Ice Ice Brady | The Boneyard

Ice Ice Brady

Ice has already proven she can absorb contact with the solid screens she sets at the top of the key. She has flattened quite a few opponents that way.

One issue is that she doesn’t seem best at low post offense, though she plays defense there just fine. But frankly, I don’t think she needs to be a back-to-the-basket low post scorer for Geno as long as she starts hitting more of those elbow jumpers and drives the lane more often. He always says “Do what you’re good at,” and this was her game in high school. It’s one of the things he recruited Ice for. Jana also needs to develop an elbow jumper, as Geno said a few times in pressers last season.

When Sarah comes out of a game, Ice and Jana can’t draw defenders out of the paint if they can’t hit this shot. Early in the season, Ice drove the lane well, and Jana had a few brilliant drives later in the season. If the two of them can open up this part of the game, it will change the dynamics of Geno’s substitution patterns.

Last season, Geno worried about who would pick up the slack when Paige sat down. This season, the same question will apply to Sarah: who opens up the offense when she sits? Of course, Azzi, Ash and Serah can be relied on to make shots. And he’ll have even more answers if Ice and Jana step up too.
 
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I always thought Ice was a natural 4 and not 5 and with both Serah and Jana this year she will likely be subbing in for Sarah and not playing the low post. This should be a strong year for her. A little bit more foot speed, quickness on the first step, strength on the put backs and a consistent 10-18 footer and she will be a very valuable contributor and a match up nightmare as a lefty. Very positive on her this year.
 
Bone Dog said:
Ice has already proven she can absorb contact with the solid screens she sets at the top of the key. She has flattened quite a few opponents that way.

One issue is that she doesn’t seem best at low post offense, though she plays defense there just fine. But frankly, I don’t think she needs to be a back-to-the-basket low post scorer for Geno as long as she starts hitting more of those elbow jumpers and drives the lane more often. He always says “Do what you’re good at,” and this was her game in high school. It’s one of the things he recruited Ice for. Jana also needs to develop an elbow jumper, as Geno said a few times in pressers last season.

When Sarah comes out of a game, Ice and Jana can’t draw defenders out of the paint if they can’t hit this shot. Early in the season, Ice drove the lane well, and Jana had a few brilliant drives later in the season. If the two of them can open up this part of the game, it will change the dynamics of Geno’s substitution patterns.

Last season, Geno worried about who would pick up the slack when Paige sat down. This season, the same question will apply to Sarah: who opens up the offense when she sits? Of course, Azzi, Ash and Serah can be relied on to make shots. And he’ll have even more answers if Ice and Jana step up too.
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And don't forget about the 12 ppg from the KK/K9/Kelis Fisher point guard combo and the 8 ppg from the MC/AP combo. This team has loads of scoring options and that does't even take into account anything from Blanco/Gandy and Allie.
 
Why does nobody mention Ayanna in this thread? I agree that with Serah / Jana / Gandy available at the center position, Ice will most likely be a backup to Sarah at the 4, but then what if Ayanna really shows her talent?

If Ice isn't careful and (more importantly) competitive, she could end up third on the depth chart at the 4 position.
 
JoePgh said:
Why does nobody mention Ayanna in this thread? I agree that with Serah / Jana / Gandy available at the center position, Ice will most likely be a backup to Sarah at the 4, but then what if Ayanna really shows her talent?

If Ice isn't careful and (more importantly) competitive, she could end up third on the depth chart at the 4 position.
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I'm guessing everyone is giving Ayanna a little time (and grace) to find her footing and catch up; she's been out a long time.
 
JoePgh said:
Why does nobody mention Ayanna in this thread? I agree that with Serah / Jana / Gandy available at the center position, Ice will most likely be a backup to Sarah at the 4, but then what if Ayanna really shows her talent?

If Ice isn't careful and (more importantly) competitive, she could end up third on the depth chart at the 4 position.
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Ayanna's freshman year, she really struggled scoring and it appeared she had no convenance in her midlevel shot. Rebounding for Brady and her isn't the issue. Both have similar playing styles, and when guarded, both have issues scoring up close to the basket. They both need to be able to hit the midrange jumper and hopefully they are working on this over the summer. Brady has shown that she can hit a 3 pointer, which would really help the team if she could improve her percentage. Not sure if scoring is really needed from either of them. Defense, rebounding and running the floor will be very important and hopefully they can provide the team with some points, But, it appears that they will be battling for the same minutes.
 
JoePgh said:
Why does nobody mention Ayanna in this thread? I agree that with Serah / Jana / Gandy available at the center position, Ice will most likely be a backup to Sarah at the 4, but then what if Ayanna really shows her talent?

If Ice isn't careful and (more importantly) competitive, she could end up third on the depth chart at the 4 position.
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I think no one mentions her because she is an unknown factor at this time and she had missed so much time. We have only seen recent clips of her (they were very impressive) so far. She is a different player from Ice, more of a power player than a finesse player and Ice has the better shot although Ay has a legitimate, hang in the air jump shot. She will be in several of oldude's 3003 combinations but who knows which ones and I don't see her competing with Ice for time more so than the usual everyone is always competing here. I think Ice has earned her wings these last 2 years.

I am sure of this though. I would not want to be a sub on any opposing team having to guard Ay when she drives or has the ball underneath. I also think she is one heck of a powerful player to have coming off the bench. Just another reason this is a most interesting year coming up.
 
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JoePgh said:
Why does nobody mention Ayanna in this thread? I agree that with Serah / Jana / Gandy available at the center position, Ice will most likely be a backup to Sarah at the 4, but then what if Ayanna really shows her talent?

If Ice isn't careful and (more importantly) competitive, she could end up third on the depth chart at the 4 position.
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Huh? This is specifically an Ice Brady thread by design. Ayanna has been out for 2 years and even when healthy she fouled way too frequently and showed no offensive game. I am not thinking that by sitting these two years either deficiency has improved to warrant elevated playing time given our depth. Ice is probably our 9th player behind Sarah, Azzi, KK, Ash, Serah, Jana, K9 and Blanca. Add in a possibly Healthy Caroline and Morgan and Ayanna sits 12th on the depth chart. This team, if healthy has serious talent and you need an offensive game to warrant playing time over these 11. My fingers are crossed but I am really not optimistic. In this case I won’t mind being wrong as Ayanna deserves some positive breaks/luck given her unfortunate injury history.
 
Partial swerve: Geno has a lot of bigs this season. Some of them fit neatly into the traditional 4-5 categories. Others don’t, especially Sarah. And Geno reminded us last season that he isn’t always wedded to those categories.

Gandy and Jana are pretty clearly 5s while Serah could play either 4 or 5, though she was used almost exclusively as a 5 at Wisconsin. I’d be surprised to see a lineup with Sarah and Serah and Jana on the floor together for more than a few minutes. Maybe against UCLA we might see more of such a lineup, though Geno demonstrated the virtue of a quick small lineup vs a big lineup in the Final Four.

End of partial swerve: How does Ice fit in given the versatility of Sarah and Serah? On offense, the key for her is likely to be recovering her midrange game (as I mentioned upthread). On defense, she can be effective at either 4 or 5 situationally. However she’s used, I don’t think she’ll be limited to a simple platoon with Jana at the 5.

One thing Sarah does, and Serah did at Wisconsin, is rim runs. This was a feature of the transition game last season and is sure to be again. Geno has long favored using bigs this way. Ice and Jana were not able to do this at all last season, though both of them ran trailing support of fast breaks often enough. Could Ice make a few rim runs next season? This is something I can picture Ayanna doing.

And the situation is harder to predict because of the ‘medium’ bigs on the roster: Blanca Morgan and Carol. Geno can field a quick frontline consisting of Sarah and Serah and one of these three. This would be an attractive option offering a lot of offensive punch with Azzi or Ash (or Allie?) in the game and KK and Kayleigh at the PG. It’s hard to see a role for either Ice or Jana in such lineups.

And to put a time context on all of this, I’d be surprised if Sarah and Azzi don’t play ~30 mins/g and Serah is likely to do the same. If Sarah and Serah are limited to the 4 and 5, there’s not a lot of minutes left in the frontcourt. But shift them to the 3 and 4 and the 5 could open up for Jana and Ice. I doubt we’ll see much of this as smaller lineups seem more likely this season.
 
Bone Dog said:
Partial swerve: Geno has a lot of bigs this season. Some of them fit neatly into the traditional 4-5 categories. Others don’t, especially Sarah. And Geno reminded us last season that he isn’t always wedded to those categories.

Gandy and Jana are pretty clearly 5s while Serah could play either 4 or 5, though she was used almost exclusively as a 5 at Wisconsin. I’d be surprised to see a lineup with Sarah and Serah and Jana on the floor together for more than a few minutes. Maybe against UCLA we might see more of such a lineup, though Geno demonstrated the virtue of a quick small lineup vs a big lineup in the Final Four.

End of partial swerve: How does Ice fit in given the versatility of Sarah and Serah? On offense, the key for her is likely to be recovering her midrange game (as I mentioned upthread). On defense, she can be effective at either 4 or 5 situationally. However she’s used, I don’t think she’ll be limited to a simple platoon with Jana at the 5.

One thing Sarah does, and Serah did at Wisconsin, is rim runs. This was a feature of the transition game last season and is sure to be again. Geno has long favored using bigs this way. Ice and Jana were not able to do this at all last season, though both of them ran trailing support of fast breaks often enough. Could Ice make a few rim runs next season? This is something I can picture Ayanna doing.

And the situation is harder to predict because of the ‘medium’ bigs on the roster: Blanca Morgan and Carol. Geno can field a quick frontline consisting of Sarah and Serah and one of these three. This would be an attractive option offering a lot of offensive punch with Azzi or Ash (or Allie?) in the game and KK and Kayleigh at the PG. It’s hard to see a role for either Ice or Jana in such lineups.

And to put a time context on all of this, I’d be surprised if Sarah and Azzi don’t play ~30 mins/g and Serah is likely to do the same. If Sarah and Serah are limited to the 4 and 5, there’s not a lot of minutes left in the frontcourt. But shift them to the 3 and 4 and the 5 could open up for Jana and Ice. I doubt we’ll see much of this as smaller lineups seem more likely this season.
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As I said on another thread, with a healthy 15-player roster, Geno has 3,003 different 5-player options next season…..;)
 
Bone Dog said:
Partial swerve: Geno has a lot of bigs this season. Some of them fit neatly into the traditional 4-5 categories. Others don’t, especially Sarah. And Geno reminded us last season that he isn’t always wedded to those categories.

Gandy and Jana are pretty clearly 5s while Serah could play either 4 or 5, though she was used almost exclusively as a 5 at Wisconsin. I’d be surprised to see a lineup with Sarah and Serah and Jana on the floor together for more than a few minutes. Maybe against UCLA we might see more of such a lineup, though Geno demonstrated the virtue of a quick small lineup vs a big lineup in the Final Four.

End of partial swerve: How does Ice fit in given the versatility of Sarah and Serah? On offense, the key for her is likely to be recovering her midrange game (as I mentioned upthread). On defense, she can be effective at either 4 or 5 situationally. However she’s used, I don’t think she’ll be limited to a simple platoon with Jana at the 5.

One thing Sarah does, and Serah did at Wisconsin, is rim runs. This was a feature of the transition game last season and is sure to be again. Geno has long favored using bigs this way. Ice and Jana were not able to do this at all last season, though both of them ran trailing support of fast breaks often enough. Could Ice make a few rim runs next season? This is something I can picture Ayanna doing.

And the situation is harder to predict because of the ‘medium’ bigs on the roster: Blanca Morgan and Carol. Geno can field a quick frontline consisting of Sarah and Serah and one of these three. This would be an attractive option offering a lot of offensive punch with Azzi or Ash (or Allie?) in the game and KK and Kayleigh at the PG. It’s hard to see a role for either Ice or Jana in such lineups.

And to put a time context on all of this, I’d be surprised if Sarah and Azzi don’t play ~30 mins/g and Serah is likely to do the same. If Sarah and Serah are limited to the 4 and 5, there’s not a lot of minutes left in the frontcourt. But shift them to the 3 and 4 and the 5 could open up for Jana and Ice. I doubt we’ll see much of this as smaller lineups seem more likely this season.
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Many very good points there. The good news for Ice is she will be able to focus on her best position this year (the 4), the bad news is there are no entitlement minutes this year. Because of injuries and a relative lack of competition Ice was pretty much assured significant minutes the last two years. The bar for playing time could be much higher this year.

As Bone Dog points out with both Jana and Gandy as backups behind Serah, she might not be needed at the 5, and at the 4 she faces significant competition from three different fronts for what could be limited backup minutes behind Sarah anyway. Ayanna is back and a considerable threat, with both players probably being best at the 4. If Ayanna turns out to be the better of the two, Ice could be out of the rotation.

But both Ice and Ayanna face another threat, namely if Uconn goes small or big. Geno doesn't have to use the next best natural 4 after Sarah at all if he doesn't want to. Ice and Ayanna have to beat out each other to get regular minutes, but also be a better option than Caroline or Morgan if they go small, or Jana if they go big.

If Jana has a breakout season or improves dramatically, Geno might find her more time by moving Serah to the 4 and Sarah to the 3 for part of the time. As Bone Dog mentions that could free up some time for bigs, but mostly because Sarah might not be playing at the 4 all the time. About the only possibility I see that Bone Dog didn't mention, is a three big rotation with Sarah, Serah and Jana, where Sarah plays all of her minutes at the 4, Jana's minutes are at the 5, and Serah splits her minutes between the 4 and 5. Similar to a few years ago when Geno used a three big rotation with Liv at the 5, Aaliyah at the 4, and Dorka splitting time between both.

The big option pretty much depends on Jana. We know Sarah can play the 3, and Serah the 4. The question is if Jana could separate herself from other options like Ice, Ayanna, Caroline, Morgan to make a three big rotation strategic.

In some ways I view Ice at roughly last year's level as the floor performance for our backup 4 minutes this year. She could be better, but some of the many other options might be better than that. It is much more than just Ice vs. Ayanna. I did not include Blanca as a potential threat at the 4, but perhaps I should have. My reason is I consider her likely to get many of the minutes at the 3. If Ash winds up starting at the 3, then Blanca might be more of a threat for some minutes at the 4 as well.
 
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Bone Dog said:
Partial swerve: Geno has a lot of bigs this season. ...

And to put a time context on all of this, I’d be surprised if Sarah and Azzi don’t play ~30 mins/g and Serah is likely to do the same. If Sarah and Serah are limited to the 4 and 5, there’s not a lot of minutes left in the frontcourt. But shift them to the 3 and 4 and the 5 could open up for Jana and Ice. I doubt we’ll see much of this as smaller lineups seem more likely this season.
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Lordy, lordy, as a huskies fan, that is a horrible prospect!

why would geno have a trio of stars (assuming serah fits in) on the hardwood for 3/4 of each game when most of the schedule won't be a challenge AND there are a dozen exciting players who should be able to contribute everything the team needs?

i know that i am stoked a to see how THEY perform, grow and realize their potential. i won't see that by watching the established stars each gobble up the bulk of the competitive game time, which i predict will be mighty meager.

if storrs is basketball's Broadway, as geno has painted it, an important feature of games should be entertainment. for me, that would involve assessing the play of morgan, allie, blanca, jana and the other team players, which i hope will be the full roster. 30 minutes for sarah, azzi and serah each game would limit that fun.
 
PacoSwede said:
why would geno have a trio of stars (assuming serah fits in) on the hardwood for 3/4 of each game when most of the schedule won't be a challenge AND there are a dozen exciting players who should be able to contribute everything the team needs?
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He might not in December. That’s experiment time. But come March those three will need to have 40 minute legs. And don’t worry, there will be plenty of mix and match along the way.
 
I have been predicting big things from Ice, but much of this depends on this year's version of UConn small ball. I never predicted last year's success with the small lineup so will not take a shot at how Geno employs his guards in this year's season.
 
oldude said:
As I said on another thread, with a healthy 15-player roster, Geno has 3,003 different 5-player options next season…..;)
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Permit me to make a U turn from the thread to digress a bit:

(Where the number of players is n = 15 and number of players playing at any one time is k = 5, using the formula for combinations would yield 3003 different options. That is true if all players could play any position equally. However, we know that is not realistic. My math days are hazier than our smoky sky right now and I will quickly defer to those who are more conversant but would you not need to calculate permutations, not just combinations? In that case, I believe the number would be increased substantially.) Anyway, go at it but I don't think Geno thinks in these terms and he has had some success on what combinations work best! :)

And back on the thread for Ice I want to see her more confident and more assertive. She has talent but like any player trying to improve from primary grades all the way to college and beyond she needs to first believe in herself. The rest - footwork, shooting, etc. - will follow if there is a strong will, motivation and confidence that results from believing in yourself. Wishing the best for Ice.
 
Bone Dog said:
He might not in December. That’s experiment time. But come March those three will need to have 40 minute legs. And don’t worry, there will be plenty of mix and match along the way.
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i imagine their legs can get into top condition in practices and workouts throughout the year. :)
 
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Bone Dog said:
… and games.

This is not really a disagreement. We’re talking about getting into game shape and I’m using “legs” as a metaphor for this.
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i know. ... but whadya make of my basic point: fans would enjoy seeing the youngsters try to improve their game in the coming blowouts rather than a 'big 3" obliterating inferior teams -- which, face it, gets boring.
 
PacoSwede said:
i know. ... but whadya make of my basic point: fans would enjoy seeing the youngsters try to improve their game in the coming blowouts rather than a 'big 3" obliterating inferior teams -- which, face it, gets boring.
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I’ve long said this very thing. The experiment phase of the season, ie November until beginning of February, is the most entertaining, for me at least, and apparently for you too. February-March is more about satisfaction as we watch what Geno has been building come together.

Last season, I really hoped to see Q get more minutes. This season, I am eager to see what Allie and Ayanna can make of their opportunities. Morgan too.
 
Bone Dog said:
He might not in December. That’s experiment time. But come March those three will need to have 40 minute legs. And don’t worry, there will be plenty of mix and match along the way.
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Or January or most of February. You have 5 players (positions) at 40 minutes each or 200 minutes in each game. If Azzi and Sarah play 30+ minutes each in any given game, that is 30% of the minutes. What is the purpose of Azzi or Sarah playing 30+ minutes against Georgetown, Providence etc.? Sure you want to develop chemistry, tag teams like Paige and Sarah last year, and combinations for offenses and defenses, but we don't need those players on the floor for that amount of time to do that and to win overwhelmingly against almost everyone we play this year. We have that much talent, power, depth and size. Many of these games are going to be over in the first quarter.

One thing that makes Geno the GOAT is his ability to adapt and coach the team he has. He took that team last year and went from a traditional lineup, knowing he would need an improved Jana to win in the Big Dance, and floored it by doing small ball. Right now, I don't think he even knows what he has to any great depth and what the best combos are. How can he? To find out, just like last year, he has to go through the combos, the games, the practices and then comes the late February metamorphosis where suddenly there is a newer, better team.

He has an awful lot of players to watch and figure out plus returnees like Ice, the subject of this thread, and returning non-playing team members like Ay and Caroline (only slight playing time last year). He has 5 new players, including an absolute enigma to many of us in Blanca. I think he is going to take his time by giving everyone an opportunity and by giving everyone experience. They have to earn it in practice but it sounds like this year those practices will be highly intense and will improve our players and team greatly. Plus, the returnees are National Champions. Their lives were changed. They will think and act differently from now on. That point cannot be undervalued.

I don't think there will be any preconceived notions this year except the obvious ones that include two likely nominees for POY and an all Big Ten center who might just make an AA team here. Geno surprised us last year. What makes anyone think he won't do it again this year?
 
BBallF said:
Or January or most of February. You have 5 players (positions) at 40 minutes each or 200 minutes in each game. If Azzi and Sarah play 30+ minutes each in any given game, that is 30% of the minutes. What is the purpose of Azzi or Sarah playing 30+ minutes against Georgetown, Providence etc.? Sure you want to develop chemistry, tag teams like Paige and Sarah last year, and combinations for offenses and defenses, but we don't need those players on the floor for that amount of time to do that and to win overwhelmingly against almost everyone we play this year. We have that much talent, power, depth and size. Many of these games are going to be over in the first quarter.

One thing that makes Geno the GOAT is his ability to adapt and coach the team he has. He took that team last year and went from a traditional lineup, knowing he would need an improved Jana to win in the Big Dance, and floored it by doing small ball. Right now, I don't think he even knows what he has to any great depth and what the best combos are. How can he? To find out, just like last year, he has to go through the combos, the games, the practices and then comes the late February metamorphosis where suddenly there is a newer, better team.

He has an awful lot of players to watch and figure out plus returnees like Ice, the subject of this thread, and returning non-playing team members like Ay and Caroline (only slight playing time last year). He has 5 new players, including an absolute enigma to many of us in Blanca. I think he is going to take his time by giving everyone an opportunity and by giving everyone experience. They have to earn it in practice but it sounds like this year those practices will be highly intense and will improve our players and team greatly. Plus, the returnees are National Champions. Their lives were changed. They will think and act differently from now on. That point cannot be undervalued.

I don't think there will be any preconceived notions this year except the obvious ones that include two likely nominees for POY and an all Big Ten center who might just make an AA team here. Geno surprised us last year. What makes anyone think he won't do it again this year?
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I can't tell if you're agreeing with me or disagreeing, @BBallF . But you replied directly to me, so that leaves me in a quandary. In a thread about what the next season might hold for Ice, your post goes pretty far afield, but it's reasonable to think there will be limited minutes. And I doubt there's much disagreement on the BY about how many minutes Azzi and Sarah will be on the floor.
  • Will Geno surprise us with his creative genius in making use of as much of his roster as possible? Yes of course.
  • Will the rotation be much longer in December than in February? Yes, obviously.
  • But my question for you is: how will that affect Ice?
As for whether the stars will get 30 minutes, last season probably holds some clues: Paige averaged 30 mins, Sarah 29 and Azzi 26 (though injury time cut into her numbers). They logged fewer minutes against weaker opponents earlier in the season, and a lot more in March and April. Ice and Jana averaged 16 minutes each, though in Ice's case it was more early on and less in March. Will the same pattern recur this season? I doubt it, mainly because of the addition of Serah and the return of Ayanna to the front court, and the impact of Blanca and Morgan in any small-balll lineup that emerges. Those are factors that might limit Ice. On the other side, if she turns a corner in the development of her own offense, she might earn even more minutes.
 
PacoSwede said:
i know. ... but whadya make of my basic point: fans would enjoy seeing the youngsters try to improve their game in the coming blowouts rather than a 'big 3" obliterating inferior teams -- which, face it, gets boring.
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Yeah, but then the moaning starts - missed layups, excessive turnovers, poor defense….
 
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