Game Thread: UCONN-ND

[Kait14]

What is on Caroline is that she is out 5th year senior PG and only took 1 shot and had 1 assist to go along with a few terrible mental mistakes. You should be able to expect more out of a player that has been through as much as her but she is completely unreliable. Geno wouldn't even let her take the ball up the court at one point, leaving that to Kelly Faris. I just don't get what the point of having her out there is, when she isn't going to do anything to impact the game. I respect your opinion but I have just had enough and hope Geno has as well.

Who would you have had out there in her place? Bria fouled out, Brianna tore her ACL, Moriah looked like a middle schooler against Skylar..

 

[willingtonfan]

The thing I still don't understand is this: we're up 3 with less than 30 secs to play in the first overtime. Why not figure out who ND's worst free throw shooter is and foul her immediately? She can't score three points but at most two, and then they have to give us the ball back. We would (worst case) be up 1; ND would surely foul us at that point, and hopefully we make both. This is the same thing that happened in the Duke game at the XL Center a few years back in the elite 8 game we lost, where we actually had a foul to give without putting Duke on the free throw line. I don't get why Geno didn't tell the kids to do that, or why one of the assistants didn't suggest it. Other teams seem to take advantage of these sort of things, so why shouldn't we? Like I said, I just don't get it..... I understand Geno's desire to play a pure form of the game, but at the end of the day it's about winning not playing the perfect game. Sometimes I think he makes the perfect the enemy of the good.

 

[Dawson]

Who would you have had out there in her place? Bria fouled out, Brianna tore her ACL, Moriah looked like a middle schooler against Skylar..

This shouldn't be a question that we should be having to ask by her fifth year. She should be the one that is out there contributing and unfortunately she is not that player. There isn't anyone else I want out, there. I want her out there living up to her potential, but she hasn't been that player for the past few years.

 

[Kait14]

This shouldn't be a question that we should be having to ask by her fifth year. She should be the one that is out there contributing and unfortunately she is not that player. There isn't anyone else I want out, there. I want her out there living up to her potential, but she hasn't been that player for the past few years.

Severe injuries like tearing your ACL ONCE, let alone 3 times, will do that. She had a rough game, she's not Diana Taurasi

 

[UConnChapette]

The thing I still don't understand is this: we're up 3 with less than 30 secs to play in the first overtime. Why not figure out who ND's worst free throw shooter is and foul her immediately? She can't score three points but at most two, and then they have to give us the ball back. We would (worst case) be up 1; ND would surely foul us at that point, and hopefully we make both. This is the same thing that happened in the Duke game at the XL Center a few years back in the elite 8 game we lost, where we actually had a foul to give without putting Duke on the free throw line. I don't get why Geno didn't tell the kids to do that, or why one of the assistants didn't suggest it. Other teams seem to take advantage of these sort of things, so why shouldn't we? Like I said, I just don't get it..... I understand Geno's desire to play a pure form of the game, but at the end of the day it's about winning not playing the perfect game. Sometimes I think he makes the perfect the enemy of the good.

There are too many things that cannot be controlled. Still a lot of time on the clock for things to go wrong.

1) Foul them on a three point shot. Smart team will see the foul coming and "heave" a three from wherever they are, no matter how far away from the basket. Worst case, they take two shots. Best case, they go to the line to shoot 3 ft. ND is a pretty good ft shooting team. Odds are, they make them to tie it.

2) Foul them on a two point shot. Shot goes in, they get an "and one", makes it, and the score is tied again.

3) Foul them. They make the first, miss the second but get the rebound and put back, score it tied again.

4) Foul them. They make both shots. UConn up one. We had 30 turnovers this game. Full court pressure could cause a turnover giving them the ball back. Now, no foul is smart because it puts them at the line to go up by one with limited time left on the clock. Defense has to play soft to avoid the foul. Opens up a layup or three pointer to win the game.

5) Foul them. They make the first, miss the second, kick it out and put up a three pointer that goes in. Game over.

Notre Dame had not made a three pointer all game up to that point. They HAD to have a three pointer, or a lay up with a foul, to tie it and go to another over time. Our three point defense had been pretty darn good. You play the odds. Unfortunately, Kaleena's defense falters and ND hits a cluch 3 pointer. 9 times out of 10, that doesn't happen. It did. What can you do?

 

[VAUConnFan]

The men played Cuse to 5 OTs and lost. Let's close out these guys!

Actually, it was 6 overtimes.

 

[Icebear]

I agree with most of this, but I struggle trying to accept a fifth year senior guard turning the ball over multiple times - inexplicably - in key situations - at crunch time. These are precisely the moments all that experience and leadership is supposed to pay off, gimp and all.

Do you remember that coming out for the second half that before it started it was stated that Caroline was not available to play and would not be playing? I expect that her knee or something else was the problem. Nonetheless she went out there like a warrior for the team. She has not been the same since the "sprained ankle injury" on Senior Night when our hearts all jumped to our throats..