We are in my opinion exactly where I thought we would be. It used to be there was UConn and then there was everyone else. The difference between the number one rated team in America and everyone else was stark... Now, South Carolina can claim the mantel of the number one team in America...and, unfortunately then there is everyone else.
Keep in mind for almost three-quarters of the game UConn did a good job staying with South Carolina. Did the three games in three days get to UConn...possibly but, is it an excuse when 18 to 22 year olds who play three games in three days to get tired...I suppose so...however, they are 18 - 22 year old kids who are in D-1 shape and they are the number two team in the country...they aren't supposed to get gassed. So, it is obvious that they have work to do. Am I worried? No...I am not in the least worried. In fact, I am damn glad that this happened in November. It gives these kids an honest assessment of where they are at and where they need to go.
Paige is great! She makes it look easy at times but, she is human and she needs others to step up to take the pressure off of her. We have the talent and we have it in abundance. What we also have is a lot of youth...yes, we have seniors but, the junior class is miniscule and with Aubrey on the injured list...it is essentially non-existent. So, we have Freshmen and Sophomores and then we have Seniors. The Seniors need to show up...they must show their leadership...Christyn, Olivia and Evina need to be more vocal and need to be more in charge. They need to lead the team....deferring to Paige in my opinion is a cop out.
Our post play has been exposed...before anyone jumps on Olivia she played a damn decent game today...unfortunately, she got out-played by Boston whose supporting cast made it easy for her to shine. Our other post players need to step up. Aliyah Edwards seems to be a step behind last year...maybe there is an injury that isn't being talked about, Dorka is a great acquisition but she isn't up to UConn speed yet...she will improve as the season moves along. DeBerry and Paith Gabriele are still a "work in progress". And, Aubrey Griffin's athleticism is absolutely missed in a game like this.
Then we get to our front court...defensively so far this year we are giving up way too many threes. We simply are not getting out on the perimeter and when we do...our defense isn't good enough to keep the quick guards from other teams in front of us...they are getting by and penetrating to the basket. So, in order to hide that weakness we are sagging off the three point shooters and the last two games before South Carolina (South Florida, Arkansas and to some degree Minnesota) made us pay from three. As much as we need to improve our defense we need to improve our offense even more. Don't get me wrong, we have more fire power than we have had in years...we saw a glimpse of it from Azzi Fudd against USF. And, we have seen Christyn Williams, Evina Westbrook go off in other games. We know Nika and Ducharme are capable of knocking down threes. So, the fire power is there but, we are not running off screens, creating shooting opportunities for our shooters...we have a lot of work to do in helping to get our shooters free.
Finally, we got exposed in the 4th quarter as not being able to handle extreme pressure...kudos to Dawn Staley and South Carolina for putting the pressure on UConn and holding them to only 3 points in the fourth...when was the last time you saw a UConn Women's team held to 3 points in a quarter.
I have no doubt that this team will improve, they will work hard up to the holidays...we will see the obligatory rust the first game back from the holiday vacation. Then I believe you will see incredible growth from this team through the second half of January and through February. Come March...UConn will be tournament ready. Hopefully, we will not get hit by the injury bug and will be at full strength for the Tournament. We also can't assume that South Carolina, Maryland, Stamford and others would similarly improve. We just have to keep the faith...work hard and it will pay off. It isn't like we don't have one of the most talented group of girls we have ever had....we certainly do have that.
