Have been reading the BY for probably a little over a year and a half now. Only started watching UConn WBB a couple years ago. Never had much of an interest in watching professional ball because my perception of it was a lot of showboating and ‘in your face’ stuff.
Not sure that I have a lot to contribute here; I know next to nothing about the technical aspects of basketball and the only basketball I’ve ever played was when it was mandatory for PE class back in the late 60s and early 70s. I had no aptitude for the game then and that hasn’t changed.
This may very well be my only post here but I wanted to get on record as a Molly and Kyla supporter. Anything I may write is in no way meant to diminish the exceptional talent or achievements of any other player.
I started watching UCWBB mostly out of curiosity. At the time the newspapers seemed to run a story every day about how UConn had lost all it’s good players and was going to have a bad year (I’m paraphrasing, but it seemed that there was a lot of gloomy stuff being written).
There probably wasn’t a car race on tv that day so I tuned in to a game to see what all the noise was about.
What I saw was not what the papers had predicted….there was a lot of teamwork, ball movement, and very precise playing….no showboating. They were also winning games.
It looked like the kind of basketball that coaches had tried to teach me a very long time ago.
AND they kept winning, game after game. It was enjoyable to watch as a CT resident and I was seeing for the first time what all the hype was about in previous years.
I found the BY because I was looking online to find out about the players and who they were. I confess that mostly I was looking into Molly and Kyla because they seemed to be so excited to be there but rarely ever played, except for the very end of some games.
It looked to me as if they had some skills, but were not playing at the same level as some of the rest of the players. There were mistakes made by Molly on a regular basis, and I hadn’t yet learned to look for what Kyla was really doing, she seemed a bit invisible.
I also saw the comments on the UConn Facebook page, a lot of them were very ugly towards Molly. The comments on the BY weren’t ‘as bad’, but some were pretty dismissive: Molly doesn’t deserve to wear the #10 jersey, they were a recruiting failure-both of them would be better off playing for a lower division team, Kyla is slow & can’t jump, Molly can’t play at the level needed to be here, etc. (paraphrasing again). I thought it was unfortunate that self-proclaimed ‘fans’ would be so harsh towards players. But such is the world of internet forums, I suppose.
As I read through the comments about how they screwed this thing up, or could have done this other thing better I was reminded of the excerpt from Roosevelt’s “The Man in the Arena” speech; “It is not the critic that counts……..credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena….” It is worth reading and I hope those two young ladies are familiar with it. (need to make a gender adjustment to parts of it to be more applicable)
I began to watch the games differently, I watched with hope that Molly and Kyla would prove everyone wrong, that they were players that belonged with the UConn program. I felt sure after last year’s USF game that Molly had broken through whatever was dogging her, she played her heart out that game and my opinion was that she provided exactly what UConn needed to get up to speed that day. However, I think it was the very next game that she refused to shoot and was very visibly benched, her embarrassment was obvious. I felt bad for her because she clearly had tons of energy and had shown flashes of some pretty decent talent. I also watched Kyla hit some 3 pt shots with a graceful stroke but she wasn’t getting much time on the court, either.
I continued to watch the team play and I continually hoped for Molly and Kyla to get more game time so they had a chance to improve and to blend in with the other ‘star’ players.
Well, so far, this year I’ve gotten my wish, I am so gratified to see both Molly and Kyla getting the opportunity to play really well. I’ve learned to actually watch Kyla, and without any sort of flash or dazzle she puts herself in exactly the right spot to help someone else to score. Her passing has become extremely accurate and her timing is on the money. Her backdoor pass to Christyn (Virginia Game??) was a thing of beauty. Christyn had started her move before Kyla even had the ball but Kyla was able to bounce-pass the ball from her side to behind her and hit Christyn exactly in the hands for her to lay it up. And Kyla has done it again since then. It seems to me that for someone that ‘can’t move’ she is always moving to get into a better position to create or assist. As a starter now it appears to my untrained eye that many of the offensive plays start with Kyla, where her decisions can make or break the play. I haven’t seen Kyla botch many plays so far. I HAVE seen her make some crisp and accurate passes, and I HAVE seen her knock down a few 3 pointers.
Kyla calmly and deliberately fired the first shot across the bow in the first seconds of the Notre Dame game to set the tone for the rest of the game. Beautiful work from her to own that first shot… She blocked a shot during the Notre Dame game as well, who was ever expecting that to happen?
She seems to do it all with efficiency and no wasted movements.
I watched Molly win the 3pt shooting contest at the UConn First Night celebration. I was eager to see if Molly would put her shooting shyness behind her this year but it wasn’t until the Seton Hall game that Molly seemed to shed her trepidation and just let herself play basketball. There were times while I was watching that game that it got really dusty in my house and I had to clear my eyes more than once. I watch those highlights often and every time at about 2:30something in the second quarter when it looks as if the ball is bogged down in the corner, someone comes streaking into the camera shot from the right, takes the pass in the lane and puts it in. The camera doesn’t show where she was, and I didn’t realize at the time that it was Molly, but that play sticks with me as an indicator that Molly might be ready to let herself just play the game. I can only imagine the decibel level if that had happened on one of her home courts!
And if I’m remembering correctly, she made a 3 pt shot that gave UConn the lead that they never lost.
She’s done some other stuff lately that I’m sure that nobody was expecting her to do, based on her past performance.
IF Molly is really ready to not “play timid” (her words) then I approve and am looking forward to watching it. Will she make mistakes and turn the ball over? Of course she will. To quote Darrell Waltrip - Molly is “all ate up with motor”, and I don’t know how much she can slow herself down. (She seems to have dialed it back enough to gain some trust and make some sharp plays) I’m guessing that she will counterbalance any off moments with a lot of really good plays. I want to be watching when she makes them.
Molly and Kyla have only had a couple of post-game interviews but they are both a pleasure to listen to. They are both so thoughtful, articulate, personable, and complimentary towards their team mates. They are great representatives of the UConn WBB program, and I hope that their parents are extremely proud of them.
(I’m pretty sure that the coaches and staff at UConn teach these young women a LOT more than how to put a spherical object through an elevated metal ring)
I have great respect for them both being the person that they are, for NEVER, EVER quitting, either on their team mates or on themselves, and for letting us watch them develop (under pressure) into amazing young women.
If they go on to be teachers or coaches every young person they come in contact with will benefit greatly from the path Molly and Kyla chose to get them where they are.
As Anna works to adapt to all of the life changes and might struggle a bit, who better than Molly to spend a long weekend with away from the environment? Who better to provide some perspective and positive outlook for how hard it can be to fit in with a top level program and play under a very harsh lens?
It seems to be that there is a lot of focus on the BY about the next great player(s), or the next time the team will be unbeatable, but I’m pretty positive about the team that is on the court Right Now and the possibilities that they have to make THEIR mark. I’m no sports analyst, but I think this group is coming together, they are learning to work with each other to win, and have demonstrated that they are able to band together and overcome tough situations. I think the Seton Hall game was an excellent ‘live fire exercise’ in how to deal with fouls and injury, and how to meld the ‘bench’ with the first string to win.
I am not a believer in “participation trophies” but I do believe that honest, hard work matters and should be rewarded. I don’t think their stories are all told just yet, they may just prove to the doubters that they are able to contribute a lot to the success of This team, This year.
YMMV
Not sure that I have a lot to contribute here; I know next to nothing about the technical aspects of basketball and the only basketball I’ve ever played was when it was mandatory for PE class back in the late 60s and early 70s. I had no aptitude for the game then and that hasn’t changed.
This may very well be my only post here but I wanted to get on record as a Molly and Kyla supporter. Anything I may write is in no way meant to diminish the exceptional talent or achievements of any other player.
I started watching UCWBB mostly out of curiosity. At the time the newspapers seemed to run a story every day about how UConn had lost all it’s good players and was going to have a bad year (I’m paraphrasing, but it seemed that there was a lot of gloomy stuff being written).
There probably wasn’t a car race on tv that day so I tuned in to a game to see what all the noise was about.
What I saw was not what the papers had predicted….there was a lot of teamwork, ball movement, and very precise playing….no showboating. They were also winning games.
It looked like the kind of basketball that coaches had tried to teach me a very long time ago.
AND they kept winning, game after game. It was enjoyable to watch as a CT resident and I was seeing for the first time what all the hype was about in previous years.
I found the BY because I was looking online to find out about the players and who they were. I confess that mostly I was looking into Molly and Kyla because they seemed to be so excited to be there but rarely ever played, except for the very end of some games.
It looked to me as if they had some skills, but were not playing at the same level as some of the rest of the players. There were mistakes made by Molly on a regular basis, and I hadn’t yet learned to look for what Kyla was really doing, she seemed a bit invisible.
I also saw the comments on the UConn Facebook page, a lot of them were very ugly towards Molly. The comments on the BY weren’t ‘as bad’, but some were pretty dismissive: Molly doesn’t deserve to wear the #10 jersey, they were a recruiting failure-both of them would be better off playing for a lower division team, Kyla is slow & can’t jump, Molly can’t play at the level needed to be here, etc. (paraphrasing again). I thought it was unfortunate that self-proclaimed ‘fans’ would be so harsh towards players. But such is the world of internet forums, I suppose.
As I read through the comments about how they screwed this thing up, or could have done this other thing better I was reminded of the excerpt from Roosevelt’s “The Man in the Arena” speech; “It is not the critic that counts……..credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena….” It is worth reading and I hope those two young ladies are familiar with it. (need to make a gender adjustment to parts of it to be more applicable)
I began to watch the games differently, I watched with hope that Molly and Kyla would prove everyone wrong, that they were players that belonged with the UConn program. I felt sure after last year’s USF game that Molly had broken through whatever was dogging her, she played her heart out that game and my opinion was that she provided exactly what UConn needed to get up to speed that day. However, I think it was the very next game that she refused to shoot and was very visibly benched, her embarrassment was obvious. I felt bad for her because she clearly had tons of energy and had shown flashes of some pretty decent talent. I also watched Kyla hit some 3 pt shots with a graceful stroke but she wasn’t getting much time on the court, either.
I continued to watch the team play and I continually hoped for Molly and Kyla to get more game time so they had a chance to improve and to blend in with the other ‘star’ players.
Well, so far, this year I’ve gotten my wish, I am so gratified to see both Molly and Kyla getting the opportunity to play really well. I’ve learned to actually watch Kyla, and without any sort of flash or dazzle she puts herself in exactly the right spot to help someone else to score. Her passing has become extremely accurate and her timing is on the money. Her backdoor pass to Christyn (Virginia Game??) was a thing of beauty. Christyn had started her move before Kyla even had the ball but Kyla was able to bounce-pass the ball from her side to behind her and hit Christyn exactly in the hands for her to lay it up. And Kyla has done it again since then. It seems to me that for someone that ‘can’t move’ she is always moving to get into a better position to create or assist. As a starter now it appears to my untrained eye that many of the offensive plays start with Kyla, where her decisions can make or break the play. I haven’t seen Kyla botch many plays so far. I HAVE seen her make some crisp and accurate passes, and I HAVE seen her knock down a few 3 pointers.
Kyla calmly and deliberately fired the first shot across the bow in the first seconds of the Notre Dame game to set the tone for the rest of the game. Beautiful work from her to own that first shot… She blocked a shot during the Notre Dame game as well, who was ever expecting that to happen?
She seems to do it all with efficiency and no wasted movements.
I watched Molly win the 3pt shooting contest at the UConn First Night celebration. I was eager to see if Molly would put her shooting shyness behind her this year but it wasn’t until the Seton Hall game that Molly seemed to shed her trepidation and just let herself play basketball. There were times while I was watching that game that it got really dusty in my house and I had to clear my eyes more than once. I watch those highlights often and every time at about 2:30something in the second quarter when it looks as if the ball is bogged down in the corner, someone comes streaking into the camera shot from the right, takes the pass in the lane and puts it in. The camera doesn’t show where she was, and I didn’t realize at the time that it was Molly, but that play sticks with me as an indicator that Molly might be ready to let herself just play the game. I can only imagine the decibel level if that had happened on one of her home courts!
And if I’m remembering correctly, she made a 3 pt shot that gave UConn the lead that they never lost.
She’s done some other stuff lately that I’m sure that nobody was expecting her to do, based on her past performance.
IF Molly is really ready to not “play timid” (her words) then I approve and am looking forward to watching it. Will she make mistakes and turn the ball over? Of course she will. To quote Darrell Waltrip - Molly is “all ate up with motor”, and I don’t know how much she can slow herself down. (She seems to have dialed it back enough to gain some trust and make some sharp plays) I’m guessing that she will counterbalance any off moments with a lot of really good plays. I want to be watching when she makes them.
Molly and Kyla have only had a couple of post-game interviews but they are both a pleasure to listen to. They are both so thoughtful, articulate, personable, and complimentary towards their team mates. They are great representatives of the UConn WBB program, and I hope that their parents are extremely proud of them.
(I’m pretty sure that the coaches and staff at UConn teach these young women a LOT more than how to put a spherical object through an elevated metal ring)
I have great respect for them both being the person that they are, for NEVER, EVER quitting, either on their team mates or on themselves, and for letting us watch them develop (under pressure) into amazing young women.
If they go on to be teachers or coaches every young person they come in contact with will benefit greatly from the path Molly and Kyla chose to get them where they are.
As Anna works to adapt to all of the life changes and might struggle a bit, who better than Molly to spend a long weekend with away from the environment? Who better to provide some perspective and positive outlook for how hard it can be to fit in with a top level program and play under a very harsh lens?
It seems to be that there is a lot of focus on the BY about the next great player(s), or the next time the team will be unbeatable, but I’m pretty positive about the team that is on the court Right Now and the possibilities that they have to make THEIR mark. I’m no sports analyst, but I think this group is coming together, they are learning to work with each other to win, and have demonstrated that they are able to band together and overcome tough situations. I think the Seton Hall game was an excellent ‘live fire exercise’ in how to deal with fouls and injury, and how to meld the ‘bench’ with the first string to win.
I am not a believer in “participation trophies” but I do believe that honest, hard work matters and should be rewarded. I don’t think their stories are all told just yet, they may just prove to the doubters that they are able to contribute a lot to the success of This team, This year.
YMMV
