Kia: The One That Got Away

[RockyMTblue2]

Interesting little history on Kia and Merchant.

"They learned they aren’t UConn. They knew that already. Merchant was reminded of it watching Uconn guard Kia Nurse, who’d she’d known since Nurse was 7. She’d recruited her forever. Thought she had her. Then, on the last day of the July recruiting period, a UConn assistant happened to see her.

“In an eight-day span, it’s over,” Merchant said. “That’s what you’re up against a little bit from a recruiting standpoint. There’s just not enough parity in the women’s game."

Nice game article.

" Final score: 96-62. It was UConn’s second-closest contest in five games this season, all against high-major competition.

That’s all there is to do — fight the good fight, tip your cap and play for second place. Someday, when this dynasty dies, women’s basketball can take off. Parity is waiting.

“The first couple possessions, you kind of get a feel of that speed and that length, of how hard they play,” MSU sophomore point guard Taryn McCutcheon said. “For the rest of the game, you know it’s going to be like that. This team is like a machine.”

Couch: The UConn women are ruthless; Michigan State - and everyone else - has no shot

 

[tomcat]

Article is well written. Spreading the UConn legend a little farther.

 

[Plebe]

That’s all there is to do — fight the good fight, tip your cap and play for second place. Someday, when this dynasty dies, women’s basketball can take off. Parity is waiting.

I know a lot of people out there think this way, but this is *completely* the wrong mentality.

Did Geno think this way about Pat Summitt when she ruled over the recruiting landscape with undisputed hegemony?

Did Muffet McGraw think this way about UConn as she was having to compete against UConn multiple times a year in the Big East?

 

[RockyMTblue2]

I know a lot of people out there think this way, but this is *completely* the wrong mentality.

Did Geno think this way about Pat Summitt when she ruled over the recruiting landscape with undisputed hegemony?

Did Muffet McGraw think this way about UConn as she was having to compete against UConn multiple times a year in the Big East?

I hope you know I didn't say that. It's part of the article, though the quotation marks could throw you off. Couch is editorializing.

 

[Phil]

Thanks for sharing that article.

I liked most of it, but like Plebe, the response isn't to wait for Geno's retirement, but to respond.

What better story epitomizes this than Mississippi State who lost by 60 to UConn, and coach goes to see a practice, and then beats UConn?

 

[Plebe]

I hope you know I didn't say that. It's part of the article, though the quotation marks could throw you off. Couch is editorializing.

Yes, sorry, I was aware that these were the author's words. But both he and Merchant exhibit this wrongheaded mentality.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

That little bit of the article about Merchant thinking she had Kia in the bag: how fortuitous was it for UConn to have found Kia in the nick of time. Love Kia's attitude. Love her game.

 

[hoophuskee]

Interesting little history on Kia and Merchant.

"That’s all there is to do — fight the good fight, tip your cap and play for second place. Someday, when this dynasty dies, women’s basketball can take off. Parity is waiting.

“The first couple possessions, you kind of get a feel of that speed and that length, of how hard they play,” MSU sophomore point guard Taryn McCutcheon said. “For the rest of the game, you know it’s going to be like that. This team is like a machine.”

Couch: The UConn women are ruthless; Michigan State - and everyone else - has no shot

Another silly comment from a clueless coach. Too naive to understand you aren't going to get a big viewership with players playing so below the rim. Got to get guys watching the game too and hold onto more women fans. A close game you can't control. Exciting athleticism above the rim can be exciting. In business many times you look to copy successful business strategies of other elite businesses. There is a reason why the NBA promotes the slam dunk and why sportscenter will highlight dunks. It's popular.

Years ago Jimmy Valvano mentioned why the ACC would have nothing to worry vs the Big East and he said it's that the ACC could always recruit up north but to get players in ACC country to come up North was much harder. In similar speak in women's basketball, many more owmen flock to the men's game than the men flock to the women's game.

Should Women's Basketball Lower the Rims? That's a Stupid Question

There is a viewership that loves the excitement of athleticism. And so far the response from the women's game has been "Shut up and just learn to like our game." That is such an ignorant business model. To think that you are going to get guys like Dan O'Shaugnessey to watch the game because it's close is so laughable. If close games were os important then why doesn't the WNBA do better? If "the beauty of basketball is so important" then how the hell have the Knicks been so profitable during the Carmelo Anthony years?

As the author writes of the above article writes-

"And when a six-foot-one fifth-grader named Ashlyn Watkins dunked four times in a single game, enough of them shared the grainy video of those plays that it went viral, and was featured on ESPN's flagship program SportsCenter. That's exactly the sort of thing that could fill more stadium seats."

As stated with the jimmv analogy. The men's game gets more women viewership. Yet how can the women get more men to like it and why do so many women like the NBA vs the WNBA? Athleticism - above the rim imo.

The WNBA's Biggest Problem Isn't Lack of Interest From Men. It's Women. | HuffPost

 

[HuskyMJ]

Another silly comment from a clueless coach.

Except Suzy Merchant didn't say that quote about when the UConn dynasty dies, the columnist did. But I'm sure you took 1 second to bother reading the article before misappropriating the quote to the coach and bashing her

 

[Crossover]

Except Suzy Merchant didn't say that quote about when the UConn dynasty dies, the columnist did. But I'm sure you took 1 second to bother reading the article before misappropriating the quote to the coach and bashing her

Plus, those who follow wcbb know that Suzy Merchant is a fine coach, and that Geno thinks highly of her.