MoJeff: 'aggressive, talented, hungry'

[VAMike23]

Rich has great stuff on Moriah in the Post today [thanks, Nan]:

"I feel a lot more relaxed," Jefferson said. "I know the plays. I know personnel. I know everything. I'm in great shape. So it's just basketball. It's what I love to do. So now it's just doing it instead of trying to adjust. I'm already here. I already know what's going on. So now just play."

LINK

If Mo *does* take the big sophomore leap forward this year, this squad will be legendary.....

 

[Tonyc]

For all the naysayers remember this. UConn won the NC last season with MoJeff Breanna and Tuck seeing a lot of playtime. BTW they were all freshman. So those kids thinking of going elsewhere because of lack of playtime go watch last seasons NC game and you will understand that at UConn you can play as a freshman and possibly in a NC.

 

[msf22b]

What's noteworthy here is Geno's recognition of Mo's special aptitude.
Could it have happened earlier?…Perhaps.
But with the absence of the seniors, she's it, a year more experienced and ready to take over.
This is one smart kid and a great athlete to boot.
She'll be fine, perhaps even better than fine.

 

[msf22b]

For all the naysayers remember this. UConn won the NC last season with MoJeff Breanna and Tuck seeing a lot of playtime. BTW they were all freshman. So those kids thinking of going elsewhere because of lack of playtime go watch last seasons NC game and you will understand that at UConn you can play as a freshman and possibly in a NC.

Yes about Tuck, but MoJeff was unceremoniously pulled after the briefest appearance and returned dismayed to the bench asking CD what she did wrong, for which there was no answer.

 

[cferraro04]

Yes about Tuck, but MoJeff was unceremoniously pulled after the briefest appearance and returned dismayed to the bench asking CD what she did wrong, for which there was no answer.


Killjoy!

 

[Sonny44]

Watch the Maryland game. She'll be a star on this team, no doubt.

 

[msf22b]

Yes about Tuck, but MoJeff was unceremoniously pulled after the briefest appearance and returned dismayed to the bench asking CD what she did wrong, for which there was no answer.


Killjoy!

History

 

[johnnyc]

Yes about Tuck, but MoJeff was unceremoniously pulled after the briefest appearance and returned dismayed to the bench asking CD what she did wrong, for which there was no answer.

Yes...she looks inconsolable here.....

 

[johnnyc]

If Mo *does* take the big sophomore leap forward this year, this squad will be legendary.....

I think she is going to have a great season. She made some plays last year that were amazing (one handed half court pass while falling down, etc.) and showed what her athleticism and skill can bring to the table.

 

[ciarlante]

For all the naysayers remember this. UConn won the NC last season with MoJeff Breanna and Tuck seeing a lot of playtime. BTW they were all freshman. So those kids thinking of going elsewhere because of lack of playtime go watch last seasons NC game and you will understand that at UConn you can play as a freshman and possibly in a NC.

yes..you can play as a freshman if you are better than the players ahead of you! and not just better but can show you have earned Geno's trust.. so recruits should pay a lot of attention to the roster/depth chart.. you have at least three rising sophomores that aren't likely to give up much playing time in the future

 

[PacoSwede]

yes..you can play as a freshman if you are better than the players ahead of you! and not just better but can show you have earned Geno's trust.. so recruits should pay a lot of attention to the roster/depth chart.. you have at least three rising sophomores that aren't likely to give up much playing time in the future

If a recruit won't accept such a challenge, she's never going to be the best she can be. Back down from a challenge and you'll never know what might have been.

 

[PacoSwede]

Yes about Tuck, but MoJeff was unceremoniously pulled after the briefest appearance and returned dismayed to the bench asking CD what she did wrong, for which there was no answer.

How do you know this? Were you sitting on the bench too?

If you're writing fiction, let's label it as such.

I would wager a fair amount that Moriah was very aware of "what she did wrong," if in fact she did something wrong.

 

[doggydaddy]

History

History only in your mind. Let me show you the light.....

"MoJeff was unceremoniously pulled after the briefest appearance and returned dismayed to the bench asking CD what she did wrong, for which there was no answer. "

Let's just break down your comment.

"unceremoniously pulled."

Did you expect a ceremony? Seriously, I don't know why you would use this description of what happened. Jefferson was taken out after a foul in the post on UConn. Stewart was taken out at the same time. It looked liked every other substitution.

"briefest appearance"

It was definitely brief. 1:36. But certainly not the briefest. I've seen briefer...lol.

"returned dismayed to the bench "

Now this is just some made up thing in your head. First of all, the camera angle when she was taken out was the fixed camera from the rafters of the arena. There was no way you could see her expression. You could barley tell it was Jefferson. And by the time you saw her return to the bench from a closer angle she was highfiving her way to her seat. Dismay? Never happened.

"asking CD what she did wrong"

Nope. Again, made up in your head. She never even talked to CD.

"for which there was no answer"

Do you know if they talked while the game started again after Jefferson was pulled? They didn't show the bench again once play started. You have no idea if she asked or was given an answer.

But I'll tell you why I think she was pulled.

She went in at 15:05. With 16 seconds left on the shot clock she took a three. I'm pretty sure that was not the shot Geno wanted her to take.

At 14:05, she was ahead on a fast break and lost control of an easy layup.

10 seconds later, she let her man get by her for a back door cut and who compounded the mistake by trailing the player and then fouling on the shot attempt.

It was then that Geno decided to take her out of the game.

It was clear she had a freshman 1:36 and struggled. Geno did what every good coach would do.

Please don't rewrite history to fit your continuing agenda to prove yourself right when you say that Geno could have gotten more from the freshman and earlier in the season.

 

[EricLA]

yes..you can play as a freshman if you are better than the players ahead of you! and not just better but can show you have earned Geno's trust.. so recruits should pay a lot of attention to the roster/depth chart.. you have at least three rising sophomores that aren't likely to give up much playing time in the future

LOL good one but inaccurate. Or at least misleading. On a team of only 9 this year (not including the 2 walk ons), there will be tons of PT to be had and i'm betting the "starters" never average over 30 MPG this season. I'm betting even the walk ons average close 5+ MPG this season.

Point is that when the team is so good and margins will be so large, there is a ton of PT available. Whether you are a guard,wing, forward or center, UCONN runs a unique style of basketball that is great to watch and even better for kids to play in. Motion offense, teaching the ability to read defenses and run offense based on what they give you and what your strengths are. It will take freshmen time to get into UCONN shape, be strong enough to hold their own on the court, and learn the style of hoops UCONN plays.

Were A'ja to join the team and make a class of 4, we would effectively have a team of 11 with 2 walk ons. Again, next year UCONN will be so good that there is plenty of PT available for freshmen. Last season they played so much not only because they were that good, but also because UCONN is that good and Geno can let kids onto the court in situations that weren't "do or die" with the game on the line.

Getting back to the article and the OP's comments, love what I've read about Mo this coming season. There's a reason she was the #2 recruit in the entire nation coming out of HS and I think she may end up being the most exciting player UCONN has ever had.

 

[HGN]

Good article on MoJeff...........Confident and ready. Glad to see she has been working and agressive in practice and scrimmages. But for the most part it seems she has adjusted mentally and has the mindset necessary to show off those considerabe talents.

 

[ktuck911]

This team should be reeedicously good this season.. I'm talkin potentially running the table.. With all the experience coming back.. Dang, I sure wish we could recruit in football the way we do with this part of the program....

 

[doggydaddy]

In looking at the play by play, I see another area that mfs22b might have been referring too.

At 6:55, Jefferson is put back into the game. She gets called for a very curious blocking foul. I thought it was a terrible call. On defense the next time down, she lost her man and let her get a wide open three. I think Geno saw that and pulled her again.

What happened next is a matter of opinion and I certainly don't agree that she was upset with being pulled so quickly. TO me it looked like she was talking about that bad foul call and CD poo poo'd it with a flick of her hand saying "forget about it" if my lip reading skills are correct.

So, this was closer to what mfs22b was talking about. But you have to get looking for something negative to find issues with how the coaching staff handled it.

She played much better in the 2nd half with 3 points 3 assists and only 1 TO in 11 minutes. So maybe the coaches know what they are doing?

 

[rbny1]

In looking at the play by play, I see another area that mfs22b might have been referring too.

At 6:55, Jefferson is put back into the game. She gets called for a very curious blocking foul. I thought it was a terrible call. On defense the next time down, she lost her man and let her get a wide open three. I think Geno saw that and pulled her again.

What happened next is a matter of opinion and I certainly don't agree that she was upset with being pulled so quickly. TO me it looked like she was talking about that bad foul call and CD poo poo'd it with a flick of her hand saying "forget about it" if my lip reading skills are correct.

So, this was closer to what mfs22b was talking about. But you have to get looking for something negative to find issues with how the coaching staff handled it.

She played much better in the 2nd half with 3 points 3 assists and only 1 TO in 11 minutes. So maybe the coaches know what they are doing?

What's wrong with you, doggy? You're letting facts get in the way of fiction.

 

[sarals24]

There was another moment in the NC game (maybe it was the same stretch) where Walz subbed in that tiny blonde guard, I think she's about 5'4. Geno subbed CD in for MoJeff, I think because the L'Ville player was not very quick and CD could definitely keep up with her. It might have been a case of Geno looking to get CD as many minutes as possible in her last game.

 

[connboy77]

I like Mo's attitude going into the season. She has the talent to be a great point guard and another weapon for this great UCONN team.

 

[caramel]

LOL good one but inaccurate. Or at least misleading. On a team of only 9 this year (not including the 2 walk ons), there will be tons of PT to be had and i'm betting the "starters" never average over 30 MPG this season. I'm betting even the walk ons average close 5+ MPG this season.

Point is that when the team is so good and margins will be so large, there is a ton of PT available. Whether you are a guard,wing, forward or center, UCONN runs a unique style of basketball that is great to watch and even better for kids to play in. Motion offense, teaching the ability to read defenses and run offense based on what they give you and what your strengths are. It will take freshmen time to get into UCONN shape, be strong enough to hold their own on the court, and learn the style of hoops UCONN plays.

Were A'ja to join the team and make a class of 4, we would effectively have a team of 11 with 2 walk ons. Again, next year UCONN will be so good that there is plenty of PT available for freshmen. Last season they played so much not only because they were that good, but also because UCONN is that good and Geno can let kids onto the court in situations that weren't "do or die" with the game on the line.

Getting back to the article and the OP's comments, love what I've read about Mo this coming season. There's a reason she was the #2 recruit in the entire nation coming out of HS and I think she may end up being the most exciting player UCONN has ever had.

Also,the walk-ons have shown that they can play,per interviews posted yesterday,betwwen Geno and Bria,If you can play and follow direction,you will get minutes,and I agree that the walk-ons will get some minutes when appropriate.

 

[Icebear]

There was another moment in the NC game (maybe it was the same stretch) where Walz subbed in that tiny blonde guard, I think she's about 5'4. Geno subbed CD in for MoJeff, I think because the L'Ville player was not very quick and CD could definitely keep up with her. It might have been a case of Geno looking to get CD as many minutes as possible in her last game.

If we are talking Shelby she is very quick. She is one of OC's favorite.

 

[Alydar]

..................................

It was then that Geno decided to take her out of the game.

It was clear she had a freshman 1:36 and struggled. Geno did what every good coach would do.

.

My guess is that she wasn't pulled for taking the 3 or for the missed layup. She was removed because she let her errors on offense effect her defense. And if you do that you sit.

 

[UcMiami]

LOL good one but inaccurate. Or at least misleading. On a team of only 9 this year (not including the 2 walk ons), there will be tons of PT to be had and i'm betting the "starters" never average over 30 MPG this season. I'm betting even the walk ons average close 5+ MPG this season.

Point is that when the team is so good and margins will be so large, there is a ton of PT available. Whether you are a guard,wing, forward or center, UCONN runs a unique style of basketball that is great to watch and even better for kids to play in. Motion offense, teaching the ability to read defenses and run offense based on what they give you and what your strengths are. It will take freshmen time to get into UCONN shape, be strong enough to hold their own on the court, and learn the style of hoops UCONN plays.

Were A'ja to join the team and make a class of 4, we would effectively have a team of 11 with 2 walk ons. Again, next year UCONN will be so good that there is plenty of PT available for freshmen. Last season they played so much not only because they were that good, but also because UCONN is that good and Geno can let kids onto the court in situations that weren't "do or die" with the game on the line.

Getting back to the article and the OP's comments, love what I've read about Mo this coming season. There's a reason she was the #2 recruit in the entire nation coming out of HS and I think she may end up being the most exciting player UCONN has ever had.

Good points Eric - I just went back over the last 4 years for average starter minutes (using top five players so not Doty for this past year for example even though she started some games.)
2013 - 27.4
2012 - 28.9
2011 - 30.8
2010 - 26.6
The 2011 season was an aberration because of the bench - it consisted of Dixon who average 22 minutes, Walker (freshman) who average 19 (in a total of 17 games) and then Buck and freshman Engeln and Johnson - Geno didn't have much to turn to there after the graduation of Charles, Gardler, Greene, McLaren, and Fernandes and he was already starting Stef and Bria as Freshman.
So ... in an average year there are 60+ minutes available for bench play every game - if a freshman or bench player is good enough they should be able to get 15-20 of those minutes and if they are exceptional and/or flexible in position and/or desperately needed because of previous year graduations, they can get starter minutes in the 20-30 minute range. Ideally Geno would probably prefer 70+ minutes for his bench, but he is unwilling to run garbage time garbage basketball so failing talent on the bench he'll leave more starters on the floor to keep the flow on offense and defense. A bench player with potential will learn a lot more playing with a couple of starters than they will learn freewheeling with no one knowing what they are doing.
ON Edit -
Just a comparison to the Olympic team when Geno had a really solid bench ...
Bird led minutes per game with 24.9 and there were two other starters with more than 20 minutes - DT at 24.1 and Charles with 21.3. Then there were another 5 players in the 17.4-19.8 range and two more at 14.9 and 10.3 and Fowles and Cash with 9.6 and 8.3. So if Geno has some bench talent they get their minutes.

 

[doggydaddy]

My guess is that she wasn't pulled for taking the 3 or for the missed layup. She was removed because she let her errors on offense effect her defense. And if you do that you sit.

Can't disagree with that. But I would bet it was the accumulation of the offensive mistakes and the defensive mistakes that caused her to be subbed for. She needed to slow it down as she reverted to pre-tournament freshman type play.

She was still confused on the defensive end the second time she was in the game in the first half and was pulled even more quickly.

I'm thinking she kinda got it in the second half. I expect great things from her.