Disappointment

[donalddoowop]

I will give them credit and they are great players I agree with you. They had great games against us.

There have been a number of players who have had great games against UConn who were not great players.

 

[BobbyJ]

Kinda hard to win and play our game when the FT comparison in the 2nd half is 28 versus 11 attempts for the game and 18 versus 2 in the second half. Plus State made 78% of their FTs.
That is disappointing.
(I am not voicing an opinion on the legitimacy of the fouls, just that the disparity is disappointing.)

NC St. shot 12 FTs in the last 1:32 of the game. All on intentional fouls by UConn. That means that the difference in the 2nd half was 2 shooting fouls, 6-2, not significant. UConn put themselves in that situation because they couldn't play defense for most of the game and has no excuses.

 

[Bone Dog]

Both behaviors are detrimental to the team and players because of the undue stress both approaches create, IMO.

Are you suggesting the players read the BY?

 

[SEbluebood]

UConn’s fan base is just like that of any other team, except for being blessed by a great , consistent run of success which has perhaps spoiled us. But at the heart of the matter, there are some fans who are overly optimistic with expectations of undefeated seasons, multiple championships in a row and multiple AA’s and persistent rose-colored glasses. And, there are those who are overly pessimistic when disappointments occur and feel the end of being an elite program is near. Wehave plenty of both on the BY. Both behaviors are detrimental to the team and players because of the undue stress both approaches create, IMO.

Are you suggesting the players read the BY?

good question, wish I knew, but I have no clue! However, I do believe players and coaches have a palpable sense of expectations and opinions of the fanbase. It’s almost impossible not to in this day and age!!

 

[cferraro04]

While I was disappointed in UConn's performance I was equally impressed with North Carolina State's game plan and execution. They attacked our defense, drove the ball to the basket, dished to open shooters and knocked down shots. They got to the line often and made foul shots.

UConn, alas, is a work in progress. We lost Dorka in the middle and we may have forgotten how consistent she was both offensively and defensively. Have we forgotten also, how Lou came to UConn as a surprise acquisition and became essential to our success last year? We have players getting their sea legs after battling unprecedented injuries. You want a positive...folks thought it would have taken Paige longer to have the kind of game she had yesterday. It is too bad that outside of Aliyah she didn't get the support needed to win this ball game (kudos to NC State for having something to do with that). Everyone knows that Azzi Fudd is a knock-down three-point shooter...so, what happened? Well, when you have 20-year-old kids being counted on sometimes they don't always deliver. Do I expect another 4 for 13 performance from Azzi this season? No, not really...could it happen? Sure it can, but, I have seen enough of Azzi to know that she is way too competitive to let that happen again. Caroline is still not 100 percent and Aubrey was slightly off her game and seemed somewhat out of sorts...I expect both players will get back on track.

Ice Brady is going to become invaluable to us...It is just way too early for her yet...and for those criticizing Geno for "icing the Brady"...there is a reason why he makes the big bucks. He was trying to win the game...he just didn't see Ice as being able to contribute in a positive way to that outcome. He knows his players and he knows who to have confidence in...right now, Ice hasn't earned that confidence yet...it will come...we just need to be patient.

Nika was Nika...She had 6 assists before the entire rhythm of the game was thrown off by all the whistles. I am not saying that UConn didn't earn those whistles but, it is hard to get into an offensive rhythm when the officials are blowing the whistle.

The Bright spot, who really expected Samuels to knock down four threes yesterday? There has been talk about her possibly being the steal of the class but I don't think people thought that in the second game of the season, she would be earning 23 minutes and go 5 - 9 and 4-8 from three.

KK Arnold will be playing a lot more minutes as the season progresses and she will be a lot more productive.

I think it isn't entirely a bad thing that UConn lost this game...it is disappointing but it is what this team does with this loss going forward that could end up defining their entire season. They could look back in March and think how this game made them realize how hard they need to work to win a championship. I am sure LSU did not expect to lose to Colorado...it happened but, I wouldn't count LSU out...not with all the talent they have. It is true that Colorado was ranked 20...but, if anyone thinks that NC State will remain unranked they are not looking realistically at how good NC State is.

I admit in my prognostication I totally underestimated the individual play of NC State as well as their cohesiveness and team play. Saniya Rivers, Azaiha James, and Zoe Brooks are the real deal. They will only continue to get better going forward but, make no mistake so will the Huskies. Go Huskies!!! #timefornumbertwelve

 

[Performance]

Wow This loss reminds me of our loss a few years ago to Arkansas. Im pretty sick reading some of these posts because it came across to me like our fans are crucifying our girls and coaches. Hey we lost. We lost because we couldnt contain Rivers who imo played unconscious as did Brooks coming off the bench plus we didnt rebound. Did fouls have something to do with it too yeah. We had a 9 pt lead early on which shouldve been more then we got in early foul trouble which made us defenseless. We couldnt afford to get in foul trouble and we did. That gave them the green light because we were forced to back off them or foul out. We shot the ball pretty well but not being able to rebound and not getting to the line enough also contributed to our loss.

NCS was ranked 8th in the ACC which leads me to believe they played way over their heads against us. We are a better team then we showed and imo we showed we werent ready for this game. This is a learning experience and a wake up call. We did not play up to our potential and they played over theirs based on their preseason ranking. So the only thing we can say is NEXT and thats Maryland.

If you look around WCBB there were alot of blow outs. Let me say this. I love UConn WCBB teams as do you. It hurts me to read some of the posts that really knock our team down. Our girls are hurting and to drag them down further with the tone of some of your posts I feel we should choose our words carefully. Hey I know you have that right and your disappointed... just saying it hurts me to read some of the things being said. The girls know they didnt play well and they know they shouldve won. They gonna hear it from the coaches they dont need to hear it from everybody else. We have some girls coming back from injury that really havent played much in a while and are still rusty. It may take a couple of games before we reach our potential and we will have to live with that. Im looking forward to the rest of the season and a run at number 12.

Thank You!! That was very well stated

 

[Bajan Best]

I'm going to break my silence on this discussion board and say a few things that may or may not be popular..

1) We cannot keep doing the same things an expect different results
The talent in women's college basketball has changed, you cannot expect to win against a good opponent by playing passive basketball, everyone knows the keys to beating UConn is to be aggressive with them, taking them out of their rhythm and to play with confidence and make your shots.. We will always be a good team, but if you want to get back to the pinnacle, this team needs to be aggressive and play with a little more urgency the entire game , not just in the last 3mins

2) We lost this game mostly because we were firing on 1 and a half cylinders offensively. We missed too many open shots early on by players who should be making them.. After watching the game, our defense was not as terrible as some would like to say it was, NC State made several tough shots with defender within their area code, that is cuddo's to them. Geno likes his players to play defense right now by keeping players in front of them, I personally miss the old days when he would put a defender on a player and don't even let them touch it.. In Mariah's era, Saniya Rivers would have been limited to her touches.. Making her less impactful WE have the personnel to do the same in my opinion, why he did not utilize them, only he can know.. Aubrey somewhat did a good job on guarding Saniya the few times they were matched up in that game...

3) The only player on our team right now who is comfortable drawing fouls is Paige, our bigs have to put teams in foul trouble, fading away on jumpers to avoid contact is what we seem to like doing.. Hardly do I ever see our players utilizing the pump or head and shoulders fake to get aggresive defenders out of position.. Aliyah being blocked by Saniya, as a prime example. nine out of ten times Aaliyah will try to avoid contact by trying to go past the defender or pull up for a jumper..

4) Our turnovers came at critical times in this game, otherwise Uconn had as good a chance to come away with a hard fought win in hostile territory.. As well as NC State shot and as poorly as a few of our all american candidates played, this game was closer than it should have been..

5) Ice Brady, other than missing a few shot attempts, I saw no real reason not to play her a bit more in this game, after all it wasn't like Edwards/Azzi made much of their shots early on either.. Depth is suppose to be a strength this year, if you dont give your new players experience against good opponents early on in the year dont expect them to be comfortable later in the year when it matters more...

6) Aaliyah Edwards made a statement in preseason that concerned me a little ... She stated in an interview her goal this year was to be consistent... For me that was last year's goal, which for the most part she accomplished. This year similar to Tina Charles her goal should be to dominate, she is a senior that should be the natural progression for any good player... So hopefully she changes that mindset and go out and put up, 27pts, 15rbd, 2blks, 2stls, 5assist per night leave it all on the floor, sub when tired and come back in and do the same again..

We had zero blocks in this game, and they had 6 blks, very telling.... Out rebounded by 10, passive, Passive, Passive.
let the games continue!! Let's Go Huskies!!!

 

[Zanzman]

Geno is the one who annually states [paraphrasing] that UConn's goal is a national championship. Geno is the one who sets the expectations. Not the Boneyard members.

Did they lose the championship ?

 

[CTtoSanDiego]

Kinda hard to win and play our game when the FT comparison in the 2nd half is 28 versus 11 attempts for the game and 18 versus 2 in the second half. Plus State made 78% of their FTs.
That is disappointing.
(I am not voicing an opinion on the legitimacy of the fouls, just that the disparity is disappointing.)

A big piece of the discrepancy (not all, but a lot) was due to us playing the intentionally fouling game in the last two minutes or so.

 

[dabears17]

It's early in the season. UConn has lost games before Christmas and still won a national championship. I know Massey's data is somewhat flawed this early in the season, but it only had UConn with a 54 percent chance to win. Massey predicted Stanford would beat Indiana. Relax and enjoy the journey. The only games that really matter are the last six.

 

[Longtime fan]

Wow This loss reminds me of our loss a few years ago to Arkansas. Im pretty sick reading some of these posts because it came across to me like our fans are crucifying our girls and coaches. Hey we lost. We lost because we couldnt contain Rivers who imo played unconscious as did Brooks coming off the bench plus we didnt rebound. Did fouls have something to do with it too yeah. We had a 9 pt lead early on which shouldve been more then we got in early foul trouble which made us defenseless. We couldnt afford to get in foul trouble and we did. That gave them the green light because we were forced to back off them or foul out. We shot the ball pretty well but not being able to rebound and not getting to the line enough also contributed to our loss.

NCS was ranked 8th in the ACC which leads me to believe they played way over their heads against us. We are a better team then we showed and imo we showed we werent ready for this game. This is a learning experience and a wake up call. We did not play up to our potential and they played over theirs based on their preseason ranking. So the only thing we can say is NEXT and thats Maryland.

If you look around WCBB there were alot of blow outs. Let me say this. I love UConn WCBB teams as do you. It hurts me to read some of the posts that really knock our team down. Our girls are hurting and to drag them down further with the tone of some of your posts I feel we should choose our words carefully. Hey I know you have that right and your disappointed... just saying it hurts me to read some of the things being said. The girls know they didnt play well and they know they shouldve won. They gonna hear it from the coaches they dont need to hear it from everybody else. We have some girls coming back from injury that really havent played much in a while and are still rusty. It may take a couple of games before we reach our potential and we will have to live with that. Im looking forward to the rest of the season and a run at number 12.

Early rankings ( eg NC State) are silly and meaningless. Even coach Geno said that. But what did your eye test tell you? NC State dominated for the final three periods. Rivers was the best player on the court...and I assure you.... that was not a once in a lifetime performance. She is that good. No one is crucifying the UCONN Ladies. We are just saying what we observed. Strengths and weaknesses. And we all want UCONN back to the big dance with a chance to win. And we have good chance. However we have to realize ( as in women's international soccer ) that the world has caught up to UCONN and, in many cases, passed us by. Playing the same hand ( Paige, Azzi, Muhl, Caroline and Edwards, in the same way, is not likely enough to " get it done." And Geno has a history of finding his core five or six players, and running with them. And, in the past, that worked. UCONN had better talent and they worked harder. Those days are well gone. Many teams have young, athletic, fast, big superstars. NC State had a bunch of them. South Carolina beat Maryland 114-76. Stanford beat Indiana by 40 points. and Colorado beat LSU ( national defending champs ) in Baton Rouge. What we saw, early as it was, just doesn't appear to be enough. That is all we are saying. We love UCONN Lady Husky basketball. But we have eyes.

 

[wbbhoops278]

I'm going to break my silence on this discussion board and say a few things that may or may not be popular..

1) We cannot keep doing the same things an expect different results
The talent in women's college basketball has changed, you cannot expect to win against a good opponent by playing passive basketball, everyone knows the keys to beating UConn is to be aggressive with them, taking them out of their rhythm and to play with confidence and make your shots.. We will always be a good team, but if you want to get back to the pinnacle, this team needs to be aggressive and play with a little more urgency the entire game , not just in the last 3mins

2) We lost this game mostly because we were firing on 1 and a half cylinders offensively. We missed too many open shots early on by players who should be making them.. After watching the game, our defense was not as terrible as some would like to say it was, NC State made several tough shots with defender within their area code, that is cuddo's to them. Geno likes his players to play defense right now by keeping players in front of them, I personally miss the old days when he would put a defender on a player and don't even let them touch it.. In Mariah's era, Saniya Rivers would have been limited to her touches.. Making her less impactful WE have the personnel to do the same in my opinion, why he did not utilize them, only he can know.. Aubrey somewhat did a good job on guarding Saniya the few times they were matched up in that game...

3) The only player on our team right now who is comfortable drawing fouls is Paige, our bigs have to put teams in foul trouble, fading away on jumpers to avoid contact is what we seem to like doing.. Hardly do I ever see our players utilizing the pump or head and shoulders fake to get aggresive defenders out of position.. Aliyah being blocked by Saniya, as a prime example. nine out of ten times Aaliyah will try to avoid contact by trying to go past the defender or pull up for a jumper..

4) Our turnovers came at critical times in this game, otherwise Uconn had as good a chance to come away with a hard fought win in hostile territory.. As well as NC State shot and as poorly as a few of our all american candidates played, this game was closer than it should have been..

5) Ice Brady, other than missing a few shot attempts, I saw no real reason not to play her a bit more in this game, after all it wasn't like Edwards/Azzi made much of their shots early on either.. Depth is suppose to be a strength this year, if you dont give your new players experience against good opponents early on in the year dont expect them to be comfortable later in the year when it matters more...

6) Aaliyah Edwards made a statement in preseason that concerned me a little ... She stated in an interview her goal this year was to be consistent... For me that was last year's goal, which for the most part she accomplished. This year similar to Tina Charles her goal should be to dominate, she is a senior that should be the natural progression for any good player... So hopefully she changes that mindset and go out and put up, 27pts, 15rbd, 2blks, 2stls, 5assist per night leave it all on the floor, sub when tired and come back in and do the same again..

We had zero blocks in this game, and they had 6 blks, very telling.... Out rebounded by 10, passive, Passive, Passive.
let the games continue!! Let's Go Huskies!!!

First, I'm glad you broke your silence because you have some really good things to say! I highlighted your point about Ice because I couldn't agree any more. Defense and rebounding were the big issues for me yesterday (IMO it wasn't the offense...we scored over 80 against a traditionally solid defensive team and shot almost 50%). Aubrey didn't get back in after she got hurt, so that immediately makes rebounding more of a challenge than it already was. We gave up 50-points in the second half without Ice playing, so it's not like we can argue that the defense was the reason she didn't play. Given that there was so much talk about how deep this team is and how, especially in light of the past two seasons, it's important to manage minutes to keep the team fresh for the postseason - the math isn't mathing.

 

[Urshurak]

I think the unrealistic expectations put on this team by many posters hurts worse than the folks saying "slow your roll".

This right here. Thank you for saying it. Looking back at the prognosticators thread and there are quite a few people predicting a 30+ point win. Now go read my post in that same thread.......yes, I still expected a UConn win, but said it would be much closer and NC State was not being given enough credit.

I too was very dissapointed in how they played. It was bad. Really bad. Are they doomed? No. It's going to take a lot of work, but hopefully something positive can come from it. They got their bottoms kicked. Plain and simple. NOW is what matters. Onward..NEXT. Lets go Huskies!

 

[uconnfan68]

You are wrong about Rivers and Brooks playing unconscious and about NC State playing above their heads. Rivers and Brooks are both great players. Give them credit. They and the whole team played up to their potential.

I saw WNBA potential in Rivers, James, and Brooks. They didn’t seem over their heads.

 

[uconnfan68]

Geno played, essentially, only one big during the second half. And that big, despite her strengths, has a boatload of deficiencies that were covered up by her frontcourt teammates last year. Now you get Ice Brady iced for the second half. How will she learn from not playing. Coach her up and send her back out there. DeBerry seems to be someone who has not responded to Geno's coaching style, which is sort of monolithic. Look how ONO has progressed since she left UConn.

Imo, this is a team with a lot of weaknesses. But if Geno refuses to develop players and buries them on the bench, it's not going to cure those weaknesses.

Do you seriously think Geno doesn’t try to develop his players? Burying someone on the bench doesn’t mean he gave up trying. It means they don’t meet his standards.

 

[Soxx]

I thought Mimi Collins played a great overall game. She had a few blocks that killed possessions.

Agreed, and I think Edwards was surprised at the blocks to a couple of her inside attempts.

 

[Waquoit]

Geno is the one who annually states [paraphrasing] that UConn's goal is a national championship. Geno is the one who sets the expectations. Not the Boneyard members.

Every team's goal is the national championship, not just UConn. I'm talking about the individual player expectations from the BY. Overrating players is the default so when they lose it has to be coaching or motivation or effort or something else. What if they just lost to a better team on the road?

 

[ctkaiser]

Kinda hard to win and play our game when the FT comparison in the 2nd half is 28 versus 11 attempts for the game and 18 versus 2 in the second half. Plus State made 78% of their FTs.
That is disappointing.
(I am not voicing an opinion on the legitimacy of the fouls, just that the disparity is disappointing.)

That's what happens when you settle for outside shots.

 

[cwaduke]

Geno played, essentially, only one big during the second half. And that big, despite her strengths, has a boatload of deficiencies that were covered up by her frontcourt teammates last year. Now you get Ice Brady iced for the second half. How will she learn from not playing. Coach her up and send her back out there. DeBerry seems to be someone who has not responded to Geno's coaching style, which is sort of monolithic. Look how ONO has progressed since she left UConn.

Imo, this is a team with a lot of weaknesses. But if Geno refuses to develop players and buries them on the bench, it's not going to cure those weaknesses.

ONO is doing well in the WNBA because of the coaching she got at UCONN>

 

[Rowdy831]

Two weeks ago you predicted an undefeated season winning every game /most by double digits..Any predictions today?

I did too. What I didn't know is that Geno would try to run the offense through someone other than Paige. This team is very talented and could win every game left on the schedule but it will take more than the girls being on top of their game each night.

 

[Rowdy831]

That's what happens when you settle for outside shots.

I agree. Not only settle for them but they appeared to playing for them. Azzi is money on her pull up shot from the free throw line and that is where she should make her living. Her and Paige become more difficult to handle the closer they get to the rim and they need to work that advantage in the offense.

 

[HopJim]

You are wrong about Rivers and Brooks playing unconscious and about NC State playing above their heads. Rivers and Brooks are both great players. Give them credit. They and the whole team played up to their potential.

Give credit to Wes Moore, the NC State coach, as well as his staff. They were well prepared and reacted well to the changes as they took place in the game. No so much for UConn.

 

[baggerbob]

I think the unrealistic expectations put on this team by many posters hurts worse than the folks saying "slow your roll".

The team lost 2 solid players in Lou and Dorka, their loss might be greater then people expect.

 

[victor64]

You are right Tony! This was just like the Arkansas game you mention. Of course, that team recovered and went to the final four. So will this team. It is the advantage of playing a schedule great schedule like this. You learn who you are. Too many great things happened yesterday (the emergence of Qadence, an increase in minutes for Paige) in a game that has no impact on anything long term. You don't think the team will effectively rebound and guard the dribble by the end of the year? History says they will.

 

[Skeets]

There is no such thing as a good loss. But if you're going to up-chuck it's better if it's the second game of the season as opposed to the second to the last game of the season.

Congrats to the players, coaches and fans for NCS. Displayed energy and grit that UConn didn't have. Maybe being the first road game of the season helped throw UConn out of their rhythm? Traveling is a pain. Hurry up and wait makes you a little coo-coo.

Bright spots: Paige trying to perform the heroics, she's on her way back, playing more minutes. Q, I hope she continues and that the first 2 games were not flukes. I believe the kid has real talent. I will be watching those puffs (I wish I had puffs, or even tuffs).

Dark spot: didn't any of the coaches or players recognize that additional focus was needed on Rivers? It didn't appear that way, or it was totally ineffective. Too many times a kid has a career game against UConn. DO NOT let that happen again. Azzi, shake it off. Don't become your own worst enemy. You are too good for that.

Onward! I haven't given up on this team. Heck, I still root for the football team (and the Yankees and Giants, but why, I don't know).

 

[BBallF]

There is no such thing as a good loss. But if you're going to up-chuck it's better if it's the second game of the season as opposed to the second to the last game of the season.

Congrats to the players, coaches and fans for NCS. Displayed energy and grit that UConn didn't have. Maybe being the first road game of the season helped throw UConn out of their rhythm? Traveling is a pain. Hurry up and wait makes you a little coo-coo.

Bright spots: Paige trying to perform the heroics, she's on her way back, playing more minutes. Q, I hope she continues and that the first 2 games were not flukes. I believe the kid has real talent. I will be watching those puffs (I wish I had puffs, or even tuffs).

Dark spot: didn't any of the coaches or players recognize that additional focus was needed on Rivers? It didn't appear that way, or it was totally ineffective. Too many times a kid has a career game against UConn. DO NOT let that happen again. Azzi, shake it off. Don't become your own worst enemy. You are too good for that.

Onward! I haven't given up on this team. Heck, I still root for the football team (and the Yankees and Giants, but why, I don't know).

Thank you! I was harping on the need for a Box and 1 all alone there for a while. When a player is on fire like that you throw everything you can against them to just throw them off. A Box with Aubrey on her and then Nika, getting help from the Box when she gets near and has to get rid of the ball is what you wanted. Didn't see it.

 

[tomcat]

Geno is the one who annually states [paraphrasing] that UConn's goal is a national championship. Geno is the one who sets the expectations. Not the Boneyard members.

There is a difference between a goal and an expectation. I do not know if his expectations are that the team will be undefeated. Just because the coach sets a goal does not mean that anyone else should EXPECT that to happen. I saw the post last week asking which team people thought would go undefeated, and was amazed that so many BYers would think UConn would.
This is not to say that UConn is not talented. They are, and tremendously so. But they also have their weaknesses. It is a measure of how much we all knew, deep in our heart of hearts, that UConn is undersized that when Jana went down with her injury, folks were IMHO, unusually upset. It's not as if Jana is a know commodity. She is a freshman, who has played against who-knows-what level of competition, and has not done much more than practice with the team. But some folks were acting as if it was a foregone conclusion that she would be an integral part of the team, right from the get-go.

 

[tomcat]

My thought as I watched NCState dissect UConn was this: How is in that for every defensive scheme UConn put out there, NCState had an effective answer? Is the UConn defense that predictable? Is NCState that much more athletic. Maybe yes to both, methinks.

 

[Kevin G]

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Hence, this is a discussion forum.

I was extremely frustrated watching the game. Despite it being the second game of the season, you have to consider all the players who came back, the capability of each player and the coaching staff we have at UCONN. So, Im EXTREMELY disappointed.

On a positive note, this IS only the second game of the season.

 

[ctkaiser]

There is no such thing as a good loss. But if you're going to up-chuck it's better if it's the second game of the season as opposed to the second to the last game of the season.

Congrats to the players, coaches and fans for NCS. Displayed energy and grit that UConn didn't have. Maybe being the first road game of the season helped throw UConn out of their rhythm? Traveling is a pain. Hurry up and wait makes you a little coo-coo.

Bright spots: Paige trying to perform the heroics, she's on her way back, playing more minutes. Q, I hope she continues and that the first 2 games were not flukes. I believe the kid has real talent. I will be watching those puffs (I wish I had puffs, or even tuffs).

Dark spot: didn't any of the coaches or players recognize that additional focus was needed on Rivers? It didn't appear that way, or it was totally ineffective. Too many times a kid has a career game against UConn. DO NOT let that happen again. Azzi, shake it off. Don't become your own worst enemy. You are too good for that.

Onward! I haven't given up on this team. Heck, I still root for the football team (and the Yankees and Giants, but why, I don't know).

It seemed like Azzi was on Rivers a lot. Maybe due to screens but not a good match up. Maybe nobody was a good match up!