Lou: If she plays like she did today which one of the pre-season best 5 will she knock out for first team All-American?

[BobbyJ]

This is exactly what I mean. Even appearing to criticize Clark is apparently forbidden on the UConn board, even if it's in the service of praising Paige.

Doesn’t concern me if someone doesn’t understand what they’re seeing. Maybe they belong on a Iowa board.

 

[MSGRET]

Is this the same Caroline who beat Azzi in a three point contest before they came to UConn?

Yes, she beat Azzi, but it was when Azzi was wearing a boot on her right leg. If I remember correctly Azzi actually made more 3 point shots, but Caroline hit more in the final round.

 

[JoePgh]

Did anyone else note a visual similarity between Lou2 and Kia Nurse? The fact that they are about the same height and wear the same uniform number may account for this. And their games are somewhat similar, although I suspect that Lou has a long way to go to match Kia on defense.

On the "who starts" question between Caroline and Lou, I will go out on a limb and say that one of them will start, i.e., that Nika will remain as PG. Nika has shown too much improvement in her areas of weakness not to maintain her starting role. How can you ignore 11 assists against 3 turnovers?

However, with Ice's unavailability, I think Caroline in particular will see time at the "4" position. Since Amari does not appear to be ready for prime time, the rotation for the 4 and 5 positions is not deep (although it is high quality) -- just Dorka, Aaliyah, and Ayanna. Caroline is strong enough on the boards to be credible at that position, which is how she and Lou can be on the court together. I think that Aubrey will find her place as a backup "2" guard.

 

[Bone Dog]

I don't think we'll have to put Caroline (or Lou) at the 4 much, if at all, this year. But we will probably play 4-out with a smaller lineup when we mean to run. I'm thinking Nika Azzi Caroline Lou + any of the bigs, though Aaliyah or Ayanna would be interesting choices for this unit.

Lou has played post-D before, as has Caroline, so I don't think it will matter which one ends up there. It will just be switching 1-5. Even Nika could end up defending the post -- there's was a moment in the Indiana game last season when she held off Holmes in the low post. Nika is capable of anything!

As for Aubrey, I don't see her getting much guard time. She doesn't have the mindset for it -- still picks up her dribble before she knows where she's going with the ball (a guard no-no). But as a slasher from the wing she is still awesome.

 

[Zarathustra]

Yes, she beat Azzi, but it was when Azzi was wearing a boot on her right leg. If I remember correctly Azzi actually made more 3 point shots, but Caroline hit more in the final round.

Please.... they are both great basketball players and three pointer shooters! Who was
better Willie Mays or Mickey Mantle... the comparisons are endless. I have a favorite here
.. the one wearing the UCONN jersey!

 

[Carnac]

Lou was awesome. It will be hard to keep her off the floor. Nika looked great, too, even better than last season. What an awful luxury Geno has with this group! If it takes a couple more games for Caroline to get on the floor, we’re all going to get way too used to watching Lou… like shades of Lou Gehrig. Just kidding. When Caroline is ready, I’m going to be just as thrilled to watch her! I am used to great things from her too.

You can stop right there. You don't keep a player that can do the things Lou can do on the bench. Anyone that saw the game, that knows the game can see that!!! 18 points in the first half, and she was just warming up.

 

[Carnac]

Please.... they are both great basketball players and three pointer shooters! Who was
better Willie Mays or Mickey Mantle... the comparisons are endless. I have a favorite here
.. the one wearing the UCONN jersey!

I remember those discussions. There was never a consensus. BOTH were great in their heyday, and obvious HOF'ers. There were several players during that era that you knew without a doubt, were future Hall of Famers. Henry Aaron, Roberto Clemente, Johnny Bench, Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, etc.

 

[Bone Dog]

Please.... they are both great basketball players and three pointer shooters! Who was
better Willie Mays or Mickey Mantle... the comparisons are endless. I have a favorite here
.. the one wearing the UCONN jersey!

Willie Mays, no question

 

[CL82]

The Law of Small Numbers is about to get you , friend. Sample size weighs heavily in Ms Clark's favor when considering D1 performances. But Lou is a fine addition to the UConn squad.

Yeah, if you are going to impose a rationality requirement for enthusiasm on the boneyard, this place is going to get pretty dull really quickly.

 

[JBK]

Um, amusing, off the wall thread. Lou looks like a very good player. Today proves nothing as far as comparisons. It was against a team inferior in talent to maybe every other team we will play. More relevant, she seems to have fared well for Fairfield against some of their better opponents. At Fairfield she was not surrounded on her team by the level of talent she has at UConn. Meaning she is unlikely to be the focus which should be helpful to her. If she becomes the focus it means she is even better then expected or, heaven forbid, some of the others might be performing below expectations. I’d guess the former is more likely and she has a long way to show she should be mentioned in the same breath as Clark. I just hope she is good enough to both help us beat good teams and make her own name. She looked for real. Quick good decisions and quick accurate shot.

I know a division 2 team is not a great evaluation sample, but Geno did state he was not surprised, because that how she plays everyday in practice
In practice she is playing against players from the # 6 best team in the country and probably better than that.
I love she can score in multiple ways

 

[tkaes]

So you're not comparing Lou to Paige, but you are comparing yourself to Geno?

Surely you jest. I did no such thing. All I suggested was that it is possible to see someone play the first time and know they have the goods. Except with a few possible exceptions for those in the Boneyard who are always cautious about virtually everything, anybody here who saw Paige play the first time would have recognized that she was a great player.

 

[Plebe]

Surely you jest. I did no such thing. All I suggested was that it is possible to see someone play the first time and know they have the goods. Except with a few possible exceptions for those in the Boneyard who are always cautious about virtually everything, anybody here who saw Paige play the first time would have recognized that she was a great player.

So then what was the point of bringing up Geno?

 

[cohenzone]

I know a division 2 team is not a great evaluation sample, but Geno did state he was not surprised, because that how she plays everyday in practice
In practice she is playing against players from the # 6 best team in the country and probably better than that.
I love she can score in multiple ways

I said she did. But comparing her to Clark off a game against Kutztown is, as I said, a bit amusing. With Paige out, Clark is arguably the best scorer in the country. If Lou can be consistent at a high level comparisons are irrelevant. Let her be the best Lou.

 

[cgshuskie]

Nika had (showed) a growing, Jennifer Rizzotti vibe running up the court in the Exhibition against Kutztown. Confidence and toughness. Determination! Fearlessness.! Nika definately grew since last year. Go NIka!!!!!

 

[Jingo]

Agreed
I like that Geno has stated that Lou has been consistent every day in practice. She may have been playing against the starters in practice and seems to be competing at a high level.
With Azzi - Caroline and Lou - we could have the best shooting team in the country.

It's pretty obvious that Lou should start over Caroline .. we need a dependable starter .. Caroline is just too 'iffy' .. with Caroline, "it's always something", eh? ... Lou is just too good to come off the bench .. and while we're at it, mebbe a few changes to the training staff will help Caroline work her way back ... these constant injuries are very tiresome!

 

[Going4Natty]

Convince me Clark is better.

Lou isn't even the best player on her own team. She will probably settle in as our 3rd or 4th scoring option.

Prove me wrong.

 

[JBK]

It's pretty obvious that Lou should start over Caroline .. we need a dependable starter .. Caroline is just too 'iffy' .. with Caroline, "it's always something", eh? ... Lou is just too good to come off the bench .. and while we're at it, mebbe a few changes to the training staff will help Caroline work her way back ... these constant injuries are very tiresome!

I agree - we have to be a team that gets off to a fast start and the consistency and experience of Lou is needed.
She has not come off the bench in years and she may not respond well —
Caroline may come in for Nika as well —

 

[TeamFirst!]

With a lineup that includes Azzi, Lou and Caroline you won't see all those double teams on post players. When Nika is in the lineup you will. Give me players who are great against great players please. Even Geno himself said that lots of those 11 assists came from passing to players who could hit jump shots. Azzi as our PG for 30 plus minutes gives us a team that could potentially win the NC.

 

[HuskyNan]

It's pretty obvious that Lou should start over Caroline .. we need a dependable starter .. Caroline is just too 'iffy' .. with Caroline, "it's always something", eh? ... Lou is just too good to come off the bench .. and while we're at it, mebbe a few changes to the training staff will help Caroline work her way back ... these constant injuries are very tiresome!

Don’t know why you can’t prefer Lou without taking a potshot at Caroline

 

[Bone Dog]

With a lineup that includes Azzi, Lou and Caroline you won't see all those double teams on post players. When Nika is in the lineup you will. Give me players who are great against great players please. Even Geno himself said that lots of those 11 assists came from passing to players who could hit jump shots. Azzi as our PG for 30 plus minutes gives us a team that could potentially win the NC.

I sort of agree, with a couple caveats. First, kids averaging double figure assists typically means that the offense is designed around a few plays that tend to get them lots of assists. Nika getting lots of assists is not diminished just because she can pass to great shooters, anymore than Clark's assist numbers are diminished by having Czinano to pass to in plays designed to free her up. I don't think Geno meant to diminish Nika's accomplishment, but rather to suggest that it was a joint accomplishment.

Second, our perimeter shooting will free up our post players. I've been saying this for a few weeks now. Brink had a breakout season because she rarely faced double teams. I expect Dorka Aaliyah Ayanna Aubrey to enjoy a similar benefit. I also won't be surprised if our rebounding numbers go up from last year for a similar reason. If opposing teams can't pack the paint, they'll get less rebounding opportunities against our bigs.

But I don't think this effect will depend on having all three of Azzi Caroline Lou in the game at the same time. Any of the permutations we can put out there -- 4 players dividing up 120 mins -- will have the desired effect, and I expect it will be quite disorienting when Nika is out there just because her defensive pressure will mean teams won't want to crash the boards for fear of having to deal with her all the way up the court. Instead, I expect many teams will have a guard leak out when we shoot to have a chance to escape her relentless pressure.

 

[cgshuskie]

We don't give Lou2 enough credit for her achievements at Fairfield. At Fairfield she carried a whole team and learned to be a timely, go to, shooter. With the support of her Uconn teammates, she may not be the focus, but may be at an AA level because of her maturity, timing, discipline and court IQ. She is a tough minded, highly skilled player and may take advantage of the average D1 wbb player. Her experience makes her a dead eyed scorer. I think she'll use her Uconn year to prepare her for the W as a lights out 3 point shooter. She knows what she is up to!

 

[MSGRET]

Geno has said that it doesn't matter who starts between Caroline and Lou, because they both should get almost the same amount of minutes in the end. He also stated that Nika is the PG with Azzi currently as her backup. I believe that might change later in the season if Ines keeps playing like she did in the 8 minutes against Kutztown.

 

[TeamFirst!]

If Nika gets 11 assists again this year I'll be surprised. Kutztown was an anamoly. What did we score? 115 points overall and we shot close to 57% as a team with 14 successful 3 point shots? How many of Nika's assists were 3 point shots, maybe at least 1/2 of them. That's not going to happen again. If it does it will be in blow out Big East games against bottom rung opponents and who cares what players do in such game? It's irrelevant.

 

[Dogstar]

Is this the same Caroline who beat Azzi in a three point contest before they came to UConn?

WasAzzi in a boot for tht contest?

 

[Dogstar]

Yes, she beat Azzi, but it was when Azzi was wearing a boot on her right leg. If I remember correctly Azzi actually made more 3 point shots, but Caroline hit more in the final round.

Exactly wht I thought