Griner's minutes

[MilfordHusky]

Kim played her (and Sims) 38 minutes in a 19-point win over a ranked Ok. State team. Griner had 30 points. Is Kim trying to help Britney chase Jackie Stiles' scoring record? Is she risking injury? Thoughts?

 

[UConnCat]

Texas Tech coach Kristy Curry said she thinks Griner is trying to break the NCAA scoring record. That was after Griner played 37 minutes and scored 40 in a 30-point win. Assuming Baylor makes it to the finals of the Big 12 Tournament and the NCAAs -- a very safe assumption -- Griner would need to average about 30 points to break Stiles' record. If Griner is playing 37 minutes in upcoming games against the bottom of the B12 (Texas, KSU and TCU), then it'll be safe to assume she's going after the record.

 

[Vowelguy]

You could say the same about UConn.
Hartley and Faris played 38 minutes in a 26 pt win.
KML played 35 mins in a 30 pt win.

 

[doggydaddy]

Are there consecutive games where UConn played those two players 37+ minutes? And any games where they played those kind of minutes in the same game against teams outside the top 4?

The point is the last two most recent games for Baylor where to some it appeared that Mulkey left them in to get scoring for Griner. Two games ago, there was a time out under 4 minutes with a very large lead and she left them in. Right after the timeout, Griner dunked and then Mulky pulled her. It's not unreasonable to ask about that and the extended minutes in the very next game. The point that Milford and Cat are asking simply if Mulkey is trying to get Griner the scoring record.

The examples used don't pass the smell test. The first one was a game against the #1 team in the country. It was very early in the season. The second game was against the 4th ranked team that was very close for the first 22 minutes and it was only one player with extended minutes and it was 35 minutes. I believe those 2-3 minutes less make a big difference when looking at this topic.

As Cat said, if the next few games Griner still gets large minutes, it could show that Mulkey is trying to get Griner the record. Or she is getting them used to large minutes because of her weak bench and the fact that that Griner and Sims will need to play close to 40 minutes against UConn?

 

[connboy77]

You could say the same about UConn.
Hartley and Faris played 38 minutes in a 26 pt win.
KML played 35 mins in a 30 pt win.

What record are they going after?

 

[rbny1]

It could be that Kim wants Griner and Sims to be conditioned to play the full game against UConn or against an opponent in the Final Four. Doing so, if that's the case, is smart preparation.

 

[doggydaddy]

It could be that Kim wants Griner and Sims to be conditioned to play the full game against UConn or against an opponent in the Final Four. Doing so, if that's the case, is smart preparation.

Or, they could be exhausted from playing 35+ minutes a game for the rest of the season.

 

[rbny1]

Or, they could be exhausted from playing 35+ minutes a game for the rest of the season.

Hey DD, they're young kids who are in good shape and resilient. They ought to be able to play 35+ minutes a game. They're not old guys, like you and me.

 

[doggydaddy]

Hey DD, they're young kids who are in good shape and resilient. They ought to be able to play 35+ minutes a game. They're not old guys, like you and me.

I can list plenty of reasons you should limit minutes to the 25-30 range.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Conditioning is possible, but practice should take care of that. Given the margin, it was not prepping them for close, intense games. Players do get worn down from playing lots of minutes. But my biggest concern would be exposure to injury. If Griner gets the scoring record but leaves with only 1 title due to an injury, her legacy will be diminished. Is Kim risking injury unnecessarily?

 

[MilfordHusky]

How many extra minutes did Maya play to get to 3,036? Any?

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

Conditioning is possible, but practice should take care of that. Given the margin, it was not prepping them for close, intense games. Players do get worn down from playing lots of minutes. But my biggest concern would be exposure to injury. If Griner gets the scoring record but leaves with only 1 title due to an injury, her legacy will be diminished. Is Kim risking injury unnecessarily?

That's the rub, as an old prof once said.

It isn't unheard of to leave players in to get records (or sometimes in baseball, not to put them in for that matter). But the decision has both an upside / downside - and for Baylor its huge. Because if something were to happen to Griner or Sims, even they know they would be toast.

I ultimately think it is up to the team / players / coaches (whatever appropriate to the sport / level). I don't necessarily have a problem with it, as I don't have any sensiblity that losing by 40 is worse than losing by 30 (or 20); always thought that was a fan assumption. And opposing coaches know what's up. So they ought to realize it isn't to beat them down, specifically. If the opposing team really had a big enough problem with it, stop guarding her, let her score at will, and make it a farce.

 

[Vowelguy]

Conditioning is possible, but practice should take care of that. Given the margin, it was not prepping them for close, intense games. Players do get worn down from playing lots of minutes. But my biggest concern would be exposure to injury. If Griner gets the scoring record but leaves with only 1 title due to an injury, her legacy will be diminished. Is Kim risking injury unnecessarily?

Texas Tech is a team that has given Baylor fits in recent years (eg, one of their 3 losses in 2011, even tho TT was not that good). And Okla St has been hot and cold this season. Neither game were walkovers, and yet after 2 games we're supposed to conclude that Griner's health is being risked?
Several folks have criticized Geno for playing his starters after a game is won; is this really a can of worms we want opened?

 

[doggydaddy]

Texas Tech is a team that has given Baylor fits in recent years (eg, one of their 3 losses in 2011, even tho TT was not that good). And Okla St has been hot and cold this season. Neither game were walkovers, and yet after 2 games we're supposed to conclude that Griner's health is being risked?
Several folks have criticized Geno for playing his starters after a game is won; is this really a can of worms we want opened?

By all means, feel free to let what other people post about UConn control what you say about other teams.

 

[UConnCat]

Texas Tech is a team that has given Baylor fits in recent years (eg, one of their 3 losses in 2011, even tho TT was not that good). And Okla St has been hot and cold this season. Neither game were walkovers, and yet after 2 games we're supposed to conclude that Griner's health is being risked?
Several folks have criticized Geno for playing his starters after a game is won; is this really a can of worms we want opened?

I don't understand the risk of injury concern at all. Is playing 5-10 extra minutes per game really going to heighten Griner's risk of injury? I just don't see it. I also don't care. I want Griner to remain healthy but her playing time is Mulkey's call and whatever injury risk it poses is of little concern to me. We learned with Banks yesterday that injuries can occur at any time, including after one minute of playing time.

The more interesting topic is whether Griner is playing a lot of minutes in lopsided wins in order to challenge Stiles' scoring record. We don't know if that is what's going on but we'll know soon enough because Griner needs 500+ points to get there. If it becomes an issue, that to me is worth discussing.

 

[Vowelguy]

The more interesting topic is whether Griner is playing a lot of minutes in lopsided wins in order to challenge Stiles' scoring record. We don't know if that is what's going on but we'll know soon enough because Griner needs 500+ points to get there. If it becomes an issue, that to me is worth discussing.

In baylor's 10 largest wins, Griner has played 18-16-20-22-26-20-32-30-31-37, for an avg of 25.2.

 

[UConnCat]

In baylor's 10 largest wins, Griner has played 18-16-20-22-26-20-32-30-31-37, for an avg of 25.2.

You obviously posted the minutes for a reason. What do they mean to you?

 

[Vowelguy]

You obviously posted the minutes for a reason. What do they mean to you?

No, that's the problem with discussions in this country - it must be assumed that every statement has an angle, as opposed to just a statement of fact. You raised the question "if Griner is playing a lot in blowouts." So I was curious just how much she was playing in those games.

 

[UConnCat]

No, that's the problem with discussions in this country - it must be assumed that every statement has an angle, as opposed to just a statement of fact. You raised the question "if Griner is playing a lot in blowouts." So I was curious just how much she was playing in those games.

Wow. An angle? No. I simply asked if you thought the stats had meaning like showing a trend in recent games, or conference vs non-conference opponents, etc. Sorry. I tend to look for meaning when stats are presented. Next time I'll just treat them as informational only.

 

[doggydaddy]

You obviously posted the minutes for a reason. What do they mean to you?

You didn't ask me, but I think VowelGuy has me on ignore again so I'll answer anyways.

They mean to me that Mulkey was smartly limiting her minutes in those games and that it was out of character for her the last 2 games in playing Griner and Sims so many minutes in games that were clearly in hand.

 

[RegisteredUconn]

No, that's the problem with discussions in this country - it must be assumed that every statement has an angle, as opposed to just a statement of fact. You raised the question "if Griner is playing a lot in blowouts." So I was curious just how much she was playing in those games.

The data show a strong, positive correlation between minutes played and game sequence. For those games in the sample, Griner's playing time increased by an average of 2.5 minutes per game as the season has progressed.

 

[meganmatthews]

I don't understand the risk of injury concern at all. Is playing 5-10 extra minutes per game really going to heighten Griner's risk of injury? I just don't see it. I also don't care. I want Griner to remain healthy but her playing time is Mulkey's call and whatever injury risk it poses is of little concern to me. We learned with Banks yesterday that injuries can occur at any time, including after one minute of playing time.

The more interesting topic is whether Griner is playing a lot of minutes in lopsided wins in order to challenge Stiles' scoring record. We don't know if that is what's going on but we'll know soon enough because Griner needs 500+ points to get there. If it becomes an issue, that to me is worth discussing.

You're probably right. But many injuries occur when a player's body is fatigued. Even if fatigue has nothing to do with an injury, as with Banks, that's the first thing everyone will say if it happens. Let's pray it doesn't.