Great game tonight

[uconnell]

I don't really think that at this point - but things can change. After all there was a time when nobody couldn't envision ND beating us with any regularity but they did for a short while. I'm was just offering the thought in the sense of it testing the civility that exists between the fan bases right now.

You haven't read Cocky Talk yet.

 

[CL82]

I really don't know how intense a rivalry can be with a distance of 800 miles. We're always going to care more about beating Clemson, Georgia, Tennessee and Kentucky in every sport because we live amongst their fans. The internet does soften the distance quite a bit, though. I hope we do play you guys every year.

If you guys turn out to be as good as I think you will be, you'll see. A game a year plus a big stakes game (final four or NC) can make for a pretty intense relationship, particularly when one team views the other as reason they aren't hoisting a NC trophy.

 

[DobbsRover2]

What makes you think they will start to beat us that often?

When Stewie and MoJeff leave -- and I think Tuck will leave-- we'll have that year with just Chong as a senior. We're susceptible. After that year- we could still win in Chong's sr year- we're going to pretty formidable with experience and maybe some other super recruits as well. You really think USC is going to be like ND with what we have coming?

You may think it, whatever, but Tuck lists herself as an RS soph, so that's still the official word to go on. If we're guessing about these things, we can't say for sure that soph Natalie Butler will stay for her fourth year of eligibility. TLaw is also in that class, so with Chong altogether 4 sophs at this point.

 

[CL82]

You may think it, whatever, but Tuck lists herself as an RS soph, so that's still the official word to go on. If we're guessing about these things, we can't say for sure that soph Natalie Butler will stay for her fourth year of eligibility. TLaw is also in that class, so with Chong altogether 4 sophs at this point.

I suspect Butler is going to have a big impact here. She was good at GT but will have spent a year with our conditioning staff and learning our system. That plus the normal Frosh to Soph growth could make her a special player. I'm really looking forward to seeing her as a Husky.

 

[geneticrex]

Congratulations; you guys deserve the number one ranking. I hope to see you in Tampa. If not, we are playing in Columbia next season.

SC is a very good team. Not quite "UConn" good yet, but there is still plenty of basketball to be played.

Can SC, or anyone else topple the Beast From The Northeast when the snow begins to melt and the only No.1 ranking that matters is bestowed??? Who knows??? That's why they play the games.

Just ask Boris Mikhailov.

 

[Aluminny69]

I really don't know how intense a rivalry can be with a distance of 800 miles. We're always going to care more about beating Clemson, Georgia, Tennessee and Kentucky in every sport because we live amongst their fans. The internet does soften the distance quite a bit, though. I hope we do play you guys every year.

I wish we played SC twice a year, like we used to do with Tenn. I thought it was a great game. Now, we have no suspense until the Final Four. You have one or two games with Tenn to look forward to. Color me jealous.

 

[j66kicker]

SC is a very good team. Not quite "UConn" good yet, but there is still plenty of basketball to be played.

Can SC, or anyone else topple the Beast From The Northeast when the snow begins to melt and the only No.1 ranking that matters is bestowed??? Who knows??? That's why they play the games.

Just ask Boris Mikhailov.

1980 Olympic Silver Medalist

 

[geneticrex]

1980 Olympic Silver Medalist

Dat's da guy.

 

[DobbsRover2]

I wish we played SC twice a year, like we used to do with Tenn. I thought it was a great game. Now, we have no suspense until the Final Four. You have one or two games with Tenn to look forward to. Color me jealous.

Not really that bad a situation. Sagarin has UConn's sched still 8 places ahead of USCar at this point, and Massey has the UConn SOS at #1 and projected to finish #2 behind current #2 ND and still well ahead of USCar.

We can get all crabby about UConn's supposedly weak schedule, but so they beat the best of the "mighty" SEC by 25, which is not a helluva lot less than the 34 that the #5 AAC team Temple lost to UConn by twice. So you're telling me that beating the #SEC team Vols by likely 30+ would be so much more of a struggle for the Huskies?

 

[luckyhusky7]

"They think about who should shoot the ball, who should have the ball in their hands," Staley said of a team that scored 37 more points than her average opponent. "And they're patient enough to wait for it. And if you lose patience, they're going to score easily. That's what they did to us. Obviously, we've got some things to work on. But from an efficiency standpoint, from finding the right person to shoot the ball, it makes basketball a beautiful thing to see."

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

I wish we played SC twice a year, like we used to do with Tenn. I thought it was a great game. Now, we have no suspense until the Final Four. You have one or two games with Tenn to look forward to. Color me jealous.

I wouldn't have a problem with it, but that would be up to Dawn and Geno.

 

[triaddukefan]

IMHO for South Carolina to get to the F4 and the Championship game, their offense needs to improve. There are teams out there that have good outside shooting that can take them down if they're not careful. They average 78 points a game, but a lot of that is because of the weak OOC schedule they had where they blew out their opponents. They only scored 51 points against Duke and 58 against Georgia. Got to score more points against the Better teams.

Its gonna be interesting to see which region they get sent to, and who are the 2,3, and 4 seeds paired with them. A FSU/SouthCarolina matchup would be interesting

 

[RegisteredUconn]

I agree, but I can't help but wonder if the dynamic will change considerably if & when (Probably when) they start beating us like Notre Dame did

Wasn't it basically just two seasons where ND recorded that gaudy won-loss record because the teams were playing four times a season? It was no changing-of-the-guard though. Of course if ND starts beating us like a "Tennessee rented mule" again, I'll look like I have all the wisdom of that marketing genius who said "New Coke it is!"

 

[Icebear]

Yes.

 

[Bgillon]

I suspect Butler is going to have a big impact here. She was good at GT but will have spent a year with our conditioning staff and learning our system. That plus the normal Frosh to Soph growth could make her a special player. I'm really looking forward to seeing her as a Husky.

When you add Butler to next year's incoming class, UCONN will have 4 very , very good players added to our roster. The 2015/2016 team could be very special (also!). What a great time to be a Husky fan. I know we talk about how great Geno/CD are but it bears repeating. They have an unbelievable ability to recruit and prepare young women to be an outstanding team. In reading some of the quotes in the press about the SC game, what struck me was the number of times spacing, passing, and stamina were mentioned as UCONN's assets.

 

[DobbsRover2]

Wasn't it basically just two seasons where ND recorded that gaudy won-loss record because the teams were playing four times a season? It was no changing-of-the-guard though. Of course if ND starts beating us like a "Tennessee rented mule" again, I'll look like I have all the wisdom of that marketing genius who said "New Coke it is!"

Pretty much, but the FF game in 2010-11 started it all, so it certainly felt like three years, though of course UConn flipped the payback in 2012-13. For 5 years the series is at 7-7 and 2-2 in FF play, so to find the gaudy you have to break off certain parts of a schedule. Better to say UConn and ND are even over the last half decade, but the Huskies have two more NCs out of it and that the Irish got the honor of being runners-up a lot.

 

[EricLA]

I agree, but I can't help but wonder if the dynamic will change considerably if & when (Probably when) they start beating us like Notre Dame did

What makes you think it's just a matter of "when"? This year was probably their best chance to beat UCONN, followed closely by next year. After that not so much.

SC's seniors are Welch, Ibiam and Gaines. The first 2 are starters, but I think Coates is better than Ibiam. Problem is for the class of 2015, SC got literally no one even in the top 100. Their only recruit is a 3-star guard who IMHO will never likely see a meaningful minute of PT. Compare that to UCONN's monster class of KLS, Collier and Boykin.

For 2016, fully half of the top 20 kids have already verbaled and UCONN has the heir apparent to Jefferson on board in Dangerfield, and a solid post player in Irwin. From what I understand, SC is not being seriously considered by ANY of the top 20 kids. I'm not sure how they are faring with the rest of the top 100 but if you don't land a few top kids every year, you will simply fall further and further behind. Next year my guess would be they start Sessions, Mitchell, Dozier, Wilson and Coates with Cuevas, White and Roy off the bench. Will that team be more likely to beat a UCONN team that starts (potentially) Jefferson, Nurse, KLS, Tuck and Stewie with Williams, Chong, Butler, Collier, and Boykin off the bench (and Ekmark)? Note that the 5th starter besides KLS could easily be Willliams, Chong, Butler or Collier...

I just don't see it. SC's "problem" is that they are built to win it all this year or next year, and that means they have to get past a team that will have Stewie and MoJeff on it as juniors and seniors. Just no way do I see that happening. The following year it gets worse for them as they graduate Mitchell, Sessions and Roy which leaves them with a core of Cuevas, Coates, Wilson and White. Who's left? Farmer, Davis, Cliney, Duckett, and the kid from 2015 (forget her name). You think that has a shot at Chong, Nurse, Tuck, KLS, and Butler with Collier, Williams, Boykin, Dangerfield, Ekmark, and Irwin off the bench?

I just don't see it. With the possible exception of ND, NO ONE is recruiting like UCONN, and it's not even close.

 

[geneticrex]

Wasn't it basically just two seasons where ND recorded that gaudy won-loss record because the teams were playing four times a season? It was no changing-of-the-guard though. Of course if ND starts beating us like a "Tennessee rented mule" again, I'll look like I have all the wisdom of that marketing genius who said "New Coke it is!"

Yes and it changed back to UConn drubbings as soon as the Flopping Irish ceased to benefit from a level of officiating that would have made Soviet Olympic judges blush.

In almost every one of those miraculous last second and/or overtime victories pulled off by the Flirish, the diva led academy award winners got call after mysterious call, forcing me to fire my socks at my TV screen. It got to the point where I had to load up on extra pairs at the half.

 

[meyers7]

Wasn't it basically just two seasons where ND recorded that gaudy won-loss record because the teams were playing four times a season? It was no changing-of-the-guard though. Of course if ND starts beating us like a "Tennessee rented mule" again, I'll look like I have all the wisdom of that marketing genius who said "New Coke it is!"

Well considering how well Coke did when they "re-introduced" Classic Coke, maybe there was some wisdom in there.

 

[Buzzyboy]

I agree, but I can't help but wonder if the dynamic will change considerably if & when (Probably when) they start beating us like Notre Dame did

If you're talking about beating us like Notre Dame did, then you are referring to some bad officiating, some uncharacteristic sloppy UConn play at the end of some of those games and pure luck, like McBride's game tying three point shot that hit the rim, bounced straight up and came down to send the game into overtime. We also missed UNCONTESTED free throws (a few one and ones) that we never miss. I do think Skylar and her buddies committed so many offensive fouls that were called blocking fouls and not only put points on the board but also took some of our BIGS out of the game, either literally or figuratively. Hopefully the refs are no longer swayed by that type of play or the flops that Notre Dame also brought into women's basketball.

 

[Buzzyboy]

Yes and it changed back to UConn drubbings as soon as the Flopping Irish ceased to benefit from a level of officiating that would have made Soviet Olympic judges blush.

In almost every one of those miraculous last second and/or overtime victories pulled off by the Flirish, the diva led academy award winners got call after mysterious call, forcing me to fire my socks at my TV screen. It got to the point where I had to load up on extra pairs at the half.

I just posted a reply that I find is very much like yours above. I hadn't read yours before my submission but we definitely touch on the same themes. I also mentioned that in one game in particular, UConn's usually reliable free throw shooting went down the toilet to keep Notre Dame in the game until their flopping finally left UConn with only a skeleton crew of players on the court who were frightened to be within ten feet of a Notre Dame player when Notre Dame had the ball or likely get called for a blocking foul.

 

[Blueballer]

If you're talking about beating us like Notre Dame did, then you are referring to some bad officiating, some uncharacteristic sloppy UConn play at the end of some of those games and pure luck, like McBride's game tying three point shot that hit the rim, bounced straight up and came down to send the game into overtime. We also missed UNCONTESTED free throws (a few one and ones) that we never miss. I do think Skylar and her buddies committed so many offensive fouls that were called blocking fouls and not only put points on the board but also took some of our BIGS out of the game, either literally or figuratively. Hopefully the refs are no longer swayed by that type of play or the flops that Notre Dame also brought into women's basketball.

IMHO I thinks it's better if we don't go there. I'm not saying I don't agree with you about officiating missing the "Flopping" techniques, but the losses are in the record book and we have to live with them. To keep re-hashing that puts us in the same light as some other boards who blame the refs after every loss. It's one thing to have a "heat of the moment" reaction in a game thread and another to keep perpetuating the topic months or years down the road. For the record I'm not "talking about beating us like Notre Dame did", I was just posing the question of them simply winning some games and the effect it would have on the friendly relations with SC Boneyard visitors.

 

[RegisteredUconn]

Well considering how well Coke did when they "re-introduced" Classic Coke, maybe there was some wisdom in there.

Sounds like you're intimating that Geno has been the puppet master to Muffet's marionette. Pure genius that Geno as just when it seemed the UConn brand was suffering "excellence fatigue" he teases folks with a taste of an inferior product and voila! UConn is back in the driver's seat and more appreciated that ever. Somebody ought to patent that.

 

[JFC613]

Congratulations; you guys deserve the number one ranking. I hope to see you in Tampa. If not, we are playing in Columbia next season.

Really classy of you to acknowledge the win. It was a classic game and I can see you guys building a fantastic program. Wilson is going to be a powerhouse and I hope Dawn begins to start her soon. Best of luck to you guys.....BEAT UT!

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

Really classy of you to acknowledge the win. It was a classic game and I can see you guys building a fantastic program. Wilson is going to be a powerhouse and I hope Dawn begins to start her soon. Best of luck to you guys.....BEAT UT!

They won't beat us in Columbia. My job is to get in the heads of their coaches and players and I do a good job of it.