Geno Calls Out Paige for Poor Play

[Gordo]

He recruited Amari. Aaliyah, Ice, Ayanna, and Jana. Plus one other who transfered. Its not his fault they got hurt or didn't live up to their billing.

I agree with one exception. Aaliyah has certainly lived up to expectations. She was an All American last season and still has a shot at it again this season.

 

[BobbyJ]

I'd like to call out Geno for the big girl hole in his recruiting for longer than I can remember.

Auriemma has recruited all the top bigs in the country for 30 odd years. Your memory must not be long, he got Lobo, Wolters, Charles, Stewart, Stokes etc. You weren't complaining when they were winning everything in sight. What should he have done to get the ones that decided to go elsewhere? Should he have kidnapped Boston? Brink wanted the Stanford education and to be near her family. What more should he have done to get A'ja Wilson to leave her hometown? Who else do you think he should have gotten?

 

[Blond D.]

I agree with one exception. Aaliyah has certainly lived up to expectations. She was an All American last season and still has a shot at it again this season.

You are so right and I didnt mean they ALL didnt live up to expectations...just a couple plus plus theres still time for some to develope.

 

[cancontent]

I'm estimating. Could have been 3 hours. I just noticed that she didn't engage anyone which is unlike her. She just seemed blank. On the bench too. Now that I think of it...the bench did too.

In how you phrased your sentence, I took it to mean you thought she was entering in late in addition to her demeanour.

 

[BobbyJ]

Answer the questions. What should he have done? I listed three since 2017.

 

[hoopsfan22]

Auriemma has recruited all the top bigs in the country for 30 odd years. Your memory must not be long, he got Lobo, Wolters, Charles, Stewart, Stokes etc. You weren't complaining when they were winning everything in sight. What should he have done to get the ones that decided to go elsewhere? Should he have kidnapped Boston? Brink wanted the Stanford education and to be near her family. What more should he have done to get A'ja Wilson to leave her hometown? Who else do you think he should have gotten?

Stokes was class of 2011 and Stewart 2012. That was 1/3 of Geno's UConn career ago. Obviously Geno can't force anyone to come to Storrs.

 

[Monte]

WHAT do they do in all the daily Practice Sessions? AND, years ago there was ONE coach; NOW, I see 5 sitting on the bench!

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Auriemma has recruited all the top bigs in the country for 30 odd years. Your memory must not be long, he got Lobo, Wolters, Charles, Stewart, Stokes etc. You weren't complaining when they were winning everything in sight. What should he have done to get the ones that decided to go elsewhere? Should he have kidnapped Boston? Brink wanted the Stanford education and to be near her family. What more should he have done to get A'ja Wilson to leave her hometown? Who else do you think he should have gotten?

Gotta check your watch or @hoopsfan22. I've wondered from time to time when we lose a recruiting battle for the big or 2 of the year whether it is Connecticut's guard centric system that sends them packing. Then there were the years where only 1 big appeared to be getting the press and when we lost that was it. Then there were the careers when Geno forced a big role on a small forward because the cupboard was bare. Look, I love him, but he's not perfect and this is one big dent in the king's armor.

And I took a swipe for his picking on my girl.

 

[Zonker]

I'd like to call out Geno for the big girl hole in his recruiting for longer than I can remember.

Agreed. Has it occurred to any one else that Geno might be becoming the Bill Belichick of women’s college basketball? His recruiting doesn’t seem to keep up with other schools, and he doesn’t seem able to get the players he does have to play up to their potential.

 

[Bald Husky]

What Paige and the team needs is a HOME game. On the road, neutral sites, they need the support and warmth of Gampel. They will get that Wednesday night, and after that UNC at Mohegan Sun. The latter isn't a home game technically, but most of the fans will be ours. Play Shade more, she only played 11 minutes last night, and I thought she would start. Starting line-up- Paige, Aaliyah, Nika, Ash, and Ice. Ice has to stay away from the 3 pt shots and just get open for the midrange. Ash just has to be not afraid to look for her shot. Shes great at the midrange and can knock down the 3. It's time to look at what the team will be in March, and if the freshmen have to push someone aside, Geno has to do what is best for the team.

 

[BobbyJ]

Gotta check your watch or @hoopsfan22. I've wondered from time to time when we lose a recruiting battle for the big or 2 of the year whether it is Connecticut's guard centric system that sends them packing. Then there were the years where only 1 big appeared to be getting the press and when we lost that was it. Then there were the careers when Geno forced a big role on a small forward because the cupboard was bare. Look, I love him, but he's not perfect and this is one big dent in the king's armor.

But you're not answering the questions. Do you mean the guard centric system he's used forever that got him all the top bigs that I listed? If he's recruiting them all and they choose elsewhere, why do you want to "call him out"? How is that a failure? He didn't lose them because he never had them. So what should he have done differently?

 

[Kat]

Yes, she had a bad game but that had more to do with Rori Harmon than anything else.

 

[todbo]

I'd bring Nika in off the bench. She is a great passer, but other teams can largely ignore her as a scoring threat.

How Texas stymied Paige Bueckers and kept UConn women reeling, and other takeaways

Texas’ scout players, one in particular, were critical in the Longhorns’ preparation for Paige Bueckers and UConn. Texas beat the Huskies for the first time on Sunday, leaving UConn sti…

www.courant.com

 

[mordecai]

Of all the things that Geno could have been said about that game.. That has to be about the most stupid..

Personally i think the problem goes a little higher on the food chain..

 

[Cuango]

I think it’s time to put the ball back in Paige’s hands at the point. Nika is great when she has Azzi, Lou, & Caroline to pass to. They will score enough to where her low scoring output and high turnover rate doesn’t matter that much! Now we are faced with no one for her to pass the ball to that is likely to bury a three. Let’s face it, Paige is now our only true three point threat. I think Geno should bite the bullet and start Paige, KK, Ashlynn, Aaliyah, and Ice! Then you’ve got three “shock troops“ in Nika, Aubrey, and Q to bring in for a change of pace. We don’t know when/if Yanna will be available but obviously she would be slotted in as soon as Geno sees what she brings to the table.

 

[JellyBean]

To me, Paige looks sad or upset in most of her statements. Please, light your smile up!

After a loss, it hits different. That is why I am hoping the players are getting help mental health help or breaks. I had to cringe when Coach called out Paige for poor play. With so much going on, who knows what could be the straw that breaks the camel's back. Hopefully we have a nice game against Ball State (7-1) so that those smiles can come back. A win changes a lot.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

But you're not answering the questions. Do you mean the guard centric system he's used forever that got him all the top bigs that I listed? If he's recruiting them all and they choose elsewhere, why do you want to "call him out"? How is that a failure? He didn't lose them because he never had them. So what should he have done differently?

Sometimes having a really good big is not success . Being down to one junior big who can't play is not success. Jana's Achilles is unfortunate, but were we looking to her, a freshman, to be "the big"? Being analytical, the Gold Standard in WCBB has struggled in the bigs department. What should he have done differently? I don't have a clue, if for no other reason than I don't know what he has done.

If he and the staff have not been analysing this Bigs situation for the last decade and trying to adjust I would find that troubling.

 

[MilfordHusky]

In the context of stars being called out, does anyone remember the great Stewie getting benched along with Tuck?

 

[UConnCat]

In the presser after the Texas game, Geno stated that Paige played poorly. The question is was that fair? I believe he did so because he wanted to send a message to her.

Let me preface my comments by saying that Paige is my all-time favorite player. I am not critiquing her play. She has performed admirably after missing last season and the better part of the season prior. Expectations of what she is capable of are high, and maybe it's too much to expect a return to form so soon. I think it is reasonable to state that she hasn't reached her comfort level on the court yet, and the injuries to Azzi & Caroline appear to have had impact on her and the role she needs to assume.

Paige looks like she is carrying so much weight on her shoulders. I haven't seen much joy in her. Of course, playing for UConn and losing 3 times in the first 7 games won't produce a happy camper. I won't speculate how she feels physically, although for a superstar, she is roughed up and not protected by the refs. My concern is I think she is struggling with her role mentally. The dream of playing alongside Azzi was dashed, and now she's expected to pick up her lost production as well as Caroline's. I haven't seen the exuberance yet of her freshman season. Paige prefers to be a distributor, getting everyone involved and choosing to pick her spots to take over, but that has to change.

I mentioned in an earlier post that I felt she was subdued in the game against Minnesota. She started the game yesterday tentatively and didn't really look to be aggressive offensively. For this team to succeed, she has to take close to 20 shots, particularly against the top teams. She has to lead by example and then get her teammates to follow. There are too many first-year players and the only other reliable option is Aaliyah. The freshmen will be good, but it's a lot of pressure to carry, as Paige knows all to well. She can do it and handle it, and that is why Geno called her out yesterday.

I don't care if she shoots 1-20 in a game, as long as she is aggressive. At least 10 of them should be deadly pull-up jumper, which so far is missing in action. I realize Paige seldom takes bad shots, but I can live with some forced ones, if only to draw more attention from the defense, thus opening space for other players, particularly Samuels & Shade when they are in the game.

Paige has always stated she will do what's necessary for the team to win. Well, this year it's necessary that she shoot more. The sooner she embraces her role, the sooner UConn as a team can begin to jell, and the sooner the joy comes back to her game.

Can you provide a link to his post-game press conference or the relevant quotes? I’d like to see what words he used and the context. Thanks.

 

[Bigboote]

Most of the season, the team has looked like it did two years ago after Paige came back from her tibia injury. Geno said then, "Too many guys stand around and wait for Paige to do something." Last year that didn't happen. Yes, the team leaned on Dorka, Lou, and Aaliyah, but nobody just stood around.

Here's an idea (just throwing it out there, not saying it's a good one): Play Paige for no more than 20 minutes for several games. With any luck, the others will learn not to lean so much on her. UConn has some really good players in addition to Paige, Azzi, and Caroline, it's time they stepped up, not now and then, but at least a couple of them every game.

 

[SARG 2011]

Paige comments around 5:46

 

[hoopsfan22]

In the context of stars being called out, does anyone remember the great Stewie getting benched along with Tuck?

They got benched about 6 minutes into that game, so it's not like they didn't play. Geno also said it was a dumb thing to do, so perhaps if he had a redo that would have never happened?