Gandy Malou-Mamel on Ireland’s U20 team, will play July 6-14

[Zarathustra]

HALF TIME IRELAND 48 SLOVAKIA 21
GANDY MALOU MAMEL : 12 minutes ( due to
two fouls early ). Gandy was 5 for 7 and 10 points ( 71.43 FG %)
Eight rebounds : five offensive, three defensive,
One Steal, Efficiency 16 ( #1 on the IRISH TEAM).
#14 for Ireland is Michelle Ugwah from MOREHEAD
STATE. She is 6'0" and jumped center. Looks
taller than she is but wide shoulders. So, Ireland
has two Centers/Power Fowards: Michelle and Ugwah.
Ireland's coach is using his full bench so game stats
may not reflect talent of his starting 5 and regular rotation.
This game is OVER! SLOVAKIA IS DISPIRITED NOW AND
GETTING SLOPPY. Nothing drops for them from off
the rim. Ireland's rim shots go in rather regularly and
their transition game is working, MULTIPLE BUNNIES!
We'll have to see what the rest of the competition looks
like. Fairly good coaching by Ireland. Refs play calling is
" unusual" at best.

ODDS and ENDS: Michelle UGWAH had 8 points listed as a Power Forward
Other USA college players: Lucy Coogan 182 cm ( approx 6'0") from Caldwell
University in Caldwell, N.J. Amy Duggan 5'7" did not play in first half a guard
from Hillsborough Community College, USA.
GANDY IS LISTED as 195 cm, 6'5" ( FIBA heights tend to be accurate) and
her BIRTHDAY IS: DECEMBER 30, 2005. Most Irelands U20 team was born
in 2004, so Gandy is ( approx ) the third youngest on the Irish Team.

 

[HuskyNan]

ODDS and ENDS: Michelle UGWAH had 8 points listed as a Power Forward
Other USA college players: Lucy Coogan 182 cm ( approx 6'0") from Caldwell
University in Caldwell, N.J. Amy Duggan 5'7" did not play in first half a guard
from Hillsborough Community College, USA.
GANDY IS LISTED as 195 cm, 6'5" ( FIBA heights tend to be accurate) and
her BIRTHDAY IS: DECEMBER 30, 2005. Most Irelands U20 team was born
in 2004, so Gandy is ( approx ) the third youngest on the Irish Team.

Thank you for getting up early so e could get a game report

 

[Zarathustra]

Third Quarter IRELAND 69 Slovakia 42
Gandy with third foul for "holding", sits down again.
Gandy with 10 points, 10 rebounds ( 5 OFF, 5 def)
two blocks ( one nice one at 3:30 of the third Q)
Two Steals and efficiency of 20. Gandy is
often double and tripled teamed so hard to
judge what she would do with if she had one on one or
"only" two defenders!!!

 

[Zarathustra]

Final Score IRELAND 91 Slovakia 61
Gandy stats: 20 minutes and 8 seconds
17 points, 8 for 10 shooting ( 80 % ) NO THREE
POINT ATTEMPTS.
13 rebounds ( 6 offensive, 7 defensive)
three fouls, three blocks, no assists,
two turnovers, two steals, Efficiency : 30.
Next up Switzerland tomorrow, Sunday at 8:30 AM
The Swiss are even smaller than Slovakia.
Tallest players for Slovakia were 6' 2" and 6'1".
Switzerland has a 6'0" PF, a 6'0" F, and
a FIVE FOOT TEN INCH "CENTER"! Well done,
Gandy. Ireland has HUSTLE, all down the bench.

 

[Sluconn Husky]

Ireland/Slovakia boxscore:

Ireland vs Slovakia - Group Phase - FIBA U20 Women's EuroBasket 2024, Division B | FIBA.basketball

Witness the clash between Ireland(IRL) and Slovakia (SVK) at FIBA U20 Women's EuroBasket 2024, Division B. Explore detailed box scores, game stats, captivating photos, and highlight videos capturing the best moments of the game. Group Phase (GP

www.fiba.basketball

 

[yhun89]

Final Score IRELAND 91 Slovakia 61
Gandy stats: 20 minutes and 8 seconds
17 points, 8 for 10 shooting ( 80 % ) NO THREE
POINT ATTEMPTS.
13 rebounds ( 6 offensive, 7 defensive)
three fouls, three blocks, no assists,
two turnovers, two steals, Efficiency : 30.
Next up Switzerland tomorrow, Sunday at 8:30 AM
The Swiss are even smaller than Slovakia.
Tallest players for Slovakia were 6' 2" and 6'1".
Switzerland has a 6'0" PF, a 6'0" F, and
a FIVE FOOT TEN INCH "CENTER"! Well done,
Gandy. Ireland has HUSTLE, all down the bench.

The fouls are a bit worrying at the rate she got them, granted she does have 3 girls on her every possesion, but the blocks and rebounds are great.

 

[HuskyNan]

The fouls are a bit worrying at the rate she got them, granted she does have 3 girls on her every possesion, but the blocks and rebounds are great.

She has another year of high school to improve before getting to UConn

 

[Blakeon18]

Great info on Gandy!

What teams will be the best competition for Ireland?

 

[NycUcWbbFan]

Gandy Malou-Mamel: 2024 U20 EuroBasket (through 1 game):

• Minutes: 20.08 (5th)
• EFFscore: 30.0 (1st)
• Points: 17.0 (1st)
• Rebounds: 13.0 (1st)
• Assists: 0.0 (Tie 10th)
• Steals: 2.0 (Tie 3rd)
• Blocks: 3.0 (Tie 1st)
• Turnovers: 2.0 (7th)
• 2 Pt %: 80.0% (2nd)
• 3 Pt %: 0.0% (Tie 5th)
• FT %: 50.0% (Tie 3rd)
• FGA: 10.0 (Tie 2nd)

Ireland: 2024 U20 EuroBasket: Overview | Roster | Games | Statistics | Videos | News | Photos |

• Game 2: Switzerland vs Ireland - Group Phase (Sunday, July 7 8:30AM)
• Game 1: Ireland vs. Slovakia: W91-61: Overview | Boxscore | PlayByPlay | ShotChart | GameStats | Photos | Videos | News |

 

[JellyBean]

The fouls are a bit worrying at the rate she got them, granted she does have 3 girls on her every possesion, but the blocks and rebounds are great.

I love the fact that she is being aggressive. She will get better on understanding the fouling situations.

 

[HuskyNan]

Great info on Gandy!

What teams will be the best competition for Ireland?

From the preview linked in post #19

Ireland have been drawn in Group A alongside Slovakia (41st), Switzerland (78th) and the Czech Republic (13th). Ireland are currently ranked 59th following the 2023 competitions.

 

[Zarathustra]

Great info on Gandy!

What teams will be the best competition for Ireland?

This is a tough question to answer. Teams are ranked by past history in previous
FIBA competitions, eg from 2023. Rather than look at the "team" it is sometimes
better to look at the COUNTRY's History of talent over TIME. EG USA is ranked #1
so they are historically the best and should have one of the best teams in any given
tournament in any given age group. But to answer your question I would say the
better teams in this EUROBASKET (DIVISION "B") noting that for comparison =Ines plays with
Portugal in DIVISION "A"... APPLES vs/ ORANGES!!)
In Division "B": Ireland # 59 in the world # 29 in the Europe ZONE; Ireland's
next opponent = Switzerland # 78 and # 35, then there is Greece # 26 and # 17
Croatia #11 and # 7 but, to my mind is really a rating of their "A" division team e.g.
U 17 with Olivia Vukosa, but CROATIA also has a " B" division team in this tournament)
Ireland is rated somewhat close to ICELAND # 50/23, as well as Bulgaria # 58 / 28
Austria # 64/ 32, Romania # 65 /33, and Great Britain # 53 / 25. We'll really know
who is "good" after the end of the "GROUP" play. I think IRELAND has an "easy" first two
games so the GROUP phase game against Czechnia may be the best "test" before
the teams get reseeded for the next round. With the "W" today and Ireland's height
advantage against the Swiss, Gandy will get tested in the next round against the " better"
competition ( which is hard to predict as I noted above).

 

[HuskyNan]

 

[BobbyJ]

Gandy is coming right along, a lot of progress in the last year. She has a lot of plusses that aren't found in a lot of 6-5 kids. Athleticism, quick reflexes and decision making, strength, good foot quickness and lateral movement, quick off her feet, and that non stop motor and willingness to bang bodies. Her skillset, short range shooting, ballhandling out of scrums, and quick decision passing are all improving very well. And one other thing she's already learned and understands that many bigs never do: how to play the post areas at both ends by bending at the waist with a wide base and low center of gravity and using body leverage. It takes hard work and she's obviously a worker. UConn might have a real good one developing.

 

[oldhusky]

This is a tough question to answer. Teams are ranked by past history in previous
FIBA competitions, eg from 2023. Rather than look at the "team" it is sometimes
better to look at the COUNTRY's History of talent over TIME. EG USA is ranked #1
so they are historically the best and should have one of the best teams in any given
tournament in any given age group. But to answer your question I would say the
better teams in this EUROBASKET (DIVISION "B") noting that for comparison =Ines plays with
Portugal in DIVISION "A"... APPLES vs/ ORANGES!!)
In Division "B": Ireland # 59 in the world # 29 in the Europe ZONE; Ireland's
next opponent = Switzerland # 78 and # 35, then there is Greece # 26 and # 17
Croatia #11 and # 7 but, to my mind is really a rating of their "A" division team e.g.
U 17 with Olivia Vukosa, but CROATIA also has a " B" division team in this tournament)
Ireland is rated somewhat close to ICELAND # 50/23, as well as Bulgaria # 58 / 28
Austria # 64/ 32, Romania # 65 /33, and Great Britain # 53 / 25. We'll really know
who is "good" after the end of the "GROUP" play. I think IRELAND has an "easy" first two
games so the GROUP phase game against Czechnia may be the best "test" before
the teams get reseeded for the next round. With the "W" today and Ireland's height
advantage against the Swiss, Gandy will get tested in the next round against the " better"
competition ( which is hard to predict as I noted above).

I think we have to take some of the team rankings going into this tournament with a shaker full. In Ireland's case they are probably better than their historical ranking specifically because of Gandy's addition. Her first game performance was good as were her stats, but when I checked the stats just a few minutes ago for the competition overall only about half the teams had played their first game yet.

After a few games I suspect she will remain near the top in rebounding, blocked shots, FG%, Pts, and more importantly efficiency per minute which they don't actually give, but is easy to ballpark with per game numbers for efficiency and minutes. So far so good!

 

[Bone Dog]

Since we're using these U20 games as a sort of scout of Gandy, here's what I see.

Gandy is a big strong kid, and she runs the floor well, but her skills are undeveloped. When I say she's big and strong, I mean she's Aliyah Boston strong, or Jana El Alfy strong. When you see Ice standing next to Ash, and you think Wow, Ice is a big kid. Then you see Jana standing next to Ice and you think, Wow, Ice is not as big as I thought. Gandy is definitely a big strong kid.

I'm impressed by how well she runs. The Ireland coach had her defending out to the perimeter, and even used her at the point of their press sometimes. At no point did she look like she wasn't quick enough to be effective out there. Her post defense may need some work, but I don't think she'll be slow pick it up. Also, her energy on defense and on the boards is formidable. She mainly played in 5 minute stretches and you could see that her stamina would fade a bit toward the end and her energy would drop. But when she was not tired, her energy was impressive.

It didn't look like Ireland had any plays for Gandy on offense. Either that or the guards didn't know how to get her the ball when she posted up, which was often. Most of Gandy's points came on putbacks. She had one cutting layup and one shot from about 5 feet out. She doesn't seem to have a midrange game yet, much less any sort of perimeter shot. I'm not worried about this, since Angel Reese built a whole career on little more than this. The question is how much competitive spirit a player has, and Angel has a fierce spirit and it looks like Gandy might too.

If Gandy avoids injury and pays attention to what Geno CD and Jamelle have to teach her, she'll become an excellent rebounder and defender, and a pretty good low post scorer. I think she is further along now than Piath was when she showed up at Storrs, and maybe has better instincts. I think she won't be a complete project next year, but she is still a jewel in the rough.

 

[oldhusky]

By the way I think FIBA may have trouble converting to feet and inches. The second best rebounder for Ireland in that first game was listed as 5'12".

 

[HuskyNan]

Since we're using these U20 games as a sort of scout of Gandy, here's what I see.

Gandy is a big strong kid, and she runs the floor well, but her skills are undeveloped. When I say she's big and strong, I mean she's Aliyah Boston strong, or Jana El Alfy strong. When you see Ice standing next to Ash, and you think Wow, Ice is a big kid. Then you see Jana standing next to Ice and you think, Wow, Ice is not as big as I thought. Gandy is definitely a big strong kid.

I'm impressed by how well she runs. The Ireland coach had her defending out to the perimeter, and even used her at the point of their press sometimes. At no point did she look like she wasn't quick enough to be effective out there. Her post defense may need some work, but I don't think she'll be slow pick it up. Also, her energy on defense and on the boards is formidable. She mainly played in 5 minute stretches and you could see that her stamina would fade a bit toward the end and her energy would drop. But when she was not tired, her energy was impressive.

It didn't look like Ireland had any plays for Gandy on offense. Either that or the guards didn't know how to get her the ball when she posted up, which was often. Most of Gandy's points came on putbacks. She had one cutting layup and one shot from about 5 feet out. She doesn't seem to have a midrange game yet, much less any sort of perimeter shot. I'm not worried about this, since Angel Reese built a whole career on little more than this. The question is how much competitive spirit a player has, and Angel has a fierce spirit and it looks like Gandy might too.

If Gandy avoids injury and pays attention to what Geno CD and Jamelle have to teach her, she'll become an excellent rebounder and defender, and a pretty good low post scorer. I think she is further along now than Piath was when she showed up at Storrs, and maybe has better instincts. I think she won't be a complete project next year, but she is still a jewel in the rough.

I’m not sure if you saw any of Gandy’s games from her sophomore season of high school but she has improved rather dramatically in just a year. That says “coachable“ to me since she’s obviously working hard to get better.

Gandy’s physical gifts are undeniable.

 

[Bone Dog]

I’m not sure if you saw any of Gandy’s games from her sophomore season of high school but she has improved rather dramatically in just a year. That says “coachable“ to me since she’s obviously working hard to get better.

Gandy’s physical gifts are undeniable.

I've watched videos of several of them and was impressed. As I said just now and at some length, her physical gifts are formidable. I also believe she is coachable. Did I not make that clear?

 

[HuskyNan]

I've watched videos of several of them and was impressed. As I said just now and at some length, her physical gifts are formidable. I also believe she is coachable. Did I not make that clear?

I’m sorry if my post sounded as though I’m disagreeing with you. I meant it for others that may not be aware that Gandy is relatively new to the game and her current state of “rawness”, so to speak, isn’t the best we can hope from her. My apologies for the way the post sounded

 

[Alydar]

Just an observation. Both teams' offense revolved around ball movement rather than individual play. There were more passes in the 1st period than in an entire AAU game.

 

[Zarathustra]

Just an observation. Both teams' offense revolved around ball movement rather than individual play. There were more passes in the 1st period than in an entire AAU game.

I agree. Ireland also played with a lot of hustle/energy, unselfish passing, and it was displayed
in the play from the entire team/bench. You have to credit the coach for instilling that
spirit. I suggest anyone interested in this "spirit" theme to watch the ceremony prior to the
tip off. Just before the opposing teams' 12 members exchange tokens the IRISH
huddle up, do a type of shuffle (side to side while embracing) and then let out
a rather raucous shout. It reminded me of the NEW ZEALAND's ( or was it another
rugby teams?) ritual dance prior to "mortal" combat. TUNE in 5 or so minutes early
and watch the action... GREAT STUFF! GO GANDY! Full disclosure... My mother's maiden
name was MURPHY!

 

[jabstep]

Well, my real name is Father Shamus and My last name begins with an O so I'm am Irish by birth and by nature. I love Beer. So I would be doing some Husky scouting on Miss Gandy. I think she can move her feet like a fine Irish dancer and as far as her aggressiveness I can akin it to me wanting a Sout in the early afternoon.
Under Geno's tutelage, she should become someone we Irish will be proud of in the future.

 

[HuskyNan]

We’re watching one of our future Huskies, not Ireland. If you’re not interested in Gandy, there are other threads that might work for you