Molly Bent

[HopJim]

I've been watching games since 1995, grew up playing basketball in Indiana and absolutely understand the nuances of the game.

Molly could start for any number of D1 teams and, given her speed, size and motor, could possibly even be a standout.

Kyla could start on MOST D1 teams in my opinion. For instance, every other AAC team would love to have her.

I'm guessing you don't watch many WCBB teams besides UConn and whomever they happen to be playing. Watch a Big Ten WCBB game and you'll see what I mean.

 

[HopJim]

Since we need another back up guard, wonder if Geno could (or would consider) focusing her on one aspect of her game - ex. defense, 3 pointers, etc. She has displayed skills in each but seems to have the game speed up on her when trying to be the complete guard. As example, have been to several games where seen her sink 3 after 3 in warm ups only to hesitate in games. Would be great to have her come in to shut down the hot competitor or take pressure away from KLS double team, etc. 5 productive minutes better than mop up time. Doesn't matter if she or others could play at other schools - they are Huskies and have to show productivity in the UConn system against UConn level competition.

 

[Plebe]

Consider this: If you could (hypothetically) rank all the backcourts in D1 WBB, for how many teams would Molly not start? 100? More? Less than 100? I think it would be less than 100.

Try another group: The AAC. For how many AAC teams would Molly not start?

Somewhere between the top 50 and the teams outside the top 100-ish, the level of play really takes a nosedive.

People who think the AAC is terrible should spend some time watching the SWAC, or the MEAC, or the WAC.

 

[PacoSwede]

i could be hallucinatin', i admit, cause i can't cite the specific game, but i swear i saw molly come in late in a game sometime past where she performed like a confident player who we wanted in the game because she was having a positive impact, not someone who we were rooting for just because we wanted her to succeed. i had the feeling: something must have clicked for molly; she's turned the corner at last. i swear it happened. but .... does anyone else recall that game?

 

[JustinesGuy]

If you were to say that Molly and Kyla are not as athletically gifted as most D1 basketball players (at least for teams in the Top 50 or so), that would be a true statement. That would also have been a true statement with respect to Mel Thomas, Pam Webber, the post-injury edition of Caroline Doty, Maria Conlon, Morgan and Ashley Valley, and a number of other players who have contributed significantly to UConn basketball over the years. It might even be true of Jenn Rizzotti.

I think either Kyla or Molly could (if necessary) fill the same role as any of those players, possibly excepting Rizzotti. It is possible to have a significant role on a WCBB team without being an amazing athlete, even at UConn's level.

In Molly's case (not Kyla's), it is not limitations on her athletic ability that are holding her back, but rather mental issues with taking open shots and seeing the court. I would compare her to Nicole Wolff in that respect --both honor students from Eastern Massachusetts who could have gone to more academically prestigious schools, but chose to come to UConn for the basketball experience. They both worked really hard, and they both worried too much about making a mistake.

Pam Webber is legit my faviorate player of all time

 

[JoePgh]

Pam Webber is legit my faviorate player of all time

Well, there is a certain logical predictability in the fact that Justine's Guy would have that view!

 

[TitleTown]

Unfortunately, I think the only way that Molly is likely to overcome her mental demons is to play a lot of minutes, and it's hard to see how that is going to happen unless we have a lot of very non-competitive games -- which eventually we will. If (very hypothetically) she got 15-18 minutes per game, she probably would conquer most if not all of her problems.

However, even as she is now, I am not convinced that Mikayla makes more of a contribution than Molly does. Certainly Mikayla is faster and can jump higher for rebounds, but she can't shoot as well and makes at least as many mistakes. It won't take long for opponents to realize that they don't have to defend Mikayla's jump shot, and indeed they should invite her to take it.

Mikayla is a more gifted athlete, but Molly may contribute more to this team. But Geno seems to have decided that Mikayla is his third guard.

Coombs is a far better player, on both ends of the floor, than Bent. While Coombs lacks a jump shot, she is a better ball handler, better defender, better rebounder, runs the offense better, etc than Bent.

 

[TitleTown]

Pam Webber is legit my faviorate player of all time

Well, there is a certain logical predictability in the fact that Justine's Guy would have that view!

Pam certainly was strikingly beautiful, but she was also really nice and down to earth. I can remember meeting for the 1st time when I was a junior in high school. It was in the summer, I was in the weight room at Notre Dame High School in West Haven getting a lift in and in walks Pam Webber. At the time she was dating her future husband Scott Mitchell, who was a standout football player at ND a few years ahead of me and went on to play at UConn. This was the summer after the 94-95 season and I was in awe, I mean I was just watching her win the NC, and now she is doing leg presses next to me. She was in town visiting Scott for like 2 weeks and would come workout at ND everyday. Once the word got out Pam was there, lets just say, there was a record number of my teammates that attended offseason workouts for those 2 weeks. Like I said, she was super nice, super approachable, and really down to earth!

 

[my2cents]

Molly is a very good basketball player, who most likely in practice shows the coaches that she can play. Then for some reason in the games, she becomes tentative and error prone. Lots of great baseball players have a hard time playing for the Yankees, Uconn is like that.

 

[ghost]

wonder why they dont have a sports psychologist connected to the team, could help in cases like this

Molly is a very good basketball player, who most likely in practice shows the coaches that she can play. Then for some reason in the games, she becomes tentative and error prone. Lots of great baseball players have a hard time playing for the Yankees, Uconn is like that.

 

[JustinesGuy]

Pam certainly was strikingly beautiful, but she was also really nice and down to earth. I can remember meeting for the 1st time when I was a junior in high school. It was in the summer, I was in the weight room at Notre Dame High School in West Haven getting a lift in and in walks Pam Webber. At the time she was dating her future husband Scott Mitchell, who was a standout football player at ND a few years ahead of me and went on to play at UConn. This was the summer after the 94-95 season and I was in awe, I mean I was just watching her win the NC, and now she is doing leg presses next to me. She was in town visiting Scott for like 2 weeks and would come workout at ND everyday. Once the word got out Pam was there, lets just say, there was a record number of my teammates that attended offseason workouts for those 2 weeks. Like I said, she was super nice, super approachable, and really down to earth!

Pam came to a few of my track meets against ND. She signed my hat one year, I was so appreciative. She was so kind. Still my faviorate player of all time.

 

[cohenzone]

Consider this: If you could (hypothetically) rank all the backcourts in D1 WBB, for how many teams would Molly not start? 100? More? Less than 100? I think it would be less than 100.

Try another group: The AAC. For how many AAC teams would Molly not start?

How many D1 backcourts have you actually seen? Off of her limited playing time at UConn, she hasn’t shown any more, and maybe less, than former walk-on Stacey Marron. Since Marron days, the general D1 skill level is even better. It’s the unknowable unless she actually goes to play elsewhere. All we can say of her is that she seems like a hard worker and a good teammate. But hasn’t exactly sparkled in end of game play against starting and sometimes second string players even in the AAC bottom feeders . Just based on her play, I’d think that any D1 backcourt she could start for would be a pretty weak team.

 

[tower1]

Not a D1 player? First off she is playing in D1 currently, and could easily be a starter at many D1 schools. Both Molly and Kyla were recruited by other D1 schools. If you want to make the case that she is not as gifted as the UCONN starters, then maybe make that clear, but then there are not that many players in D1 who are that talented.

She is a terrific kid and works extremely hard. She is a very likable player and every team should have a player like her. But she is border line D1 and D2. I think Coombs should be getting more playing time because she is going to help this team allot more than Molly at the end of the year and next year.

 

[tower1]

Since we need another back up guard, wonder if Geno could (or would consider) focusing her on one aspect of her game - ex. defense, 3 pointers, etc. She has displayed skills in each but seems to have the game speed up on her when trying to be the complete guard. As example, have been to several games where seen her sink 3 after 3 in warm ups only to hesitate in games. Would be great to have her come in to shut down the hot competitor or take pressure away from KLS double team, etc. 5 productive minutes better than mop up time. Doesn't matter if she or others could play at other schools - they are Huskies and have to show productivity in the UConn system against UConn level competition.

This is not Rec basketball, It's D1 Basketball.

 

[noirwestern]

I spent thirteen years in the trenches of the mental health industry. All this yack about this players demon's or whatever projected shortcoming they surely must have has me laughing to myself over here. Bottom line is they made the cut and they've suited up for the best women's college basketball team on the whole damn planet. Something none of us has ever done, or will do. That sums it up for me.