Missing inside game

[Conndog]

A problem for UConn was their inside game was missing an their outside shooting wasn’t good.

Looking at the stats, Louisville took 15 3-pointers and made 8. Van Lith only took two but made both. UConn also took 15 but only made 3. There’s a 15 point difference right there. Westbrook was 0-5 on her 3 pointers.

Louisville also took twice as many free throws and was 17/20 on them (85%). UConn only took 10 free throws and made 7.

So, some better shooting and maybe playing more inside would have been better.

 

[SLY63]

Until we get the outside shooting the inside game will not open up as teams will "pack it in" against us. (Waiting for Azzi)

 

[eebmg]

A problem for UConn was their inside game was missing an their outside shooting wasn’t good.

Looking at the stats, Louisville took 15 3-pointers and made 8. Van Lith only took two but made both. UConn also took 15 but only made 3. There’s a 15 point difference right there. Westbrook was 0-5 on her 3 pointers.

Louisville also took twice as many free throws and was 17/20 on them (85%). UConn only took 10 free throws and made 7.

So, some better shooting and maybe playing more inside would have been better.

The inside game looked pretty good. If anything, guards not able to get the ball to the posts in good spots. Posts (and Caroline) worked hard on the boards. Least of our problems. If we cant shoot from outside of even make mid range shots, teams will only need to defend Caroline tougher on the perimeter and sag their defense into the post for quick triple teams. Need Azzi back desperately

 

[HuskyNan]

So, some better shooting and maybe playing more inside would have been better.

I don’t mean the above to be obnoxious, or personal @Conndog . But your post reminds me of one we had a few years ago, “If we could have only scored a 4 more points, we could have won”.

 

[eebmg]

“If we could have only scored a 4 more points, we could have won”.

That would not have helped yesterday.

 

[Aluminny69]

As I posted elsewhere:

"With two minutes left in the third quarter, Geno substituted Westbrook with Edwards. At that point, UConn had Juhaz, Ododa, and Edwards in along with CD and Williams. For those two minutes, UConn went from 3 points down to 3 points up, and were dominating the boards. I had hoped that Geno would have stayed with three bigs in the game, I don't really understand why he didn't."

 

[Topsail]

As I posted elsewhere:

"With two minutes left in the third quarter, Geno substituted Westbrook with Edwards. At that point, UConn had Juhaz, Ododa, and Edwards in along with CD and Williams. For those two minutes, UConn went from 3 points down to 3 points up, and were dominating the boards. I had hoped that Geno would have stayed with three bigs in the game, I don't really understand why he didn't."

Louisville also took out their two bigs due to foul trouble with 2 mins left in 3rd...when they came back in is when they retook the lead

 

[Fairfield Fan]

Until we get the outside shooting the inside game will not open up as teams will "pack it in" against us. (Waiting for Azzi)

I think we need more aggression inside, which should result in generating more fouls. One free throw from ONO in the entire game.

 

[ucbart]

I think we need more aggression inside, which should result in generating more fouls. One free throw from ONO in the entire game.

That's because Liv was living the high post, where she has to play. Without Paige, our ball movement and passing stalls and she is the one that can see the floor and is the best passer we have now, so she has to be there now.

If we would've hit more outside shots, it would've made Louisville have to guard the perimeter. Because our two best shooters are on the bench, teams pack it in and we are screwed. The ship won't be totally fixed with Azzi and Nikka back, but it sure will be headed in the right direction. I expect this team, as does everyone else, to look vastly different(and better) when the BET rolls around.

 

[Littlemin]

View attachment 71963

I don’t mean the above to be obnoxious, or personal @Conndog . But your post reminds me of one we had a few years ago, “If we could have only scored a 4 more points, we could have won”.

Reminds me of a comment on Yankee television years ago by Phil Rizzuto, a good player, a really unique and entertaining announcer but renowned homer. Anyway, Yankees down 5, two outs bottom of the 9th and Rizzuto offers, “All we need is a couple of walks, a base hit, a bloop and a blast and we are right back in this thing.” My brother and I still throw that out there when conversation appropriate.

 

[CocoHusky]

That's because Liv was living the high post, where she has to play. Without Paige, our ball movement and passing stalls and she is the one that can see the floor and is the best passer we have now, so she has to be there now.
If we would've hit more outside shots, it would've made Louisville have to guard the perimeter. Because our two best shooters are on the bench, teams pack it in and we are screwed. The ship won't be totally fixed with Azzi and Nikka back, but it sure will be headed in the right direction. I expect this team, as does everyone else, to look vastly different(and better) when the BET rolls around.

I don't believe the problem to be strictly caused by outside shooting. It's a two dimensional problem: 1) UCONN current primary ball handlers ( Christyn and Evina) do not have the ability to consistently compromise the first line of defender with the dribble, are not good enough passers to make timely entry passes into the post and are not consistent enough shooters to get the respect of the defense. 2) UCONN bigs (Dorka, AE, Liv) are not good enough finisher at the basket to punish the defense and consistently make easy baskets. The net result is the half court sets are always depended on almost perfect execution and UCONN is resorting to often sending multiple players to the offensive boards.

 

[oldude]

A problem for UConn was their inside game was missing an their outside shooting wasn’t good.

Looking at the stats, Louisville took 15 3-pointers and made 8. Van Lith only took two but made both. UConn also took 15 but only made 3. There’s a 15 point difference right there. Westbrook was 0-5 on her 3 pointers.

Louisville also took twice as many free throws and was 17/20 on them (85%). UConn only took 10 free throws and made 7.

So, some better shooting and maybe playing more inside would have been better.

With all due respect, the problem is primarily outside shooting, or the lack there of. I don’t know what the final stats were, but UConn dominated Louisville on points in the paint while having an advantage of +7 on the offensive boards. Both teams shot a comparable % from the floor: 43% to 42%. Louisville hit 5 more 3’s than UConn, which also happened to be the margin of victory.

 

[KY Card Fan]

As Walz said in his post-game presser, the absence of Bueckers and Fudd allowed Louisville to sag and help inside. They did a really good job defensively, as they always do.

 

[Dillon77]

I don't believe the problem to be strictly caused by outside shooting. It's a two dimensional problem: 1) UCONN current primary ball handlers ( Christyn and Evina) do not have the ability to consistently compromise the first line of defender with the dribble, are not good enough passers to make timely entry passes into the post and are not consistent enough shooters to get the respect of the defense. 2) UCONN bigs (Dorka, AE, Liv) are not good enough finisher at the basket to punish the defense and consistently make easy baskets. The net result is the half court sets are always depended on almost perfect execution and UCONN is resorting to often sending multiple players to the offensive boards.

With all due respect, the problem is primarily outside shooting, or the lack there of. I don’t know what the final stats were, but UConn dominated Louisville on points in the paint while having an advantage of +7 on the offensive boards. Both teams shot a comparable % from the floor: 43% to 42%. Louisville hit 5 more 3’s than UConn, which also happened to be the margin of victory.

I noted the "strictly" in Coco's post, which is an acknowledgement that 3-15 isn't great and that only having one player hit those three shots isn't helpful.
However, I think Coco's pts. on the ball-handling guards is accurate, particularly on the "timing" of the passes. Felt some of those passes were a tad late, wiping out what advantage the posters initially had.

Also, I note that Williams and Westbrook don't get to the line much or even get fouled, which could get the other team in the bonus.

Oldude's point on the inside play is spot on: Louisville's bigs only hand 12 pts and less than 10 rebounds. Engstler was in foul trouble most of the first half and didn't hit anything until midway through the 2nd half.

My gut was that in this game, Van Lith and Engstler started to hit shots at the end and that run was enough.

The points Coco raises might not hurt against some opponents but will against top competition.

 

[tchalla1]

I don't believe the problem to be strictly caused by outside shooting. It's a two dimensional problem: 1) UCONN current primary ball handlers ( Christyn and Evina) do not have the ability to consistently compromise the first line of defender with the dribble, are not good enough passers to make timely entry passes into the post and are not consistent enough shooters to get the respect of the defense. 2) UCONN bigs (Dorka, AE, Liv) are not good enough finisher at the basket to punish the defense and consistently make easy baskets. The net result is the half court sets are always depended on almost perfect execution and UCONN is resorting to often sending multiple players to the offensive boards.

Can't disagree with any of this, Coco, except, I feel Dorka was initiating a serviceable low post presence, except--as you pointed out--CW and Evina were unable to get her the ball and make decent entry passes on numerous occasions.

 

[Plebe]

I mean, there's a yin and yang between the inside and outside game. Too often, UConn's offense seems stuck in this catch-22 where: (a) our outside shooting isn't threatening enough to keep perimeter defenders honest, and (b) our inside game isn't stout enough to force extra defenders to collapse into the paint.

Gotta get either (a) or (b) going in order to loosen things up and create more open looks and driving/cutting lanes.

 

[HopJim]

Getting the ball to the bigs not just a guard issue. Our current offense has bigs trying to get into position with no picks and little movement before the pass. Having the bigs try to push their defender than just stand there holding position rarely works. This was an issue even prior to Paige's injury.

 

[oldude]

Getting the ball to the bigs not just a guard issue. Our current offense has bigs trying to get into position with no picks and little movement before the pass. Having the bigs try to push their defender than just stand there holding position rarely works. This was an issue even prior to Paige's injury.

The idea is to post and repost when you lose optimal position. It’s a difficult concept to master and it can be exhausting work for any Big. Pheesa was the best I’ve ever seen. She would establish beautiful position for entry passes over and over again, catch every pass with her Inspector Gadget arms and usually score with an extensive array of quick low post moves. Alas, there’s no one quite like Pheesa on this UConn team.

 

[Fossil]

I do believe that our outside shooting mostly the three is definitely hurting us. CW & EW are having a terrible time hitting those. Caroline who may be the best shooter on the floor still rushes her shot. When she takes that quarter second to square up her shot is so much better. What I really find annoying is when the pass to the low post is made the ball almost never comes back out. Because of our poor outside shooting our post players are being double and tripled and yet they still will force shots to the rim. If our low post players are being doubled and tripled someone on the outside is wide open. Almost never does the ball go inside and get kicked out right away for an open three. It’s like a black hole down low the ball goes in and never comes back out even on a rebound when it’s crowded with Biggs they still force the shot. It would be nice to see them bring it back out and set up again which they rarely do.With the double-team down low someone will be open on the perimeter with time to shoot. We don’t often see really good ball movement with this team yet. Olivia is a good passer and if she felt the double coming her way the pass back out to the perimeter will eventually open up the interior because teams will be less likely to double.

 

[and one]

Our inside game is pretty good, not great. Our shooting is ok, nothing special without Paige, except for 3 pt shooting which is inexplicably poor. As @Plebe commented, it is a yin/yang issue of the inside and outside game not complimenting each other enough to force the D to pick their poison.

What the team as currently configured lacks is the confidence that they can beat someone no matter what they throw at you. We are lucky enough to have seen many UConn teams that knew that as long as they put the skills learned in practice to use in games they would win. Need some threes? Can do. Rebound and put back? Can do. Easy baskets off steals? Can do. This comes from having confidence in each other, knowing each other's strengths and trusting them, knowing that if you run the offense with a sense of purpose good shots will result.

With all.the injuries, this team has had no time to develop an 8 women rotation that all know what their role is, how to be comfortable playing with and to each others strengths. And with that comes the swagger of knowing that everybody doesn't have to have their A game going for us to beat you. Getting the injured back obviously helps, but even then it will take time to develop the core players into a smoothly running unit that leaves most other teams knowing that they will lose.

 

[Boreifs]

Slightly off topic, but at least the UConn fans got to sit down fairly quickly in both halves. Imagine the poor Stanford fans having to stand for almost the entire third quarter!

 

[CocoHusky]

Getting the ball to the bigs not just a guard issue. Our current offense has bigs trying to get into position with no picks and little movement before the pass. Having the bigs try to push their defender than just stand there holding position rarely works. This was an issue even prior to Paige's injury.

Geno made an adjustment to the screening action yesterday I'm anxious to see how it pans out in future games. Rather than having the bigs start exclusively with the high ball screen he was utilizing more flex screening action with the screening coming across + up and down the lane. I'm pretty sure this was an added wrinkle for Louisville & IMO this is better suited for Evina and CW skillset.

 

[LoboDays]

I don’t buy these opinions about needing time to develop. 1. Close games are won by players who rise to the occasions and take over the game. We haven’t seen this happen. They are won by teams who have the ability to move up to another gear in the 4th quarter instead of disappearing. 2. Our offensive scheme seems very constant and predictable. A well coached team seems to be able to defend it much too easy.

I mentioned in another thread and someone repeated here that yesterday’s game was the time to leave the 3 bigs in the game. Our advantage was in the paint. CW and EW were not going to be the path to victory.

Paige is gone but the other starters are playing. They just aren’t playing that well. Soon, the BE schedule will be here and we will go on a winning streak even if they continue to play at the current level. Geno said yesterday that Sweet C is the only player who is listening to him. Has the coach lost this team? I don’t know but so far this season Geno joins his players in not rising to the occasion.

 

[JoePgh]

I think one of the biggest benefits of Azzi and Nika returning (particularly Nika) is that Evina will no longer have to function as the point guard. She is doing that now because she is the best available option, not because she has particular skills in that position or because it is her natural position. (We can thank Holly Warlick for giving her some experience in this role.)

When Nika gets back (with or without Azzi), I would expect her to be the starting PG until Paige returns. Then Evina could play 20-25 minutes at the 2 or 3, which I think is her natural position. I think her shooting (including from the 3-point line) will get MUCH better when she doesn't have the ball-handling responsibilities and can catch and shoot (or come off screens) more often.

In the near-term, I would expect to see a lineup with Nika at the 1, Caroline Ducharme at the 3, Dorka, and Liv, with the 2 position being platooned between Evina and Christyn. When Azzi comes in off the bench, Evina can potentially move to the 3 and Caroline Ducharme to the 4. I expect to see limited minutes for Azzi (maybe 15 per game) until the coaches can see how durable she is, how her defensive mobility is, and how reliable her shot is.

I don't think Caroline Ducharme will score 24 every night, or play 40 minutes very often. But I won't be surprised if she and Nika lead in minutes until Paige returns. Liv / Dorka / Aaliyah / Amari will spread out the minutes in the front court out of necessity, because they are all foul machines (Dorka less than the others). Caroline Ducharme / Evina / Christyn / Azzi will share the minutes at the 2 and 3, and they will all benefit from fewer minutes than they have had to play recently -- they will play better with fewer minutes.

PG is the only position where there is no really satisfactory backup to Nika, which is why her foot had better be very healthy and durable. In a pinch (but only then), Evina and Azzi could be used to back her up.

 

[Florida Fan]

Until we get the outside shooting the inside game will not open up as teams will "pack it in" against us. (Waiting for Azzi)

Filed under "beating a dead horse", I have a recurring mental picture of Ono, all alone at the foul line, looking for someone to whom to make a pass. The defense is, as you say, "packed in", but there's a left lane open, for her to drive, shoot or hit a teammate sliding from the other side. She has to make a defender or two "honest"., because she's all alone out there, unchallenged because of her low-percentage jumper. Yesterday, that might have been the difference, driving, shooting and/or being fouled.