Defense / Dynasty

[slimmer56]

I am not sure I have ever seen a better UCONN defense than I saw at the end of this past year. It may be the most versatile team defense I have ever seen. We could play man, zone,press, and trap, but what really set us apart was our shot blocking down low. Our last line of defense. Our defense is what got our swag back. It was like Geno turned on a light switch, and every player had bought in.
Everyone loves UCONN's offense, (I do too) but what got us the Nat Championship was DEFENSE.
Watch the ND semi-final you can see them slowly crumble then cave.Stewie was the key. How many players, men or women are there that can guard the in-bounds, trap the 1st pass, then go the length and block the layup ! There were times in the ND game when we could not score, but we stopped them cold for even longer stretches of play. No team in the country stopped ND the way we did. They beat us 3 times earlier in the season with buzzer beaters, 3-pt shots that bounced high off the rim and in. Then they said they were not scared or intimidated of UCONN anymore ! There only problem was they had not faced the true UCONN team yet. They finally saw it in the Nat Semi-Final.
What a defense !

You are starting to hear folks say the word Dynasty about UCONN WBB ! To me we have been a dynasty since 1995. Mr Webster's definition of Dynasty is a group or family that maintains its position for a considerable time. Sounds like a Dynasty to me. I see us getting even better. We will miss Kelly. You cannot replace her heart, or her skills. But our defense with Stewie and Stef look out!
If anyone wants parity, they better get going 'cause UCONN is comin' after you !

 

[VAMike23]

Whatever the stats show, of our recent teams I particularly liked the defense we were playing at the end of 2009, when Tina really came into her own as a 1st-team AA caliber player. On the perimeter we had Renee, Tiff and KG. Then Maya and Tina inside. Yes, Maya is undersized somewhat but we all know she can battle with the best. And Tina at that point was a very fierce backstop herself.

2010, still with Tina and Maya and the addition of Kelly, was also a great unit.

I think with Stewie playing well and a *healthy* Stef, we will have an even better backstop next year in the lane. However I am not sure that our perimeter D is quite up to the Montgomery/Hayes/Greene standard. Those three as a unit were excellent. Renee was not a stellar defender but by then she had experience and was still pretty good (and quick) at the top of the D. Hayes was already very good as a frosh, with elite lateral quickness and tenacity, and Greene was a stopper.

 

[alexrgct]

Frontcourt D with Stef, Stewie, and KML will be devastating. Perimeter D will take a bit of a step back to start the season. Kelly is a huge loss in terms of being able to defend guards, avoid screens, and generally blow up what you're trying to do to get your offense set. However, Bria and MoJeff are super athletic and active. I imagine that, by season's end, Uconn will be very tough defensively.

 

[VAMike23]

Frontcourt D with Stef, Stewie, and KML will be devastating. Perimeter D will take a bit of a step back to start the season. Kelly is a huge loss in terms of being able to defend guards, avoid screens, and generally blow up what you're trying to do to get your offense set. However, Bria and MoJeff are super athletic and active. I imagine that, by season's end, Uconn will be very tough defensively.

Agreed, point for point

 

[hoopsdiva]

Don't forget BBanks on the perimeter. Or Kiah in the post.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

I thought our transition or midcourt defense was very good in the NCAAs and left other teams a shortened shot clock a good deal of the time and we got the occasional steal/turn over. Okay, more than occasional.

 

[UConnCat]

UConn will (again) be vulnerable against teams with big guards but few teams (other than ND) have the size/skill/offense to take advantage of UConn's lack of size in the backcourt. Duke's backcourt should present some problems next season, though we'll see if McCallie can exploit that advantage. Geno and the coaches are the best at hiding weaknesses and coaching team defense.

 

[Ozzie Nelson]

Imagine facing Stewie et al with a 10 sec rule in effect...

 

[msf22b]

Let's not underestimate Mo
In the Notre Dame game, she was responsible for taking some of the stuffing out of Sky
Sure, she was beaten once in the paint and had that silly, "eye" defense called but she was quite formidable and "stuck to her like glue" otherwise.
Nothing wrong with her contribution in this area.

 

[baggerbob]

Not many WCBB college teams have had a 6-4 player, who could run with Skylar all the way down the court without committing a foul, and force her to put up a bad shot, Stewie did. Not many players at 6-4 can trap a guard , steal the ball, and dribble from halfcourt and make the layup against Skylar, Stewie did. In the NCAA tournament she was just starting to do, some of the things Geno expects her to do. He stated Stewie when the tournament started, just went back to playing, not thinking about everything.

 

[sarals24]

Bria plays great defense. I think with Banks, MoJeff and Chong we will have an unbelievably quick 1-2 lineup that will be able to pressure the ball all over the floor. Similar to what Baylor did to us this year, because they had BG back there to block shots. Well, we have Stewie now. I can't wait for next season.

 

[UcMiami]

Defense is so much commitment and team, and Geno and staff do a very good job of coaching it up. And I am very impressed with the scouting aspect and the team concept - you almost never see a Uconn player play straight up defense - they are always overplaying in one direction and funneling their player toward the help defense, the sideline, and the baseline. And their work on on-ball screens is beautiful to behold. And the fact that they are able to switch on screens consistently without giving up the 'roll' part of the screen and rolls is also critical.
Agree that the Uconn guards should be very good next year - so much speed and quickness. And even Mo while the most vertically challenged has amazing leaping ability - she had some monster blocks last year! And taller guards cannot take her lightly in that regard.

 

[OneTrickPony]

That's a good point about Moriah...she can leap...the only problem I can see is the length of time before she comes down...

 

[Bestiarius]

I'm betting that Mo's defense improves tremendously next year. Her quickness didn't translate on defense this year considering her natural capability. As an example, during the NC game, the two Schimmels ran an excellent defensive ploy in an attempt to trap Mo with the ball. They would simultaneously dart out with great speed and coordination in an attempt to surround Mo, but she had the quickness to merely change direction and dribble around the trap and out of trouble. Once she learns to use this quickness on defense, she's going to be an awesome defender.

 

[Scotter]

The best defense UConn has played was during the 2010 season championship season. Not the deepest or tallest team, but the best. The most mentally and physically tough defensively. The most defensively athletic with the ability to switch any matchup. The type of defense that smothered Notre Dame, rather than allow the type of penetration that has happened for the last three season. The type of team that cans core 12 points through 20 minutes in a national championship game against the 2nd best team in the country and still only being down 8 points.

I've seen mentions of the 2009 team as a great defensive team, but that really wasn't the case by UConn standards. They were one of the very best offensive teams in UConn history with Renee, Maya, and Tina as the big 3, but not one of the great defensive teams in UConn history. The following year they flipped the script and became the best defensive team in NCAA history. The 2009 team allowed at least 53 points in every game of the NCAA tournament. The 2010 team never gave up more than 50 points in both the NCAA and Big East Tournament, and an opponent never reached 70 points the entire season.

 

[Suebird10fan]

Not sure I agree with you on the 2009 team--they were awfully good defensively. But you're absolutely right about 2010. I don't expect to ever see a defensive team as good as that one. And my health is fine, thank you!