Right behind her...
Injury free and came here like she wanted could have been Uconns best post ever! ( One instance the parents were wrong ) and this happens more than people think.
I'm not sure that is in line with the premise of this thread. Jess started playing basketball late and was very raw when she came to UConn. I think she might have hurt the team if she'd played her freshman year.
That team was strong with post players as well - Williams, Jones, Cash, Schumacher, Rigby and initially with Sveta and Shea also outside in players so she would likely have been anchored to the bench.
Diana didn't need to do it alone, and the team probably would have done better if she didn't try - if Sue, Swin, Asjha, and Tamika had taken a few of those shots D was missing, the result might have been better - the great DT shot Uconn out of that particular game. She certainly redeemed herself, but ...
That team was strong with post players as well - Williams, Jones, Cash, Schumacher, Rigby and initially with Sveta and Shea also outside in players so she would likely have been anchored to the bench.
Diana didn't need to do it alone, and the team probably would have done better if she didn't try - if Sue, Swin, Asjha, and Tamika had taken a few of those shots D was missing, the result might have been better - the great DT shot Uconn out of that particular game. She certainly redeemed herself, but ...
Jessica Moore was a project--the redshirting of her by Geno was a gift--Christine took charge of Moore and created a pretty fair center--who in a couple of years developed a lot of self confidence--thanks to Geno and Christine.
How would Jessica Moore have hurt the team if she played?
Because Asjha or Tamika would have come out for her and because she was too raw and inexperienced. That 2001-02 team was a well-oiled machine.
It was the right move to redshirt Moore because they were loaded. If they didnt she would have played in a mop-up role at the end of the game. Asjha and Tamika would have still received their minutes and no she would not have hurt the team. It would have hurt only Jessica.
She was as dominating as I've ever seen in WCBB in those games though.
Thank you. I have never seen anyone get a free pass like Diana from so many people. She was out and out awful in that Notre Dame game and with the team having that talent level, why was she pumping up shot after shot??? Her confidence in herself was probably the worst thing that could have happened in that game. She was as cold as ice and yet, continued shooting clunker after clunker.That team was strong with post players as well - Williams, Jones, Cash, Schumacher, Rigby and initially with Sveta and Shea also outside in players so she would likely have been anchored to the bench.
Diana didn't need to do it alone, and the team probably would have done better if she didn't try - if Sue, Swin, Asjha, and Tamika had taken a few of those shots D was missing, the result might have been better - the great DT shot Uconn out of that particular game. She certainly redeemed herself, but ...
You don't have to wonder what Brittany Hunter would have been if not injured: just look at the minutes she played while mildy healthy --to see the potential lost. Geno played her in big games at big times---a testament from Geno about how good she really was.
In 2000, Diana was a freshman trying to do too much to compensate for the loss of Svet and Shea. That game is Exhibit A for my case that depending on freshmen to be consistent is not wise. If one of the best players in the world struggled as a freshman, so can other players, no matter how talented.
