Iowa Postgame Thread | Page 2 | The Boneyard
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Iowa Postgame Thread

A really, really good game by UConn. When Iowa cut the lead down to 11, I was expecting them to continue their charge. But we started the 3rd quarter with a run and suddenly we had a more comfortable lead that continued into the 4th quarter.
Even though her stats didn't really show it, I think Serah showed the skill set she had at Wisconsin. I felt like Iowa wasn't really trying to challenge her. She also had a couple of timely blocks...something I hope she will bring to every future game.
Watching live, I had no idea that Stuelke scored 17 points. I thought that we had pretty much shut down Heiden and her. Hmm.
Another fun game to watch the replay of.
 
We were out rebounded because we took so many more shots and Azzi was misfiring in the first half. No team is going to win a rebounding battle in those circumstances. If one beats a Top 10 team by 30 points, something excellent must have been happening.
 
Only 6 players got double-digit minutes. This doesn't seem right compared to previous games. Heckel seemed to be getting into rhythm with her teammates in recent games.
Today, she only played for 8 minutes.
 
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Surly1 said:
It may be a case of recency bias on my part, but given her current trajectory, Sarah Strong is playing her way onto the pantheon of UConn greats. I honestly can't recall a player of her size with such nimble hands. Her basketball IQ is off the charts and the only true comparison I have for her is Maya Moore.

Blanca is far from a finished product, but under Geno's tutelage, the final version might turn into the ultimate nightmare for UConn opponents. Once she harnesses her natural talents and tightens up her game, she will be an unstoppable force.
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Geno quiped, but probably meant he's angry all the time at Bianca. I look at her and thoroughbred pops in my head.
 
Surly1 said:
Blanca is far from a finished product, but under Geno's tutelage, the final version might turn into the ultimate nightmare for UConn opponents. Once she harnesses her natural talents and tightens up her game, she will be an unstoppable force.
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Blanca is such a fascinating mix of things. Goofy mistakes followed by awe-inspiring plays. This just means she hasn't fully mastered her role in the system, but sometimes makes up for it through the immensity of her raw talent. And the intensity of her drive to the rim is amazing. She misses a bunch pf those dives, but the relentlessness of it is what catches the eye. I loved one wraparound steal that she spun out of to get a runout. And when she missed on one runout layup, she got a steal a second later to finish the conversion. That sequence was classic Blanca.

And for all the concerns folks had about her 3pt shooting -- include me in that group -- I trust we've all relented on that reservation.
 
oldude said:
Some postgame thoughts on the Iowa game:
  • Iowa is very good and the 11th ranked team in the nation. But like a lot of other good teams, the Hawkeyes could not keep pace with a UConn team that is too deep, too talented and too well-coached.
  • With Azzi’s shot a little off early, it felt like UConn needed someone to step up and take control. That would be Sarah who once again looked every bit like the NPOY with 20 pts in 20 minutes on 9/13 shooting, along with 3 rbs, 3 ast, 5 steals & 1 block all in the 1st half. 🤩
  • Before the game, Geno praised Iowa’s Bigs: Heiden & Stuelke, and it’s clear that the Hawkeyes want to run their offense through the low post. With a few exceptions UConn took away a lot of what Iowa was attempting to do down low.
  • The Hawkeyes outrebounded the Huskies by 9. But Iowa more than gave back those extra possessions as UConn forced 26 turnovers (+17).
  • KK didn’t fill up the stat sheet. But I thought she played a beautiful, composed floor game today, and when she knocks down open 3’s, defenders can’t really back off her.
  • Clearly, Geno shortened the rotation today as the starters played big minutes, with only Blanca getting double-digit minutes off the bench.
  • Blanca gets this look on her face when she sees an opponent, handling the basketball a little carelessly....kinda like the eyes of a snake looking at a plump, juicy mouse.......🐍
  • Today’s game was something of a homecoming for Serah who was born and raised in Brooklyn before her family moved to Canada when she was 14. I wonder how many tickets she needed? ☺️
  • On to Indiana next for a BE game against Butler.
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Just want to second your comments on KK. She is really turning into the perfect point guard for this team. Her ball control and game management skills keep improving. But it’s her lock down defense that causes the opponents to hurry their games which result in TO’s. The Iowa coach at half time was pushing her players to pass normal speed. Easy to say.
 
RockyMTblue2 said:
Geno quiped, but probably meant he's angry all the time at Bianca. I look at her and thoroughbred pops in my head.
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If you look at her typical game stats without seeing Blanca, you think "Hey, that's pretty good, but not Sportscenter-worthy."

But I've been noticing that she's been building a really strong "presser question ratio." That is, the media asks coaches, players, etc. about her far more often than you'd expect for someone with her average stats. Even Iowa's coach Jensen got a question about her.

So it's not just us. She just makes even non-UConn fans do mental double-takes when they see her.
 
Bone Dog said:
Blanca is such a fascinating mix of things. Goofy mistakes followed by awe-inspiring plays. This just means she hasn't fully mastered her role in the system, but sometimes makes up for it through the immensity of her raw talent.
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There was a stretch of a minute or two in which on four trips down the floor, Iowa sank three wide-open shots because Blanca missed an assignment. I was saying that she needed to be taken out, then she got a couple of quick steals.

This was Geno putting into practice what he said a few weeks ago about letting Blanca play through her mistakes.
 
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Stagnant said:
I find Blanca to be a huge secret weapon; especially as an on ball defensive player on the perimeter. I think stremlow is pretty good. But she will be pleased to know that she won’t have to see Blanca anymore this season. Blanca gave her fits.
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Speaking of Blanca, I mean I had a terrible vantage point on the TV set but when she made that steal and dribbled down the court in the first half and was called for an offense foul it seemed to me that the Iowa player just broke away from her.
 
Impressive game, beating 11th ranked Iowa by 26. Sarah Strong is very much like Maya Moore, quite the gifted player, and once Azzi finds her mark, every shot is a wow! Defense will win UConn another championship, most teams have lots of offensive talent, but not too many look this good on both sides of the court. I wish the continuous talk about going undefeated would stop, that is just another stat, winning the NC is what is most important.
 
Monte said:
Only 6 players got double-digit minutes. This doesn't seem right compared to previous games. Heckel seemed to be getting into rhythm with her teammates in recent games.
Today, she only played for 8 minutes.
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I thought she was not effective in her minutes. Wasn’t surprised at her lack of time.
 
Monte said:
Only 6 players got double-digit minutes. This doesn't seem right compared to previous games. Heckel seemed to be getting into rhythm with her teammates in recent games.
Today, she only played for 8 minutes.
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Vowelguy said:
I thought she was not effective in her minutes. Wasn’t surprised at her lack of time.
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When K9 came in during first half, I agree that she wasn't effective, and if I'm remembering correctly, KK came back in. When K9 subbed for KK with 2-3 mins left to go in 3rd Q, I ifigure Geno was just trying to steal some rest minutes for KK, as he used to do for Paige last year. K9 did well in those 2 mins to end the quarter.
 
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A good win. Not surprised that Geno basically played eight. Iowa is a good team who hung in there for 20 minutes.

Defense again leads the way. Iowa likes to run their offense thru their bigs. Uconn made that very difficult today. Iowa won the rebound total, but way too many turnovers to stay with UConn.

Sarah was Sarah doing Sarah things. Azzi was having an off shooting game until late. Blanca is the perfect player to coming off the bench and create havoc.

KK continues to run the offense and her defense is a joy to watch.
 
Bone Dog said:
An odd rhythm to this game. We led the whole way, but at times seemed to be sputtering – cold shooting, getting out-rebounded, giving up some good passes and shots to Iowa. But in the end, Azzi and Sarah put the game away when it mattered.

Kudos to Iowa for a competitive game – even though they never really threatened. And a special tip of the hat to Hannah Stuelke and Chit Chat Wright. They played really well. And as a whole Iowa played their usual hard-nosed, ball-hawking game.

And to put a real spin on it, even though Azzi was ice cold for much of the game, she ended up with another NPOY-worthy game: 27 pts, 5-13 from 3, 3 assists and 4 steals. It's hard to argue with that, though you wouldn't have expected it from the first half.
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AZZI warmed up in second half, going 4-4 from deep at one point.
 
JDForever said:
Speaking of Blanca, I mean I had a terrible vantage point on the TV set but when she made that steal and dribbled down the court in the first half and was called for an offense foul it seemed to me that the Iowa player just broke away from her.
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Obvious push off. My seat had a perfect angle to see that. I thought Imalready commented on that.
 
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I am surprised Geno played the starters so much in the 4th quarter. Maybe he was thinking about the Michigan game? I do think he should have stuck with Heckel to start the 4th quarter. The decision to bring back KK meant she was only in the game for like 2 minutes; she gets some really short spurts sometimes.
 
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