Geno has to have a short leash on Williams

[tchalla1]

You should be banned from the board for thinking CW should be benched for Aubrey to start. Christyn is a key cog in our offense, Aubrey barely knows the offense. I LOVVVVVVE Aubrey, but she is effective depending on matchups. Christyn is an elite basketball player, Aubrey is an elite athlete who hasn’t learned to play basketball yet.

Again, here is the incredible myopia that seems to exist at this board: first of all< I did not state the CW should be wholly benched, I stated that her minutes should be reduced due to lack of contribution, like any other player who experiences a considerable delta in performance. I don't know why this simple sports process is causing so much heresy here... And no, CW is has not demonstrated herself to be an elite basketball player--she is not even a consistently good player--this year, she has shown sporadic glimpses of being elite. Hey, I do hope that CW pulls out of this, and I am really rooting for her, but she's nowhere near "elite", or a being "key cog".

 

[ucbart]

Again, here is the incredible myopia that seems to exist at this board: first of all< I did not state the CW should be wholly benched, I stated that her minutes should be reduced due to lack of contribution, like any other player who experiences a considerable delta in performance. I don't know why this simple sports process is causing so much heresy here... And no, CW is has not demonstrated herself to be an elite basketball player--she is not even a consistently good player--this year, she has shown sporadic glimpses of being elite. Hey, I do hope that CW pulls out of this, and I am really rooting for her, but she's nowhere near "elite", or a being "key cog".

I can't. Have a good day.

 

[tchalla1]

If Christyn was on South Carolina's team, and if I would to tell you she would be the high scorer...would you believe me?

Now here's a fine example of disassociated logic: do you actually believe that CW would average 15 ppg in the SEC the way she's been playing? Do you think she would have been first team SEC like she was in the AAC?
Cincy, USF and Houston are not the same as the play that I see in the SEC...

 

[lebronfan23]

My starting 5 for our National Championship squad next season is:
Paige
Walker
Westbrook
Anna
Olivia
With Williams coming off the bench for Westbrook or Anna if she continues to play the way she’s been playing.

 

[mbr33ct]

Now here's a fine example of disassociated logic: do you actually believe that CW would average 15 ppg in the SEC the way she's been playing? Do you think she would have been first team SEC like she was in the AAC?
Cincy, USF and Houston are not the same as the play that I see in the SEC...

I take it you don't believe me.

 

[BBallF]

Some of you people need to come back to Earth! Is Williams struggling this year? Yes, but NOWHERE near as much as some posters would lead you to believe! She is averaging 15/5/2, those are damn respectable numbers! She was 1st team All AAC, and she will start and play damn near play 40mins EVERY game the rest of the way! To suggest that the team would be better off with Griffin starting is just utterly absurd!

What she does need to do more of immediately is to contribute to the floor game- rebounds, deflections, passes, assists, and defense. Forget about the scoring and it will come back but even if she averages 20 points a game but if those other areas aren't improved upon we aren't improved much as a team with the extra points. That is a big difference between Meg and her. Meg has made herself into an all around player who does these other things quietly but effectively and can be a great passer when she doesn't try to force because she anticipates the movement of her teammates very well. We talked all season about CW not adjusting to her position and role on this team this year but yet she has had All AAC numbers in an admitted down year. For the NCAAs though we need the floor game too and now is the time to start doing it. It's very easy to score in transition on this team. Get downcourt as fast as you can and either CD or Anna will find you!

 

[msf22b]

There is this team and this team's issues, trying to get back to the final-4, making progress, Geno is optimistic, he says (yesterday) he likes what he sees...Is he right or is it a conn...All will be clear in a very few weeks...My fervent hope is that we compete like mad; play our best game...Then let the chips fall where they may...There's a lot of talent out there (in addition to UConn).

And there is next year's team, a completely different animal; lots of options at guard with proven and semi-unproven talent...and you can forget about not playing freshman. Does anyone actually think Paige doesn't play...even start?

No one can foresee what will happen...you can't play more than three guards, there will be a spirited dogfight for playing time...and we all know that Geno prefers to play a smallish group. I suspect someone, whomever will be pushed aside (to some extent).

Back to this season...Aubrey had a wonderful game yesterday...her motor and athleticism overwhelmed the smaller and over-matched Temple kids...but remember the situ...she came in (not as a guard) but as a sub for Olivia...a role she been seen in regularly...and is likely to be less effective again the like of the Herbert Harrigan's of the world. But who knows?

If she takes half a million jump shots this summer; she may turn into a respectable threat at guard or wing, but for now, she is wisely used as resident spark plug...Geno's understands her strengths and uses it skillfully.

The question in all of this is: how well does this season's group perform against top competition?
I'm hopeful and rooting like mad, just a bit more skeptical than Geno's public persona based on past performance.

 

[Geew1992]

Man am I glad Geno’s the coach

 

[HuskyNan]

Why does Aubrey need an outside shot in order to start. Live doesn't. "Let me count the ways" that Aubrey contributes to winning ...

Here is the thing; yes, Christyn is in a shooting slump but she can, and has, gone off and scored 20+ points. Therefore, opposing coaches can’t leave her unguarded and may in fact game plan to contain her to certain spots on the court. Aubrey is - currently - most dangerous under the basket and unable to hurt teams beyond 4-6 feet. So what happens? Me, I’d double team to take Crystal or Meg out of the game. Crystal, because that would disrupt UConn’s offense and Meg, who can score quickly in a variety of ways make the team go. Sure, Aubrey might score 15 points but smothering Crystal would hurt the team immensely

 

[Steelerone]

I think that the major difference between this year and next year will be the extra second she will hopefully get to set herself for her shot. The rebounding should be better and with the experiences the ladies have this year and what is coming in, hopefully, the passing.

 

[oldude]

I think that the major difference between this year and next year will be the extra second she will hopefully get to set herself for her shot. The rebounding should be better and with the experiences the ladies have this year and what is coming in, hopefully, the passing.

You hit the nail on the head. While some of Christyn’s offensive problems are in her head, she’s definitely had to adjust her shooting rhythm this season. Last season with Pheesa drawing attention inside and Lou outside, Christyn had time to catch, measure her shot and then let it go. This year she’s had to accelerate her release and as a result Christyn has been inconsistent.

I am still hopeful that this year Christyn can get a little more comfortable catching and shooting in one quick motion. If she does, there will not be another team in the Big Dance that can put 4 more dangerous shooters on the floor at the same time.

 

[jabstep]

I notice that CW seems to defer scoring to others especially if she misses her first shot. She has been picking up a lot of her scoring in "garbage time" because Megan is on the bench. Did you see Chrystal firing up three's yesterday in "garbage time yesterday? Last year in the tourney she stepped up when necessary. She definitely has a confidence issue but Geno knows she has the skill and ability to light up the scoreboard on occasion. She will continue to start.

 

[Bama fan]

Do you not understand the differences between a 5 and a 3?

Going out on a limb here, but isn't it 2? We could ask Molly. She is a math major.

 

[Bajan Best]

I truly believe all of the folks on here who have the incoming class taking away starting roles immediately are in for a shock, these are high school kids coming to college and having to learn a complicated system that practically everybody who has gone before them have struggled with initially...

Advantage CW, MW, ONO, AM, AG, EW.
That is 6) probable talented starters who are already familiar with the system. Can the incoming freshmen contribute? Sure they can but in simple roles. But Just like Aubrey and Anna this year, they will find themselves out of position and impacting the flow of offense/defense so many times as they learn the UConn system, I'll be pleasantly surprised if their overall games aren't struggling a little. Hence the typical Sophmore leap the following year when they have a better understanding of the system.

Yes CW is struggling relative to what everyone expected of her at this point in her development, and this year especially with the strength of the front running teams, for UConn to bring home another NC, we basically need everyone to be firing on all cylinders in March and April and right now, unfortunately, CW is lagging behind where we need her to be...

She is noticeably less aggressive and less confident on the court., it is my hope that the light goes off and that changes significantly as we progress with each game going forward. CW we need you and we need your real, real confidence.

Everyone on the court has to be considered a legitimate threat for us to score easily on the better defensive teams out there, which will keep us in every game no matter the opponent. Let's go Huskies!!! I believe we can!!

 

[01Neaggrad02]

Man what a disappointing season for Christyn Willimas. I'm sure Geno will continue to start her, but for the teams sake I hope he has a very short leash for her. She contributed absolutely nothing in the 1st half versus Temple. A bit better in the 2nd, but the game was over by then. Soo much talent is locked up inside her, maybe a psychologist/mental coach is needed.

Hello. And you are????? I am sure your resume will make Geno's 35 years of doing this look sad and pathetic.... but why not tell us how you are qualified to determine that CW needs to be on a short "leash".

 

[huskeynut]

Man what a disappointing season for Christyn Willimas. I'm sure Geno will continue to start her, but for the teams sake I hope he has a very short leash for her. She contributed absolutely nothing in the 1st half versus Temple. A bit better in the 2nd, but the game was over by then. Soo much talent is locked up inside her, maybe a psychologist/mental coach is needed.

Not going to happen. Your ascertion of what she needs is uncalled for.

 

[huskeynut]

I'm sorry but yes CW is struggling very much as posters are stating--those numbers you are referencing are fattened by the fact that Geno is playing CW nearly the whole game to help her regain her confidence and she's getting a lot of her points in garbage time against inferior talent while the other starters have long gone to the bench. Yes, I am very much suggesting the team would be better off if CW's minutes were reduced and Griffin were allowed to play more.... she could put up almost the same amount of points, more rebounds, more steals, more hustle plays... I don't see the absurdity in that..

Another poster who doesn't get it. Aubrey is not going to start in CW's place. Aubrey is the best 6th man around. If you think Geno is going ot change his rotation because of CW's struggles, you do not understand Geno's coaching style.

 

[HopJim]

Good psychology would be start Aubrey in her place .. eh?

LOL. Seriously?

 

[HopJim]

Now here's a fine example of disassociated logic: do you actually believe that CW would average 15 ppg in the SEC the way she's been playing? Do you think she would have been first team SEC like she was in the AAC?
Cincy, USF and Houston are not the same as the play that I see in the SEC...

For the SEC teams with strong centers, I would vote for 15 ppg from CW. UConn this year does not have a strong inside game - allows defenders to stay outside on shooters. Similar to Anna, CW needs to get pass while she is open. Today, CW typically gets ball while guarded 30 feet from basket. Few can put up big numbers with these options.

 

[oldude]

For the SEC teams with strong centers, I would vote for 15 ppg from CW. UConn this year does not have a strong inside game - allows defenders to stay outside on shooters. Similar to Anna, CW needs to get pass while she is open. Today, CW typically gets ball while guarded 30 feet from basket. Few can put up big numbers with these options.

Your post got me thinking about AEH. Last season with 6’7” Tiera McCowan at Center, she was a key contributor for MS St as their designated sharpshooter. With McCowan gone, AEH’s shooting percentage has dropped substantially, and she now finds herself as the 8th or 9th option for the Bulldogs.

 

[JRRRJ]

Let's look at her production in perspective. Perhaps someone has her stats in the games we played ranked teams compared to the lesser competition. I have a hunch she didn't show up in those important games but let's let the numbers speak for themselves. Does anyone have those stats handy?

For the 5 games vs. ranked (at the time) opponents:

Min  FGM FGA  FG%  3FG 3FGA 3FG%  FT  FTA FT%  ORB DRB TRB   F   A  TO  A/TO Blk Stl Pts
36.6 4.4 13.4 32.8 0.60 3.0 20.0  1.2 2.2 54.5 2.8 4.4 7.2  1.6 0.8 2.4 0.33 0.2 1.0 10.6

You can easily get this info by downloading the 2019-20 pivot table workbook, which allows you to aggregate stats by date(s), opponent(s), venue(s) and other criteria.

 

[JoePgh]

What she does need to do more of immediately is to contribute to the floor game- rebounds, deflections, passes, assists, and defense. Forget about the scoring and it will come back but even if she averages 20 points a game but if those other areas aren't improved upon we aren't improved much as a team with the extra points. That is a big difference between Meg and her. Meg has made herself into an all around player who does these other things quietly but effectively and can be a great passer when she doesn't try to force because she anticipates the movement of her teammates very well. We talked all season about CW not adjusting to her position and role on this team this year but yet she has had All AAC numbers in an admitted down year. For the NCAAs though we need the floor game too and now is the time to start doing it. It's very easy to score in transition on this team. Get downcourt as fast as you can and either CD or Anna will find you!

What specific deficiencies do you see in Christyn's game apart from her shooting percentage? As far as my eyes can report, she is playing very well in all dimensions other than shooting -- especially rebounding.

 

[RedStickHusky]

Again, here is the incredible myopia that seems to exist at this board: first of all< I did not state the CW should be wholly benched, I stated that her minutes should be reduced due to lack of contribution, like any other player who experiences a considerable delta in performance. I don't know why this simple sports process is causing so much heresy here... And no, CW is has not demonstrated herself to be an elite basketball player--she is not even a consistently good player--this year, she has shown sporadic glimpses of being elite. Hey, I do hope that CW pulls out of this, and I am really rooting for her, but she's nowhere near "elite", or a being "key cog".

yeah, it's more than a little unfortunate that we live in a world where people want to ban opinions they don't like; the state of modern academia, I guess. FWIW, to me it seems CW is having a confidence issue, I'm all for letting her play through it - we'll go further if she gets right. There was a play yesterday (they were going left on the TV), when she dribbled into the lane just below the foul line and was surprised to not get picked up tightly. You could literally see her thinking about the 13 footer before she decided not to and threw the ball away. Just looks to be really deep into her own head...

 

[Zinethar]

One thing I often see here is a total disregard for what Geno may be telling the players what role he wants from them and what he wants them to do. If Geno tells her she is the shooter she will be the shooter. I bet he does in the fourth when some other starters are not in the game. To me her defense has improved by leaps and bounds, her movement is much better. Other than not shooting at times when open and the occasional out of control stuff the thing that drives me nuts is she waits for the ball to come to her - from passes or rebounds instead of going to get it. Aubrey got a couple rebounds that were headed directly to CW because she got there first.

 

[Longtime fan]

You should be banned from the board for thinking CW should be benched for Aubrey to start. Christyn is a key cog in our offense, Aubrey barely knows the offense. I LOVVVVVVE Aubrey, but she is effective depending on matchups. Christyn is an elite basketball player, Aubrey is an elite athlete who hasn’t learned to play basketball yet.

No one should be banned for having a thought. But, I do agree....Aubrey is not the answer. We have to have Christyn Williams playing like an AA, or we go no where. It is that simple. We have six quality players.....at the NCAA tournament level. We need them all playing the roles they have been groomed for. If Williams is way off and inconsistent, we go down early. But there is no other hand to play. Next year, there will be. Paige can replace her in a minute. But there is a great player bottled up in Williams somewhere.

 

[Jingo]

Do you not understand the differences between a 5 and a 3?

Aubrey usually subs in at the "5" .. eh?

 

[wbball novice]

Trying to open space on my DVR, so I took a look at the game between Oklahoma & UConn Dec. 19, 2018. UConn, #1 at the time, won 70-63. UConn only got a slim lead in the last 5 min of Q4; the point differential was due to intentional fouls in the last seconds, where KLS sank all her FTs. But in the course of the game she made only 1 3pt shot & Crystal couldn't finish anything and had as many 3s as Lou. Megan was coming off a strep throat & contributed little. Only Collier and Williams kept them in the game and put the team in the position to get barely ahead in Q4. Williams' shooting was not all that different from this year (she didn't have a 3 pt touch either), but she kept attacking the basket and finished often enough to make a crucial difference. Probably won't pull her out from under the bus with some fans, but I wanted to give her some props.

I did delete the game, since I don't think I could watch CD & KLS struggling again. Since the game was out of conference, I couldn't remember whether they won or not, so I was on the edge of my seat all over again!

 

[Mike_In_Storrs]

Re: CW and the announcers

Did I hear the announcers say she had 1500 points through her first 2 years? Or was I mistaken.. I could have sworn they said that... I think they also said Uconn hasn't been a #1 seed since 2006.... That seems way off too.

If she does then I can't see how it's possible she is on pace with Maya Moore who has over 3000 points. She is not even in the conversation with Maya.

 

[Fishbone]

Aubrey usually subs in at the "5" .. eh?

Yes, but you want her to replace a 2

 

[Cornell Lt]

Hello. And you are????? I am sure your resume will make Geno's 35 years of doing this look sad and pathetic.... but why not tell us how you are qualified to determine that CW needs to be on a short "leash".

Coached basketball for 35 years, Geno's resume, not quite but enough to know what I see.