Most Improved Player--Next Year

[MilfordHusky]

Ok, we're discussing who was the MIP this past season and agreed to disagree over (at least) 4 viable candidates. And Eric is asking about PT and points. So ...

Who takes the biggest step next year? I think Bria returns to sophomore year form. I see Kiah being a dominant defender and regular part of the rotation. I also see Stewie being a monster, playing near her NCAA tourney level. And don't forget the 7th grader with the keys to the Ferrari. She could be the most exciting player in WCBB. Woo-hoo!

 

[alexrgct]

Let's define our terms: MIP relative to tourney performance or MIP relative to the balance of the season? I'm going with tourney performance.

And if the answer is MoJeff, Uconn 2014 will be as good as any WCBB team ever assembled. So that's my vote.

 

[Papa33]

Ok, we're discussing who was the MIP this past season and agreed to disagree over (at least) 4 viable candidates. And Eric is asking about PT and points. So ...

Who takes the biggest step next year? I think Bria returns to sophomore year form. I see Kiah being a dominant defender and regular part of the rotation. I also see Stewie being a monster, playing near her NCAA tourney level. And don't forget the 7th grader with the keys to the Ferrari. She could be the most exciting player in WCBB. Woo-hoo!

And don't forget who *was* having an MIP year before her injury. If she can pick up where she left off-- and with the feeling that she wants to make up for lost time-- she could pronounce, by herself, the end of UConn's reputed weakness at the point guard position!

 

[MilfordHusky]

Let's define our terms: MIP relative to tourney performance or MIP relative to the balance of the season? I'm going with tourney performance.

And if the answer is MoJeff, Uconn 2014 will be as good as any WCBB team ever assembled. So that's my vote.

Yep, the base is key. Over 33 games, Breanna was good. Over the last 5, she was an AA or maybe even NPOY caliber player. Over the full season, she was very good, but her mid-season slump was huge.

We saw glimpses of MoJeff this year. She was better than BBanks was as a frosh. I look for Moriah to play even better than Brianna did in her partial soph campaign. She may not be at an AA level yet, but she will raise hell for other teams.

 

[hoopsdiva]

I'm hoping for a healthy Morgan Tuck to be MIP, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if it were MoJeff, and I'd be very pleased if it were Kiah. I don't think it would count as MIP, but I would be so happy for Brianna Banks if she can pick up where she left off and build on that. She worked so hard between her freshman and sophomore years, she really deserves something special.

 

[EricLA]

So do we agree that the MIP would be based on the ENTIRE year? If so there will be three IMHO...

Stewie
Moriah
Bria

Stewie because as you said, she started off the first 10-12 games gangbusters, went thru a 20 or so game slump, and then played like a 1st team AA throughout the NCAA tourney. Moriah because we saw flashes of what she could do running the team, but in tight situations with the toughest competition, she wasn't quite ready to be THE floor general. Next year she will be. And Bria because she was slow coming back from her injury, then experienced a bit of a crisis of confidence and saw her PPG drop from 14 her sophomore to 10 her junior year.

I think both Bria and Stewie will see approx 4-5 PPG increases and Moriah will be THE PG so that would be my vote. To pick just one? Ugh. It's like choosing on a vacation between Hawaii, Paris, or Rome.

 

[connboy77]

We have seen what Stef, KML, Bria, and Breanna can do, but we have not seen the real Kiah yet. 2013-2014 we will all see what Kiah is capable of doing.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Yep, Eric overlooked Kiah. Actually, she may be taller than he is.

 

[EricLA]

Yep, Eric overlooked Kiah. Actually, she may be taller than he is.

I did overlook Kiah mainly because Stef will still be here. Kiah may earn her minutes and I guess if her PPG were to double form 3-6 that would be substantial, but not as impactful as the others who I expect to be much higher (relatively) in the scoring hierarchy.

 

[Goodgood]

I would say Kiah. She played great whenever she has some decent minutes. Then she doesn't get to play for the next three games, then again she played well for a few more minutes. It looked like she doesn't practice or whatever. If she ever gets real minutes consistently, she would gain more confidence and develop her offense. I saw her outplay Elizabeth Williams last year without breaking a sweat. I don't know how her minutes are allocated and I will not go there. But by the time she is done, she will be a great player. She already has all the tools.

 

[wire chief]

I vote for Brianna.

 

[Sonny44]

For the future beyond next year it better be Kiah.

 

[DaddyChoc]

We saw glimpses of MoJeff this year. She was better than BBanks was as a frosh. I look for Moriah to play even better than Brianna did in her partial soph campaign. She may not be at an AA level yet, but she will raise hell for other teams.

Banks production was gobbled up by Tiffany... Mo's would have been if Banks didnt get hurt. Its tough to compare their frosh seasons

 

[UConnChapette]

I am going with Kiah.

 

[RegisteredUconn]

Let's define our terms: MIP relative to tourney performance or MIP relative to the balance of the season? I'm going with tourney performance.

And if the answer is MoJeff, Uconn 2014 will be as good as any WCBB team ever assembled. So that's my vote.

Agree, clarification of terms is essential and, if MIP actually stands for "Most Improved Poster," maybe I could step up my own efforts if peer awards are involved. Does anybody know if Fishy runs a summer camp on how to achieve a likes-to-posts ratio > 1?

 

[hoophuskee]

I'm going with MIP for season would be Stewie. We couldn't even play her vs. Baylor.
I'm going with MIP for tourney to be Hartley. I expect her to be the best guard in wcbb.Almost like Tina battled her junior year - but Bria isn't Tina but I expect her to be a ton better.

Of note Dolson should be a ton better tourney-wise next year but I dismiss that as an improvement because it was injury related.