 minutes, would he?

 

[CONN78SEJ]

'A mere shell of herself?'

Caroline has turned the ball over quite often in a couple of recent games and clearly isn't at her best. Yet your description is a bit harsh for a player who had 15 points in a game recently and then had 13 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists, and generally played good 'D vs. Maryland while physically extending herself well beyond what Geno would have preferred for her.

Hence my dislike for your post. I can't speak for HopJim, but I'm sure we'll all agree Caroline can and hopefully will do better.
However, Geno wouldn't have a player who's a 'mere shell of herself' on the court for 39 minutes, would he?

Compared to how she as a freshman averaged 25ppg over a 5 game stretch last year when the team really needed it, even winning some of those games single-handedly, yes I would still, relatively speaking, now call her a shell of how she played last year. I’m still pulling for her to have a game like one of the ones she had last year. If anything is harsh here it’s your dislike for my original post.

 

[#12in21]

I'm hoping with Nika back, she returns with her same proficiency at getting the ball to her teammates where they want/need it. If that is the case, I think Caroline will get many good opportunities and her shots will start falling - which will allow her to stop overthinking, which should help her get her game back and in turn boost her confidence. Caroline at her best last season was unstoppable coming in from either side to finish at the basket. I'm hoping we will see Nika getting the ball to her in motion to finish those shots.

I felt bad for Caroline in the pregame presser, she was courageously honest in her responses to question after question which focused on her current limitations, which could be a real downer. She seems frustrated but not defeated, no quit in her - which is no surprise. She believes she is now on an upward trend. First goal work through whatever her present limitations are to get back to her baseline last season (which was quite high!) and then who knows....

I think Geno may have put her out there (doing the presser) to get her over one hump - owning up to her current limitations and frustrations, then move forward. I think she will put her all into getting back where she wants to be, with her teammates and coaches at her side. I'm rooting for her. As she said, with Nika and Dorka back everyone can go back to doing what they do best, which should benefit the whole team,

 

[HopJim]

Why the negativity from “The deacon” and “HopJim”? I’m one of her biggest fans.

I don't normally answer commentary but never have been negative regarding Caroline. I have thought from the beginning of the season that she has had physical issues that she has gutted out when no other UConn resources existed. At times, Geno has had no other option but to play her the entire game and she has done her best. I am less worried about Caroline today with her hip issues and fully expect her to be one of the top offensive and defensive players when it matters in the NCAA's.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

I'm hoping with Nika back, she returns with her same proficiency at getting the ball to her teammates where they want/need it. If that is the case, I think Caroline will get many good opportunities and her shots will start falling - which will allow her to stop overthinking, which should help her get her game back and in turn boost her confidence. Caroline at her best last season was unstoppable coming in from either side to finish at the basket. I'm hoping we will see Nika getting the ball to her in motion to finish those shots.

I felt bad for Caroline in the pregame presser, she was courageously honest in her responses to question after question which focused on her current limitations, which could be a real downer. She seems frustrated but not defeated, no quit in her - which is no surprise. She believes she is now on an upward trend. First goal work through whatever her present limitations are to get back to her baseline last season (which was quite high!) and then who knows....

I think Geno may have put her out there (doing the presser) to get her over one hump - owning up to her current limitations and frustrations, then move forward. I think she will put her all into getting back where she wants to be, with her teammates and coaches at her side. I'm rooting for her. As she said, with Nika and Dorka back everyone can go back to doing what they do best, which should benefit the whole team,

She beat people down the floor while dribbling, cut to basket when she didn’t have the ball, and I might point out she shot 36.4% from beyond the arc during a critical 4 game stretch. Her all around game was remarkable for a freshman.