Just some thoughts to where we're at

[BobbyJ]

I fully expect to see a lot of 4 guard lineup this year and next. The down side of this is you might lose some rebounding battles and has been discussed previously, it might also make UCONN susceptible on a cold shooting night. 4 guards or 3 guards though, what will propel UCONN to a championship this year or next is the ability of Paige to get easy shot for herself and her teammates. Two bench marks why I think Paige can do this 1) U19 World Cup from 2019 where she didn't shoot the ball particular well but dominated (MVP) the tournament with her passing. 2) I also look at the 1/2 court efficiency of (Senior) Sabrina Ionescu.
What Paige will need is a Robin ( Preferably a big) that she play two man game with while the other guards space the floor shot ready.

I think Edwards has the footwork and the attack mentality to run a good pick and roll.

 

[Charliebball]

I think Edwards has the footwork and the attack mentality to run a good pick and roll.

Edwards and ONO are going to love playing with PB.............they just have to be ready for the passes because their coming fast and furious leading to a heck of a lot of easy baskets..........ONO may shoot 65%-70% this year.......

 

[Tonyc]

Edwards and ONO are going to love playing with PB.............they just have to be ready for the passes because their coming fast and furious leading to a heck of a lot of easy baskets..........ONO may shoot 65%-70% this year.......

When you read some of the posts that some of the other fans from other clubs post and I read one about Boston not getting the ball like she did last season and I think of UConn with all their passers I have to wonder how good ONO and Edwards will be much like Charlieball posted. Everybody will play better because of our passing.

 

[veryolddog]

I generally concur with Tony's thoughts. However, I would like to see Geno substitute more than he has done in the past, not only to give starters a rest, but also to modify his defense or offense against the opposing team. This year and next year, Geno will be loaded with talent and skills that he has not seen in a long time. There are so many good players the variations of players are many.

 

[DEpup]

I guess this means that their are newer protocols allowing teams to negative test out of isolation??

They could be reacting to the recent CDC guidance change which reduced quarantine periods when coupled with negative tests. Looks like they went to 10 days rather than the old 14 day guidance.

 

[DEpup]

The ONLY thing that is going to get freshman ready to play is game reps, I fail to see how a loss of those can be a benefit in any way. I also don't understand why so many are doubting the health of Westbrook? She has been fully cleared since June, that was 6 months ago and there has been no reporting of any issues for her. In August she admitted she "has her good days and bad days" and that she was "not 100% physically ready yet" but that is to be expected for any player just a couple months into their comeback. At this point I am willing to bet that Westbrook is 100% healthy, will be one of the 5 starters. and looked to for a large chunk of minutes every game.

I agree. I'm not sure Tuck was ever 100% after her knee issues and I clearly remember her having good days and bad. Didn't stop her from being a starter and a great husky who went to battle night in and night out.

 

[MD#12Fan]

I have a theory that playing with no fans levels out the competition. Hence perhaps an explanation for the early upsets. The really good teams get attention wherever they play, home or away. (when there are fans) I think that helps separate the "wheat from the chaff". Before I moved to Alaska, I would make an annual trek to Philly to see UConn-Temple. Temple women for a normal game would get "parents and boyfriends". (Sorry Owls) When UConn came in they would get great crowds. Helped UConn on all fronts. You could always tell that Temple was nervous.
Now, all the games feel like pickup games with no crowds. In college pickup games, the best team didn't always hold the court. The tougher, scrappier teams did.
This atmosphere or lack thereof may again favor UConn. UConn is trained to be consistent, methodical, almost robotic. Geno preaches for kids to try to win every drill. Not Iverson's philosophy. (on those Philly trips, after stopping off for a cheesesteak, I would get to the arena early to watch the Huskies warm up.) So, I think the no fans will not affect UConn as much as it might another top-10 team.
( Game of the Week: Louisville at Duke. Louisville into a dead, fan-less Cameron Indoor Stadium versus an upstart undefeated team with a sharp, new coach. Watch out!)

 

[soxfan23]

I agree. I'm not sure Tuck was ever 100% after her knee issues and I clearly remember her having good days and bad. Didn't stop her from being a starter and a great husky who went to battle night in and night out.

Not only that, but Tuck underwent very serious and relatively new microfracture surgery on her knee, a process in which a series of small fractures are purposely created on the surface of the joint in an effort to have the body produce more healthy cartilage. While no surgery is minor, Westbrook had 2 scope procedures to clean up her knee that are minimally invasive and really quite common for athletes these days.

 

[Tonyc]

I generally concur with Tony's thoughts. However, I would like to see Geno substitute more than he has done in the past, not only to give starters a rest, but also to modify his defense or offense against the opposing team. This year and next year, Geno will be loaded with talent and skills that he has not seen in a long time. There are so many good players the variations of players are many.

The top kids that came here this season didnt come to sit they came to play. Next season it will be the same the top kids came here to play not sit. This could be Geno's biggest challange. However with that said they are all good enough to play meaningful minutes but will need time to develop. Kids get better with competition and this team is very competitive.

 

[soxfan23]

I just love those "reliable sources". They are always telling my the best ways to invest. So far Radio Shack and Eight Track Tapes havn't payed off too well.

Apparently my "reliable sources" are pretty solid, here is a Courant article referencing the skeleton staff that the women's team is using.

"Benedict added that “not everyone was involved from a staffing standpoint” when the women practiced Thursday, but the entire team and “all of our coaches” are back together for the first time Tuesday."

UConn AD David Benedict explains length of men’s basketball shutdown, status of Sunday’s matchup with Georgetown, viability of season and more

UConn Athletic Director David Benedict said Tuesday that the school is continuing to gather more information before it determines how long the men’s basketball team will have to suspend play.…

www.courant.com

 

[Longtime fan]

We've seen some top ranked teams struggle and we've seen some top ranked teams loose. We've seen why they struggle and why they lost. We havent played a game yet either. With our schedule melted down by not playing LVille and Miss St I like it alot. We had a drawback of a 2 week layoff because of the virus. It may have been a blessing giving us a little bit more time to get our freshman ready. How will that affect us, we dont know and wont know until UMass Lowell and we will have a better idea after our first 3-4 games.

What we do know is we have an experienced and disiplined post player in ONO. We also have good ball handlers and good passers which leads to less turnovers. We have good outside shooters that cant be left alone. What we need to be careful of is ONO in foul trouble. One other thing to watch out for is underclassman mistakes which we have 5 games to work on. IMO we are good enough to overcome those freshan mistakes. With that said we have 5 games to have Edwards and Gabriel get ready just in case ONO gets in foul trouble. Im gonna guess that Paige and Nika play the point and see a good amount of minutes. Evina, and this is just a guess will not be able to go full throttle because of her injury and that means she shares time with Griff Paige and Nika.

This will be a very mentally tuff, disciplied, never give up team. These first 5 games will get us ready for Baylor in January. I have to wonder if Geno gets a game between Christmas and the Baylor game just as a warm up after the holidays. This team has it all,... except it lacks alot of expereince which will be helped by our first 5 games. How long before we're ready will depend on how long it takes for us to get ready. Im hoping those first 5 games does it.

Im not going to compare Paige Nika and Edwards to other freshman because they havent played a game yet. UConn plays team ball not dependent on one player but dependent on a team effort. We need to be patient. We are too good to loose in December. Baylor is struggleing. Will they be able to get it together in January?????

So this coming weekend we get to see the best team in America play and we get an idea of where we're at. Follow that up with a couple of games that will bring some reality, to show us where we're at. I like this team alot and even more over the next 4 years. We will only get better of the next few months as we reach our potential and better over the next few years as we reach even a higher potential.

Hey guys and for those of you who like to look ahead. We have a monster class that can shoot lights out this season and another one coming in next season and they can handle the ball too.

The comments about Westbrool's knee are disturbing. I heard a similar comment ( I thought ) from Geno. If, after all this time, she is not healthy, her career may be in serious jeopardy. Hope not.

 

[Steve UConn72]

“This is the type of errant pedantry, up with which I will not put!”
WC

Mark Twain, I believe. You beat me to it!

 

[Cuango]

Mark Twain, I believe. You beat me to it!

Actually, Winston Churchill said this after being chided for ending a sentence with a preposition. He has some great quotes. Some versions have “arrant”.