It must be February . . .

[vtcwbuff]

because they have games like this every year - in February.

The team was really out of sorts today. Much of the time they didn't seem to have their heads in hte game. I don't know if it was Dolson's absence or Banks' injury, but something was wrong.

My thoughts -

Doty needs to shoot when she is open.
Hartley needs to develope a mid range shot when she's tossing bricks from outside.
Stewart needs to spend some extra time learning how to finish under the basket.
Auriemma needs to allow Stokes to play through her screw ups.
Switching to zone in the 2nd half probably won the game.
Faris and Mosqueda-Lewis are gamers. Mosqueda-Lewis was having problems with her outside shot yet she still found a way to score. Hartley should take notes.
Sometimes Auriemma is too slow (probably the wrong word) to make adjustments. That might be intentional.

 

[Icebear]

Hartley has a mid range jumper that she has used frequently in the past. It, too, has gone MIA.

 

[vtcwbuff]

I've recently been thinking that Hartley may be suffering from pain anticipation when she shoots (like a flinch in target shooting) or if she changed how she shoots in response to ankle pain.

I know wrist tendonitis ruined what little golf game I had. By the time the tendonitis went away I had changed my swing to compensate and I never got it back.

 

[boontonbomber]

because they have games like this every year - in February.

The team was really out of sorts today. Much of the time they didn't seem to have their heads in hte game. I don't know if it was Dolson's absence or Banks' injury, but something was wrong.

My thoughts -

Doty needs to shoot when she is open.
Hartley needs to develope a mid range shot when she's tossing bricks from outside.
Stewart needs to spend some extra time learning how to finish under the basket.
Auriemma needs to allow Stokes to play through her screw ups.
Switching to zone in the 2nd half probably won the game.
Faris and Mosqueda-Lewis are gamers. Mosqueda-Lewis was having problems with her outside shot yet she still found a way to score. Hartley should take notes.
Sometimes Auriemma is too slow (probably the wrong word) to make adjustments. That might be intentional.

st. johns is a pretty good team. that may have had something to do with it.

 

[ed4ourgirls]

st. johns is a pretty good team. that may have had something to do with it.

Both their coach and Smith said that they played harder today than against
anyone else this year. If they play like that the rest of the way they will be
a tough team to deal with.

At this point they are a real longshot to make the big dance, but looking at
their remaining schedule, there is no one that they can't beat. If they run
the table they'll be 18-10, and a couple of wins in the BE tourney might get
them in. The main problem (apart from having to win out) is that they have
a number of bad losses and no really good wins.

 

[cohenzone]

Adjusting to playing without a key player without any chance to practice is hard. Dolson not only scores in a variety of ways, rebounds and blocks shots, but a lot if their offensive efficiency runs off her screens and passing. Her not playing was unanticipated. Ditto for Banks. If I recall , UConns best defensive sequences and first half surge came with her in the game. And then she's gone.

I don't think Stewart has trouble finishing in general. Today she rushed and left 6-8 points on the floor. Maybe trying too hard to hurry up and make things happen in a close game.

Hartley, hard to say but it isn't unusual for a leg or foot injury to affect the shooting stroke.

But man, Faris and Lewis put the team on their backs like true All Americans and leaders.

 

[MilfordHusky]

True that, re Kelly and Kaleena.

 

[msf22b]

I keep thinking of Serena's elephantine ankle pix when I see Hartley shoot.
She can say as much as she wants that it's all in her head
VTC and Cohen have it right.

 

[pap49cba]

I've recently been thinking that Hartley may be suffering from pain anticipation when she shoots (like a flinch in target shooting) or if she changed how she shoots in response to ankle pain.

I know wrist tendonitis ruined what little golf game I had. By the time the tendonitis went away I had changed my swing to compensate and I never got it back.

I totally agree with the points you make but I'm not sure this explains her big drop in FT %. She has gone from 74.4% her first two years to 68.6%. Could be a mental/confidence thing.

 

[phil sampieri]

Hartley has a mid range jumper that she has used frequently in the past. It, too, has gone MIA.

Bria is my favorite player and I along with all UC fans can't figure out why she haqs lost her shot.It seems to me that she always had sort of
a flat trajectory when she made so many shots. Lately it looks as if she has more arc on her shots.Is it just me ?

 

[Icebear]

Question for anyone seeing the games in person. Are Bria's shots flatter than normal or is that a parallax issue caused by some TV cameras and angles?

 

[uconnfan68]

I've recently been thinking that Hartley may be suffering from pain anticipation when she shoots (like a flinch in target shooting) or if she changed how she shoots in response to ankle pain.

I know wrist tendonitis ruined what little golf game I had. By the time the tendonitis went away I had changed my swing to compensate and I never got it back.

Her shot is too flat... even Geno was giving her the arch it move during the game.

 

[vtcwbuff]

Her shot is too flat... even Geno was giving her the arch it move during the game.

I thought the two free throws at the end of the game were indicative of where Hartley is right now. The first was flat and ugly but somehow it went in. The second had more arc but it also nearly missed.

I wonder how her shot is during practice and how she's shooting in the gym. Judging from the quote from Geno my guess is that it isn't any better.

Anyone remember Dizzy Dean and his big toe?

 

[meganmatthews]

because they have games like this every year - in February.

The team was really out of sorts today. Much of the time they didn't seem to have their heads in hte game. I don't know if it was Dolson's absence or Banks' injury, but something was wrong.

My thoughts -

Doty needs to shoot when she is open.
Hartley needs to develope a mid range shot when she's tossing bricks from outside.
Stewart needs to spend some extra time learning how to finish under the basket.
Auriemma needs to allow Stokes to play through her screw ups.
Switching to zone in the 2nd half probably won the game.
Faris and Mosqueda-Lewis are gamers. Mosqueda-Lewis was having problems with her outside shot yet she still found a way to score. Hartley should take notes.
Sometimes Auriemma is too slow (probably the wrong word) to make adjustments. That might be intentional.

I think Bria is just putting too much pressure on herself, feeling like she is not carrying her weight. She has to relax (easier said than done.) Stewart had a tough game. I'd still put my money on her any day. Yes, we missed Dolson, but thank God for work horses Lewis and Faris! There are going to be days like this. The zone helped, but St. Johns still played their hearts out trying to beat us. We were not firing on so many cylinders, yet the car still made it home. That's depth. That's Uconn. Bring it!