Marquette BET Postgame Thread

[Littlemin]

There was not a player Uconn put on the floor that played badly. Shooting comes and goes, good defense and team play does not.
Like South Florida with Fudd, by and large Bueckers got wide open shots yesterday and made them and the “Paige is back“ brigade came out of the woodwork; give her a break, she is coming back from a serious injury and it will take the time it takes for her to come all the way back.
Fudd appears to be a streak shooter but takes good shots and there is nothing about her game that hurts you even if she is off.
As Husky Nan pointed out, Ducharme may have lost her offensive mojo a bit but I’ll say the same thing, she doesn’t hurt you one iota even when not scoring.
This is no one or two person team and I get a kick out of the “oh, horrors, we lost the 2nd half” lamenting.
I commented when the game ended in the chat room, that I remember the dismissive attitude many posters had about the teams 2nd half against Oregon, saying it was meaningless and only made the final score deceptively close; well, Marquette plays the 2nd half today with the same pride and intensity and the Uconn sky is falling - personally I don’t think so.

 

[HuskyNan]

Paige was off but could be back-to-back games with the 2nd against a very physical team.

Thank you for your diplomacy.

The last Marquette game is when Caroline got whacked in the head

 

[MD#12Fan]

I feel like the tempo in our half court offense to too fast. The movement is great. Lots of cutting, some good penetration, drives to the hoop and dishes. To me it’s like a band that’s just playing a little quick. Shooter tempos are too quick, like Azzi’s. Sometimes they miss a good look because they’re in too big of a hurry.
I think back to the undefeated Indiana team in the 70’s. Their offense was a meat grinder. I wonder if this team could be like that.

 

[my2cents]

Maybe its me, but when we are up by 30 points 12 minutes into the game, I want to win by 100 points. When we win by 20, it doesn't feel as good. I am greedy, lol.

 

[veryolddog]

What a very fine game. Dorka and Evina coming off of the bench for 27 points. Substitutions that make meaningful contributions. Starting five that plays killer defense. All this because Paige was out for 18 gaimes. Chrystyn and Edwards just playing consistently well. Very pleased, indeed.

 

[BobbyJ]

Just wondering if there's going to be a separate "OMG we lost the 4th quarter" thread.

 

[GoUconn7961]

You're entitled to your opinion. I watched both games closely. Paige scored more points last game. Many were wide open 3's that all she had to do was catch and shoot. She moved better this game against a much more aggressive opponent.

Everyone wants it to be easy all the time. It’s unthinkable that any team would dare compete with us and not simply roll over.

 

[mbr33ct]

What a very fine game. Dorka and Evina coming off of the bench for 27 points. Substitutions that make meaningful contributions. Starting five that plays killer defense. All this because Paige was out for 18 gaimes. Chrystyn and Edwards just playing consistently well. Very pleased, indeed.

Totally agree, with the nine player rotation Geno has going for him now, there seems to be an added bonus, could all nine players not have a good shooting day/night?

 

[MSGRET]

This game would have been over earlier, like the first half, if the refs had called the game the same both ways. It seemed that if UConn touched a player a foul was called while Marquette got away with pushing and shoving players and no call. They had twice as many moving screens then UConn and only had one of them called. The Big East needs to start punishing the bad refs by limiting their games.

 

[UConnCat]

Nice mention of Aubrey at the end. We miss Aubrey too.

 

[BRS24]

What if, and perhaps what if Geno had some specific instructions on what he wanted them to execute, in prep for future games?

 

[msf22b]

A win, a good win, but not a completely satisfying win.
Geno is still evaluating rotations, is nowhere near having the -9-
deliver a comple game.

He has 3, perhaps 4 more games to get this team close to its potential
before the top teams come rolling in.

Say tuned, the voyage continues.

 

[Cornell Lt]

1st quarter performance was very good and 31 bench points was nice, everything else was below expectations

 

[Boreifs]

1st quarter performance was very good and 31 bench points was nice, everything else was below expectations

Whose expectations?

 

[uconnfan68]

What if, and perhaps what if Geno had some specific instructions on what he wanted them to execute, in prep for future games?

I’d love to see him instruct Liv to shoot somewhere besides straddling the 3-pt line.

 

[Cornell Lt]

Whose expectations?

Any realistic observer

 

[jaydee602]

If the selection committee had foresight & still refuses to have UCONN in Bridgeport, they would place UCONN as the #2 seed in Wichita. There would be a rematch vs. Iowa & Caitlin Clark. Plus, there could also be a rivalry game vs. #1seed Louisville or Baylor.

 

[BlueSkyGLW]

Take a look at some of her games from last year and look at today's game, then tell me the same. Not only her close outs, but cutting in coverage. Her off ball pace in transition was not so good as well.

Did you expect her to be in the same shape and timing after being out for what? 19 games? and unable to practice? Just now able to play and practice?

 

[JordyG]

Did you expect her to be in the same shape and timing after being out for what? 19 games? and unable to practice? Just now able to play and practice?

I never mentioned conditioning or timing. You did. I'm talking strictly about movement, particularly her cutting, stopping and starting, and straight ahead speed.

 

[BlueSkyGLW]

Doesn't conditioning and timing affect movement? Just not having played that long should affect movement....muscle memory, reflexes, etc......I guess you think these are divorced from quality of movement?

 

[Kat]

I liked the way that they mixed it up on offense. More drives to the basket, scrapping for rebounds, drawing fouls. Getting good 2 point shots, less dependence on 3s. Some very nice passes. Good all-around.

 

[Longtime fan]

Some thoughts on the Marquette game:

• When UConn came out with ¾ court pressure, racing to a 22-6 lead in the 1st qtr, I’m guessing it occurred to Marquette that they were going to have to work for everything they got today, unlike yesterday’s game.
• Of the many things Christyn does well, her ability to beat defenders off the dribble and attack the basket is the most significant aspect of her game, creating nightmares for opposing defenses.
• UConn’s defense is an absolute machine right now. With a 9-player rotation, the Huskies never let up. Every Husky is up in their opponent’s grill, switching beautifully, hedging on all ball screens, with hands and arms up harassing passing lanes, while controlling the defensive boards. If the Huskies win #12, they will ride their defense to the Championship Banner.
• Some BY’ers, including yours truly, were lamenting the fact that UConn would be a better team if Nika could provide some scoring punch to go along with her playmaking and relentless defense. Her 7 points on 3/3 shooting in the 1st half was exactly what the doctor ordered.
• Aaliyah has been in BEAST MODE for a couple weeks now. Today she was a MONSTER!!! When you contemplate some of the potential matchups in the Big Dance, having a big, strong, versatile defender and rebounder like Aaliyah changes everything.
• I really like the fact that Azzi stayed aggressive on defense, her best effort of the season imo, despite having a tough shooting game. It’s yet another sign of Azzi's growth as a college basketball player.
• While it certainly wasn't one of Paige's better games, I actually thought she was moving as well as I've seen since returning from surgery.
• On to the Big East Championrship final and hopefully a return engagement with Villanova.

A fine assessment. But it was hard to swallow that, today, Marquette had about 5 kids who were fare more reliable shooting the three than AZZI FUDD. There will come a time ( soon ) when she has to be the player we thought she was. I do agree she is a fine basketball player and an excellent defender. But draining open looks is a key element of what makes her above and beyond " special."

Paige struggled today and it is obvious ( to me ) that she is doing far more already than her healing processes is ready for. She is contributing, but I am not sure how far we should expect her to progress. And most of us, I think, are wishing that she will get "all the back" as the days progress. Personally, I don't think there are enough days between now and the finals of the NCAA for that to happen.

The team has show that it can do a lot on their own. But unless AZZI (and Caroline) play "lights out" it isn't going to be enough. And they aren't showing it yet.

The fact that UCONN's defense is so good...and so relentless....gives them a shot. Being able to start 5 and bring on 4...all supremely talented.... is more than most opponents can handle. And if we can hit threes on top of that defense, we can beat anyone. Kentucky beat SC today because they hit threes. But we aren't going to beat SC ( or a lot of teams ) if Muhl and Dorka are our best long range shooters.

 

[oldude]

A fine assessment. But it was hard to swallow that, today, Marquette had about 5 kids who were fare more reliable shooting the three than AZZI FUDD. There will come a time ( soon ) when she has to be the player we thought she was. I do agree she is a fine basketball player and an excellent defender. But draining open looks is a key element of what makes her above and beyond " special."

Paige struggled today and it is obvious ( to me ) that she is doing far more already than her healing processes is ready for. She is contributing, but I am not sure how far we should expect her to progress. And most of us, I think, are wishing that she will get "all the back" as the days progress. Personally, I don't think there are enough days between now and the finals of the NCAA for that to happen.

The team has show that it can do a lot on their own. But unless AZZI (and Caroline) play "lights out" it isn't going to be enough. And they aren't showing it yet.

The fact that UCONN's defense is so good...and so relentless....gives them a shot. Being able to start 5 and bring on 4...all supremely talented.... is more than most opponents can handle. And if we can hit threes on top of that defense, we can beat anyone. Kentucky beat SC today because they hit threes. But we aren't going to beat SC ( or a lot of teams ) if Muhl and Dorka are our best long range shooters.

One thing to keep in mind is that there is a 10 day break between tomorrow’s game and the start of the Big Dance. No one uses that 10 day period better than Geno and his staff when it comes to preparing their team.

 

[jchusky]

games like this today show when ppl say "we have Fudd and Bueckers" shooting, 1-9 Fudd. That won't get it done against an elite team, that's why you can never just assume in the tournament players are going to hit their shots.

 

[BobbyJ]

I love the win. As Geno has said many times, facing and beating a team 3 times in one year is a tough deal. Poor shooting by your best outside shoots happens. Most teams can't overcome that kind of obstacle. My biggest concern was watching Paige struggle to cover her mark and close out on the perimeter. She looked like she was hurting. Geno wanted to give her 20 minutes today, and I don't think she had that many. I don't think she'll get 20 mins tomorrow either. Still, UConn's depth was the real winner today.

I don't believe she's hurting. I think her problem is that she's not mentally ready to go 100% and take on contact yet. It takes a little longer for finesse players, I hope the light goes on before the real tournament.