Georgetown Post-Game Thread - BET

[EricLA]

It's post-season! Wishing I could be at Mohegan Sun for the games with my family. @MilfordHusky is with them tho, so it's all good!

Ragged starts to Q1 and Q3. But then it was off to the races in the first half. And it was great to see Geno liberally using all 9 players. Loved seeing the full court press start early in the first half. Our defense was smothering after Georgetown scored 6 points on a pair of 3's. Finished the half on a 37-6 run.

• Of course it was great not only seeing Paige out there, but also with her shooting touch back. Points, rebounds and assists all on display for her. Paige being Paige - LOVED IT!!
• LOVE Azzi's confidence and all around game, but it's so odd to see her shot off. She missed more than she made today.
• Olivia was surprisingly MIA today. 1 point, 2 boards, 3 TO's. Not what I'd expect from a senior in her last BET.
• Nice all around game for Christyn. Hit her first 3 deep shots, then went 0-4 the rest of the game. But 5 steals? NICE!!
• Another nice game for Aaliyah. She's really strung together strong and consistent efforts.
• Not a lot of "stats" for Nika, but she is such a pest. DPOY well deserved!
• Nice solid games for Dorka and Evina
• Not sure what is going on with Caroline, but she seems to have regressed as the rest of the team has gotten healthy. Maybe it's the freshman wall. Hope she rights the ship soon.
• Great seeing Amari in and scoring!

Tourneys are all about surviving and advancing. This BET seems unique for UCONN in that IMHO we need to make a statement and really dominate. It's not like in the past where we knew we had a 1 seed locked up. We sure made a statement in the first half. 2nd half not so much. It was solid but unspectacular. Credit Georgetown for battling the entire game and coming out hard in H2.

Our core group of 9 all played and scored. Paige and Christyn really shined. Strong game by Aaliyah too. Geno said before the game that this was going to be an experiment. Win big, learn a few things, and on to the next game.

Geno has said in the past that the regular season is time to teach, learn, experiment, etc. It's when he has players working on things they don't do well to make them better players. When tourney time rolls around, critical Geno mostly disappears and Geno focuses more on what players do well and encourages more of that throughout the rest of the year. But we've never had a season like this before so the experiment continues! GO UCONN!!

 

[oldude]

Some thoughts on the Georgetown game:

• As the season progressed, more and more, Christyn sets the tone for this UConn team. Right now, she is in Postseason Mode, characterized by her lockdown defense and the ability to score in many different ways.
• I loved Dorka’s defensive effort as well as her relentless work on the boards today. She has really improved in both areas from the start of the season.
• The BE DPOY once again proved that it’s not a good idea to take your eyes off her when you’re dribbling. It’s kind a like a gazelle not paying attention to a cheetah.
• There was a time not long ago when UConn struggled on offense against zone defenses. Today, against Georgetown’s zone, with the ball moving all over the court and Azzi, Paige and friends reigning down 3’s from everywhere, it’s apparent that teams can no longer afford to play zone against the Huskies.
• Paige with a quiet 16 points including 4 x 3's. I know everyone held their breath when Paige was hammered after her steal and breakaway layup. Just one more hurdle to pass on the way back. I expect that Paige will get the starting call either tomorrow or Monday as UConn continues to build for the Big Dance.
• Another superb defensive effort by the Huskies, the 3rd game in a row holding an opponent under 40 points.
• The last two seasons have been a journey for UConn WBB, playing games without fans or with limited attendance. One of the great things about playing basketball at UConn is games like today, in front of a full house of passionate UConn WBB fans sharing the love!!!

 

[Kaizen]

This is amazing, 50% FG. Paige is just great.

 

[Bigpetunia]

The only suspense today was whether or not olddude could engineer a successful return to form! Case closed…well, for now, anyway!!

 

[veryolddog]

I am totally satisfied with this victory. I really enjoy the substitutions and contributions of all of the players. The only negative is that I would have like to have seen a 50 point margin of victory.

 

[pvdoggy]

The scary part is that Uconn is not really playing that well yet as Fudd said the other day. Caroline's shot has been really off since she came back from her head injury and Azzi's shot is also pretty off today. Can't wait to see them rolling on all cylinders.

 

[Scoe]

If we defend like this we’ll be very hard to beat. I predict that Bueckerd starts in the BE finals, or do roll with her off the bench the rest of the season.

 

[pvdoggy]

and if Edwards can continue to play like today, Uconn will be hard to beat.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

There certainly was a lot to like in this game. What I liked and hope it continues is they didn't throw a drowsy stinker quarter into the game.

 

[JordyG]

Good game. UConn still struggles in the quarter court against zones and collapsing M2M. Liv really struggled against these two defenses. She also failed to attempt a single outside shot. For the second time Azzi shot poorly against GT when her parent(s) are in attendance. She'll fix that. But her defense, and UConn's as a whole was solid, Paige looked like the old Paige. Geno tried a lot of combinations trying to get them all acquainted with each other. CD misses long, sometime short, on a lot of her shots. Short means she's aiming, long means her shooting form and hence her shot is a little too flat. She sometimes hurries her shot, even on layups. She'll fix it. I was really happy to see AE continue to develop her mid range game. She shoots FT's well, so when she flashes to the foul line, or stands inside the arc, she could potentially become very
dangerous. On to the next victim.

 

[Surly1]

She’s back! Was there ever a doubt? After her first two games where she was hesitant offensively, Paige looked in mid season form, particularly shooting the ball. I don’t think any of her 4 three’s touched the rim. Far from her aesthetically pleasing play, having her getting into form will make UConn that more formidable.

It will be interesting to see UConn’s next two games against more offensively talented teams - how much of their improved team defense makes a difference. The other is to see just how far UConn has improved relative to teams they have played with their full complement of players.

It doesn’t matter where UConn is seeded. Clearly, they are one of the top 5 teams in the nation right now. If the scheduling committee refuses to recognize this, they are doing a disservice to the fans. If they truly cared about what is best, UConn will be in Bridgeport and no less than a 2 seed.

 

[Charliebball]

Good game. UConn still struggles in the quarter court against zones and collapsing M2M. Liv really struggled against these two defenses. She also failed to attempt a single outside shot. For the second time Azzi shot poorly against GT when her parent(s) are in attendance. She'll fix that. But her defense, and UConn's as a whole was solid, Paige looked like the old Paige. Geno tried a lot of combinations trying to get them all acquainted with each other. CD misses long, sometime short, on a lot of her shots. Short means she's aiming, long means her shooting form and hence her shot is a little too flat. She sometimes hurries her shot, even on layups. She'll fix it. I was really happy to see AE continue to develop her mid range game. She shoots FT's well, so when she flashes to the foul line, or stands inside the arc, she could potentially become very
dangerous. On to the next victim.

apparently Ms Fudd doesn't want to upset her mother too much during these Georgetown games.......luckily no more of those this season.....

 

[ClifSpliffy]

doubt? injury? concern?
now all filed in the trash can.
hey wbb, u see that light in the distance?
it's our freight train, loaded with gold coming down the mountain.
on iced rails,
covered in grease,
and headed for u.

be afraid, be very, very, afraid.

 

[Iluvacc2]

I'm absolutely amazed whenever Azzi shoots an airball

Edwards is starting to look like her old self. Strong, physical, mobile, and even knocking down jump shots.

Paige is not 100% yet, but any version of her on the court makes Uconn a legit national title threat regardless of how they've looked earlier this season.

 

[my2cents]

"Not playing well" is a nothing but hyperbole. When you are up 43-9 at halftime, there is a natural tendency to take your foot off the gas.
Also, Geno wanted to get the bigs involved inside , which when we force, causes most of our turnovers.
Moving forward , opposing coaches may think twice about zoning us.

 

[Bigpetunia]

One of the things that most impresses me about the current team is the depth they have developed in the paint, especially insofar as Dorka’s contributions are concerned. I dunno if one is allowed to say this with respect to the ladies’ game, but that kid works her butt off on every possession, and has become a rebound machine. This is a squad rapidly becoming nastier!!

 

[RedStickHusky]

40% on 30 threes is pretty good shooting.

 

[ME Husky Fan]

Good game. UConn still struggles in the quarter court against zones and collapsing M2M. Liv really struggled against these two defenses. She also failed to attempt a single outside shot. For the second time Azzi shot poorly against GT when her parent(s) are in attendance. She'll fix that. But her defense, and UConn's as a whole was solid, Paige looked like the old Paige. Geno tried a lot of combinations trying to get them all acquainted with each other. CD misses long, sometime short, on a lot of her shots. Short means she's aiming, long means her shooting form and hence her shot is a little too flat. She sometimes hurries her shot, even on layups. She'll fix it. I was really happy to see AE continue to develop her mid range game. She shoots FT's well, so when she flashes to the foul line, or stands inside the arc, she could potentially become very
dangerous. On to the next victim.

Agree on the Liv assessment. And these are the teams where someone of her supposed caliber and experience should shine. She'll need to come with a better game against the teams whose bigs are faster, more mobile and stronger.

 

[mbr33ct]

For a second I thought I saw a "lob pass" and a basket from Nika to Olivia, something new in the play book?

By the way Harry Peretta, at half time, mentioned South Car and Stanford as two of three teams that can win the whole thing. I didn't catch the "third team" that Harry believes can win...anyone know?

 

[gold2323]

Edwards was tired from off season Olympic training….too much basketball sometimes gets you stagnant….I believe she has overcome that….got her second wind and is energized as she waslast year.

 

[JordyG]

Agree on the Liv assessment. And these are the teams where someone of her supposed caliber and experience should shine. She'll need to come with a better game against the teams whose bigs are faster, more mobile and stronger.

But generally those bigger and better teams, SCar, Stanford, etc. don't and won't play zone against UConn. They'll play straight up. Now perhaps a collapsing M2M, but not a zone. Here is where good outside shooting, good ball reversal, good ball screens, and timely passing to the post comes in.

 

[JoePgh]

If my memory is correct, it has been a number of games since Aaliyah either: (a) missed a layup; (b) had a rebound stolen out of her hands; (c) failed to get multiple contested offensive rebounds; or (d) failed to make at least one midrange jump shot. I am starting to see a glimmer of Asjha Jones materializing in the UConn front court.

I also see Dorka right where she is supposed to be on nearly every possession on both offense and defense. That was certainly not the case at the beginning of the year, including against South Carolina in the Bahamas. It would be a shame if she leaves just when she has mastered the system.

 

[Vowelguy]

Last 3 games were against awful teams.
Next 2 will be more informative.