Evaluating Saniya Chong's season so far.....??

[DavidinNaples]

Despite there being as many as six games left in the UConn season, it has become fashionable to evaluate Saniya Chong's play so far this year in a rather negative light. Jim Fuller recently labeled the "key reserves" play in the AAC tournament as "downright dreadful." With Kiah Stokes performing well at the defensive end, most of that criticism was aimed at Saniya. Some fellow BY'ers have labeled her 2nd half of the season as a "freshman slump" and some has suggested she is "regressing."

While Saniya may be a victim of her own early, and perhaps unexpected, success, she is nonetheless putting together a nice statistical year. When compared to Moriah Jefferson's freshman year, Saniya's totals prove her to be an overall good shooter, careful ball handler and contributor to the team's 34-0 record. Just like MoJeff was. Consider the following:

1. Minutes and points - Geno generally doesn't put players on the court who can't contribute quality minutes and score points when needed. MoJeff played 677 minutes last year, starting 2 games and scored 182 points. Saniya, in 33 games and 4 starts, already has 174 pts in 632 minutes. For the season, MoJeff averaged 4.7 pts/game, while Saniya is at 5.3 per game.

2. Shooting accuracy - MoJeff shot 42.4% from the field last season and 26.6% from the 3 pt arc. Saniya, so far, is shooting 42.5% from the field and 31.4% from 3. Saniya has been slightly better at getting to the free throw line, as well as making them, 33-40 for 82.5% vs. MoJeff's 19-25 for 76%.

3. Assists, steals and turnovers - Last year, MoJeff had 69 assists, 52 steals and 49 turnovers in her 677 minutes. This year, Saniya has 57 assists, 24 steals and only 26 turnovers. Her 64 rebounds matches MoJeff's total from last year and her 8 blocks ties MoJeff for this season.

4. Jefferson averaged 17.4 minutes per game last year as a back-up to Faris, Doty and Hartley. Her role was mostly to provide defensive help, although she did take 172 shots. From the 3 pt line she was a sub-par 17-64 or 26.6%. Chong, at least early in the season, played more of an "instant offense" role shooting mostly 3's. She did quite well, despite coming in cold off the bench. Her current 27-86 or 31.4% on 3's reflects a recent drop in accuracy. Her deference to teammates at the offensive end shows in her only taking 134 total shots. (As a further comparison, KML has 218 shots in fewer minutes.)

5. MoJeff had a steady, but slightly unspectacular, 2012-13 season. She avoided the highs and the lows that characterized Stewie's play last year and Saniya's this campaign. Despite a rather blah Final Four (1-5 shooting, 3 assists and 4 turnovers), MoJeff left everyone w/ the impression she had unlimited potential. Saniya still has six games left to give a similar view and justify the evaluation Shea and Geno made of her skills and talent.

The comparison to MoJeff's freshman year is not accidental or misguided. MoJeff was the 2nd ranked player in the country behind only Stewie. But, freshman don't usually start at UConn and there is generally a period of adjustment, both on and off the court, to a completely new life. There is also a period of difficult integration into Geno's UConn "system." It often takes a while for players to find their role and get comfortable.

IMO Saniya will pick up the pace in the NCAA tournament and put a bow on what has been a good, although up and down, season for her.

Go Huskies..!!

 

[Lion1]

Well said, DavidinNaples! Whatever the reasons for Saniya's "slump," the girl gets it. She'll be there, don't you worry!

 

[ndmb]

Moriah made one of the bigger jumps that we've ever seen between her freshman and sophomore seasons. I'd be thrilled, but fairly surprised, if Chong did the same. Saniya's playing worse in March than she did in December, which is disappointing, no matter how you slice it. I'm not saying the sky is falling here, it is typical for freshman to fail to play to their fullest potential, but a comparison to Moriah's (also disappointing) freshman season does not mean that Chong will be playing like an all American next year.

 

[sarals24]

Moriah's defense is superb. She has become the new Faris in the sense that she is often guarding the opponent's best player for long stretches (Sims, Schimmel) and I don't know if I see Saniya stepping into that role next year. Hopefully offensively she can step it up and score more next year, which is what we will need with Bria gone.

 

[Tonyc]

Like I mentioned in another thread. Saniya is a terrific foul shooter and great penetrator. Drive the lane and get to he line.

 

[Buzzyboy]

View attachment 5268

Despite there being as many as six games left in the UConn season, it has become fashionable to evaluate Saniya Chong's play so far this year in a rather negative light. Jim Fuller recently labeled the "key reserves" play in the AAC tournament as "downright dreadful." With Kiah Stokes performing well at the defensive end, most of that criticism was aimed at Saniya. Some fellow BY'ers have labeled her 2nd half of the season as a "freshman slump" and some has suggested she is "regressing."

While Saniya may be a victim of her own early, and perhaps unexpected, success, she is nonetheless putting together a nice statistical year. When compared to Moriah Jefferson's freshman year, Saniya's totals prove her to be an overall good shooter, careful ball handler and contributor to the team's 34-0 record. Just like MoJeff was. Consider the following:

1. Minutes and points - Geno generally doesn't put players on the court who can't contribute quality minutes and score points when needed. MoJeff played 677 minutes last year, starting 2 games and scored 182 points. Saniya, in 33 games and 4 starts, already has 174 pts in 632 minutes. For the season, MoJeff averaged 4.7 pts/game, while Saniya is at 5.3 per game.

2. Shooting accuracy - MoJeff shot 42.4% from the field last season and 26.6% from the 3 pt arc. Saniya, so far, is shooting 42.5% from the field and 31.4% from 3. Saniya has been slightly better at getting to the free throw line, as well as making them, 33-40 for 82.5% vs. MoJeff's 19-25 for 76%.

3. Assists, steals and turnovers - Last year, MoJeff had 69 assists, 52 steals and 49 turnovers in her 677 minutes. This year, Saniya has 57 assists, 24 steals and only 26 turnovers. Her 64 rebounds matches MoJeff's total from last year and her 8 blocks ties MoJeff for this season.

4. Jefferson averaged 17.4 minutes per game last year as a back-up to Faris, Doty and Hartley. Her role was mostly to provide defensive help, although she did take 172 shots. From the 3 pt line she was a sub-par 17-64 or 26.6%. Chong, at least early in the season, played more of an "instant offense" role shooting mostly 3's. She did quite well, despite coming in cold off the bench. Her current 27-86 or 31.4% on 3's reflects a recent drop in accuracy. Her deference to teammates at the offensive end shows in her only taking 134 total shots. (As a further comparison, KML has 218 shots in fewer minutes.)

5. MoJeff had a steady, but slightly unspectacular, 2012-13 season. She avoided the highs and the lows that characterized Stewie's play last year and Saniya's this campaign. Despite a rather blah Final Four (1-5 shooting, 3 assists and 4 turnovers), MoJeff left everyone w/ the impression she had unlimited potential. Saniya still has six games left to give a similar view and justify the evaluation Shea and Geno made of her skills and talent.

The comparison to MoJeff's freshman year is not accidental or misguided. MoJeff was the 2nd ranked player in the country behind only Stewie. But, freshman don't usually start at UConn and there is generally a period of adjustment, both on and off the court, to a completely new life. There is also a period of difficult integration into Geno's UConn "system." It often takes a while for players to find their role and get comfortable.

IMO Saniya will pick up the pace in the NCAA tournament and put a bow on what has been a good, although up and down, season for her.

Go Huskies..!!

I don't think too many people who saw Mo Jefferson last year and Saniya this year would equate their seasons as similar despite your stats. I was aware of Moriah on the floor frequently last year even though she struggled, often playing too fast. Yet, her presence was conspicuous. In the last 25 games with one exception (I don't remember the opponent), I've not really noticed Saniya in the same vein. I became highly impressed with Moriah in the post season last year particularly from the defensive end and her stats in the post season don't accurately reflect how much she helped the team. I was utterly convinced after we won the title that she was going to be a very significant contributor to our team this year. I haven't seen anything to suggest the same for Saniya though there's no one who would rather be wrong than me. I think about the only time people are saying anything harsh regarding Saniya is when people such as yourself try to put a spin on her actual performance this year. What she's been over the vast amount of the season is someone who can go in the game and spell a starter while playing adequate defense and maybe get a rebound or two. A plus on a team like ours with a shortage of bodies but not someone who has shown herself to be a major asset. We often talk about the first two years of Kia Stokes and maybe that's where she is, someone who has skills but whose lack of confidence is keeping her from contributing like she is capable of doing. All I can say is "we shall see". Meanwhile, we have a major class coming in and if she doesn't turn a corner she may see less court time next season.

 

[chrissaran]

This is not about Saniya's statistics. Everyone gets so caught up in numbers. Forget the show "Numbers Never Lie". Of course they do. I'm a Giants fan, but is Eli Manning a better quarterback than Dan Marino or his brother Peyton who are a combined 1-3 in the Super Bowl. Of course not, but Eli is 2-0 against the big , bad Patriots, the Patriots of the perfect season - almost perfect season. Saniya has not been aggressive enough of late. I don't car who's on the court, if she has an open shot, she needs to shoot the ball. She can't play tentatively or she will not help her team.

 

[JoePgh]

I think that what stops Saniya from shooting more often is that she needs more time and space than anyone else on the team to get her 3-point shot launched. It's a result of her chin-high release point and her small stature. A 6-0 defender can be several feet away when Saniya catches the ball and still have a chance to block her shot.

The biggest item on her agenda for summer improvement has to be to master an overhead jump shot. I don't doubt that it will hurt her accuracy, and probably her shooting stats for next year. But even if she still shoots 30% on 3's next year, if she can get off more shots because she can launch quickly, it will make a big difference.

 

[phil sampieri]

I think that what stops Saniya from shooting more often is that she needs more time and space than anyone else on the team to get her 3-point shot launched. It's a result of her chin-high release point and her small stature. A 6-0 defender can be several feet away when Saniya catches the ball and still have a chance to block her shot.

The biggest item on her agenda for summer improvement has to be to master an overhead jump shot. I don't doubt that it will hurt her accuracy, and probably her shooting stats for next year. But even if she still shoots 30% on 3's next year, if she can get off more shots because she can launch quickly, it will make a big difference.

Remember Tiffany Hayes, hell she almost shot from the hip. She didn't do bad, huh ?

 

[nutmegger]

Remember Tiffany Hayes, hell she almost shot from the hip. She didn't do bad, huh ?

Mel Thomas was another who had a problem getting off her shot as a freshman. But she managed to improve her release from year to year.

 

[hjoerring]

View attachment 5268



While Saniya may be a victim of her own early, and perhaps unexpected, success, she is nonetheless putting together a nice statistical year. When compared to Moriah Jefferson's freshman year, Saniya's totals prove her to be an overall good shooter, careful ball handler and contributor to the team's 34-0 record. Just like MoJeff was. Consider the following:

The comparison to MoJeff's freshman year is not accidental or misguided.

IMO Saniya will pick up the pace in the NCAA tournament and put a bow on what has been a good, although up and down, season for her.

Go Huskies..!!

As someone who uses statistics regularly I am unonvinced. Geno has said that Chong has disappeared. But why assess her at this juncture? It makes sense in relation to Uconn's bench (Not to offer a criticism of her development). Of late (as the season advances) she has not offered up much that we can say she is in the game to take pressure off the forwards, centers, etc by her scoring threat and/or defensive plays. So it helps very little to say she is shooting 95.5 from 3pt range or that she doesn't turn the ball over, if she simply passes it quickly. Again, this is not to say that she does not have good stats., but to argue that she is not a potential game changer off the bench. Whether this is motivated by shooting style (as one person suggested), Fr blues, staminar, deference to upperclassmen, etc. are anyone guess. I don't know and it's hopeless to say anything intelligent from my mind/eyes.