My wife and I were out of state on a short vacation at the time of Thursday night’s defeat at Knoxville. This has given me the opportunity to review the postings on the postgame thread and to reflect on the game and the season.
As far as the game was concerned, we can say that the Huskies could have won if a few breaks had gone our way, like for, example, the two late fouls that Strong received, one that negated a Fudd 3 and the second with just eleven seconds left in the game, and Paige’s missing a basket that would have tied the game late. And there were other specifics that one could point to, but as many have noted the team’s problems against good teams do not go away. The lack of a strong inside presence, missed layups, and poor three point shooting. Some posters have pointed out correctly that the team appears to lack the presence of a player who is determined not to lose and Jennifer Rizzotti embodies that tradition.
We all remember how much we were looking forward to the season and how all the preseason polls saw UConn as the 2nd best team in the nation. Most of us would agree that the team has underperformed this season and I have decided to approach the problem by assessing the performance of all the players who are at least a semi-part of the rotation. I have skipped those who do not play much and Aubrey Griffin who has been in only a handful of games and divided the players into three categories - exceeded expectations, met expectations, not met expectations.
Exceeded expectations - Sarah Strong. We all knew that she was supposed to be good but she is putting up an All-American season.
Met expectations - Arnold, Chelli. After a slow start KK Arnold has come on strong in recent games. Her speed is much needed, but she still makes forced drives to the basket that end badly. I didn’t expect much from Morgan Chelli, yet she has played more than expected, has had some good minutes, but is too tentative.
Not met expectations - Bueckers, Fudd, Shade, Chen, El Alfy, Brady. Paige has not met expectations because they are so high for her. Despite being the team leader, she does not shoot enough in big games. Granted, opponents realize that if you can control Bueckers, you can defeat UConn, but she often doesn’t look for he shot enough and the team does not work enough to set her up for good shots. Fudd, unfortunately, has not been the player we expected to see. As some have pointed out, she is often tentative. Ashlynn Shade’s motor is always running but she has not shot well in big games. Kaitlyn Chen has had some good games but has not performed at the level expected from her Princeton career. El Alfy and Brady do not appear to be ready for prime time.
As the season has played out, the general consensus is that in order to be successful against really good teams, the Huskies need solid performances from Strong, Bueckers, and Fudd or another third scorer. Against Tennessee, we had 1.5 out of 3 and still the game was winnable. The center position has been a problem all season. El Alfy has potential, but she is not quick, her rebounding has been under par, and she misses too many shots around the basket. The one bright spot is that Aubrey Griffin is rounding into shape and could be a difference maker. She played well in her limited minutes against the Volunteers and the “small” team was often effective.
It may well be that the best team the Huskies can put on the court is Strong, Griffin, Fudd, Bueckers, and Arnold. As TonyC continues to remind us, there are grounds for optimism, but as of now I am in the glass half empty camp..
