Game Analysis - Game 24 - UConn vs Tennessee

[cferraro04]

GENERAL COMMENTS:

"A game of consequence", a resurrected rivalry, a battle of two juggernauts...no matter how you describe this match-up anytime UConn and Tennessee meet in a women's college basketball game it conjures up a variety of emotions depending on when you become a fan of the sport. For me...my mind immediately goes back to watching Diana punch the orange padding and responding when asked that "she just wanted to punch something orange". Then I think about Jen Rizzotti stealing the basketball and dribbling the length of the court late in that iconic game where UConn beat Tennessee. There are many more memories including the complaint Tennessee filed in 2006 with the Southeastern Conference claiming 8 incidents involving 11 NCAA rules violations, resulting in only one violation. No matter how many years have passed or how many coach changes the Tennessee women's basketball program has been through, it doesn't matter...this is a game we Huskie fans hate to lose.

This year's version of the Tennessee Volunteers is a very talented team that started the season 13 and 0. Their only losses come from ranked teams. It won't be easy playing in Knoxville where we have seen numerous games over the years where sizable deficits have been overcome in the last 4 minutes of the game. Without getting into officiating...let's just say if UConn wants to win...they must bring their A-game, they must be up double digits going into the last 4 minutes of the game and they must never think the game is over until the final buzzer.

This game will give Geno and his staff much-needed data points going forward as they prepare for playing South Carolina on their home court as well as Geno and his coaching staff prepare for the march to the postseason.

Statistically, a couple of things stand out to me about Tennessee as a team. They are 2nd in the nation for points scored in a game with 91.9 points. They are a good rebounding team averaging 42.3 rebounds per game. They score an amazing 32.1 points off of turnovers after forcing an impressive 24.2 turnovers from their opponents. Finally, UConn must be careful with the basketball as Tennessee averages 13 steals per game. Finally, if UConn is to employ the "cut off the head of the snake" strategy then they must limit Talasia Cooper's impact on the game.

RPI / SOS:

Tennessee's RPI - 28
Tennessee's Opponents RPI - 1, 4, 6, 20. 24, 26, 32, 33, 55, 61, 65, 94, 98, 218, 223, 255, 260, 269, 291, 310

UConn's RPI - 6
UConn's Opponents RPI - 7, 8, 13, 15, 17, 30, 43, 51, 51, 53, 54, 75, 75, 95, 102, 107, 113, 115, 122, 131, 161, 183, 268

Tennessee's SoS - 21
Tennessee's Opponents SoS - 1, 8, 11, 22, 25, 29, 43, 54, 65, 66, 80, 101, 108, 118, 119, 120, 175, 213, 331, 361

UConn's SoS - 14
UConn's Opponents SoS - 7, 9, 9, 17, 19, 23, 23, 28, 32, 33, 49, 51, 58, 59, 98, 120, 125, 157, 159, 193, 240, 348

PLAYER MINUTE AVERAGES:

Tennessee - Tilasia Cooper (23.8); Ruby Whitehorn (24.0); Jewel Spear (24.5); Samara Spencer (24.8); Zee Spearman (19.8); Tess Darby (16.2); Sara Puckett (17.2); Alyssa Latham (13.8); Keniya Boyd (16.3); Jillian Hollinshead (14.8); Avery Strictland (6.1); Favor Ayodele (6.2).

UConn - Paige Bueckers (29.0); Sarah Strong (28.1); Azzi Fudd (22.3); Ashlynn Shade (23.0); Kaitlyn Chen (24.1); KK Arnold (21.7); Jana El-Alfy (15.8); Ice Brady (17.0); Allie Ziebell (10.2); Morgan Cheli (13.3); Aubrey Griffin (11.7); Qadence Samuels (7.2).


PLAYER MATCH-UPS:

Jana El-Alfy, 6'5" - RS-Freshman - Center vs Zee Spearman, 6'4" - Junior - Forward - Zee will be a huge test for Jana...how will Jana handle her physicality both defensively and offensively? Zee averages 10.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, and .8 steals. Zee can shoot the three-point shot. She averages .65 threes per game. Jana averages 5.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1 assist, and.5 steals per game. Zee has scored 18 points twice this year and has scored double digits 11 times. Jana plays 15.8 minutes per game as opposed to Zee's 19.8 minutes. Ice Brady picks up 17 minutes while averaging 4.1 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2 assists, and .7 steals per game. First off the bench to give Zee a break is 6'5" Jillian Hollinshead who averages 14.8 minutes, 3.1 points, and 2.9 rebounds. Based on the experience of Zee and Jillian vs Jana and Ice as well as their superiority statistically... ADVANTAGE - TENNESSEE

Sarah Strong, 6'2" - Freshman - Forward vs Ruby Whitehorn, 6'0" - Junior - Guard - Ruby averages 13.5 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.1 steals, and hits .8 three-pointers per game. Sarah is averaging 17 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 2.3 steals, and 1.3 blocks per game. Sarah also hits 1.65 three-pointers per game. Sarah does not play like a freshman. She will not get rattled and as long as she stays out of foul trouble and can stay on the floor she should prevail. ADVANTAGE - UCONN

Paige Bueckers, 6'0" - RS-Senior - Guard vs Tilasia Cooper, 6'0" RS-Sophomore - Guard - Whoa! This is the marquee match-up in this game. Tilasia has scored a season-high 33 points. She is Tennessee's go-to player, she does it all. She is averaging 17.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 3.2 steals, and .8 blocks per game. She also averages 1.0 three-pointers per game. Paige will have to stay out of foul trouble. UConn will need Paige to stay in the game. Her defense against Tilasia will be crucial. Paige averages 19.0 points, 4.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 2.0 steals, and .5 blocks per game. Paige also averages 1.9 three-pointers per game. Both Tilasia and Paige are capable of impacting the game in a big way. It will come down to which one of them will be able to impose their will on the game. Let's hope the referees let the players decide the game.
ADVANTAGE - UCONN

Azzi Fudd, 5'11" - Graduate - Guard vs Jewel Spear 5'10" Graduate - Guard - Jewel and Azzi are sharp-shooting snipers. They are both great three-point shooters. Even though we are still somewhat early in Azzi's comeback from her injury I believe that she is the better long-range assassin. Jewell averages 12.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 1.4 steals, and she hits 2.7 three-pointers per game. With Jewel averaging 5.7 assists per game it would be fair to say that Tennessee's offense goes through her. Azzi averages 11.3 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, .8 steals, and she hits 2.0 three-pointers per game. Fudd plays 22.3 minutes per game while Jewel plays 24.5 minutes per game. Jewel's high game this season is 28 points. Her high games are 28, 25, 20, 18, 18. She has hit 6 threes in two games. Azzi's high game was 23 points, she has scored 23, 21, 18, 18, 17 points. Her best three-point games are: 5, 4, 4, 4. ADVANTAGE - EVEN

Kaitlyn Chen, 5'9" - Graduate - Guard vs Samara Spencer, 5'7" - Senior - Guard - Samara is scoring point guard. She averages 11.2 points, 3.9 rebounds, .7 assists, and hits 2.25 three-pointers per game. Kaitlyn is averaging 6.7 points, 1.8 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.0 steals per game. Kaitlyn has been shooting threes better these past few games but on the season she is averaging .73 three-pointers per game.
ADVANTAGE - TENNESSEE

BENCH:

Tennessee brings 31.5 points and 16.3 rebounds off the bench. UConn brings 27.3 points and 15.8 rebounds off the bench.
ADVANTAGE - EVEN

INTANGIBLES:

Playing Tennessee in Knoxville, officiating, rivalry game where both teams and audiences will be up for the game.
ADVANTAGE - TENNESSEE

COACHING:

Tennessee has had 5 coaching changes since Geno has been with UConn. The consistency and the experience on the UConn bench should be enough to call. ADVANTAGE - UCONN

SCORE:

UConn - 82
Tennessee - 76
MOV - 6

 

[Bone Dog]

Thanks again, Sensei!

I’ve been thinking about this game a lot lately, as have we all I suppose. I’m not sure how to think about matchups, not because we won’t play matchup defense when they play half court offense. But their defense is mainly a trapping press and that’s not so much about matchups.

If we break their press often enough, then they’ll be forced to play half court defense and offense. But I expect their half court defense will be a zone much of the time. We’ll see this whenever we get a defensive stop and they can’t set up their press. Similarly, when we score, they’ll have to run a half court offensive set and that’s mainly clearouts off high screens. I think Geno knows how to defend against this.

This doesn’t even presuppose that Geno presses them or does more than press at the midcourt line. For stamina reasons, I have a feeling Geno will not opt to press most of the time. So, much will depend on how fluid our half court defense is. This is when your matchups will be most visible.

One instructive example for us might be their game against SC. Against the #1 ranked defense (per Massey) Tennessee shot 31% and only made 3 three pointers. UConn is the #2 ranked defense (again per Massey), and so it wouldn’t be far fetched to think they’ll struggle similarly on offense.

One difference may be rebounding. While SC had slightly more d-boards, Tennessee had 10 more o-boards. Of course, they shot so poorly that this wasn’t nearly enough to get a win. I wouldn’t be surprised to see them out-rebound us in the same way.

The starters have good size (4 six-footers + Spencer) and speed and the guards get a lot of rebounds. Pressing teams typically have their guards crash the boards on offense because they need made baskets to set up their press. The cost is that they are vulnerable to transition baskets going the other way. SC burned them a lot this way, even though their guards aren’t great finishers on the break — they make up for this with athleticism and speed. Our guards aren’t as uniformly athletic (ie speedy) as SC’s but I think they’re better open court finishers. Paige and Azzi especially, but also Aubrey (if she’s up to speed) and Kaitlyn and KK. Finally, Sarah is one of the best transition scorers in D1.

This says to me the keys to this game are

1. Stamina
2. Forcing them to play half court offense
3. Getting transition baskets
4. Running our offense effectively in the halfcourt — maybe go deep into the shot clock to force them to defend longer.
5. Trapping occasionally at midcourt
6. Ash playing up to her potential at both ends. Her midrange jumper may prove invaluable.

If Aubrey is ready to run, so much the better. But she has gotten precious little playing time with the Big 3 and that may limit her transition opportunities… unless she and KK can get on the same page quickly. If there was ever anyone built to challenge Talaysia Cooper, it is Aubrey.

I fear a lot may be determined in the first 5 mins and the last 5 min. They are sure to come out in the first quarter just as ND and USC did, overplaying everything on defense to knock Paige and Azzi off their game. If those two and Sarah can take advantage of the overplays and get some baskets, it should go along way to setting the tone. In the fourth quarter, once everyone is a bit tired, if they’ve been able to play their second team to good effect, they will make a significant run. We need to have enough gas left in the tank to respond. This means hitting free throws, and finding cutters. And above all, getting defensive stops so they can’t set up their press. I expect the Big 3 will be on the court at the end of the game.

 

[ERWUC65]

My initial thoughts would be a starting lineup of Sarah, Azzi, Paige, Ash and Kaitlyn with a heavy dose of KK. Then using Morgan and Aubrey in relief, both speedy, aggressive and of some size. I'm of the mindset that this is not a game where either Jana or Ice will see much if any playing time.

 

[UConnCat]

Given how Tennessee changes its starters and lineups (Spear didn't start today), individual match-ups tell you very little about how this game will play out.

Tennessee is an undisciplined hot mess but will be very dangerous if UConn turns the ball over and doesn't limit Tennessee's offensive rebounds and second-chance points. UConn takes pretty good care of the ball (10.5 turnovers/game) but is not a good rebounding team.

When Tennessee is forced to play half-court defense, opponents have had decent success scoring against them.

 

[YKCornelius]

My initial thoughts would be a starting lineup of Sarah, Azzi, Paige, Ash and Kaitlyn with a heavy dose of KK. Then using Morgan and Aubrey in relief, both speedy, aggressive and of some size. I'm of the mindset that this is not a game where either Jana or Ice will see much if any playing time.

More important than the win is the battle. Geno needs both Jana and Ice to play against aggressive, quick bigs in a loud, crazy environment which Knoxville will certainly be on Thursday. Tennessee and South Carolina are the only teams that can provide this experience before the Big Dance. I expect Jana and Ice to get double digit minutes against the Lady Vols.

 

[ConnMotors]

One good thing about this upcoming game is that we get to see Paige and Sarah play 35-40 minutes.

 

[Next 12]

This will be a game of wills. Uconn's against Tenn., who wants it more. Tenn. is 16-5 which says they can be beat. I believe we are now entering our elite mode and are ready for them and will prevail. It will be an up and down game and conditioning will be the deciding factor. Lord knows that Uconn has conditioning.3-point shooting will be the deciding factor and rebounding will be second. We win both, we win the game. GO FRESHMEN!!!! GO SOPHOMORES!!!!! GO HUSKIES!!!!!

 

[ERWUC65]

More important than the win is the battle. Geno needs both Jana and Ice to play against aggressive, quick bigs in a loud, crazy environment which Knoxville will certainly be on Thursday. Tennessee and South Carolina are the only teams that can provide this experience before the Big Dance. I expect Jana and Ice to get double digit minutes against the Lady Vols.

Jana and Ice to play double digit minutes against aggressive, quick bigs? Seriously?

 

[Skeets]

One good thing about this upcoming game is that we get to see Paige and Sarah play 35-40 minutes.

I hope they don't have to.

 

[GoUconn7961]

After the losses to ND and USC they need a ranked win on the road. End of story.

 

[PacoSwede]

After the losses to ND and USC they need a ranked win on the road. End of story.

need???

a loss only could affect seeding (and fans' frame of mind)

the season can (shall) be triumphant even without the huskies smashing the vols and roosters (though i would be p.o.'d for a few days). simply end it with a NC and all else is forgot.

 

[Tonyc]

We are a different team since our 2 early season losses. We now have 5 reliable scorers who dont hesitate and they shoot at a very high percentage. Have 5 reliable scorers forces defenses to play us one on one unlike in the early season when we had just Paige and an inexperienced Sarah we depended on.

There has been talk on this board that UConn hasnt shot well against top teams. Well now we have Azzi healthy and shooting well. Ash Kaitlyn and KK attacking. I would not be surprised if we build a formidable double digit lead at Tenn. I understand we are not their yet. Our post play is improving but not there yet.

The ole saying is you better be up double digits with 2 minutes left at Tenn. We will see. I am confident Geno will have UConn ready to handle the press and with our ability to knock down pull up jumpers we could break this game wide open. Its gonna come down to breaking the press and remaining patient looking for our shots. Patience and poise. I have us winning by 9 but would not be surprised is we win by more. Avoiding early foul trouble is my biggest fear.

 

[JoePgh]

There seem to be a lot of Cassandras on the Boneyard concerning this game. For those of you needing reassurance, I suggest that you go to ESPN+ (if you are a subscriber) and watch the replay of Tennessee's 76-71 victory just yesterday over the Missouri Tigers (1-7 in the SEC going into the game).

Missouri actually broke the press on its first few possessions and got an early lead of something like 12-2. TN didn't tie the game until 3 minutes were remaining in the first half. TN led through the entire second half, but Missouri had a chance to tie the game but missed several free throws in the final two minutes.

My "eye test" impressions of Tennessee from watching the game:

• Tennessee does have a well-practiced full court press, which is possible because most of their players (not all -- Darby and Puckett are exceptions) are quick on defense, and none of them played even 30 minutes yesterday. They have some ability to adapt to different ways that opponents attack their press -- obviously having it broken twice in the first minutes of the game caused them to make an adjustment. The result was 24 Missouri turnovers, including four 10-second violations in the second quarter and several other 5-second violations when Missouri was inbounding the ball, as well as turnovers from bad inbound passes by Missouri. Nonetheless, I think Geno and CD will rehearse enough different press break options that UConn's experienced guards will not have a major problem with the press. I think back to Rutgers' supposedly fearsome "55" press designed by C. Vivian Stringer in the 2008 or 2009 era-- when it was used against UConn, Ashley Valley (who was for some reason starting the game at point guard for UConn) had exactly zero turnovers, and Maya, Tina, and Kaili McLaren had numerous layups.
• Talaysia Cooper is a genuine star, based on how she played yesterday. She isn't especially big (maybe 6-3), but yesterday she shot 5-10 from 3-point range and 10-23 overall, scoring 27 points. She had 7 rebounds including 4 offensive rebounds before fouling out in the final minute after playing 26 minutes in the game. But Cooper was TN's only big scorer -- their only other double-figure scorer was Zee Spearman with 13 points. Overall, TN shot just 35% (but 40% from 3-point land) and had one fewer made field goal than the Tigers, who shot 46% and 38% from 3. Missouri had four double-figure scorers in yesterday's game, and you've probably never heard of any of them.
• TN played 10 players, all for double-figure minutes. I'm sure that helps with their stamina, but not with their cohesion, which seemed to be lacking -- they had 17 turnovers of their own. They are NOT an especially big team: Cooper at 6-3, Spearman at 6-4, and Hollingshead at 6-5 appear to be their only real size. Missouri wasn't very big either, and TN did dominate offensive rebounds by 16-8 against them. So with 8 more O-bounds and 7 fewer turnovers, TN got 14 more shots than Missouri, but scored one less field goal.
• UConn's deep bench (and particularly its four experienced ball handlers -- Paige, Kaitlyn, KK, and Ashlynn) should make stamina a non-issue for UConn. I doubt that the minutes distribution will be very different between the two teams. I don't think Azzi will be asked or expected to handle the ball much against the press, but I can imagine her receiving a pass for an open 3 in transition and making it most of the time.
• Missouri certainly would not be 1-7 if it were playing in the Big East, but it would not be especially out of place. I would say that it would be at the Creighton / Marquette level, a bit better than Villanova and certainly a lot better than Butler. For TN only to beat Mizzou by 5 points with the possibility of a tie existing into the final minute of regulation -- that certainly suggests that TN is no world-beater.

I would expect UConn to win the game by double digits, with a 20-25% chance of a blowout (more than a 20-point MOV). But an important milestone (second only to securing the victory itself) would be to make the MOV greater than 7, which was South Carolina's MOV over the Vols. If UConn wins by 10 or 15 as I expect, that would be an indication that the game against South Carolina will also be competitive.

 

[GoUconn7961]

need???

a loss only could affect seeding (and fans' frame of mind)

the season can (shall) be triumphant even without the huskies smashing the vols and roosters (though i would be p.o.'d for a few days). simply end it with a NC and all else is forgot.

This site...you can't say anything without someone reading more into it than you meant. Where did I say the season was a good one regardless? I'm sorry my use of the word "need" set you off.

 

[HopJim]

Tenn runs a very similar offense to UConn, sometimes putting in double screens at the key. While Tenn's quickness will help against UConn's press, I suspect UConn's will get some steals. Doubt Jana will see many minutes - Cooper is a poor match up due to her speed and quickness. Would rather have Strong guard her. Tenn's guards are good but Huskies will get their shots - will all depend upon who is hot.

 

[Zarathustra]

There seem to be a lot of Cassandras on the Boneyard concerning this game. For those of you needing reassurance, I suggest that you go to ESPN+ (if you are a subscriber) and watch the replay of Tennessee's 76-71 victory just yesterday over the Missouri Tigers (1-7 in the SEC going into the game).

Missouri actually broke the press on its first few possessions and got an early lead of something like 12-2. TN didn't tie the game until 3 minutes were remaining in the first half. TN led through the entire second half, but Missouri had a chance to tie the game but missed several free throws in the final two minutes.

My "eye test" impressions of Tennessee from watching the game:

• Tennessee does have a well-practiced full court press, which is possible because most of their players (not all -- Darby and Puckett are exceptions) are quick on defense, and none of them played even 30 minutes yesterday. They have some ability to adapt to different ways that opponents attack their press -- obviously having it broken twice in the first minutes of the game caused them to make an adjustment. The result was 24 Missouri turnovers, including four 10-second violations in the second quarter and several other 5-second violations when Missouri was inbounding the ball, as well as turnovers from bad inbound passes by Missouri. Nonetheless, I think Geno and CD will rehearse enough different press break options that UConn's experienced guards will not have a major problem with the press. I think back to Rutgers' supposedly fearsome "55" press designed by C. Vivian Stringer in the 2008 or 2009 era-- when it was used against UConn, Ashley Valley (who was for some reason starting the game at point guard for UConn) had exactly zero turnovers, and Maya, Tina, and Kaili McLaren had numerous layups.
• Talaysia Cooper is a genuine star, based on how she played yesterday. She isn't especially big (maybe 6-3), but yesterday she shot 5-10 from 3-point range and 10-23 overall, scoring 27 points. She had 7 rebounds including 4 offensive rebounds before fouling out in the final minute after playing 26 minutes in the game. But Cooper was TN's only big scorer -- their only other double-figure scorer was Zee Spearman with 13 points. Overall, TN shot just 35% (but 40% from 3-point land) and had one fewer made field goal than the Tigers, who shot 46% and 38% from 3. Missouri had four double-figure scorers in yesterday's game, and you've probably never heard of any of them.
• TN played 10 players, all for double-figure minutes. I'm sure that helps with their stamina, but not with their cohesion, which seemed to be lacking -- they had 17 turnovers of their own. They are NOT an especially big team: Cooper at 6-3, Spearman at 6-4, and Hollingshead at 6-5 appear to be their only real size. Missouri wasn't very big either, and TN did dominate offensive rebounds by 16-8 against them. So with 8 more O-bounds and 7 fewer turnovers, TN got 14 more shots than Missouri, but scored one less field goal.
• UConn's deep bench (and particularly its four experienced ball handlers -- Paige, Kaitlyn, KK, and Ashlynn) should make stamina a non-issue for UConn. I doubt that the minutes distribution will be very different between the two teams. I don't think Azzi will be asked or expected to handle the ball much against the press, but I can imagine her receiving a pass for an open 3 in transition and making it most of the time.
• Missouri certainly would not be 1-7 if it were playing in the Big East, but it would not be especially out of place. I would say that it would be at the Creighton / Marquette level, a bit better than Villanova and certainly a lot better than Butler. For TN only to beat Mizzou by 5 points with the possibility of a tie existing into the final minute of regulation -- that certainly suggests that TN is no world-beater.

I would expect UConn to win the game by double digits, with a 20-25% chance of a blowout (more than a 20-point MOV). But an important milestone (second only to securing the victory itself) would be to make the MOV greater than 7, which was South Carolina's MOV over the Vols. If UConn wins by 10 or 15 as I expect, that would be an indication that the game against South Carolina will also be competitive.

Per the Tennessee Women's Basketball WEBPAGE roster:
Talaysia Cooper is 6'0", (nowhere near 6'3" noted above) but she transferred in from a school named "South Carolina"! She is a red-shirted Sophomore.
The REAL height on the Tenn. squad are: 1). Zee Spearman, 6'4", a transfer from Miami. Zee is the # 5 Tenn player by minutes played. The 2). "Big" is Jullian Hollingshead, a 6'5"senior, who is a transfer for Geogia. This infomatin is all from the L Vols webpage. Of interest 11 of their players are TRANSFERS. One transfer is Favor Ayodele from Spain/Pitt., a 5-year player who does not play significant minutes. There are three 5th year players and four regular seniors and one
Red-shirted Seniors. So, a lot of playing experience on their squad. Needless to
say I prognosticate a HUSKY WIN!

 

[Charliebball]

More important than the win is the battle. Geno needs both Jana and Ice to play against aggressive, quick bigs in a loud, crazy environment which Knoxville will certainly be on Thursday. Tennessee and South Carolina are the only teams that can provide this experience before the Big Dance. I expect Jana and Ice to get double digit minutes against the Lady Vols.

I have a feeling we'll be seeing very little of Jana in this game........Tennessee is way too athletic and are a very good rebounding team with a bunch of quick jumpers...........add a full court press for much of the game and I think we'll be seeing Geno's small lineup throughout..........hopefully Aubrey will be up for the challenge to grab her share of rebounds and fast break points.........time to see the big three of Paige Sara and Azzi burn the press and nail a whole bunch of three pointers as we all have envisioned.......if they are off their games offensively than UConn will be in for a long night in Knoxville......

 

[Rowdy831]

My question is will UConn be in condition to go a full game against a pressure defense? They have all played about half a game so far in conference and you have to think that might be an issue when they are pushed for 40 minutes. With that said UConn just has too many weapons for almost any team to keep up with. I do think they have one weakness that will be exploited in this game but even that should be easily beaten by a superior group of players.

I would like to see Tennessee come out and hit a lot of threes, play tough defense for the whole game just to test the Huskies a little for what it will take to win 12. But in my mind this should not be that close of a game. UConn plays good defense, they play 4 ball handlers at all time and they are better shooters than Tennessee. Every indication is this game will make Tennessee look like the last 10 teams UConn has played.

 

[Bone Dog]

I have a feeling we'll be seeing very little of Jana in this game........Tennessee is way too athletic and are a very good rebounding team with a bunch of quick jumpers

I imagine we'll see roughly as much of Jana as we do of Hollingshead who is not any quicker or jumpier (lol), though she is quite strong. And we'll see as much of Ice as we do of Spearman. I'm only guessing, of course, and Spearman will prolly see a few more minutes than Ice. She's the quicker of the Tennessee bigs. I doubt that Geno will want Sarah to have to guard either Spearman or Hollingshead for the entire game. That's just asking for foul trouble if not exhaustion. If Aubrey is ready to play 20+ mins, Geno may reduce the minutes a little for Ice and Jana.

 

[Geew1992]

Tenn runs a very similar offense to UConn, sometimes putting in double screens at the key. While Tenn's quickness will help against UConn's press, I suspect UConn's will get some steals. Doubt Jana will see many minutes - Cooper is a poor match up due to her speed and quickness. Would rather have Strong guard her. Tenn's guards are good but Huskies will get their shots - will all depend upon who is hot.

I disagree here. Tennessee's half court offense is not a thing of beauty.

 

[Charliebball]

I imagine we'll see roughly as much of Jana as we do of Hollingshead who is not any quicker or jumpier (lol), though she is quite strong. And we'll see as much of Ice as we do of Spearman. I'm only guessing, of course, and Spearman will prolly see a few more minutes than Ice. She's the quicker of the Tennessee bigs. I doubt that Geno will want Sarah to have to guard either Spearman or Hollingshead for the entire game. That's just asking for foul trouble if not exhaustion. If Aubrey is ready to play 20+ mins, Geno may reduce the minutes a little for Ice and Jana.

You could be right...........Ice is clearly the quicker of the two, so I think we may see a bit more of her than Jana.....

 

[Charliebball]

I disagree here. Tennessee's half court offense is not a thing of beauty.

Like any other team, it's a thing of beauty when their threes are falling.......they do pound the offensive glass, so they don't always need to be beautiful.....

 

[Bone Dog]

Like any other team, it's a thing of beauty when their threes are falling.......they do pound the offensive glass, so they don't always need to be beautiful.....

This is true. Though they don't always make much of the O-board advantage. That's how bad their shooting often is.

 

[Geew1992]

Like any other team, it's a thing of beauty when their threes are falling.......they do pound the offensive glass, so they don't always need to be beautiful.....

I've only watched a few of their games, but there isn't an offensive flow. From what I've seen, dribble, dribble, dribble... shoot. Try to get the offensive rebound. I would not say it's similar to UCONN's offense though. Not even close.