Mercer Postgame Thread

[Conndog]

When an alphanumeric (words, numbers...) string of characters reads the same beginning to end or end to beginning the string is said to be a palindrome. An impressive example is, "A man, a plan, a canal, Panama". So, maybe we can say the final score was "palindromic". LOL

Besides the 83-38 palindromic, the game started with one: 0-0

 

[nautiraider]

Starting to look nasty,nasty,nasty on defense! Specially in the 3rd. Great job

 

[Redux]

The Bears are a talented and well coached team

I thought Mercer put up a good battle, made UConn work very hard. Very quick, athletic, sound defensively, and they hustled. Score looks terrible but Mercer didn't give it away, UConn took it. I've seen big UConn margins where I was disappointed but this was a good satisfying UConn win. Doesn't mean I didn't see areas that need improvement, but a good win.

 

[darkstar1]

So, today was the 11th different starting lineup, the 14th change. Since Paige's return in the St. John's game, we've averaged 81.5 ppg, 30 oppg. It will be interesting to see if Geno stays with this lineup thru the tourney.

Any of the 9 rotation players could be one of the 5 starters. They are all that good. To my eyes, the team just moves/plays better when Dorka, Ducharme and Nika are in with Paige and Azzi. Smaller but so fluid. Geno used Dorka much more today, and she deserved it. I assume Geno starts Liv (everyone knows what she can do) and CW (who in some games is lights out, others not so much), for senior leadership? I don’t care who starts, and Geno seems to be adjusting the lineup based on game circumstances, which is great. Pumped for this year, but what I’m seeing bodes so well for next year.

 

[meyers7]

They won. That’s all I want. Free throws, percentages, turnovers, I don’t care - just win the damn game.

Win and advance baby. You got that right.

 

[BlueSkyGLW]

Your opinion of "enjoyment" is not close to mine. And I think in part it's why those that complain vs those that don’t probably go back and forth. I'll just say again that you’re not a UCONN coach but you are trying to act like one.

Secondly, I only help my valedictorian if they ask. I don't push it on them. So again I'll ask; would you nit-pick or would you say "Great Job?" As for Geno, he won't ask, right? We're not coaches. The point is, if the players and/or coaches aren't; expressing disappointment (Like they did in the Providence win as an example), then why are you interjecting yourself in the manner you are?

Third- what subtleties are you talking about? You mean for example when someone complains about the Free Throw shooting - that means they "understand the subtleties of the game" more than someone who doesn't complain? On the men's side years ago Donyell Marshall a terrific f/t shooter in the closing seconds vs BC in the NCAA Tourney missed not one but both free throws. He hits them, UCONN goes to the E8. So all the talk of saying "our FT shooting is fine with Donyell" what did it matter when it boiled down to that big game?

Let's get back to this thread this game- you have heard the phrase sometimes that when a player commits a foul that they say "That’s a good foul?" That’s a “subtelty,” right?

So when you speak of subtleties, how do you know for example several of the turnovers that Geno and the players think "That's a good turnover because we were aggressive" or other etc?

And how do you know that in terms of offensive efficiency in this particular game that they knew they were going to win anyway so it's okay that Dorka, Edwards and Liv take more shots than Fudd vs when they play a top team in order to try to gain additional confidence? The bigger the lead the less pressure to get the ball to Azzi for example, right? This is a subtlety too.

And how do you know that games going forward Paige won't be getting more and more shots so why criticize about the fg% in this game when the superstar is rounding more into form and will probably shoot more when the time is needed?

These are subtleties too. You and I don’t know them all though. We don’t know because we aren't "connected." So to pretend like you are a UCONN coach stretches things. The UCONN players didn't complain. The Staff didn't complain, yet because some posters want to see perfection, it should go unchallenged on here?

Personally, I am 100% okay with complaining to a degree. Or Nit-picking etc. As long as anyone complaining or nit-picking is okay with pushback too from those of us that don’t agree.

Wow! A joke from Star Wars about the Force ends up sticking somewhere in your system. Nope, thinking along with them doesn't mean acting like a coach. But when you are inclined like a scientist, you analyze.....not to offend anyone - except perhaps someone who actually analyzes but unable to give space for others observations who try to do the same. Analysts don't all agree, in fact, they often differ a phenomenon that often leads better understanding if conducted with open minds.

Intent and execution are two different things, you understand, I am sure. You can have all the good intentions and detailed plans to implement but unless you actually execute, it doesn't move the score....although someone like me would appreciate the aesthetics of the process, as I did this game.

Just to be clear, my only observation of shooting percentage was of the posts missing so many lay-ins up close, which people here seems to have taken as criticism. And my main observation in the half-court offense was too many serial dribbling runs as they pass the ball from one to the other during the same possession. And like others, I did express the wish that Azzi should have been given more opportunities to rehearse as a deadly weapon but I also checked that by saying Mercer did pay more attention to her.

But on the Staff's reaction, you must have missed it. The Staff did complain about (likely in the dressing room at halftime) the offensive performance in the first half, according to Alexa, which was conveyed by Geno:

UConn Huskies coach Geno Auriemma wasn't too pleased with how his team played in the first 20 minutes of Saturday's NCAA tournament first-round game versus Mercer.

Yes, UConn was up 43-23 at the half, but its offense left a lot to be desired and defensively it wasn't totally imposing its will as Auriemma's teams have historically been inclined to do. The Huskies flipped a switch after halftime, however, to run away with a 83-38 win. And they did it behind the phase of the game that's been an underappreciated hallmark of the very best UConn teams: stifling defense.

And, if you read the article, you would find that analysts are a little happier to know that thinking along with the coach (and players, because they will remember what they did and see things on film) produced observations that matched what the coach says therein. And that includes observations on defensive performance.

And for the future, to be sure, what I mentioned elsewhere as rehearsals of UConn's two best offesnive weapons playing together will continue under fire to make sure they deliver deep into the future when the games will be harder: yeah, Paige and Azzi.

I am reacting to your comment with a Like because of the passion with which you delivered your opinion.....whether I agree with them or not.

 

[ME Husky Fan]

I was wondering about that play. It appeared that Evina was doing some old fashioned "basket hanging."

The old fashioned term is cherry picking.

 

[meyers7]

I have to disagree with folks who say "all that matters is the win".

Yeah you can't advance if you don't win, but "style" points matter.


Bottom line it was a 45 point win, but not the kind of dominating performance that screams "This team is ready to win a NC"...

Nope, you're wrong. Completley. ALL that matters is you win at this time of the year. Not playing well and losing.

You get absolutely NOTHING for style points. NOTHING. Nobody gives a flying @$%^ about what it looked like when you have a NC.

We've all seen teams (men and women) that have struggled in the early rounds and went on to win the NC. And we've all seen teams (men and women) who looked great....all the way to the FF or NC game....and lost.

We can talk all day about how the team looked, and how they played and who played well and what they need to do better......but NONE of that matters. It only matters that they WIN and Advance.

 

[The deacon]

You're comparing Nika to the former NPOY?

I was just using Paige's +/- compared to Nika's today to make a point, and to try to explain to the many here who still believe Nika should be the starting point guard. Based on your many thoughtful posts here, I suspect you understood that.

 

[Monte]

Palindromic???

A palindrome = the same amount when read forward or backward: 11,22,33,......101, 202, 717, etc.(and many other examples)

38 + 83 are not the same value

 

[BBallF]

Today was all about the defense which was stifling but I think the offense with the starting 5 is not fluid enough. I worry about the tougher games to come. I think that we are either not finding Azzi, she is not getting open, or we aren't looking. She and Paige are the higher percentage outside threats and they both need more shots from the arc or pull ups. We need ball screens and execution for them. Just imagine the points off the press and in transition with more 3s and pull ups from Azzi and Paige in the flow of the offense. Add in some 3s from CW and you have a lethal outside offense to go with points underneath and steals, deflections, and fast break points.

 

[Notyetready]

I get exasperated with the use of the word need.

Who needs it, right?

 

[Boreifs]

I feel like the only solution if you wanna re-insert Nika into the starting lineup is going with 4 guards in a small lineup. I just don’t see Paige, Azzi, or Christyn coming in off the bench. I feel like it would likely mean Aaliyah comes off the bench & we start with Nika, Paige, Azzi, Christyn, and Liv.

I just don’t see Geno doing that. He loves the Ono-Dorka combo at the five and Alijah’s defense, etc. at the four. He also prefers having Caroline at the four when Alijah goes to the bench. Why would he change what is working right now?

 

[MilfordHusky]

Besides the 83-38 palindromic, the game started with one: 0-0

I hope we score 82 next game!

 

[Zanzman]

Your opinion of "enjoyment" is not close to mine. And I think in part it's why those that complain vs those that don’t probably go back and forth. I'll just say again that you’re not a UCONN coach but you are trying to act like one.

Secondly, I only help my valedictorian if they ask. I don't push it on them. So again I'll ask; would you nit-pick or would you say "Great Job?" As for Geno, he won't ask, right? We're not coaches. The point is, if the players and/or coaches aren't; expressing disappointment (Like they did in the Providence win as an example), then why are you interjecting yourself in the manner you are?

Third- what subtleties are you talking about? You mean for example when someone complains about the Free Throw shooting - that means they "understand the subtleties of the game" more than someone who doesn't complain? On the men's side years ago Donyell Marshall a terrific f/t shooter in the closing seconds vs BC in the NCAA Tourney missed not one but both free throws. He hits them, UCONN goes to the E8. So all the talk of saying "our FT shooting is fine with Donyell" what did it matter when it boiled down to that big game?

Let's get back to this thread this game- you have heard the phrase sometimes that when a player commits a foul that they say "That’s a good foul?" That’s a “subtelty,” right?

So when you speak of subtleties, how do you know for example several of the turnovers that Geno and the players think "That's a good turnover because we were aggressive" or other etc?

And how do you know that in terms of offensive efficiency in this particular game that they knew they were going to win anyway so it's okay that Dorka, Edwards and Liv take more shots than Fudd vs when they play a top team in order to try to gain additional confidence? The bigger the lead the less pressure to get the ball to Azzi for example, right? This is a subtlety too.

And how do you know that games going forward Paige won't be getting more and more shots so why criticize about the fg% in this game when the superstar is rounding more into form and will probably shoot more when the time is needed?

These are subtleties too. You and I don’t know them all though. We don’t know because we aren't "connected." So to pretend like you are a UCONN coach stretches things. The UCONN players didn't complain. The Staff didn't complain, yet because some posters want to see perfection, it should go unchallenged on here?

Personally, I am 100% okay with complaining to a degree. Or Nit-picking etc. As long as anyone complaining or nit-picking is okay with pushback too from those of us that don’t agree.

Florida not BC

 

[STLCardinal]

Nika is like a shot of red bull to the team when she gets out there. Defensive intensity, but also pushing the ball upcourt even when there is not a fast break. That leads to a lot of open shots. We don`t push as hard when she is not in.

Absolutely spot on. They are much better offensively when she pushes it like that. I saw Paige do it a couple of times. Not only does it get things moving earlier in the shot clock but pushing it like that just makes the other team's defense stay on their heels. Over the course of 40 minutes it can wear the other team out. I remember in previous years opposing coaches and players, at their post game press conference, would talk about the speed at which UConn would come at you, that watching it on film doesn't come close to what it's really like in a game. This bunch could really be good at that.

 

[Boreifs]

Any of the 9 rotation players could be one of the 5 starters. They are all that good. To my eyes, the team just moves/plays better when Dorka, Ducharme and Nika are in with Paige and Azzi. Smaller but so fluid. Geno used Dorka much more today, and she deserved it. I assume Geno starts Liv (everyone knows what she can do) and CW (who in some games is lights out, others not so much), for senior leadership? I don’t care who starts, and Geno seems to be adjusting the lineup based on game circumstances, which is great. Pumped for this year, but what I’m seeing bodes so well for next year.

I thought he used Dorka more as well, but she only played 17 minutes. Imagine a double double in 17 minutes!

 

[Boreifs]

Absolutely spot on. They are much better offensively when she pushes it like that. I saw Paige do it a couple of times. Not only does it get things moving earlier in the shot clock but pushing it like that just makes the other team's defense stay on their heels. Over the course of 40 minutes it can wear the other team out. I remember in previous years opposing coaches and players, at their post game press conference, would talk about the speed at which UConn would come at you, that watching it on film doesn't come close to what it's really like in a game. This bunch could really be good at that.

Nika moves the ball forward with the dribble; Paige looks for the pass. They both work.

 

[meyers7]

I figured there was a reason she was back there. Didn't see it, but after she made the lay-up, she motioned to the camera people on the baseline. I assumed she had crashed into them or something on the prior play.

 

[Childhood]

I was just using Paige's +/- compared to Nika's today to make a point, and to try to explain to the many here who still believe Nika should be the starting point guard. Based on your many thoughtful posts here, I suspect you understood that.

I really feel confused too. Nika played around 21:30 minutes, +/- was +15.
When Nika replaced Paige to play around 15 minutes, +/- was +4.
And when she was on the floor with Paige combined 6:30 minutes, +/- was +11.

Paige played 18:30 minutes on the floor without Nika, +/- was 30.
Nika is better on defensive end. But Idk why they insist that Nika is running better offense than Paige on the floor.

 

[Cuango]

It's okay to say her name, Nika. His comment today in terms of how she changes the defensive intensity of the team is not the first time the words have passed his lips. He said it last year during the tournament and made a point of saying it again this season at least once in a presser. The Big East coaches 'said' it with their votes for DPOY. Hard to understand why some UCONN fans can't seem to acknowledge that she is a significant piece of a very talented team.

No one that I’ve seen thinks that Nika is not a “significant piece” of this team! Whether she starts or not, has nothing to do with whether she is an important part of this team. Do you think Kevin McHale, Manu Ginobili, Vinnie “Microwave” Johnson etc, were considered “insignificant” when they were coming off the bench?

 

[DEpup]

Any of the 9 rotation players could be one of the 5 starters. They are all that good. To my eyes, the team just moves/plays better when Dorka, Ducharme and Nika are in with Paige and Azzi. Smaller but so fluid. Geno used Dorka much more today, and she deserved it. I assume Geno starts Liv (everyone knows what she can do) and CW (who in some games is lights out, others not so much), for senior leadership? I don’t care who starts, and Geno seems to be adjusting the lineup based on game circumstances, which is great. Pumped for this year, but what I’m seeing bodes so well for next year.

Well they all have been starters at some point during the season. There isn't any could in it. It's already happened.

 

[JoePgh]

To those of you who advocate putting Nika in the starting lineup and benching one of the front court players, I would counsel (having seen the second game at Gampel today in person) that this would be a VERY bad strategy against UCF. They have at least three very competent bigs in the 6-4 or 6-5 range who are excellent rebounders and can score in the paint. With just one big for UConn, rebounding against UCF would be a major (and totally unnecessary) problem.

Regarding UCF, let me add a few other observations:

• Despite all the comments about how they play physical or borderline dirty, I did not notice that against Florida this afternoon. To my eyes, they play like a normal team with size. Admittedly that is different from what is normally seen in the Big East, but it should not be anything that UConn's bigs can't handle (assuming the more than one of them is on the floor!).
• The key players on UCF's team (Diamond Battle, Masseny Kava, the other big Smith) were familiar opponents a few years ago when UConn played UCF in the AAC two or three times a year. UConn obviously never lost a game to UCF, and the great majority were won by double digits. Many of the UConn teams in recent years were smaller and less physical than the current UConn team, so I really don't expect Monday's game to be particularly close.
• UCF plays a 40-minute zone as its sole defense, but they are good at getting out on shooters. It will be interesting to see how that zone covers two deadeye shooters on opposite sides of the court. I'm not sure that any previous UConn team (at least since 2017) posed that kind of problem for UCF's zone defense.
• UCF's back court looks to me as if it may be susceptible to ball pressure, or to starting offense from near the midcourt line, or to having its shooters be rushed. Florida certainly didn't do any of those things. I expect that UConn's pressure defense will be successful against UCF.

 

[UcMiami]

To those of you who advocate putting Nika in the starting lineup and benching one of the front court players, I would counsel (having seen the second game at Gampel today in person) that this would be a VERY bad strategy against UCF. They have at least three very competent bigs in the 6-4 or 6-5 range who are excellent rebounders and can score in the paint. With just one big for UConn, rebounding against UCF would be a major (and totally unnecessary) problem.

Regarding UCF, let me add a few other observations:

• Despite all the comments about how they play physical or borderline dirty, I did not notice that against Florida this afternoon. To my eyes, they play like a normal team with size. Admittedly that is different from what is normally seen in the Big East, but it should not be anything that UConn's bigs can't handle (assuming the more than one of them is on the floor!).
• The key players on UCF's team (Diamond Battle, Masseny Kava, the other big Smith) were familiar opponents a few years ago when UConn played UCF in the AAC two or three times a year. UConn obviously never lost a game to UCF, and the great majority were won by double digits. Many of the UConn teams in recent years were smaller and less physical than the current UConn team, so I really don't expect Monday's game to be particularly close.
• UCF plays a 40-minute zone as its sole defense, but they are good at getting out on shooters. It will be interesting to see how that zone covers two deadeye shooters on opposite sides of the court. I'm not sure that any previous UConn team (at least since 2017) posed that kind of problem for UCF's zone defense.
• UCF's back court looks to me as if it may be susceptible to ball pressure, or to starting offense from near the midcourt line, or to having its shooters be rushed. Florida certainly didn't do any of those things. I expect that UConn's pressure defense will be successful against UCF.

6'3, 6'3, 6'2 are the primary bigs, so not that 'big'.

Otherwise, nice scout. Thanks