Is Michigan the Best opponent | Page 3 | The Boneyard
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Is Michigan the Best opponent

I doubt Geno will underestimate Kim and Michigan. Kim will not underestimate Geno.

So in this very young season, the question comes down to talent and execution. Here I give UConn the advantage.

Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd are the two big guns. No one has been able to contain either player yet. UConn also has two players to be the third gun - Serah Williams and Blanca Quinones.

Looking forward to this matchup.
 
This is one of those games that can get out of hand quickly for a young team like MI that has not faced anything close to what they will see on Friday. In addition, UConn will have 5 days to prepare for MI, the Mohegan Sun will be packed with a loud, pro-UConn crowd and I have a feeling that the Huskies will be motivated to play their best basketball of the season.
 
HuskyNan said:
Geno and Kim Barnes-Arico know each other’s coaching style from her time at St John’s, the last Big East team to beat UConn at Gampel. She’s an excellent coach and now she has some fantastic talent. I would not pencil in the win just yet
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Kim is a well respected coach in the profession. Dawn offered her daughter,, Cece Arico 2027, early in the process and I originally thought it was a professional courtesy . However, I now see that Cece is number 22 in Hoopgurlz.
 
oldude said:
This is one of those games that can get out of hand quickly for a young team like MI that has not faced anything close to what they will see on Friday. In addition, UConn will have 5 days to prepare for MI, the Mohegan Sun will be packed with a loud, pro-UConn crowd and I have a feeling that the Huskies will be motivated to play their best basketball of the season.
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Just wondering what the UConn women's record is at Mohican Sun. Somewhere around 68-2 since 1994-95?

This game should be well in hand for UConn by 3:16 left in the 3rd quarter (up by 32 pts in my estimation; I just have problems with the final scores and final MoV...).

Go Huskies!!!
 
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Second meeting between Kayleigh Heckel and Syla Swords. The two played together for two seasons at Long Island Lutheran before reaching the college ranks. They also played in the McDonald's All American games, with LuHi setting a record with three representatives that year. Kayleigh is 2-0 against Michigan, while Swords did not take part in the first game.
 
I will not be surprised if Michigan can actually pull off the upset. The young core that they have is talented enough to possibly reach at least a Final Four if they stay consistent. Looking forward to see how they compete and fare in the B1G this season.
 
Olson, Dudley, and Swords are headaches. And they will have the "we're playing UConn mindset" which I'm sure Barnes-Arico will make them feel like the underdogs of the century, fired up. I think UConn wins by 9, Azzi Fudd has her best game of the season and gives Sarah some intra-POY competition.
 
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Bone Dog said:
You have me wondering if Olson will be rethinking her decision to go to Michigan after this game.
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Why should she? Considering who came in as part of that class for UConn, would she have gotten the playing time she gets with Michigan? It's hard to say but I doubt that thought is in her mind.
 
From Canada said:
Michigan has a young team, based on the 2024 class, which was a very talented year. For the first time, they managed to attract two players from ESPN's top 100, Syla Swords #4 and Olivia Olson #20, both of whom had a great first season. I think Olson is progressing a little more at the moment, as she has improved her decision-making and her 3-point shooting. Mila Holloway (PG) has dual citizenship (US/Canada) and participated in the last U19 World Championship with Canada. She was in the starting lineup for every game last season. Another interesting player who, like Holloway, was not ranked in ESPN's top 100, is definitely worth considering in their recruitment for the class of 2024. That player is Te'yala Delfosse (6'3"), who reminds me a bit of Qadence Samuels physically, but with a little more length. She has a nice touch and has gained muscle tone. She is making great progress, and only time will tell if I am right.

Michigan has added two transfers via the portal: Ashley Sofilkanich (6'3" center), who played her first two seasons at Bucknell, averaging 19.7 PPG and 8.4 rebounds in 32 minutes last year. She finds herself in a similar situation to Serah Williams, with even less playing time than Serah at 15 MPG. She's off to a good start, and Michigan fans would surely like to see more of her. The team is still looking for their fifth starter (Holloway, Swords, Olson, and Sofilkanich). Kendall Dudley (6'2"), the other player acquired via the portal, could well be the one chosen to fill that role. Yesterday, she was the third player in four games to get a chance to prove herself. She adds depth to the sophomore class and gives Michigan a third ESPN Top 100 player (#18).

After four games, Michigan has a FG of 55.8% and 40.5% 3-pointers (20/79). The team's maturity is not that of UConn, but they will still need to be wary. Last year's opener, South Carolina vs. Michigan, was a close call, with a 68-62 victory.



Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
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No it's not. Hailey Brown was #47 and Naz Hillmon was number #58 when they joined the program as freshmen. They helped Michigan earn their first Elite 8 appearance in history.
 
AzzisBraids said:
Olson, Dudley, and Swords are headaches. And they will have the "we're playing UConn mindset" which I'm sure Barnes-Arico will make them feel like the underdogs of the century, fired up. I think UConn wins by 9, Azzi Fudd has her best game of the season and gives Sarah some intra-POY competition.
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Every team that UConn faces has the, “we’re playing UConn mindset.” It really doesn’t matter. UConn has a process that has systematically dismantled talented teams over 3 decades, and they have 8-10 headaches of their own for MI to deal with. UConn will win by 20+.

One additional point. Last season, Serah had a big game against MI with 22pts & 7 rebounds, as WI pulled off a stunning upset. One of the many “headaches” for MI to deal with.
 
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It will be UConn’s defense that is going to handcuff Michigan provided UConn rebounds well & contains their guards. Key is limiting Michigan’s open shots. Not sure that Michigan (or anyone) can contain Sarah. In fact, I think UConn has a huge advantage with the bigs. Michigan must be pretty good defensively too, but UConn is a whole different level than ND and Binghamton, and Serah and Blanca are getting more comfortable with the system.
 
The early season is a challenge in judging how good a team is and the ND/Michigan blowout is another example of that. ND is not that bad and Michigan is not as good as a 39 point win would indicate. ND made 9% of their 3’s, shooting 2-22 and shot only 39% from inside the arc with 15/38. An off night that compounded itself. This will be a competitive game for a stretch but the constant tenacious defense and utilizing a very strong bench will wear Michigan down and lead to a 15-20 point UConn win.
 
In one of Geno's videos, I think a media availability video, he said he'd talked to Michigan's coach. They both agreed that neither of them were looking forward to Friday night, lol. He asked her if she wanted to skip it, go gamble a little and have a drink.
 
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DemonDeac22 said:
The early season is a challenge in judging how good a team is and the ND/Michigan blowout is another example of that. ND is not that bad and Michigan is not as good as a 39 point win would indicate. ND made 9% of their 3’s, shooting 2-22 and shot only 39% from inside the arc with 15/38. An off night that compounded itself. This will be a competitive game for a stretch but the constant tenacious defense and utilizing a very strong bench will wear Michigan down and lead to a 15-20 point UConn win.
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I agree with your take on the upcoming game on Friday. I'm going and staying over for Sunday.
Not sure about your permission for ND to play horrendously. It is hard to assess teams early in the season, but I would argue that there is actually data available. How ND finished last year is data, the mass exodus at ND is data, who they picked up in the portal is data, their documented skills and predictions how they will fit together is data, and of course the MI debacle is data in addition to open practices, scrimmages/exhibitions and games already played. BTW a 10 point loss could be considered solid, 20 point convincing, 30-40 come on now, let's be fair.
I asked the BY in a previous post to help explain ND. Something about Hidalgo's attitude behind the scenes? IMO You can't just dismiss a 40 point loss. Doesn't compute for me.
 
FanSince17 said:
I agree with your take on the upcoming game on Friday. I'm going and staying over for Sunday.
Not sure about your permission for ND to play horrendously. It is hard to assess teams early in the season, but I would argue that there is actually data available. How ND finished last year is data, the mass exodus at ND is data, who they picked up in the portal is data, their documented skills and predictions how they will fit together is data, and of course the MI debacle is data in addition to open practices, scrimmages/exhibitions and games already played. BTW a 10 point loss could be considered solid, 20 point convincing, 30-40 come on now, let's be fair.
I asked the BY in a previous post to help explain ND. Something about Hidalgo's attitude behind the scenes? IMO You can't just dismiss a 40 point loss. Doesn't compute for me.
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The ND situation was entirely predictable. They lost 4 key players to the transfer portal and 3 star players to the W. In addition, their recruiting class was nothing special. Coach Ivey scrambled to bring in a bunch of transfers to fill the void, but those players are not as talented as the ones who left and the team is still figuring out how to play together.

HH is the one remaining star at ND. I will not attempt to figure out how her personality figured in the departures of veteran players or how she melds with the new players. Let it suffice to say that she can be very good and she can be very bad, sometimes in the same game.
 
oldude said:
The ND situation was entirely predictable. They lost 4 key players to the transfer portal and 3 star players to the W. In addition, their recruiting class was nothing special. Coach Ivey scrambled to bring in a bunch of transfers to fill the void, but those players are not as talented as the ones who left and the team is still figuring out how to play together.

HH is the one remaining star at ND. I will not attempt to figure out how her personality figured in the departures of veteran players or how she melds with the new players. Let it suffice to say that she can be very good and she can be very bad, sometimes in the same game.
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Thanks for that. So predictable that the brilliant polls had ND, what was it #18 (sorry short term memory first to go with me after my vertical jump). Funny, people (they may have even watched the MI-ND game) still don’t believe it. ND just had a bad game. OK
Has anybody ever been associated with a good team that lost by 40? I promise, I’m going to stop beating this poor dead horse.
 
tOSU shot 4 of 6 threes in the first quarter and finished down only 3 pts. Over the rest of the game they shot 4-19 on threes and finished down 32 points. This is a familiar pattern. When they were fresh and full of beans, they could get open looks. But the energy required for that was not sustainable, especially if you have to cover UConn's Big 4 for 4 quarters.That would take it out of any opponent. Try to cover bigger faster players for 40 minutes and you get weak-leg syndrome. This is what Michigan is looking at tomorrow.
 
Bone Dog said:
tOSU shot 4 of 6 threes in the first quarter and finished down only 3 pts. Over the rest of the game they shot 4-19 on threes and finished down 32 points. This is a familiar pattern. When they were fresh and full of beans, they could get open looks. But the energy required for that was not sustainable, especially if you have to cover UConn's Big 4 for 4 quarters.That would take it out of any opponent. Try to cover bigger faster players for 40 minutes and you get weak-leg syndrome. This is what Michigan is looking at tomorrow.
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I think it was the pace or tempo of the game that changed. In the NBA they call it, “being in rhythm”. UConn picked up the defensive intensity and like Geno said, OSU wasn’t getting to their spots easily if at all.
Last year, when our shooting was so inconsistent in big games early, it was because we were out of rhythm. We were getting open looks but it didn’t quite look right. Same point- Ash is just out of rhythm, shooting and traveling.
Like a great musical ensemble. Everything in sync.
 
mhshuskies said:
I guess that is the question. Is Michigan that good or is notre dame that bad?
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A little bit of both in my opinion. Michigan was good, not great in their play of both offense and defense. While Notre Dame was bad, really bad in both offense and defense.
 
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