Creighton Postgame Thread

[Zarathustra]

Creighton is pretty good. We did what I thought we could do defensively. Keyed in on Maly and Jensen and really limited them.

I wasn’t thrilled by Chen passing up shots though. That worries me long term.

Kaitlyn was 0 for six from beyond the arc... a reason, perhaps, to pass-up that shot!

 

[Zarathustra]

Morgan lost minutes as she got lost on defense at least twice. Thought Jana did well but missed her shots.

So TRUE... Hopefully a learning experience for Morgan.... albeit a painful one!

 

[Zarathustra]

I didn’t realize Creighton was down a starter today.

THANKS for that REMINDER... a sobering thought!
The next UCONN / Creighton game should be " instructive"!!!!!

 

[mhshuskies]

This game exposed the extent of who Geno is comfortable with in tight games. He has full faith in 6 players (Paige, Azzi, Sarah, Kaitlyn, KK and Ash). Three players (Jana, Ice and Morgan) are in the mix for the best “big” to compliment those 6. That is about how far it goes at this point, but fully expect AG to be in the mix by tourney time.

 

[Skeets]

This could get me excommunicated. I'm not saying that Paige doesn't play good defense, but 2, 3, 4 times every game she gets beaten on dribble drives, messed up switches on picks, etc. Every time it happens it is surprising and glaring to me, maybe because I'm a devoted Paige watcher.

 

[Fossil]

KK was a demon on defense. Azzi was a no show. Ash was a no show. Morgan didn't see the floor in the 2nd half (I think). Paige & Sarah was the offense. Not sure why Jana was vanished to the bench. A win is a win, but gotta do better to compete with Tennessee and SC.

Morgan was showing some of her lack of experience against a far more experienced team. She will learn from the video of this game. She got beat a few times badly and that may be why she didn’t get any minutes in the second half.

 

[Forego]

How many back door layups did the team give up? Six? Seven? They made halftime adjustments to shut them down, but the back door plays gave away far too many points in the first half and kept the game closer than it should have been.

 

[JellyBean]

I had zero illusion that how we played the last two games would carry over on the road. I mean it would have been nice but being on the road, probably a busy week of academics, I get it. However, the team definitely will have to work on cleaning up things up a little.

Sarah-She is playing close to the level of what Paige was playing as a freshman. Just head and shoulders above other players. Wow.

Paige- Started slow but glad that she got it going.

Azzi- Not her best shooting game but her defense was stellar! The switching, the face guarding, the help side rotations was outstanding! Well done, Azzi

Jana- I love that she was aggressive. She had a few heads up plays on both ends of the floor.

Kaitlyn- Her shot wasn't falling but she made up for it with defensive intensity and grit out there. You know the coaching staff trusts you when you are out there in crucial moments.

KK/Ashlynn- Those two bring so much passion and energy coming off the bench. Ashlynn with her boxing out against taller or wider players. She has the heart of a husky. Just that grit and grind mindset! Love it!! KK with her aggressive mindset on both ends of the floor. She is a pest. She had some huge plays.

Morgan/Ice- I was hoping that Morgan would have played a little more but the game was kind of back and forth and I get it, the coaching staff was probably sticking to their core of players they feel they can trust more. Ice got out there and helped some. Well done, Ice & Morgan. Keep your heads up.

Not gonna lie. I was a little surprised that Aubrey didn't get some minutes out there. But we got a few games before Tennessee so we will see what develops.

Q & Allie- The way the game was going, especially in the first half, I knew they would not see much (if any) court time. The game was in the balance. Good thing, we got DePaul and Butler coming up. We will see what develops.

In the end, I love games like this. You find out the pulse of your team. Who has that competitive fire. Who steps up when things are close. Kaitlyn Chen catches a lot of heat for this or that. She is one of those players that will step up in the heat of the moment. I am glad that she is on our team, and I know that she is going to make the right play at the right time.

Let's see what we do against DePaul and Butler! Well done, UConn!!

 

[CL82]

The back-to-back pick sixes by Kaitlyn & Sarah

They intercepted passes and ran them back for touchdowns? Wow they are really multifaceted players.

 

[oldude]

They intercepted passes and ran them back for touchdowns? Wow they are really multifaceted players.

Just using an oft-quoted football analogy that has taken hold in basketball jargon.

 

[Hist-teacher]

Creighton is pretty good. We did what I thought we could do defensively. Keyed in on Maly and Jensen and really limited them.

I wasn’t thrilled by Chen passing up shots though. That worries me long term.

Other than layups she couldn't hit any shots. 0-6 from 3 and some were not even close. Can't just keep on throwing up shots. I was happy when she stopped shooting 3s. Yes, we'll need her to shoot it better from 3 but it was not her night (shooting wise).

 

[mhshuskies]

This could get me excommunicated. I'm not saying that Paige doesn't play good defense, but 2, 3, 4 times every game she gets beaten on dribble drives, messed up switches on picks, etc. Every time it happens it is surprising and glaring to me, maybe because I'm a devoted Paige watcher.

I think Azzi is a better defender.

 

[donalddoowop]

KC can't shoot. She missed every outside shot tonight and she was the one they were leaving open. She hustles and plays hard but she will struggle against SC.

Did you think that after the game against Villanova? I believe all UConn players will struggle against SC.

 

[ABCDFE]

Did you think that after the game against Villanova? I believe all UConn players will struggle against SC.

I’m with you for the most part. I think Sarah will be ok against SC. Paige will probably play below her averages because of SC defense. The rest of the team who knows, but my gut tells me everyone will struggle offensively. We have to Hope that Azzi and Shade can rise to the occasion. Kk will play her tenacious brand of defense but on offense she is not decisive and every team will watch the tape and sag off of Chen and Kk.

My holiday inn express suggestion would be for Paige to go back to point guard and for shade to start. That gives us the potential of 3 really good shooters both in midrange and 3 pt. Jana in the middle and Sarah. I just don’t think we can win against Tennessee or sc without enough scoring

 

[msf22b]

That's the point...Donald
How does this late Run of games
anticipate what we'll see from the team vs UTenn and SC?

I'm far away...now Venice...and haven't seen
full games...but coming home soon.

And concerned that the magical moment hasn't yet been reached.

 

[oldude]

That's the point...Donald
How does this late Run of games
anticipate what we'll see from the team vs UTenn and SC?

I'm far away...now Venice...and haven't seen
full games...but coming home soon.

And concerned that the magical moment hasn't yet been reached.

Venice? I had no idea you could stream UConn games while riding around in a gondola……

 

[Zarathustra]

This could get me excommunicated. I'm not saying that Paige doesn't play good defense, but 2, 3, 4 times every game she gets beaten on dribble drives, messed up switches on picks, etc. Every time it happens it is surprising and glaring to me, maybe because I'm a devoted Paige watcher.

The "Inquisition" will be visiting you sometime this week. "When?",
you ask? Ask the "SHADOW"!!

 

[packwrap]

THANKS for that REMINDER... a sobering thought!
The next UCONN / Creighton game should be " instructive"!!!!!

Speaking of sobering thoughts, I realized today is the day of the Kobe/Gigi crash.

I'm usually a snarky cynic and I was not really a Kobe fan, but I respected his warm father daughter relationship with Gigi. Gigi was magnetic, and her smile was made to be tucked snug in a Husky parka.

Gigi would already be 18, down at the end of the bench clowning with Q and Allie and testing Geno.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

Is it me or is Azzi not squaring up all the way on her midrange shot? She's almost there and it looks as if she's trying to curve the ball in because she's not square. It's putting a spin on the ball.

 

[Geew1992]

We all have to hope that some top talent comes to play with Sarah. The top talent has been going elsewhere, prior to Sarah.

What!!?? Do you know how many #1 recruits are on the team? Do you know Geno has had top 5 recruiting classes for quite a while

 

[Rb335]

KC can't shoot. She missed every outside shot tonight and she was the one they were leaving open. She hustles and plays hard but she will struggle against SC.

Tend to agree with this. In the last 10 games she’s 4/23 from 3, that’s 17%. She doesn’t force 3s, so I’d guess pretty much all of those attempts were wide open. She’s 22/51 43% overall from the field in that stretch.

The issue is, you remove her one good offensive game against Villanova and she’s 35% fga, 10% from 3 over a 9 game sample size. There’s definitely potential for her to be an offensive liability in big games.

We need to figure out how to run the offense to generate the 6 3s Kaitlyn got last night for Azzi.

 

[schmendrick]

If I hadn't watched, I'd be worrying that this was a loss from the doom and gloom of these comments, e.g., "too many positive posts." To my mind, it was a hard-fought, beautiful game against a tough, seasoned team on the road, its high point being the end of the third quarter when joy radiated through the ranks.

Yes, Azzi was off--at least offensively. Kaitlyn did not have her outside shot going. Morgan missed an assignment or two. Yes, shots were clanging off the rim. So? Azzi is too good to be down much longer. She will figure it out. Kaitlyn has found her stride. Just you watch. Morgan is firmly entrenched as among the first off the bench. Who saw that coming?

In short, CHILL OUT, PEEPS.

 

[ERWUC65]

Is it me or is Azzi not squaring up all the way on her midrange shot? She's almost there and it looks as if she's trying to curve the ball in because she's not square. It's putting a spin on the ball.

I think we have this 'shooting' issue with both Azzi and Ash. Both are expending a lot of energy on defense and both seem unable to get set/open on offense to get comfortable with their shot. Azzi still has not got her legs back and Ash still is lacking in confidence. We need one or both of these players to be that 3rd (or 4th) scorer for us to win against TN and SC and/or later in March.

 

[Bone Dog]

Is it me or is Azzi not squaring up all the way on her midrange shot? She's almost there and it looks as if she's trying to curve the ball in because she's not square. It's putting a spin on the ball.

This is what I thought I was seeing as well. If we’re right, it merely means she was rushing her shot. Give her a few more challenging games and she’ll work through this.