oldude
bamboo lover
- Joined
- Nov 15, 2016
- Messages
- 16,955
- Reaction Score
- 150,459
The success of this year’s UConn team has surprised the pundits, the fans and even their coaches. This remarkable, surprising team is made up of a number of players who have surprised all of us as well. Which player is the most surprising? Here’s my case for each of the 5 starters.
Kia – I think everyone expected Kia to be the tough floor leader of this team. If there was any surprise, it was that Kia stumbled a little at the start of this season. After she exploded for 33 pts vs Depaul, Kia has been the “ROCK” that we all expected.
Lou – Everyone had high expectations for Lou since the day she announced she was heading to Storrs. Once she established herself as a starter last season, Lou has been a tremendous offensive weapon. This year Lou is the “go to scorer” when the Huskies need a bucket. She has expanded her game to score in a variety of ways. She has improved her defense, passing and rebounding as well, and is now playing at an AA level.
Saniya – Most of us have been hoping for Saniya to emerge as a steady player since she arrived at UConn. There have always been glimpses of her talent, but her inconsistency and perhaps lack of confidence often seemed to consign Saniya to mop-up duty. This year, there is no choice. Saniya has to be a player, and she has delivered. She is becoming more confident on offense and she is a much better defender.
Gabby – Like Ron “Jaws” Jaworski, I’ve gone back and watched 500 hrs of film on Gabby. Just about everything she is doing this year, she did on a limited basis in her freshman & sophomore year. She has always been a good passer, rebounder & defender. She’s always been a great athlete. She has improved her shooting. The most surprising aspect of Gabby’s play this year is her remarkable ability to defend much bigger post players. Gabby’s post defense has been critical to the Husky’s success this season.
Pheesa – We saw brief glimpses of Pheesa’s talent early last season and then she almost disappeared from the rotation through the middle of the season, getting mostly mop-up minutes. It wasn’t until tourney time that Pheesa earned Geno’s trust by working really hard in practice. She started getting meaningful minutes in the tournament and she played well. When Lou went down in the 1st half of the National Semifinal, Pheesa was ready to provide a greater contribution and the Huskies never missed a beat. After the season, we learned that Pheesa had played the entire season with a painful hip injury that required surgery, generating considerable speculation as to her performance this season. We got the answer on opening night when Pheesa went off for 28 pts. She’s been playing at an AA level ever since.
IMO, the most surprising player this season comes down to Gabby & Pheesa. I give a slight edge to Pheesa, for the reasons stated above. With the current trajectory of this team, a 12th championship banner may become the least surprising event we witness this season.
Kia – I think everyone expected Kia to be the tough floor leader of this team. If there was any surprise, it was that Kia stumbled a little at the start of this season. After she exploded for 33 pts vs Depaul, Kia has been the “ROCK” that we all expected.
Lou – Everyone had high expectations for Lou since the day she announced she was heading to Storrs. Once she established herself as a starter last season, Lou has been a tremendous offensive weapon. This year Lou is the “go to scorer” when the Huskies need a bucket. She has expanded her game to score in a variety of ways. She has improved her defense, passing and rebounding as well, and is now playing at an AA level.
Saniya – Most of us have been hoping for Saniya to emerge as a steady player since she arrived at UConn. There have always been glimpses of her talent, but her inconsistency and perhaps lack of confidence often seemed to consign Saniya to mop-up duty. This year, there is no choice. Saniya has to be a player, and she has delivered. She is becoming more confident on offense and she is a much better defender.
Gabby – Like Ron “Jaws” Jaworski, I’ve gone back and watched 500 hrs of film on Gabby. Just about everything she is doing this year, she did on a limited basis in her freshman & sophomore year. She has always been a good passer, rebounder & defender. She’s always been a great athlete. She has improved her shooting. The most surprising aspect of Gabby’s play this year is her remarkable ability to defend much bigger post players. Gabby’s post defense has been critical to the Husky’s success this season.
Pheesa – We saw brief glimpses of Pheesa’s talent early last season and then she almost disappeared from the rotation through the middle of the season, getting mostly mop-up minutes. It wasn’t until tourney time that Pheesa earned Geno’s trust by working really hard in practice. She started getting meaningful minutes in the tournament and she played well. When Lou went down in the 1st half of the National Semifinal, Pheesa was ready to provide a greater contribution and the Huskies never missed a beat. After the season, we learned that Pheesa had played the entire season with a painful hip injury that required surgery, generating considerable speculation as to her performance this season. We got the answer on opening night when Pheesa went off for 28 pts. She’s been playing at an AA level ever since.
IMO, the most surprising player this season comes down to Gabby & Pheesa. I give a slight edge to Pheesa, for the reasons stated above. With the current trajectory of this team, a 12th championship banner may become the least surprising event we witness this season.