Forget Butler vs Dolson....Are you ready for some Kiah Stokes!!!

[DavidinNaples]

Buried beneath the many BY posts about Kiah Stokes' unmet potential, visits to Geno's dog house and missed opportunities to be a superstar are some very good statistics. Very good indeed!! Consider the following:

1. Last year, Kiah had 90 offensive rebounds in 723 minutes. Only Stewie had more at 92, but that took 1,221 minutes of play.
2. Her freshman year, Stokes had 50 blocked shots, 2nd only to Dolson w/ 57, but Stef had twice the minutes.
3. For her career at UConn, Kiah is shooting 61.2% from the floor AND led the team in field goal accuracy last year at 60%.
4. In 1,548 career minutes at UConn, Kiah has just 83 turnovers, a rate of one every 18.65 minutes. Stef's rate last year was one every 12.5 minutes.
5. Stokes blocked 89 shots this past season, one every 8 minutes on the court. Stewie's average was one every 11 minutes, Dolson one every 14 minutes.

Locked inside that "body built for basketball" is a gentle heart and kind soul. She would probably win any team vote for "best smile", but lose every vote for "most likely to intimidate." Her visits to Geno's dog house have never been for what she did on the court, but rather for lack of intensity & focus in practice. This past year, that changed. Her 723 minutes included pressure minutes in the first half of big games and critical minutes when KML and Tuck were hurt. She even had two starts, the 2nd and 3rd of her career. Kiah responded with career highs in points (175), rebounds (278), assists (34) and blocked shots (89). The best is yet to come..!!

Dolson has graduated to the WNBA and Natalie Butler can practice, but not play. Kiah Stokes is UConn's center for 2014-15. Get ready for some serious rebounding, blocked shots and inside scoring. Focus on Stewie, KML, MoJeff, Chong and Tuck and ignore Stokes, I dare ya..! UConn has some awesome and flashy Freshman, who will contribute in a big way this season. But there is a rock in the middle!! A rock w/ broad shoulders, who has figured it out and is ready to make the AAC and WBB pay for coming in the lane. Time for the BY to get "Stoked on Stokes"..!!

Go Kiah and Go Huskies..!!

 

[MilfordHusky]

I like that Kiah and Natalie will get to know each other and practice against each other. That will make both of them better.

I've got to think that Kiah was among the leaders nationwide in rebounds per minute of anyone playing appreciable minutes. I look for her to set a new UConn season record for rebounds.

Kiah does seem like a sweet kid, and she is very smart. With Brianna gone, the senior class will be just Kiah and Kaleena. Look for them to have a sense of urgency, just as Stef and Bria did last year.

Some folks are looking at the gaudy list of recruits and saying well be very good. I agree. But they think next year's team may not be as good. Well, excuuuuuse me! Kiah will be a strong DPOY candidate, and Kaleena is just the best shooter in WCBB. She'll finish either 2nd or 3rd in UConn career scoring. Why are people overlooking her? She's a fabulous player.

 

[HuskyPhan]

David, you hit it right on the head (as usual)!! Kiah put up some great numbers in fairly limited minutes last year. But as you mentioned, she did play some critical moments last year and really shined. I was fortunate enough to sit in the first row directly behind Doris Burke for the 3 final four games last month. You can clearly hear me shouting "Kiah" about 3 times during the final game as she pulled down rebound after rebound (actually cringed when I got home and watched the game replay) Edit~didn't realize I was yelling thru Doris's mic-oops!!

I can't wait to see what she can accomplish in 25-30 minutes of play-I expect it to be very impressive!!! Go Kiah and go Huskies!

 

[UcMiami]

David - great post! I love Kiah and really do think she should have a very productive year for Uconn.
It is so easy to get caught up in the new and shiny toys lined up to put on the uniform and sort of forget about the great players who will be seniors next year. KS and KML will I hope go out in a blaze of glory next year, and will certainly play their hearts out.

 

[WesternPaFan]

View attachment 6089

Buried beneath the many BY posts about Kiah Stokes' unmet potential, visits to Geno's dog house and missed opportunities to be a superstar are some very good statistics. Very good indeed!! Consider the following:

1. Last year, Kiah had 90 offensive rebounds in 723 minutes. Only Stewie had more at 92, but that took 1,221 minutes of play.
2. Her freshman year, Stokes had 50 blocked shots, 2nd only to Dolson w/ 57, but in twice the minutes.
3. For her career at UConn, Kiah is shooting 61.2% from the floor AND led the team in accuracy last year at 60%.
4. In 1,548 career minutes at UConn, Kiah has just 83 turnovers, a rate of one every 18.65 minutes. Stef's rate last year was one every 12.5 minutes.
5. Stokes blocked 89 shots this past season, one every 8 minutes on the court. Stewie's average was one every 11 minutes, Dolson one every 14 minutes.

Locked inside that "body built for basketball" is a gentle heart and kind soul. She would probably win any team vote for "best smile", but lose every vote for "most likely to intimidate." Her visits to Geno's dog house have never been for what she did on the court, but rather for lack of intensity & focus in practice. This past year, that changed. Her 723 minutes included pressure minutes in the first half of big games and critical minutes when KML and Tuck were hurt. She even had two starts, the 2nd and 3rd of her career. Kiah responded with career highs in points (175), rebounds (278), assists (34) and blocked shots (89). The best is yet to come..!!

Dolson has graduated to the WNBA and Natalie Butler can practice, but not play. Kiah Stokes is UConn's center for 2014-15. Get ready for some serious rebounding, blocked shots and inside scoring. Focus on Stewie, KML, MoJeff, Chong and Tuck and ignore Stokes, I dare ya..! UConn has some awesome and flashy Freshman, who will contribute in a big way this season. But there is a rock in the middle!! A rock w/ broad shoulders, who has figured it out and is ready to make the AAC and WBB pay for coming in the lane. Time for the BY to get "Stoked on Stokes"..!!

Go Kiah and Go Huskies..!!

I fully agree....Great...."GET STOKED ON STOKES"....Go UCONN!!!

 

[UconnWBB]

just for some comparison...
Hamson, BYU 147 blks/1084 mins = .136/min or 5.44/40 min
Hamblin, OSU 141 blks/934 mins = .151/min or 6.04/40 min
Porter, Stetson 129/866 = .149 or 5.96/40
Stewie 110/1221 = .091 or 3.60/40
Dolson 93/1292 = .072 or 2.88/40
Stokes 89/723 = .122 or 4.88/40

not bad considering all the others are/were starters

 

[TroyHouse66]

Davaples...
<<Locked inside... is a gentle heart and kind soul. She would probably... lose every vote for "most likely to intimidate.">>

Years ago, I helped coach a Seventh grade team. We had a mild-mannered, 6-1", gentle-giant player who hadn't yet come into coordination to match his Summer growth spurt, wasn't quite a game starter, and was gradually developing his bball skills in game situations.
I made sure to stand behind him in timeout huddles, when he was about to make a game entrance. Just as we broke to leave the court, I'd reach over and bring both clenched hands down on his shoulder blades. Nothing heavy, nothing serious, just a healthy, surprise jolt.
Years later, he came back to see a younger sister graduate & we were talking.
At some point, he mentioned the 7th grade year & asked WHY? I'd done THAT.
I explained that whenever he entered a game off the bench, following a quick jolt, he'd immediately go in and grab a rebound (or several) while his adrenaline was still up. And that first moment set the tone for his game.

Here's to OUR gentle giant...
More responsibility, more minutes, more success ...
K-I-A-H!!

 

[Tonyc]

Dave just looking at all the likes shows what a great job you did with your post and how much Husky fans love Kiah Stokes. Terrific job

 

[rocky rococo]

David, you hit it right on the head (as usual)!! Kiah put up some great numbers in fairly limited minutes last year. But as you mentioned, she did play some critical moments last year and really shined. I was fortunate enough to sit in the first row directly behind Doris Burke for the 3 final four games last month. You can clearly hear me shouting "Kiah" about 3 times during the final game as she pulled down rebound after rebound (actually cringed when I got home and watched the game replay) Edit~didn't realize I was yelling thru Doris's mic-oops!!

I can't wait to see what she can accomplish in 25-30 minutes of play-I expect it to be very impressive!!! Go Kiah and go Huskies!

I remember hearing someone yell out her name while watching the NC. It made me smile, I was thinking, "Now there's a real Huskies fan!" (or Phan as it turns out!)

 

[Billybonggg]

David, you hit it right on the head (as usual)!! Kiah put up some great numbers in fairly limited minutes last year. But as you mentioned, she did play some critical moments last year and really shined. I was fortunate enough to sit in the first row directly behind Doris Burke for the 3 final four games last month. You can clearly hear me shouting "Kiah" about 3 times during the final game as she pulled down rebound after rebound (actually cringed when I got home and watched the game replay) Edit~didn't realize I was yelling thru Doris's mic-oops!!

I can't wait to see what she can accomplish in 25-30 minutes of play-I expect it to be very impressive!!! Go Kiah and go Huskies!

Well, that means SOMEBODY was talking about the game into Doris Burke's mike.

 

[RSHERMVIKES]

Hey David, great job! I really feel Kiah is going to have a monster year as a senior coming up! I think she'll develop a 12' to 15' shot around the basket and with her inside game will be very productive on offense as well as her already super defensive presence! She's going to be one of the outstanding centers in the country! She's become one of my favorites because I like to see a player that has had problems find out that they can perform at a high level!

 

[jimazee]

Great post.

Husky fan dilemma...how many favorite players is one allowed?