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Message: [QUOTE="ttizzle999, post: 2666843, member: 1586"] I have to say I was disappointed in Samuelson down the stretch. Yes, she was in foul trouble so she was limited on defense but as one of the best players in the country and the best offensive player on our team she disappeared in key moments. And if you can’t defend wel with four fouls, then you have to make your impact on the offensive end otherwise you’re basically a liability for the team. ND played great perimeter defense, but KLS was not looking for her shot at all—when she got the ball she looked to immediately pass it. One of the key developments for her this year has been her ability to penetrate defenses better and score inside to make her more versatile and difficult to guard, but I saw little if any of that tonight. It’s natural to blame bad calls, but they went both ways and UConn simply was not aggressive enough. From a coaching standpoint, I disagree with leaving Stevens on the bench to start the second half and some defensive choices in the second half, but you have to hand it to ND for the tenacious way they played. Their aggressive drives to the basket and throwing up shots while getting fouled gave me nausea-inducing PTSD from similar drives years ago by players like Natalie Novosel. When ND got to the free throw line every other possession and made almost all their shots, it’s hard to consistently have to score make up for that 2 point deficit every possession. We had key chances down the stretch, but this team honestly never consistently played with the hunger that I expected them to given last year’s ending. I do expect our team next year to be in the mix with improved play from KLS, Stevens, and Dangerfield (and hopefully Walker as well, but to be honest our weak conference does not build our mental toughness the way it has in years past and there are several teams on the rise. I expect Geno and the team to respond in kind. Until next year...hats off to Gabby and Kia for a truly fantastic four years—they are great women and incredible players who played with class and humility. I wish it had ended different for them, but no one can take away their two titles and the plethora of accomplishments they racked up over the years. [/QUOTE]

Verification: First name of men's bb coach