Early January All-American Considerations

[GoChips20]

Clark makes some poor decisions no doubt and I’m not the biggest fan personally but no player is perfect and it seems ridiculous to criticize a player averaging 27/8/8 on 46% shooting.

As for a Boston/Clark swap, that would leave each of their respective teams worse off IMO. System is everything.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

How so? Boston doesn’t fit into Iowas 3 point focused system. Their defense would still bad and unless Boston could replace the points per game of Clark I don’t see how a post with no shooting ability would be an improvement over the best guard in the country right now.

I do think Boston would look better on a team like Iowas because teams couldn’t double and triple team her.

I think their defense and rebounding would improve dramatically.

 

[hoopsnloops32]

I think their defense and rebounding would improve dramatically.

Both of those things are team skills. One player would improve them but they don’t have strong enough rebounders or defenders to win that way.

 

[Iowa57]

A Boston for Clark swap would create problems for Iowa from a roster construction perspective. The most glaring is on defense. Czinano isn't fast enough to guard anyone but the 5 in a player-to-player defense, but putting Boston on the other team's 4 limits her ability to rebound and protect the rim. They could try zone instead, but again Czinano really isn't quick enough to guard a corner in a 2-3 zone.

Offensively, that would leave Molly Davis as Iowa's only PG. Last year, Clark played 40 minutes or close in basically every big game because Iowa's offense completely fell apart when she was off the floor. An Iowa team with Boston would be in trouble every minute Davis wasn't on the floor.

Plus Clark is the only Iowa guard that can get to the basket with regularity. Swap Boston for Clark and Iowa would have a ton of spacing issues with two posts and no guard that can reliably take a defender off the dribble.

Boston is a great player, but I don't think swapping her for Clark would make Iowa better and there's a good chance it would make Iowa worse just due to fit.

 

[visitingcock]

As long as SCar is undefeated, its team bedrock, Boston, will be first team..

Now, if/when we lose one . . .

 

[JstVisiting]

If Clark stopped with all the excessive 3s...Iowa would improve. In fact, if she ceded some of her attempts to other perimeter players, it would make them more difficult to defend. Clark is elite (scoring-wise), but the reality is that there are at least 3 other Iowa guards (spectators) that shoot better field goal percentages...and even from 3-point range. The crowd likes her "logo 3s", but how many really go in? She airmails at least 2 a game. Iowa's issue isn't at the center. Czinano is not chopped liver. SC needs a Clark more than Iowa needs Boston.

I really hope Carolina gets to play Iowa this year. Have a feeling we’d know pretty quickly which team “needs” something more.

Give us 4 seed Creighton, 3 Iowa, and Iowa State in the Final Four. Twelve quarters of the Ed Norton-Jared Leto fight scene where he wanted to break something pretty.

 

[The deacon]

I really hope Carolina gets to play Iowa this year. Have a feeling we’d know pretty quickly which team “needs” something more.

Give us 4 seed Creighton, 3 Iowa, and Iowa State in the Final Four. Twelve quarters of the Ed Norton-Jared Leto fight scene where he wanted to break something pretty.

I went to college in the ACC and remember then and ever since that 'Carolina' refers to North Carolina. When the Gamecocks jumped the ACC ship it seems to me it abandoned any semblance of a claim on the 'Carolina' tag.

As for South Carolina playing Iowa in March, I have no illusions that the Hawkeyes would be able to stay with the Gamecocks, but likely they'd stand a better chance than Creighton or Iowa State.

 

[DefenseBB]

Ok, here is an update on the POY stats. I did take a look at HERHOOPSTATS analytics and decided it was not worth the $50 per year so I am sticking with the "Efficiency Stat Rating". I have added a few players like Taylor, Miles, Kelly and all the starting 5 of UConn just to give a perspective. For example using the "Efficiency Rating" which is my primary sort column, Nika rates higher than Taylor, Kelly, Cooke and Jump as a guard (and higher than Lou as well!).
The list is bifurcated into Guards (backcourt) and Forwards (front court). Reese is still the big leader with 36.2. Both Aaliyah and Dorka have closed the gap especially to Morrow. For all those looking forward to Thursday, I added Horston (17.6) and Jackson (18.0).

Name	School	Effic	GP	Min	FG%	3FG%	FT%	R	Asst	A-TO	Pts
Clark	Iowa	30.8	20	34.0	45.7%	36.1%	83.3%	7.70	7.9	2.181	26.8
Miles	ND	24.2	18	30.7	52.3%	25.5%	79.0%	7.33	7.2	2.186	15.6
Latson	FSU	22.5	22	29.7	47.4%	36.1%	87.1%	4.91	3.3	1.059	23.6
Jones	Stanford	18.8	21	31.0	45.0%	11.1%	78.1%	8.95	3.9	1.446	13.5
Horston	Tennessee	17.6	20	25.5	43.9%	28.6%	73.8%	6.85	3.6	1.479	15.2
Van Oelhoffen	Ore St	16.5	19	31.5	40.9%	31.1%	87.1%	5.58	3.3	1.400	15.6
Mikesell	tOSU	15.9	20	34.3	44.4%	38.9%	86.0%	3.20	2.7	1.472	18.2
Osborne	UCLA	15.8	19	32.2	39.4%	31.5%	81.3%	5.84	2.5	1.424	16.5
Muhl	UConn	14.7	19	35.1	41.5%	34.0%	70.3%	4.21	8.8	2.569	6.4
Lou	UConn	14.1	20	30.9	49.4%	49.0%	90.0%	3.05	1.7	0.850	16.9
Taylor	Duke	13.6	19	27.9	43.8%	36.4%	79.5%	4.05	2.2	1.079	12.5
Kelly	NC	13.2	19	33.7	36.8%	28.8%	72.1%	3.63	3.3	1.909	15.3
Cooke	SC	11.9	20	24.3	43.1%	38.2%	80.5%	1.40	2.1	1.500	15.9
Jump	Stanford	10.5	21	30.6	47.3%	45.5%	75.0%	1.48	1.3	2.545	12.3
Reese	LSU	36.2	20	32.3	56.3%	25.0%	68.2%	15.50	2.5	1.167	23.7
Siegrist	Villanova	31.0	21	35.0	53.0%	40.5%	85.2%	9.62	1.5	1.000	28.5
Holmes	Indiana	27.4	19	29.6	67.3%	16.7%	72.6%	8.32	1.2	0.523	21.9
Kitley	VPI	26.1	18	34.4	56.1%	25.0%	72.9%	11.06	1.6	0.725	18.7
Morrow	DePaul	25.2	21	34.5	41.4%	21.5%	61.0%	11.86	1.7	0.632	25.0
Edwards	UConn	24.9	20	32.3	62.9%	100.0%	77.4%	9.40	2.9	1.018	17.2
Dorka	UConn	24.2	13	32.8	50.7%	25.8%	62.7%	10.46	3.6	1.958	14.8
Brink	Stanford	22.9	21	23.4	51.5%	22.7%	76.8%	9.67	1.7	0.783	14.2
Pili	Utah	22.7	18	25.4	61.9%	35.9%	81.2%	5.67	1.8	0.892	20.1
Boston	SC	21.9	20	24.3	59.3%	9.1%	78.2%	9.70	1.7	1.222	12.7
Czinano	Iowa	21.7	20	28.3	66.2%	0.0%	75.6%	6.45	1.8	0.921	18.2
Griffin	UConn	18.9	18	31.2	58.4%	32.4%	79.4%	7.33	1.3	0.719	13.6
Jackson	Tennessee	18.0	20	24.4	56.0%	26.9%	80.2%	5.60	1.2	0.511	18.0
Mikulasikova	tOSU	14.9	20	27.6	50.9%	38.2%	75.0%	5.20	1.9	0.881	14.3