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Message: [QUOTE="JoePgh, post: 4091371, member: 1131"] I generally agree with most of the posts in this thread, but there are some points that I add to what has been said. Let me note up front that my viewpoint from the game was from the lower bowl of Gampel (the first time I've been able to sit there), in a seat where I was about 60 feet from the basket at UConn's offensive end in the first half. [LIST=1] [*]I expected to see more jump shooting from the bigs, since Geno has been talking about that consistently since the summer. I saw very little of it in this game, and what I did see was solely from Liv and Dorka, not from Aaliyah (why not?), Amari, or Piath. [*]Liv did make one 15-footer from the right baseline. The shot rattled around in the basket in every possible way before finally falling through it. I don't remember her shooting from there at all last year. She also missed one from the elbow, like many she missed last year. [*]One thing we almost never see from Liv (and didn't see today) was her moving in the paint without the ball. Aaliyah was doing that, and she was getting passes while she was already on her way to the basket. Liv should be able to do that also. [*]Liv didn't show off any baby hook shot, but she did show an up-and-under move that I don't think was in her repertoire last year. It worked today, but it's hard to guess how well it will work against higher level competition. [*]Regarding Caroline (I don't think she minds Caroline Ducharme since it situates her in UConn history, but what do I know?), I agree that she has an appetite for physical play and can move well without the ball. She seems to be in the right place on offense and defense. But I didn't see much quickness on defense. She may have to play defense like Katie Douglas used to play for the CT Sun -- relying on positioning and moving your player into the team's help, rather than stopping quick players 1-on-1. [*]I think Geno sees Caroline as the 4th big (after Liv, Aaliyah, and Dorka) in a 2-big offense, rather than as a small forward. That is how he seemed to play her in today's game. I think that is the right place for her. [*]I agree that Dorka is very skilled on offense in the post (at least against Fort Hays), but she doesn't look to me like the strongest rebounder -- I think Liv is a stronger rebounder than Dorka. I'm also not sure how great a defender she will be in the paint against the front lines of other top teams. [*]Paige made some "only Paige could do that" plays in the first half. Nika didn't do that, but she did play and pass very solidly as the backup PG. I think Geno will be very comfortable giving Nika minutes behind Paige this year (like Kennitra Johnson behind Sue Bird). [*]Azzi lost her shooting touch after making the first 3 3-point shots (no worries about that), but her floor game and especially her defense was solid. She was always where she was supposed to be. [*]Evina played minimal minutes because Geno knows what he is getting from her, and needed to see the others play. She will get her normal minutes in normal games, and big minutes in big games. I saw no sign of any injury or physical limitation. [*]The worst statistic today was (in my mind) not the 6-for-13 on free throws, but rather the fact that both Liv and Aaliyah had 3 fouls in the first half against not very good competition. People have talked about how perimeter defense might be a problem for UConn. I'm beginning to think that inside defense without fouling may be a bigger problem for this team. [/LIST] Overall, I thought the team looked well organized on both offense and defense, and that applied to the bench players as well as the starters. I think that will be an area where UConn has an advantage in the early part of the season even against other top teams. I don't expect to see a lot of other teams that are this "well oiled" at this point in the season. [/QUOTE]

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