Moriah Jefferson

[sarals24]

I think this game might be a turning point for her. IN about 45 seconds she really helped turn the game around. Great tip on defense, then a steal, then a great steal on the other end leading to a tough left-handed layup.

Very impressed with her attitude and willingness to do her part to help the team win. She was such a prolific scorer in high school that it has to be tough to accept a secondary role on this team. But I think we are going to see great things from her!

 

[OneTrickPony]

She's gonna be great...

 

[speedoo]

Moriah virtually singlehandedly blew the game open with that 30 seconds of defensive brilliance.

 

[alexrgct]

I was going to start a somewhat different thread, but I'll just append to this one.

One thing that was really noteworthy was the circumstances under which Mo was in the game at all during that turning point. Both Bria and Caroline were playing poorly, so Geno unceremoniously yanked both of them and put Moriah in with the game still very much in doubt. That sent a very powerful message to all three kids, and it was ballsy as hell on Geno's part. He got to see how Mo would do in that situation, and you know what? She did a fine job. Yes, I realize Bria was back in during the sequence where Penn State couldn't even inbound the ball.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Moriah also got a post-game interview out of it. Signs of things to come.

Speed, steals, speed, points, and more speed. I love it!

 

[blkkirk]

It was clear that she was determined to make a difference. Head strong and confident. Good sign going forward. Hoping Morgan has a similar epiphany.

 

[VAMike23]

Moriah had a lot of miscues last night. Not a few, a lot; and several were right in front of Geno!

OTOH she had an equal number of great moments, some of which were downright incredible, including that series of plays in the press that had me jumping out of my chair!! Talk about a game changer!

She was also challenging shooters and going up on shots in a really aggressive manner. Loved that from our little 5'7" spark plug. She is a tough cookie.

This is hugely encouraging because often times freshman, when they &@*(*#?! something up, start to play tight, cautious, non-impact basketball. NOT MO !!!!! Because of this, her (upward) progress will continue to be rapid.

 

[meyers7]

Moriah had a lot of miscues last night. Not a few, a lot; and several were right in front of Geno!

OTOH she had an equal number of great moments, some of which were downright incredible, including that series of plays in the press that had me jumping out of my chair!! Talk about a game changer!

Agreed, she's not always on the same page offensively. But she can do a lot of stuff. I was glad to see Geno let her work through some of her mistakes.

 

[Icebear]

One of the toughest things in learning the UConn offense is not just what to do but when to do it. The least little bit of lag timing and the entire offense is out of sync and bogs down. Entry passes to post players must come as they present themselves not when they present themselves, one beat, and entry. Being prepared to make the pass as the player comes clear is a huge lesson to be absorbed.

 

[UcMiami]

One of the toughest things in learning the UConn offense is not just what to do but when to do it. The least little bit of lag timing and the entire offense is out of sync and bogs down. Entry passes to post players must come as they present themselves not when they present themselves, one beat, and entry. Being prepared to make the pass as the player comes clear is a huge lesson to be absorbed.

One of things in Bria's game that bothered me last night and in other games when she is pushing up the ball in transition she often curls to one side and completely misses a player breaking open on the other side. It allows the defense to defend only one side while the rest of their team makes it down the court. This is not on fast breaks but on the transition plays where it might be five on four or four on three and some of the defense is already in position. There was a play last night that she went from the right to the left and curled back and completely missed a player coming down the right side with no defender within 15 feet.

 

[crownfox2]

One of things in Bria's game that bothered me last night and in other games when she is pushing up the ball in transition she often curls to one side and completely misses a player breaking open on the other side. It allows the defense to defend only one side while the rest of their team makes it down the court. This is not on fast breaks but on the transition plays where it might be five on four or four on three and some of the defense is already in position. There was a play last night that she went from the right to the left and curled back and completely missed a player coming down the right side with no defender within 15 feet.

I saw that also. The open player was KLM.Hardly the player you want to miss. Actually there were about three possessions in a row where KLM didn't touch the ball. Bria continued to over dribble while the wrestling matches on the inside were going on. One of the things missing was crisp passing on the perimeter and movement. PS was clogging the middle annd doubling the cutters taking away our inside game. As the level of competition rises we have to be more flexible as we do have the pieces to adapt our game.