Experience factor

[browns]

Uconn has 4 of the 5 starters plus Evina that played in the FF last year..NCState and their coach were ecstatic after wining on Saturday and rightfully so cuz this team has never gone to the Elite 8.. maybe that's 1 reason we didn't see more of Dorka and Caroline in the 2nd half because this was new to them.. Will Uconn's experience play a role in the game..

 

[Tonyc]

UConn has depth and if UConn stays out of foul trouble early they will be tuff to beat. As talented as UConn is their depth takes them 9 deep and that should be the difference.

 

[browns]

UConn has depth and if UConn stays out of foul trouble early they will be tuff to beat. As talented as UConn is their depth takes them 9 deep and that should be the difference.

I forgot to mention Nika who also played in the FF.. albeit hurt

 

[visitingcock]

UConn has depth and if UConn stays out of foul trouble early they will be tuff to beat. As talented as UConn is their depth takes them 9 deep and that should be the difference.

I think every team remaining in the tourney (especially Stanford and SCar) goes 9 deep.

 

[warbler1055]

I agree UConn had FF experience but NC State has 3 graduate players (5th year). Little concerned about Azzi and Caroline being freshman.

 

[browns]

I agree UConn had FF experience but NC State has 3 graduate players (5th year). Little concerned about Azzi and Caroline being freshman.

Being a graduate 5th yr player is still a whole lot different than actually playing in the FF..The lights are a lot brighter..It looks like Caroline maybe affected and Azzi too which I wouldn't have thought

 

[schmendrick]

The lights are a lot brighter..It looks like Caroline maybe affected and Azzi too which I wouldn't have thought

I don't know about that. Azzi played a team-high 35 minutes. She was gassed in the waning minutes.

 

[LoboDays]

Geno has already picked his 7 core players. They don’t include Dorka and CD. They will will get their minutes but be on a shorter leash than the core players. A missed layup or a turnover and they are back to the bench. Dorka is important. We need her to be productive against the best teams.

 

[UcMiami]

I did a check of Uconn losses in the NCAA tournament this century - there have been 11 out of 20 tournaments (100-11 record, 18-3 prior to FF.) Of those, AZ last years stands out as the only team to beat Uconn with no previous experience against them. The other losses:
ND - 5x played Uconn at least once every year in the regular season prior to those losses
Stanford - 2x 2005 loss was the first game in eight years second loss was second time in the season they met.
Duke - 1x - had played twice in regular season over the past 3 years
LSU - 1x had played early the same year (part of a string of 5 years meeting in the regular season - 4 home/home and 1 neutral.
MsSt - 1x had met in the NCAA the previous year.

So experience in terms of playing against Uconn is generally a good thing if you want to beat them - the 2005 loss to Stanford was in the S16 with Uconn as a 3 seed at the start of their last 'dark period' and Uconn just wasn't that good. Which does make the AZ win last year unique.

NC St has not played Uconn since an NCAA tournament game in 2007 prior to Moore's arrival, and Chattanooga has only played Uconn since his departure, so both players and coach are new to Uconn. I think that gives Uconn a slight edge. The fact Geno has coached so often and except for freshmen and Dorka the players have played in the E8 game is also a slight edge.

NB - of the 11 tournament losses this century almost half were in OT - 5 of 11 (ND 3 of 5, MsSt 1of 1, Duke 1 of 1)

 

[The deacon]

Geno has already picked his 7 core players. They don’t include Dorka and CD. They will will get their minutes but be on a shorter leash than the core players. A missed layup or a turnover and they are back to the bench. Dorka is important. We need her to be productive against the best teams.

In your opinion, Dorka might not be a 'core' player, but she's played 22 minutes over the past two games compared to Nika's 16. It seems to me that Geno's got a 'core' 6, plus Nika, Caroline and Dorka getting minutes as he deems is deserved each game.

 

[Gus Mahler]

I hope Evina hits some threes tonight.

 

[TeamFirst!]

Dorka is getting a raw deal if you ask me. She's the best rebounder on the team IMO but she has struggled to hit her shots in the paint recently and it's "what have you done for me in the last 3 minutes" approach to team management. Same is true for Caroline. No way she should be playing 3-6 minutes a game. He should pencil her in for 25. Geno is enamored with Azzi to the point of overworking her. I'd take a fresh Caroline over an exhausted Azzi. Maybe you don't notice it overtly but it doesn't take much fatigue to affect your 3 point shot. Being fresh really helps.