No What do you do when you lose your star PG and reigning NPOY, along with your backup PG who started 15 games last season, along with your star freshman guard who lead the U-19 World Championship team in assists? Well, if you’re UConn WBB you turn to your 5th-year senior who, not so long ago, lead the TN Lady Vols to two straight NCAA tournament appearances at PG.
We all know Evina came up HUGE in the UCLA game. She played 39 minutes, more than any other Husky, and more than she has played in any game since arriving at UConn. I watched the game again yesterday, and I honestly believe, notwithstanding her missed free throws, Evina was actually better in the second half than the first half when she single-handedly kept UConn in the game.
In the first half when the rest of her teammates were throwing up bricks and airballs, and turning the ball over repeatedly, Evina had to shoulder much of the scoring load, while trying to settle down her team and run the offense. In the second half, as UConn settled down, outscoring UCLA 43-31, Evina was the epitome of a facilitator as Christyn, Caroline, Liv & Dorka all found their “sea legs” and started to show us exactly what we expect from UConn WBB.
Stats do not always present the total picture. But when assessing Evina’s game against UCLA, here are a few to consider. In a game that got very sloppy at times, Evina’s A/TO ratio was a remarkable 7 to 1. That number would have been even higher had some of her teammates made open shots and layups in the first half. On the defensive side, Evina was tasked with covering Jaelynn Penn, one of UCLA’s best shooters. Evina held Penn to 10 points on 5 for 14 shooting, 0 for 5 from the arc, while forcing Penn into a game high 5 turnovers.
Going forward, until the cavalry arrives, UConn will likely depend on Evina more than ever. There will undoubtedly be some really tough battles ahead. No worries….Evina’s got Everyone’s back!
