Lessons Learned last Nite

[Tonyc]

Avoid foul trouble. You cant do much about being sick but Lou played through it. She was unbelievable. How she did it I dont know but she did. Maybe the trip to the bucket helped. I said in a post before the game that MDs inexperienced freshman would have to step up big and UConn needed to stay out of foul trouble and from the middle of the third qtr to the end of the game they were in key foul trouble which allowed MD to take them one on one and make it a close game. Uconn was defenseless. I never thought we would lose but we did have a scare. Up until the foul trouble we were up double digits so you can see how foul trouble can make you defenseless, not taking anything away from MD but with Gabby and Collier in foul trouble that opened up the lane and MD took advantage of it. It allowed Slocum and Charles to dribble penetrate which led to easy baskets. So perhaps our biggest fear is over for now. Lou sick, Gabby and Collier in foul trouble and we gutted it out. Gotta wonder if not for foul how much UConn couldve won by? Gotta wonder if no foul trouble how MD especially Slocum and Charles who played. Hey both Slocum and Charles played smart and played great but a UConn team not in foul trouble makes me wonder what the outcome wouldve looked like. I know this we can sit and wonder IF IF IF and it doesnt change a think. Its not good to use IFs I learned that along time ago. Uconn giving up over 80 pts to any team is almost unheard of so you can see how much foul trouble hurt us. A lesson learned.

None the less MD put a a terrific fight once again. Once again Uconn responded. Once again Chong from the corner. Gotta wonder what fans are thinkgin now. This was suppose to be an off year for UConn after losing so much. UConn for the next 6 seasons will be loaded again and I wonder if they will ever lose again. Seriously that sounds crazy I know but on paper it sure looks like it and when you have Geno at the helm and see what he's done with this years young team and with everybody coming back except for Chong and TLaw well they'll be almost silly good.

So the streak continues. As we march into the New Year our nemisis South Florida who always plays well against us will be our 90 th win. The media coverage will be silly and as we approach 100 in a row it will be South Carolina at home. Can only imagine what it will be like for our players with constant interviews and questions from everybody. Bottom line this is a T.E.A.M. (Together Everyone Achieves More). This is what Geno teaches and this is what this team represents. I wonder when somebody will ask Geno to write a book about how he recruits and coaches. He is IMO the Greatest Coach of All Time. He has accomplished things through his team that even in your wildness imagination couldnt dream of.

I am concerned about playtime for our non starters and their development. We will need them down the stretch for nothing more then to give our starters a rest. BTW I had mentioned Murders Row as part of our schedule when we started this crazy schedule in a previous post and Doris Burke mentioned it last nite. Made me feel good to think she might read the Boneyard and saw my post.

So Tuesday Jan 10 USF is at the XL Center and that will be our 90 th win. Expect a sellout and expect the media to be crazy...and the fans and the Boneyard well its always crazy here. Happy New Year and God Bless.

 

[HoopsFan21]

The media is not really talking about this streak, so I don't think it's going to get much crazier than it is now. Definitely a big difference from the streak six years ago when it was all over sports news probably because it was the first time Wooden's UCLA streak was being threatened, and then it turned into the men's vs. women's basketball debate once the 88 game streak was broken. This time it's more of a been there done that, so I think the streak comes and goes without as much fanfare as last time.

Next year's team is going to be great: seniors Kia and Gabby, juniors KLS and Collier, and a sophomore Crystal Dangerfield at point with players like AZ and Walker coming off the bench. That alone is an embarrassment of riches with the rest of the bench of AEH, Coombs, Lexi, Kyla, Molly, and Batouly. Then the following season adds Collier2, and when UConn has more than one #1 recruit on its team we know what happens.

Murderer's Row has been used in sports for a long time. Doris probably didn't get it from this board. Maybe come up with something unique and see if it makes it on air, then you know for sure she's reading!

 

[Wbbfan1]

We learned that Natalie Butler has to somehow be more involved in the offense and be able to score points when Gabby and/or Napheesa are required to sit because of foul troubles. There's a huge difference in the offense when Natalie is on the court. Natalie has to stop over thinking and just play.

 

[pvdoggy]

We learned that Natalie Butler has to somehow be more involved in the offense and be able to score points when Gabby and/or Napheesa are required to sit because of foul troubles. There's a huge difference in the offense when Natalie is on the court. Natalie has to stop over thinking and just play.

For someone who has been in the Uconn system for almost 2 1/2 year now, Natalie looks lost when she is on the court.

 

[ochoopsfan]

Tony,

I love this.

Bottom line this is a T.E.A.M. (Together Everyone Achieves More)

 

[drweo]

Tonyc wrote: "I said in a post before the game that MDs inexperienced freshman would have to step up big and UConn needed to stay out of foul trouble and from the middle of the third qtr to the end of the game they were in key foul trouble which allowed MD to take them one on one and make it a close game."

MD won its two closest previous games via the foul line, getting outscored from the floor in both, by more than a few. Inducing fouls seems to be part of their game. So wondering what might have happened had UConn not been in foul trouble does not tell the whole story. That was part of MD's plan (helped a bit by the officials), so UConn had to try to defend against that as well---as you correctly point out. No doubt, other teams will now follow MD's example against UConn; the Huskies will have to return to their non-fouling ways!

 

[Sonny44]

We learned that Natalie Butler has to somehow be more involved in the offense and be able to score points when Gabby and/or Napheesa are required to sit because of foul troubles. There's a huge difference in the offense when Natalie is on the court. Natalie has to stop over thinking and just play.

It's not just her offense. She missed several coverage and block opportunities last night even against much smaller guards.

 

[vtcwbuff]

UConn is a different team when Butler is in the game. While she has obviously worked hard and improved her conditioning, it is frustrating to watch her play. Unfortunately, after a couple of years in the UConn system she is probably not going to get much better. However, I'm hoping the upcoming cupcake season will give her some confidence (if that is the problem) and she will prove me wrong.

 

[chuck.r]

For someone who has been in the Uconn system for almost 2 1/2 year now, Natalie looks lost when she is on the court.

I actually found Butler to be getting better at being in the flow of the offense; she got up and down the court on pace with her teammates, her passing instincts, particularly off rebounds, have gotten better. She is still not a confident shooter, maddeningly so down low, but I saw Williams clanging more than a few of her jumpers off the front end, saw Collier miss more than her usual share of bunnies. We ought to give at least some credit for the team's offensive inefficiency to Maryland's disruptive defense. Another thing to consider: Auriemma may be coaching Butler to be part of the offense in a way counter-intuitive to her instincts - she hardly ever puts an offensive rebound straight back up, as most would expect, but prefers to pass out to the wings, to her more experienced teammates. Perhaps she is being instructed to do so.

I get peoples' impatience - she lacks the assassin's instincts we sense in Collier, Samuelson, Nurse & Williams. (I will consider it a major victory when she finally dives to floor and recovers a loose ball). I think she needs more playing time, not less, and perhaps she will be obliged in the conference season. The team is going to need her come tournament time, when some tough opponent once again gets a couple of the starters in foul trouble as part of a strategy to hobble the Huskies and make them more beatable.

BTW - we can keep talking about the "what if UConn had not been in foul trouble", but I believe that was a significant part of Frese's strategy - get the Huskies in foul trouble, their bench is not deep or as effective. It almost worked, had anyone other than Slocum been able to drain a three. Other coaches will certainly take note of it and try something similar. A credit to Auriemma that he trains and expects every player on the court to have the capacity to shoot when open. UConn had 5 players in double figures, a telling stat.

 

[Florida Fan]

Butler is getting better, at glacier-like speed. Passing out of the low post can be an effective strategy but boneyard fans would like to have her use her frame to score when it appears the opportunities are there. She lost a late rebound when the Jones sisters just took it away from her. But when she does corral a defensive rebound she is making efficient passes to our streaking guards. Let's face it, Natalie doesn't have great hands, nothing close to Dolson or Stewie or Pheesa. She needs to be able to use her body to ward off the defender to her left and make the close jump-hook. Natalie has to get it together this year and we need to be able to say, when describing her low-post-offensive contributions that "the Butler did it."

 

[hoophuskee]

We learned that Natalie Butler has to somehow be more involved in the offense and be able to score points when Gabby and/or Napheesa are required to sit because of foul troubles. There's a huge difference in the offense when Natalie is on the court. Natalie has to stop over thinking and just play.

No-- she doesn't. Inidvdiually yeah she should look to try to attain improvement. But it isn't "needed."

We won. We put up 87 points.

Offense wasn't;' the problem.

What happens "if" Danger finds her groove? You think it best to give the ball to Nat instead of any of the other 6 players?

We don't need Nat to be a scorer. Just hit an occasional shot.

But we need her to play good defense, rebound, pass well and set good picks for all of other marvelous shooters and scorers.

 

[Husky pride]

We learned that Natalie Butler has to somehow be more involved in the offense and be able to score points when Gabby and/or Napheesa are required to sit because of foul troubles. There's a huge difference in the offense when Natalie is on the court. Natalie has to stop over thinking and just play.

Natalie definitely has talent, but she impresses me as having too nice of a court personality. She seems, at times, not to have heard Geno's slam when he said the team wasn't tough enough. I'd love to see her rip a few rebounds from opponents' hands! Also, she's tall enough, but doesn't seem to always get off her feet when going up for a rebound. In that it often takes the bigs longer to adjust, she may come around before she's done at UConn. ( If she doesn't, with next year's lineup, I would think her minutes are going to shrink considerably).

 

[hoophuskee]

UConn is a different team when Butler is in the game. While she has obviously worked hard and improved her conditioning, it is frustrating to watch her play. Unfortunately, after a couple of years in the UConn system she is probably not going to get much better. However, I'm hoping the upcoming cupcake season will give her some confidence (if that is the problem) and she will prove me wrong.

It wasn't frustrating to watch her play vs Texas or Baylor. We don't win without her.

I am so proud of her and Chong. And when Danger gets it- we're gonna be real real real real real good.

 

[ochoopsfan]

My opinion on Butler it isnt Conditioning, its Confidence.
I think she lacks something that says, "I can do what my teammates can do"

I watch the West Coast Huskies, UW, and Chantel Osahor needs conditioning, yet she leads the nation in rebounds, has an amazing 56 assists(for a big), and has one of the best moves for any big currently in WCBB, of High Post, put the ball on the floor, and get to the basket. Osahor is in my top 5 for POY this year, as are Plum and Lou.

 

[eebmg]

For someone who has been in the Uconn system for almost 2 1/2 year now, Natalie looks lost when she is on the court.

Assuming you mean the offensive side, Not lost but scared. Especially on the low post. She seems better on the high post with some nice entry passes but I think when other players learn to ignore her as not being a threat, it will dry up. She needs to have some
low post moves when guarded on the low post. It seems she is looking for the perfect unguarded bucket and will try 3 or 4 dribbles and then stalls. One or two quick moves off momentum, take it up strong and get some fouls called

 

[hoophuskee]

I actually found Butler to be getting better at being in the flow of the offense; she got up and down the court on pace with her teammates, her passing instincts, particularly off rebounds, have gotten better. She is still not a confident shooter, maddeningly so down low, but I saw Williams clanging more than a few of her jumpers off the front end, saw Collier miss more than her usual share of bunnies. We ought to give at least some credit for the team's offensive inefficiency to Maryland's disruptive defense. Another thing to consider: Auriemma may be coaching Butler to be part of the offense in a way counter-intuitive to her instincts - she hardly ever puts an offensive rebound straight back up, as most would expect, but prefers to pass out to the wings, to her more experienced teammates. Perhaps she is being instructed to do so.

I get peoples' impatience - she lacks the assassin's instincts we sense in Collier, Samuelson, Nurse & Williams. (I will consider it a major victory when she finally dives to floor and recovers a loose ball). I think she needs more playing time, not less, and perhaps she will be obliged in the conference season. The team is going to need her come tournament time, when some tough opponent once again gets a couple of the starters in foul trouble as part of a strategy to hobble the Huskies and make them more beatable.

BTW - we can keep talking about the "what if UConn had not been in foul trouble", but I believe that was a significant part of Frese's strategy - get the Huskies in foul trouble, their bench is not deep or as effective. It almost worked, had anyone other than Slocum been able to drain a three. Other coaches will certainly take note of it and try something similar. A credit to Auriemma that he trains and expects every player on the court to have the capacity to shoot when open. UConn had 5 players in double figures, a telling stat.

1-- But we weren't that inefficient in that at least our star was sick and there was 1 awful call vs Collier if not two and there were two dumb fouls committed by Gabby and maybe more players were sick. SO we weren't "that" inefficient" considering we were playing at a top tier team's home site.

2-- I sort of think Geno is coaching Butler exactly right. I think too many people overrate her as a scorer. is fine when she focuses on defense and rebounding and passing and setting picks. We have seen with our eyes much smaller players block Nat's shot when she is the low post. SO when she gets a rebound and a lot of more athletic players surround her - why would anyone think the best move is "to go back up?" When she gets the rebound she isn't that athletic so she is more apt to get blocked. Instead why not pass it out unless she is wide open to our tremendous shooters - and I do mean TREMENDOUS - before the defense can get set? If Geno is "resetting" Nat's instincts in this regard- I support/ agree with that decision.

3-- I know some keep talking about foul trouble -- but we keep winning. And Nat has been a big part of it. VS Texas and Baylor she was invaluable. Why change anything? The next time we play MD, they won't get some of the home cooking they got last night. Even Geno talked little about the poor officiating, didn't he? You can't account for that. You just have to rely on Gabby not committing dumb foul numbers 2 and 3 for example and that you won't get completely burned by bad refs. It's not supposed to be certain that UCONN wins every game and that the refs will fall perfectly in line.

 

[hoophuskee]

Assuming you mean the offensive side, Not lost but scared. Especially on the low post. She seems better on the high post with some nice entry passes but I think when other players learn to ignore her as not being a threat, it will dry up. She needs to have some
low post moves when guarded on the low post. It seems she is looking for the perfect unguarded bucket and will try 3 or 4 dribbles and then stalls. One or two quick moves off momentum, take it up strong and get some fouls called

There is no reason to identify this as "A need" however. If she can do it- that is one thing. But we've won every game so far - it is NOT a need for her to be a low post threat. We score easily enough.

 

[HoopsFan21]

Assuming you mean the offensive side, Not lost but scared. Especially on the low post. She seems better on the high post with some nice entry passes but I think when other players learn to ignore her as not being a threat, it will dry up. She needs to have some
low post moves when guarded on the low post. It seems she is looking for the perfect unguarded bucket and will try 3 or 4 dribbles and then stalls. One or two quick moves off momentum, take it up strong and get some fouls called

Butler should never dribble the ball - it's a recipe for disaster for a big. She should also stop holding it at chest height where it can be swatted away by a smaller player. Whenever Kiah got the ball she used to hold it straight up over her head until she figured out what to do with it keeping it away from leaping smaller opponents. When Butler is on the floor, she is generally the biggest kid for either team, by a couple of inches. If she's not going to provide offense, at the least by now she should be a sure handed rebounding and shot blocking machine.

 

[snowkot]

Learned: In a hard fought, nip and tuck, massive pressure game, less than a minute on the clock, dagger 3 needed to put the game to bed, get the ball to Saniya Chong! At least against Maryland?!?

2015: 75-71, 40 seconds left, dagger 3 - good night
2016: 81-75, 48 seconds left, dagger 3 - sleep tight.

Remarkable!! Throw in a block with 7 seconds left, some critical drives in the first half, and you have a game of which the young lady should be very proud!

 

[RegisteredUconn]

Funny thing about last night's game, and an important lesson learned: Sometimes when Geno says "Lou needs a bucket," he isn't talking about her scoring.

 

[Siestakeyfan]

Butler is getting better, at glacier-like speed. Passing out of the low post can be an effective strategy but boneyard fans would like to have her use her frame to score when it appears the opportunities are there. She lost a late rebound when the Jones sisters just took it away from her. But when she does corral a defensive rebound she is making efficient passes to our streaking guards. Let's face it, Natalie doesn't have great hands, nothing close to Dolson or Stewie or Pheesa. She needs to be able to use her body to ward off the defender to her left and make the close jump-hook. Natalie has to get it together this year and we need to be able to say, when describing her low-post-offensive contributions that "the Butler did it."

Butler is trying and good effort Her physical abilities are limited

 

[Kaizen]

My advice to Butler: get the damn ball and just shoot, you either score or get fouled.

 

[chuck.r]

1-- But we weren't that inefficient in that at least our star was sick and there was 1 awful call vs Collier if not two and there were two dumb fouls committed by Gabby and maybe more players were sick. SO we weren't "that" inefficient" considering we were playing at a top tier team's home site.

2-- I sort of think Geno is coaching Butler exactly right. I think too many people overrate her as a scorer. is fine when she focuses on defense and rebounding and passing and setting picks. We have seen with our eyes much smaller players block Nat's shot when she is the low post. SO when she gets a rebound and a lot of more athletic players surround her - why would anyone think the best move is "to go back up?" When she gets the rebound she isn't that athletic so she is more apt to get blocked. Instead why not pass it out unless she is wide open to our tremendous shooters - and I do mean TREMENDOUS - before the defense can get set? If Geno is "resetting" Nat's instincts in this regard- I support/ agree with that decision.

3-- I know some keep talking about foul trouble -- but we keep winning. And Nat has been a big part of it. VS Texas and Baylor she was invaluable. Why change anything? The next time we play MD, they won't get some of the home cooking they got last night. Even Geno talked little about the poor officiating, didn't he? You can't account for that. You just have to rely on Gabby not committing dumb foul numbers 2 and 3 for example and that you won't get completely burned by bad refs. It's not supposed to be certain that UCONN wins every game and that the refs will fall perfectly in line.

1) I'm not interested in cherry-picking reasons (or individual foul calls - a basketball fan favorite) to absolve UConn of poor or inefficient play. The team is capable of bad possessions just like any other team, regardless of cause. NB was on the court for 14 minutes, while the starters were on for double and triple that and there were a slew of bricks tossed up, poor passes intercepted, and dumb fouls taken. Folks are picking on Butler, I believe, because she is seen as a weak link, and there are folks on this board that love to complain ad nauseum about perceived weak links. The young lady is human, as is the rest of the team. I will agree, the Huskies weren't that inefficient as I may have overstated it - they did score 87 pts with an above-50% shooting percentage for the game. That usually is enough to win any game.

2) I wasn't criticizing the coaching - I was only defending Butler's lack of scoring as based, in part, on the way she is possibly being asked to play her role - rebound, defend, facilitate. I agree with you that it makes coaching sense. There are folks, though, who only equate playing well with scoring well, and are maybe criticizing her play on her lack of point production.

3) I wasn't suggesting changing anything. Home-cooking? Ain't buying that - Maryland had 19 PF's called against them, UConn had 17. Yes - I'm aware the Terps fouled intentionally 3-4 times late to extend the game, but even accounting for that, the game was still called pretty even. I seem to recall several moments when the crowd was booing what they thought was poor officiating against the home team. Officiating, bad & good, always tends to even out over the course of the game. Fans, however, only seem to remember the unconscionable sins committed against their guys.

 

[Nuyoika]

I learned that if our starting 5 beats your starting 5 we win.

 

[hoophuskee]

1) I'm not interested in cherry-picking reasons (or individual foul calls - a basketball fan favorite) to absolve UConn of poor or inefficient play. The team is capable of bad possessions just like any other team, regardless of cause. NB was on the court for 14 minutes, while the starters were on for double and triple that and there were a slew of bricks tossed up, poor passes intercepted, and dumb fouls taken. Folks are picking on Butler, I believe, because she is seen as a weak link, and there are folks on this board that love to complain ad nauseum about perceived weak links. The young lady is human, as is the rest of the team. I will agree, the Huskies weren't that inefficient as I may have overstated it - they did score 87 pts with an above-50% shooting percentage for the game. That usually is enough to win any game.

2) I wasn't criticizing the coaching - I was only defending Butler's lack of scoring as based, in part, on the way she is possibly being asked to play her role - rebound, defend, facilitate. I agree with you that it makes coaching sense. There are folks, though, who only equate playing well with scoring well, and are maybe criticizing her play on her lack of point production.

3) I wasn't suggesting changing anything. Home-cooking? Ain't buying that - Maryland had 19 PF's called against them, UConn had 17. Yes - I'm aware the Terps fouled intentionally 3-4 times late to extend the game, but even accounting for that, the game was still called pretty even. I seem to recall several moments when the crowd was booing what they thought was poor officiating against the home team. Officiating, bad & good, always tends to even out over the course of the game. Fans, however, only seem to remember the unconscionable sins committed against their guys.

1-- That's all I was trying to say with number 1 in bold. I apologize if I offended. Don't mean to. I was part of an old hartford courant board approx. 12-14 years ago. After a while on the men's board many all they did was tear apart Taliek Brown. It bugged me to no end. As UConn was winning many games all you'd hear from some is 'that they won despite Taliek Brown" and Calhoun should pull him. I would argue the point. It was so ridiculous for some to say that. On here with Nat - no one says "don't play her" but I get a vibe sometime from posts that she isn't pulling her weight. But for me what I see she is doing what this team NEEDS. SO I love her for it and may get too defensive with her at times. We don't win vs Texas or Baylor without Nat. That makes her very valuable and it seems you feel the same way.

I am so damn proud of Nat and Chong so far and am eagerly awaiting a big surge at some point from Danger. OFC I'd like to see Nat and all the players more efficient and effective.

3-- We can agree to disagree on number 3. Another case in point - though this wasn't big but representative -- one play Nurse didn't get over halfcourt in time. The ref called a 10 second violation. It was around the 8:42 mark. Nat lost the ball around the ft line going for a rebound and it was a loose ball out near / but before half court. It was a loose ball. Nat lost possession. Lou dove for it and got the ball around 8:39 in the scramble on the floor. She passed it back to Nurse who in turn walked the ball over halfcourt at 8:32. So how could the ref have made the call that it was 10 seconds if he wasn't look at the clock? How can you call a 10 second violation if you aren't looking at the clock? He made it up. It wasn't "a blown call." To put it "visually" it's as though he closed his eyes and said to himself "I'm making the call even if I have no idea what the clock says." That's a home cooking call. This isn't like someone driving the lane and you as the ref aren't sure there was contact and you had to make a split second decision. His type of call on Nurse is rarely made and it is all about the clock. He GUESSED/ he made it up. No way he guesses like that against Md at Md.

The 3rd and 4th fouls on Collier impacted the game. The refs imo need to be sure. That 3rd foul on Collier was an game impact call. Even the 4th questionable. You can't go "guessing" here especially with number 3. That was away from the ball and no impact to the play. Muffett recently said "you can call a foul on nearly every play." Not that bad. But that 3rd foul on Collier - the ref has to be smarter.