Given what she has demonstrated on the offensive end to date (except for 1 game where she made a few nice baseline jumpers) I cringe whenever she gets the ball in her hands.
I thought Patterson gave UConn some pretty good minutes off the bench
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Ayanna's best game before today may have been against Maryland. I think it's situational for her. In high school, she was usually the tallest, strongest kid on the court by a wide margin. At UConn, she's by no means the tallest kid in any game, but she is as strong as anyone she meets.
In games against teams without a lot of really tall kids, I think it's easier for her to see how to use her strength, and the Maryland game was a case of this. They aren't a really tall team, so she wasn't paralyzed by fear of getting blocked (which leads to excessive shot-fakes) and can just go right up with the ball on putbacks.
DePaul is another team like this, and it has the ironic advantage that Ayanna gets matched up against another strong kid, Morrow. I think this is the sort of challenge she thrives on, muscling up against strong opposition. She got a monster block against Morrow (and another against someone else) and tore a few decisive rebounds away from DePaul, and the putback was awesome. This was a glimpse of the player she will become, and is an experience I think she can build on.
In games against teams without a lot of really tall kids, I think it's easier for her to see how to use her strength, and the Maryland game was a case of this. They aren't a really tall team, so she wasn't paralyzed by fear of getting blocked (which leads to excessive shot-fakes) and can just go right up with the ball on putbacks.
DePaul is another team like this, and it has the ironic advantage that Ayanna gets matched up against another strong kid, Morrow. I think this is the sort of challenge she thrives on, muscling up against strong opposition. She got a monster block against Morrow (and another against someone else) and tore a few decisive rebounds away from DePaul, and the putback was awesome. This was a glimpse of the player she will become, and is an experience I think she can build on.
Azzi - part of the bench. If she is healthy she will be starting . Period
She is the NPOY talent that we need right now. Last year Paige did not come off the bench when she was cleared. Let’s make sure we are crystal clear.
Azzi is not CD
I thk tht it's common with some first year players, for some it's a huge jump from high school to the precision and physical banging in D1, and the fear of making a mistake and being sent to the bench (where they aren't used to being) makes them defer to the upper class. I remember yelling at my TV for Tina Charles to be more aggressive, I thk she's getting the idea of whts really expected of her, it took Nika 3 years to learn to stop with the silly fouls, AP will be ok once she knows her role, calms down , and adjust to the flow of the game, the fact tht Geno trusts her b4 DeBerry tells me alot, the pressure of attending and playing for UConn is tough, kinda like going from the Girl Scouts to the Navy Seals training, it's not for the weak.
CL82
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Burpees all afternoon? Is he going to make her eat Taco Bell?
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I don't like comments like this.
In the games she was a DNP, we were STRUGGLING to score. Ayanna is very limited offensively, so in those games, we were essentially playing 4 on 5 on offense. She played in this game because her physicality and athleticism matched up very well with the DePaul front court.
CL82
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BRS24
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One of the other positives of AP's play yesterday is that the coaches now have actual scenarios to show her in the game film, to let her better understand the pros/cons of any particular play. Sometimes you can't "see" it without seeing it.
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If you are implying that Azzi will start the first game back, I beg to differ. But time , hopefully, will tell! Many people are assuming her return will only bring good things, and I hope they are right. But if other players start to hesitate to shoot or start to overly rely on Azzi, that could be a negative. Either way, I just hope we get to see her on the court and how things play out from there.
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Players already hesitate to shoot!
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I don't know but doing burpees after Taco Bell could be explosive!
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I think on a nice play per minutes played basis, Ayanna was outstanding yesterday. And that put back was exhilarating!
YKCornelius
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In that case, let's make sure we are crystal clear about the facts as well. Last year when Paige was cleared to return, she did indeed come off the bench in her first game back (St John's at the XL). Given the fact that Azzi came off the bench in each of her first two games back from injury this year, the precedent has clearly been sent by Geno and staff to bring Azzi off the bench the first game.
Agree I think it’s the best she has looked all season.
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It might be nice to give both Dorka and Edwards a substantial rest against Xavier. Same for Nikka.
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While at times she still looks lost on offense and seems to focus more on getting out of the way than adding value. On defense, where she has been a fouling machine, this was one of the first times where the game slowed down for her and she realized she could be good by just doing the simple things like keeping her hands straight up while guarding, cutting off the driver, and keeping her physical position for rebounding. Overall, Patterson added value in a game where one or two extra possessions were significant. Nice job by the frosh.
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Same here. I was very happy for AP (as well as Ines) out there yesterday. Her confidence is only going to get better the more she plays and gets into some type of rhythm out there on the court. I am just that she was able to get some time out there and create havoc on the floor. Her defense on Morrow was decent. We will see what happens tomorrow and in the Big East Tournament.
The bench players have played good when given the chance. I don't think the issue with the bench players is the players as much as it is the coach. If you watch a player go 1-12 and don't try something else that isn't on the players.
Agreed. She has the defensive toughness we have been lacking. She also knows how to grab the ball. Playing time will build her confidence.
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