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Heckel to UConn (merged threads)

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This has me thinking -- last fall, I assumed Aubrey would be essential to the latest campaign, that her return sometime in January would bring a whole new energy to the team, provide vital support to the Big Three, and power them all into the tournament. Well, it didn't turn out that way. Aubrey's return was a footnote because her recovery was incomplete. But the team rolled on as if it barely mattered. What really mattered in the end and what really pushed the Big Three over the top was, of all things, the Little Three.

Now looking forward to next fall, we still have some injuries to recover from in Morgan and Ayanna, and maybe even a little for Carol. But Geno appears to have decided to carry forward the theme of having a Big Three supported by a Little Three. The roster is rich with ball handlers. They will once again be very difficult to press. And now the roster is also rich with rebounders and post scorers, rather more than this past season. It won't matter much if all the recoveries don't go according to schedule, given how deep this roster is.

We've all seen how Geno can win with a roster not nearly as deep as this. This season, he won a ring playing an 8-deep rotation. He overcame an inefficient front line with awesome defense all over the floor and inspired play from the guards and Sarah. The defense won't lose a step and may even be fiercer this time around, and the offense may have even more prongs on its pitchfork -- not just three players averaging ~60 pts/game in the tournament. This time around, It could well be 4 players averaging ~70 pts/game. Or some other distribution might emerge that is impossible to foresee now.
 
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Really liked K9 when she played in HS and mentioned that her favorite player was Sue Bird and was disappointed, she chose to go to USC and not to UConn. All is good now! UConn is 3 deep in every position and Geno will be able to mix and match every type of combination. I see this team as pressing the opponents all game long. If you look at the additions to this team, practically all of them seem to be good defensive players and athletes.
Practice will be much harder than most of the games they'll play.
Can't wait for the season to start!
 
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yhun89 said:
Big get. Another ball handler and another promising prospect to bloom under Geno. After losing Chen and Paige, we ABSOLUTELY needed to pick up another ball handler.
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I disagree about needing to pick up another ball handler. I think we would have been fine but as I believe Kate Harpring is not coming, I can see why Geno brought her in. Needed or not, she is a Husky now and I’m fully on board. This roster is just unbelievable! Now the only thing darkening my basketball horizon is having to wait five long boring months til practice starts! :(
 
I posted this on another thread but it applies here also!

The only thing bothering me about Kayleigh Heckel joining UConn was how KK and Ashlynn and Morgan and Allie were going to want a Sophomore portal transfer signing on , but after reading Kayleigh's Birthday greeting to KK a couple of days ago I know those players will welcome her with open arms so let's start rolling to #13!
 
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Imagine an AAU roster of 15 where everyone MUST play, necessitating three five-woman rotations.
C- SerahJana,Gandy
PF- Sarah, Ice,Ayanna
SF-Carol,Blanca,Morgan
SG-Azzi,Ash,Allie
PG-KK,Kayleigh,Kellis

There is Zero chance Geno will pigeonhole the players in this way, but it does illustrate just how incredibly deep this roster really is. 25-26 may require Geno’s greatest coaching job, because keeping everyone satisfied will be an enormous challenge. Withstanding injuries, however, may end up being the least of his problems
 
SCNCHuskie said:
According to Just Women’s Sports (JWS) and ESPN!
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Wow - great to hear & took a while.

I actually went over to ESPN to check as there have been so many false starts - thanks for being right on & early here.

While the Heckel & Williams news is great of its own merit - I hope the broader implication is this cements Geno/CD in for the foreseeable future. Obviously contingent upon their own circumstances & health needs, but as a fan - I want this ride to continue.

Congrats to all the UConn folks who contributed to this and continue to make the program something I/we enjoy so much.

In my opinion, there is no better team to watch in sports - and I like lots of teams/sports.

Welcome transfers.
 
Welcome Kayleigh, now I don't have to check my computer 4 times a day looking for your decision. It should be interesting when UConn travels to USC this coming year. We will see what kind of fans they are way over on the left coast. Pumped for next year, no way we won't win again.
 
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She is a very good addition. Not a great talent but a very good one. She appears to be smart, plays hard and is a K9 on defence. I think the defence is the big selling point for GA.

I think she has the potential to help even more than Chen did last year. No let up or drop off when she comes into the game.

If she makes a sophomore jump, well...then we stole one....
 
jazz said:
She is a very good addition. Not a great talent but a very good one. She appears to be smart, plays hard and is a K9 on defence. I think the defence is the big selling point for GA.

I think she has the potential to help even more than Chen did last year. No let up or drop off when she comes into the game..
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I’m having trouble reconciling these two statements. Anyone on this roster who can enter the game with no drop off is almost by definition a great talent. And I completely agree with second one — this is exactly my expectation too.
 
yhun89 said:
Skim Milkey has been saying Heckel to UConn is a possibility though since 2 weeks ago, and they’re almost always right. Perhaps they're the "source" WER is using.
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Skim is pretty much spot on. He/she said right after Heckel hit the portal
 
Cuango said:
I disagree about needing to pick up another ball handler. I think we would have been fine but as I believe Kate Harpring is not coming, I can see why Geno brought her in. Needed or not, she is a Husky now and I’m fully on board. This roster is just unbelievable! Now the only thing darkening my basketball horizon is having to wait five long boring months til practice starts! :(
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You can never have “too many” great guards…I’m not giving up on Kate Harpring joining UConn Nation.
 
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oldude said:
You are correct. But all 15 were not scholarship players.
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You got me curious so I found the 95-96 roster and did a deep dive into scholarship status of the players. From what I could find in articles on the individual players, all had scholarships and there were no walk-ons. So, I am still curious. Whom did I miss?
 
I don't know a "heck" of a lot about Kayleigh's game, but I am told by folks whose knowledge exceeds mine that she is regarded to be a particularly strong defender, always a good thing. Can anyone edify me?
 
So the suspense of over. K-9 is a Husky.

Now the fun really begins. Geno is going to have a field day putting this team together. If people thought he out coached the competition on the way to #12, I think it's safe to say "you ain't seen nothin' yet."
 
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oldude said:
I have two words for you - “Kaitlyn Chen.”
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I don’t see a comparison. Kaitlyn Chen played three years at Princeton and was a proven performer. To be blunt, there is no way that at least one of Allie, Morgan, Kelis, KK or Ash won’t feel ‘recruited over’, especially because Heckel has 3 years of eligibility. I know, they all have equal opportunity to earn minutes, but this is a lot of competition. Hopefully, I’ll be wrong, but I don’t see this as a net positive.
 
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