Sometimes it takes " two" to make a "bad" pass or a turnover! In this case, maybe it
was just a case of " bad things happening to (two) good people !!!"
that's letting paige off the hook as i see it:
she made the crummy decision, liya not so much.
i don't expect paige to be perfect. anybody could have decided 'i'm gonna pass up this good shot for a better shot.' i hear that preached over and over, by media commentators and i suppose by the uconn coaches. it makes sense. it's a good tactic for the 'team' approach.
but there are some variables. for nika, seeking a 'better shot' is clearly preferable to shooting the 'good one.' same goes for kk and ash, to a lesser degree, etc.
but paige is a special case. paige isn't an ordinary shooter. she is exceptional -- an extraordinary shooter and scorer. what would be a 'good shot' for others is in fact a 'great shot' for her. she should not be passing them up.
yet she can't seem to get past the 'get everyone involved' ethos, which nika adheres to and is admirable -- and sadly missing in many players -- but for paige also is detrimental to the team at times. it's tough to see because she is a great talent as a facilitator, but she is an even better scorer. she needs to embrace that for the good of the team.
geno, the great coach, has been trying to get paige to realize this from Day One -- with limited success. it's tough for paige because in some sense she is attempting to reconcile geno's advice with her core principles. she'll have to do it to become a better ballplayer, but her values as a good person may try to veto it.