How does UConn beat Creighton Tenn and SC
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I’d like to see them play Tenn and SC like they have a chip on their shoulders. Take the lead from the get go instead of playing catch up in big games.
Soundly, soundly and play a great game. Tennessee can beat any team but they would have to be super hot from three and the other team would have to have difficulty with the pressure defense. UConn is not that team. Creighton will be lucky to stay within 50 unless Geno decides to make the conference look better by keeping it close through substitution patterns. South Carolina will be a challenge and will win unless Geno outcoaches Dawn which is possible.
To me UConn has the best players in the country, but I think that is true every year. Can any of these teams put a group on the floor that creates a massive mismatch? I don't think they can but I do think one player on UConn will be exposed early defensively but Geno will adjust.
I just don't see these teams beating UConn if UConn is at full strength. A team will need to be able to create mismatches and to me against UConn that is length. Only a couple teams have the length to be problematic and they are on the west coast.
To me UConn has the best players in the country, but I think that is true every year. Can any of these teams put a group on the floor that creates a massive mismatch? I don't think they can but I do think one player on UConn will be exposed early defensively but Geno will adjust.
I just don't see these teams beating UConn if UConn is at full strength. A team will need to be able to create mismatches and to me against UConn that is length. Only a couple teams have the length to be problematic and they are on the west coast.
Charliebball
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it's quite simple........shoot 40% plus from three, limit turnovers, play great team defense and rebound the ball.....
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I’ve been saying I think the challenge SC poses is to the backcourt. They’re deep and talented. Raven is a Nika-level defender. Milaysia is a Hidalgo-esque scorer. That’s a lot to deal with right there. PaoPao is a serious perimeter threat, though she is not their strongest defender — I think KK can contain her. Bree and Tessa are very sturdy, clever scorers and defenders.
Geno’s backcourt is one of the best in D1. Certainly Paige is as good as they come, and Azzi is an excellent defender and scorer. Kaitlyn needs to sustain her recent offensive outburst for us to be competitive, but I think she can hang with Raven. KK is a first rate defender and can make life miserable for whomever she defends, maybe even Milaysia. Ash is a tremendous ‘utility infielder’ able to fill several needs: defense, rebounding, scoring.
The question has two parts: 1) can we defend them, and 2) can they defend us? I think it will be a close call either way, but i have a feeling SC will win this battle. I just hope they don’t win the next one, if a second game arises this season. Why? Because Aubrey may not be ready in 3 weeks. But she may well be ready in two months. She’s the unaccounted for player in this matchup as she can defend the perimeter and the paint. In that possible second game, Aubrey and Morgan may be enough to shut down Chloe Kitts, leaving Sarah Jana and Ice to deal with Joyce and Sania. And Aubrey may be able to provide valuable assistance to whomever is stuck guarding PaoPao and Milaysia.
I also think SC wins the first game because they specialize in speeding up opponents, and we have been vulnerable to that in our two losses. The second half of the SC game gives me some hope that we are better able to withstand that onslaught. but it is a concern. I particularly, if Ash feels the pressure and rushes her shot, we lose an important scoring outlet. Same with Azzi. If it’s just Paige and Sarah carrying the scoring load, that may not be enough to win. But in a second game, I can hope Ash and Azzi will be ready, and the addition of Aubrey will help a lot too.
Geno’s backcourt is one of the best in D1. Certainly Paige is as good as they come, and Azzi is an excellent defender and scorer. Kaitlyn needs to sustain her recent offensive outburst for us to be competitive, but I think she can hang with Raven. KK is a first rate defender and can make life miserable for whomever she defends, maybe even Milaysia. Ash is a tremendous ‘utility infielder’ able to fill several needs: defense, rebounding, scoring.
The question has two parts: 1) can we defend them, and 2) can they defend us? I think it will be a close call either way, but i have a feeling SC will win this battle. I just hope they don’t win the next one, if a second game arises this season. Why? Because Aubrey may not be ready in 3 weeks. But she may well be ready in two months. She’s the unaccounted for player in this matchup as she can defend the perimeter and the paint. In that possible second game, Aubrey and Morgan may be enough to shut down Chloe Kitts, leaving Sarah Jana and Ice to deal with Joyce and Sania. And Aubrey may be able to provide valuable assistance to whomever is stuck guarding PaoPao and Milaysia.
I also think SC wins the first game because they specialize in speeding up opponents, and we have been vulnerable to that in our two losses. The second half of the SC game gives me some hope that we are better able to withstand that onslaught. but it is a concern. I particularly, if Ash feels the pressure and rushes her shot, we lose an important scoring outlet. Same with Azzi. If it’s just Paige and Sarah carrying the scoring load, that may not be enough to win. But in a second game, I can hope Ash and Azzi will be ready, and the addition of Aubrey will help a lot too.
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These type of games don't get decided by cocky fan talk, HS rankings and on paper "superstars", or gaudy stats piled up against soft competition. To be a superstar you have to play like one in big games. These games get decided by who has the toughest kids that can play hard defense and run their offense and make shots against tough, physical defense under pressure. We'll find out if UConn has those kids.
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At this point, the following is a “win” IMHO vs SC:
1. No one gets injured
2. Score differential is within 6 points
Let’s continue to build momentum and be the most dangerous team come March!
“In a world where you can be anything…be KIND”
1. No one gets injured
2. Score differential is within 6 points
Let’s continue to build momentum and be the most dangerous team come March!
“In a world where you can be anything…be KIND”
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I think ND might have something to say about that
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No but ND has the best starting 5 in the nation along with Citron who plays Paige very well..who on Uconn plays HH well...no one
Bigboote
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Creighton: Play UConn basketball.
Tennessee: 1) Don’t get rattled by the press. Texas had a few oopses early on, then Vic gave them a talking to. I think Texas had about five turnovers the last three quarters. UConn shouldn’t have a problem with 2-3 point guards and 1-2 more ball handlers on the floor. 2) Cover the three-point line. 3) Rebound.
South Carolina: Don’t get into foul trouble.
Tennessee: 1) Don’t get rattled by the press. Texas had a few oopses early on, then Vic gave them a talking to. I think Texas had about five turnovers the last three quarters. UConn shouldn’t have a problem with 2-3 point guards and 1-2 more ball handlers on the floor. 2) Cover the three-point line. 3) Rebound.
South Carolina: Don’t get into foul trouble.
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I think we have "those kids." I'm not sure who you think the softies in our rotation might be. Certainly not Paige Azzi or Sarah. And Kaitlyn looks plenty tough to me. KK Ash and Morgan too. Jana and Ice seem pretty tough to me. I don't know how tough Aubrey will be by the Tennessee game, though if she's going to return to form (which was plenty tough) she has 3 weeks before the SC game. Who's left? Allie and Q. I'll leave you to answer that question.
Comparatively, I'd say Tennessee does not have as many tough kids as UConn does, though Hollingshead, Spearman Spear and Spencer are pretty tough. As for SC, they are as tough as anyone in D1, and we'll have to see if we can match them in toughness, with or without a fully recovered Aubrey.
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1) I don't believe I called anyone soft. I commented on what determines highly competitive games. Handling business under pressure.
2) If that's the case then UConn shouldn't have any problem with them right? Hopefully they'll be up to the challenge but claiming in advance, as the OP did, that nobody can match them is foolish.
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Fair enough.
As it happens, I don't agree that expressing optimism in a fan forum is foolish. It's usually referred to as supporting our team. Still, even if we think it's somehow destructive, I have no interest in calling out foolishness everywhere I see it. I've got better things to do.
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Just endured the SC-LSU game. 40 minutes of street ball, won by SC because they were at home (loud crowd) and made more layups. Only 5 - 3 pointers attempted in the entire game. Any team that can play disciplined basketball could beat either of these teams on any given occasion. LSU was Morrow, Williams and Johnson and SC was Feagin and Edwards. Heads up Huskies, fear not the dragon, because they have no teeth.
MSGRET
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Actually only 5 - 3 point shots made out of 27. SC was 2-13 and LSU was 3-14.
My sentiments exactly. I watched the game and both teams shooting were dismal. Both teams shot in the low 30's and in 3 point shooting, in the high 20's. So Carolina won on the free throw line as LSU made 19 fouls with Aneesa Morrow fouling out With Uconn's superb defense we have as good a chance of winning as we seem to do when we have to. GO HUSKIES!!!!!!
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I think you meant 5 made 3 pointers. The teams attempted 27 3s combined.
I saw the game, too, and what I saw was a stunning defensive effort by SC even though their offense wasn't clicking. They are far from toothless. LSU is a different story. They are not contenders, in my view, and anyone ranked in the top 5 should be a credible contender. Their guard play is weak and undisciplined other than Flau'jae, and Morrow alone is not enough to power their front court. Smith and Wolfenbarger have to be able to do more than they did today.
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1). Like someone already stated, if we are playing UConn basketball, we win. Creighton does not stand a chance.
2). Tennessee. I have watched a lot of Lady Vols basketball this year and with our talent, we can win that game. The key is going to be, finishing at the rim. We break the press and finish and not settle for pull up jumpers, we win that game. The Lady Vol press is not as crisp as Ohio States press was a few years ago. The Lady Vols have shooters but they are inconsistent and that is going to be the key. I believe we win that one.
3). South Carolina is going to be the interesting game. Going to come down to which team has the most confident players. Some teams or players have that self-confidence and step up in these big games and this one is huge. I like to believe that we have confident players. I don't know if Coach Auriemma shares the poem "The Man Who Thinks He Can" with the players or the players know of the poem by Walter Wintle. It could be huge for them going forward or whatever they are using for developing their inner confidence.
2). Tennessee. I have watched a lot of Lady Vols basketball this year and with our talent, we can win that game. The key is going to be, finishing at the rim. We break the press and finish and not settle for pull up jumpers, we win that game. The Lady Vol press is not as crisp as Ohio States press was a few years ago. The Lady Vols have shooters but they are inconsistent and that is going to be the key. I believe we win that one.
3). South Carolina is going to be the interesting game. Going to come down to which team has the most confident players. Some teams or players have that self-confidence and step up in these big games and this one is huge. I like to believe that we have confident players. I don't know if Coach Auriemma shares the poem "The Man Who Thinks He Can" with the players or the players know of the poem by Walter Wintle. It could be huge for them going forward or whatever they are using for developing their inner confidence.
The dragon
did force 17 turnovers and had 11 blocks and forced LSU to shoot 30%.That defense allowed SC to play poorly themself on offense, and still win comfortably.
I do like our chances vs SC, but our youth can't crumble under pressure and we will have to maintain our shooting excellence against a very tight, in your face defense.
LSU actually won the frontcourt battle. There will be some good film there for Geno to look at. Frosh Joyce Edwards was quiet early due foul trouble, but made a difference in 4th qtr.
Can't look ahead though. First Creighton and the Vols.
Everybody hates on LSU.
They are unorthodox and ugly to watch, and just 'turned over' a golden opportunity to upset SC with poor shooting and awful ball handling. SC won't play that poorly on offense again at home.
Still, LSU will most likely enter the tourney at about 29-4 as a #2 seed. There is nobody behind them in the 9-16 seed group to rise up and take their place, as all these teams have been busy losing this week too.
Their front court, with what I thought was a very good game from Smith (7pts 7 reb 50%) actually outplayed SC, and can match up with any of the good teams. If their 1 on 1 stars shoot 50% instead of 25%, they can still beat anyone.
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While it’s definitely not simple to do, that is definitely, the key! Yes, I expect us to win the first two games, though Tennessee is no pushover either! They have yet to lose a game, against quality opponents even, by more than four points! South Carolina, on the other hand, is a big problem!
Obviously, they can be beaten, but it’s going to require a superhuman effort or/and some help from them! Why? Well, obviously they are a very good team but this game is also being played in South Carolina, where Dawn has created an environment where it is virtually impossible to get a win as a visiting team.
LSU today, no slouch themselves, played them about as well as anyone over the past couple of years and lost by ten. LSU outscored them 49 to 48, out rebounded them 51-39 and still lost by ten! How, you may ask? SC shot 26 free throws to 9 for LSU! That came out to an 11 point difference and that was the game.
Not making any claims of impropriety with the refereeing, but it’s very clear that in order to beat SC in Columbia, you’d better bring your lunch! Now hopefully, we can avoid a big free throw difference and at least stay competitive on the boards. If we can do that, I believe we have a good shot at a win! It will come down to whether our girls can have a good shooting day. That’s obviously a tall order but I’m pretty sure they have not faced an offensive team like UConn this season. That will likely decide this game. Our offense vs their defense.
I understand that they have an offense too but I think our defense can at least slow them down. Scoring against them is the key! That is where they absolutely torture opponents! The big question is whether we can handle their defensive pressure and produce points!
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You're probably right about the 2 seed.
But there's something funky about the rebounding numbers reported by ESPN. They show 28 O-boards, but if you count them up, you get 18, and that's not surprising with Morrow in the game and all the missed shots.
What I saw in the second half is that Smith and Wolfenbarger were not able to challenge Feagin or Edwards. The only thing that kept those two from simply dominating on offense was help defense from Morrow and Williams, which led in turn to their foul troubles.
Del Rosario was supposed to anchor this front court before the season. But it seems pretty clear that she's not ready for primetime. And Wolfenbarger revealingly announced over the summer that she wanted to play on the wing. I think LSU's front court is a paper tiger.And don't get me started on Day-Wilson at PG. Kaitlyn and KK would eat her alive.
I think it's pretty clear that Feagin Edwards and Kitts are a solid front court, though they had a poor shooting day today. They are quick and defend really well. Edwards in particular is strong and runs the floor really well.
How will they match up with Sarah Jana and Ice? I think if Dawn plays Feagin and Edwards together, Geno will probably stick to Jana or Ice next to Sarah. But if it's Chloe and either of Joyce or Sania, I think we'll see the small lineup with Sarah and Morgan or Aubrey. Morgan will not be able to hold off Feagin or Edwards together and that would leave Sarah having to play too big. On the other hand, If it's Kitts and one of those two, I think Sarah will make Chloe's life miserable and Jana or Ice will try to limit Sania or Joyce.
In the end, I think this is a solvable problem. We'll give up something to Joyce and Sania, but Sarah will be too much for Kitts. As I've said before, the real problem is in the backcourt, and we may not win that battle. They are too quick for most teams and don't need help to guard the perimeter. And just generally, SC is tough because they're quick. They can play any team straight up with little need for help side defense. This is a formidable advantage. And other than Paopao, all their guards can keep anyone in front of them by themselves. It's really hard to create a shot against them. Certainly not playing one-on-one, which is largely what LSU was doing. We are not any quicker than LSU, so we can only prevail by not relying on breaking down defenders one-on-one. Are we a great enough passing team to get this done? I'm optimistic, but also not super confident.
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I watched it and it was 40 minutes of typical South Carolina/LSU basketball. Two tough teams. Well coached. South Carolina's defense is tough.
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Tonyc
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We had this same problem at Tenn when Pat coached. Geno said something to the effect you need a 10 pt lead with 2 minutes left. If we get the same treatment as LSU theres not much you can do. I still believe we will win this game in spite of the fouls
DennieEddy
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No one else will be injured this season.
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Offensively, SC doesn’t have anyone who can do what Paige, Sarah and Azzi are capable of doing. We are, without a doubt, a better offensive team. The question is whether our Big 3 can perform effectively against SC’s defense. We’ll see…
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I’m not sure this is accurate. Tessa and Milaysia are talented scorers, as is PaoPao. Tessa even played against Paige a few times in high school back in Minnesota and she was a bright talent even then. Joyce and Chloe are also talented and intense players. Bree and Raven may not be scorers at the same level, but they are excellent defenders and rock solid players.
I think our Big Three is slightly better than Dawn’s Fab Five (I just made that name up), but they are five. That’s a lot of talent on a very athletic, quick team. And Dawn believes the same thing as Geno, that offense comes from defense, and they are a great defensive team.
We’ll have a chance to win this game. But it won’t be from exploiting weaknesses. This will be a strength vs strength rock fight. Paige has been in a few of those and knows how to win them. So has Azzi. And though she’s still a bit of a project and somewhat rough around the edges, Jana has been in a few rock fights in her career.
Think about the game against SC 2 years ago. That was exactly this sort of rock fight and Nika almost engineered an improbable victory against an even stronger version of SC with no Paige or Azzi. Or the game 4 years ago, another rock fight and freshman Paige almost single-handedly won that game in overtime. This year’s version promises to be another one, and these are great games even if you don’t win them.
Bald Husky
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Watching the SC/LSU game last night I came to the conclusion of why we just can't beat those teams no matter how much talent we have. Athleticism. The rebounding, speed, pressure on the ball at all times is what SC brings to the table. Their bench is just as athletic, and even though we do have as much talent as far as shooting and ball handling, we are always beaten by rebounding and 50-50 balls. Aubrey is the only player that can match their athleticism, so the progress with her rehab on the floor is critical to having a chance to compete with SC. We can still beat them, but we have to slow them down and not let them run us out of the arena. We need a quick start, as that is how they are beating us if you look at our previous games, so having the right mindset at the beginning will go a long way in determining if we can pull out the upset.
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