Muffet Speaks With Only A Little Hoof and Mouth

[CocoHusky]

Only to a UConn fan could a player fight through a shoulder injury in each of her first two years to become ACC POY and an All-American by the end of her sophmore year and still be a disappointment. But seriously, I try to let most of the ND stuff fly over my head because I know what site I'm on, but I do not get the "Turner is a disappointment" and "Turner doesn't play well in big games" takes at all.

It would be helpful if Miss Turner would stop telling on herself also:

"I think the first half I wasn't as aggressive as I needed to be. So in the second half I just tried to come out and be aggressive."
Turner after Stanford Loss 2016.
ASAP Sports Transcripts - Basketball - 2016 - NCAA WOMEN'S REGIONAL SEMIFINALS AND FINALS: LEXINGTON - March 25 - Muffet McGraw - Brianna Turner - Lindsay Allen

“I think I wasn’t aggressive enough. I was really timid in the first half,”
Turner-2015 National Championship game.
Turner struggles in first half before bouncing back // The Observer

 

[Orangutan]

It would be helpful if Miss Turner would stop telling on herself also:

I think it's only natural for top players to be self-critical after a big loss. "Alpha" players will always feel they could have done more. Quotes you omitted from that Observer article on the '15 NC game.

However, it was not Turner’s fault she did not make an impact, Irish head coach Muffet McGraw said.

“We didn’t look for her enough,” McGraw said. “I thought we needed to get her the ball more, talked about it at halftime, trying to get her in the pick-and-roll, going high/low. … I think our point guards had a little trouble finding her.”

Despite standing 6-foot-4, the tallest Irish player on the court, Turner did not figure into Notre Dame’s early offensive attack, sophomore guard Lindsay Allen said.

“In the first half, we weren’t really looking for her,” Allen said. “I think she was open a few times in the first half [but] we couldn’t get the ball to her, kept turning it over trying to get it to her.”

 

[bags27]

It would be helpful if Miss Turner would stop telling on herself also:
"I think the first half I wasn't as aggressive as I needed to be. So in the second half I just tried to come out and be aggressive."
Turner after Stanford Loss 2016.
“I think I wasn’t aggressive enough. I was really timid in the first half,”
Turner-2015 National Championship game.
Turner struggles in first half before bouncing back // The Observer

But Orangutan, Coco raises an interesting point about self-criticism. I'm certainly not piling on Turner here, as I don't follow her nearly closely enough. Just that there's a fine line between taking some responsibility for a loss and publicly being down on yourself. The latter is a recipe for self-doubt going forward. Great players in every sport shrug off a mistakes and move on quickly. I think Coco is raising the issue of whether Turner isn't too tough on herself and whether she has the capacity to move on quickly enough.

Not to stir the coals of this fire, but hey, why not. Geno is quite tough on his players and will be so publicly. But in some way, that frees them up because he is direct and honest in his criticisms. And, of course, no one builds a player back up quite like Geno. For better or worse, his players always know where he stands on them.

 

[Dillon77]

I guess we are looking at it in 2 different ways. To me she's saying UCONN lost a lot more talent than the rest of the pack. You can't argue with her about that. I don't think she's knocking UCONN at all.

Agreed -- She's not knocking UConn at all. If anything, she's noting that UConn lost some a bunch of talent. And she also acknowledges that a lot of teams, both in the ACC and throughout the country, are going to be very formidable.

As Orangutan brought up, 99% of the presser had to do with her own players and team, ranging from the improvement of back-up post Koko Nelson to the current medical status of a few players (Turner, Patberg, Johnson).

Here's videotape and excerpts from the ND site.
McGraw Optimistic, Confident in Deep Irish Squad

A few points from the presser.

- Listen, as a former communications person, I wish MM would say "one of the best" rather than the best. However, she has her reasons and is resolute and consistent in saying so. However, "the best" are not immune from critiques: McGraw wants Turner to improve that foul-line jumper and her free-throw shooting.

As for comments that Turner is "one-dimensional," I beg to differ. On half-court sets, yes, she gets the ball close, but finishes with an array of hooks, jump hooks from both left and right. She also runs the floor very well for anyone, let alone a post/forward. As a guy who has based his long career on an array of hooks...they work. Turner should keep taking them until they're stopped.

- She wonders where the glue players are going to come from and specifically mentions Hannah Huffman and Michaela Mabrey. She is very aware of what it takes to make a team. In fact, she says her one championship team was far from the most talented, but knew their roles.

Lastly, a personal note...As I've brought up (just as recently as two weekends ago), I know where precisely where I am and try to offer input from that perspective. However, most current ND sports are not the "creation" of the Notre Dame sports information department, but the result of diligence shown by students who started and/or kept clubs going. And of coaches that took these meager beginnings and have pushed them forward in a representative manner, ranging from Muffet in hoops to Kevin Corrigan in men's lacrosse. To wit:

- I played on the ND Lax Club Team and shoveled snow from parking lots in February and March so we could practice iand patched up lousy fields so we could play in March and early April after Indiana "perma-winters." No astro-turf for the weird guys with sticks.

- I know and am proud of the young women that formed the ND Women's Club Basketball team in the 70s, the efforts that led to the formation of the current varsity team. They raised money for uniforms, bargained for practice time in the Rock and the ACC and had buddies (like me) drive them to away games. One of those founders is now on the board of the HS that Arike Ogunbolwale went to and has talked to her about what went into ND hoops over the years just so she knows what went into the team. Yes, there are now stadiums and multi-media streams of every game, but I don't forget where they came from..and entitlement had nothing to do with it.

I can now return to my regularly scheduled level of blood pressure.

 

[Dillon77]

But Orangutan, Coco raises an interesting point about self-criticism. I'm certainly not piling on Turner here, as I don't follow her nearly closely enough. Just that there's a fine line between taking some responsibility for a loss and publicly being down on yourself. The latter is a recipe for self-doubt going forward. Great players in every sport shrug off a mistakes and move on quickly. I think Coco is raising the issue of whether Turner isn't too tough on herself and whether she has the capacity to move on quickly enough.

Not to stir the coals of this fire, but hey, why not. Geno is quite tough on his players and will be so publicly. But in some way, that frees them up because he is direct and honest in his criticisms. And, of course, no one builds a player back up quite like Geno. For better or worse, his players always know where he stands on them.

- Players can think too much at times, both during a game and after. Fitzpatrick of the Jets admits to it recently. I'm not anything more than a legend in my own mind, but I shoot better when I've got less time to think about the shot.
I think Turner was being forthright, as was Lindsay Allen. Don't see this as a pattern.
- Your description of Geno and his relationship with players rings true. I think MM is pretty straightforward with her players. She has meetings with the team to set goals that the entire team agrees on and she also has coaching prerogatives (improve that foul-line jumper, Brianna). Take a listen to the tape.

Personally, I'm really looking forward to Brianna Turner coming back from what seems to be successful surgery. I think she's done great, has a fun attitude -- based on media I've seen of the team and reports from classmates (like my daughter) -- and expect her to rip it this year, aided by frosh Erin Boley and her right-hand "man," Kat Westbeld.

 

[Orangutan]

But Orangutan, Coco raises an interesting point about self-criticism. I'm certainly not piling on Turner here, as I don't follow her nearly closely enough. Just that there's a fine line between taking some responsibility for a loss and publicly being down on yourself. The latter is a recipe for self-doubt going forward. Great players in every sport shrug off a mistakes and move on quickly. I think Coco is raising the issue of whether Turner isn't too tough on herself and whether she has the capacity to move on quickly enough.

Not to stir the coals of this fire, but hey, why not. Geno is quite tough on his players and will be so publicly. But in some way, that frees them up because he is direct and honest in his criticisms. And, of course, no one builds a player back up quite like Geno. For better or worse, his players always know where he stands on them.

ND has lost three games with Turner in the lineup. Two were season-enders and the other was the Miami game in Jan. '15. The game after that one she scored 21 points in 23 minutes in a game that ND won by 46 over Boston College. So I don't think self-criticism is an issue. Actually, that was Taya Reimer's issue (one of them, at least).

If anything, Bri asserting herself more consistently is the issue. Sometimes she does disappear (at least offensively) for stretches. On the other hand, ND fans have all watched stretches when ND racks up turnovers trying to force it into Bri when she is not open. So, as Allen and McGraw note in those quotes, it's not always on Bri if Bri is not scoring. Sometimes it's on the guards for not finding her or for throwing bad entry passes.

 

[CocoHusky]

This article pulled from a 15-minute press conference she gave yesterday, of which 90+% of the time was spent talking about her own players.

That 90% should have been 100%.

 

[wallman]

Of course it had nothing to do with the other team they were playing

As a fan of women's basketball, I enjoy watching Notre Dame and I think Turner has a great motor but also needs to expand her skill level. Sometimes MM comes off as, gosh I cannot think of the right word but it's like when someone scratches their nails on the chalk board. Then again there are a lot worse when it comes to addressing the media.

 

[Kaizen]

She believes 6-3 forward Brianna Turner (14.6 points, 7.3 rebounds), is the nation's best player and senior Lindsay Allen, who averaged 9.3 points and 5.8 assists, is the best point guard.

==>When does NCAAW basketball become such low standard ???

 

[Dillon77]

That 90% should have been 100%.

Coco: I'm sure you're aware of this but it was the annual media day press conference out in South Bend (not press release day). Last time I checked even the Notre Dame sports media department (they're not all controlling as some have inferred) allows the press to ask the questions. To my reading of the transcript, all of two questions deviated from inter-team questions.
Here they are:

When you look at the national scene, what are you expecting this year?
"I'm expecting that this is the year where parity finally hits women's basketball. It's a long time coming. I think it's going to be great for the game. I think there's a lot of teams that can win it, just in our conference. Louisville is a great team with just about everybody coming back. Miami's got everybody coming back. Syracuse is coming off a Final Four. Duke's a team that's a little under the radar right now. There's a lot of great talent in the ACC.

"Nationally, you've got Tennessee with just about everybody back. Baylor has almost everybody back. Stanford's got a really good team coming back. This is a year where nobody lost a lot of talent except for Connecticut. I think that evens things out and I think maybe this will be a year where we'll see a different number one every week like the men had last year -- which I thought was really exciting. Unless, we're the ones that are not number one. Then I wouldn't be quite as excited."

Would you put your own team at number one?
"I wouldn't. I would put us in the top five but there's a lot of good teams. This time of year, we haven't earned anything. I want to earn it."

 

[Orangutan]

That 90% should have been 100%.

So when they asked about the national scene and ND stacks up - she's supposed to say "next question"? That's the Bill Belichick way to handle it. "We're onto Cincinnati" or in this case "We're on to Central Michigan".

 

[mhshuskies]

Absolutley correct on that one. I saw most of the game. Notre Dame was outplayed all over the court. And until I see it change, Brianna Turner doesn't show up for the biggest games!

Right, she used the same excuse she did in the '15 NC game "I didn't come out aggressive enough in the first half". Excusable for a freshman maybe (Geno says they are not freshman by tourney time) but not for the waiting in the wings "best player" when it is one and done.

 

[CocoHusky]

So when they asked about the national scene and ND stacks up - she's supposed to say "next question"? That's the Bill Belichick way to handle it. "We're onto Cincinnati" or in this case "We're on to Central Michigan".

No, never cared much for Bill Belichick- he's from a Navy family. Anyway, when asked about the national scene and how ND stacks the words "UCONN" did not need to come out of her mouth to adequately answer the question. The next time Geno has a press conference about the status of HIS team and the words ND is part of his response you can be offended- or pretend to be.

 

[bags27]

Anything to talk about something besides what a certain high school senior is thinking/tweeting today....

I take your points, Irish fans, but I hope you can understand that some of us think this is code:
"I'm expecting that this is the year where parity finally hits women's basketball. It's a long time coming. I think it's going to be great for the game."
This is essentially what was tweeted by an idiot sports writer (not quite a redundancy, but close) during UConn's historic run. Is UConn supposed to feel guilty that it didn't allow parity by being better than everyone else for four straight years? If "parity" is great for the game, is non-parity bad for the game? Is Muffett criticizing UConn's "behavior"?

I know she's answering questions off the cuff, but still "when parity finally hits..." sounds like there was a disease that's finally gone away, like "when health finally returns." There was no parity because no team could beat UConn. Frankly, saying it the way she did (and I do think she's a master of this formulation) is being passive-aggressive.

that is all; I'm expecting my blood pressure to come down, now too.

 

[CocoHusky]

Coco: I'm sure you're aware of this but it was the annual media day press conference out in South Bend (not press release day). Last time I checked even the Notre Dame sports media department (they're not all controlling as some have inferred) allows the press to ask the questions. To my reading of the transcript, all of two questions deviated from inter-team questions.
Here they are:

When you look at the national scene, what are you expecting this year?
"I'm expecting that this is the year where parity finally hits women's basketball. It's a long time coming. I think it's going to be great for the game. I think there's a lot of teams that can win it, just in our conference. Louisville is a great team with just about everybody coming back. Miami's got everybody coming back. Syracuse is coming off a Final Four. Duke's a team that's a little under the radar right now. There's a lot of great talent in the ACC.

"Nationally, you've got Tennessee with just about everybody back. Baylor has almost everybody back. Stanford's got a really good team coming back. This is a year where nobody lost a lot of talent except for Connecticut. I think that evens things out and I think maybe this will be a year where we'll see a different number one every week like the men had last year -- which I thought was really exciting. Unless, we're the ones that are not number one. Then I wouldn't be quite as excited."

Would you put your own team at number one?
"I wouldn't. I would put us in the top five but there's a lot of good teams. This time of year, we haven't earned anything. I want to earn it."

Now see! Now I am really really offended. She actually talked about TN, Baylor & Stanford before she talked about UCONN- inexcusable, unforgivable!

 

[Bgillon]

So when they asked about the national scene and ND stacks up - she's supposed to say "next question"? That's the Bill Belichick way to handle it. "We're onto Cincinnati" or in this case "We're on to Central Michigan".

My only problem with MM's comments revolve around " I'm expecting that this is the year where parity finally hits women' s basketball. It's a long time coming. I think it's going to be great for the game". Is she implying that no team will win multiple championships over the next so many seasons? Does it mean there was no parity in 1991 win she won a NC? Or win Baylor won with Griner? And how do you measure how "great" it will be for the game? More fan attendance or higher TV ratings? I believe it is a not too subtle slam at Geno and UCONN's dominance of WCBB being bad for WCBB. Remember her comment about Class acts in reference to Pat Summit and the lack thereof now at the top? Unfortunately she can't quite figure out how to be a great coach and ambassador for WCBB IMO.

 

[Dillon77]

Now see! Now I am really really offended. She actually talked about TN, Baylor & Stanford before she talked about UCONN- inexcusable, unforgivable!

Hah! I'm joining Bags and letting my blood pressure come back to normal by continuing to paint my garage on a summer-like day!

 

[Decoli2]

Absolutley correct on that one. I saw most of the game. Notre Dame was outplayed all over the court. And until I see it change, Brianna Turner doesn't show up for the biggest games!

This board has exceptionally high standards if a double-double (even if restricted to one half) is not "showing up": Stanford vs Notre Dame - DI Women's Basketball

 

[Charliebball]

You have to admit, it will be kind of fun to be the underdog for a change..............let them all take UConn lightly..............I'm sure Geno will use that to his advantage.....................

 

[Alydar]

This article pulled from a 15-minute press conference she gave yesterday, of which 90+% of the time was spent talking about her own players. But of course ESPN isn't going to print the quotes about how Koko Nelson is in better shape or Erin Boley has the best 3-point shot on the team or Brianna Turner has been working on her free-throw line jumper, etc. etc.

LOL And have you read, or do you expect to read, all about the talent on this year's UConn squad? No, all that has been written has been about who left.

And why isn't the entire press conference video on the Notre Dame site? Where did you get the added information about what she talked about? I'd like a link please.

I think MM gave last year's seniors a kick in the ass going out the door with the "little talent" comment. There could have been a nicer way to say it. While they may not have been in the same class as the UConn trio they played 50 minutes a game last season and, along with Turner and Allen were the core of the team. So in fact, Notre Dame lost half it's starting core. And if you compare this year's preseason roster with last year's Notre Dame is missing nearly a third of the minutes. Remember, last year at this time Reimer was also part of the roster. So Notre Dame goes into this season with 3 starters missing from last year's starting lineup. Of course one can say that Notre Dame has already adjusted to Reimer's loss. yeah, All the way to the S16. But Boley hasn't yet played a single minute and despite all the accolades is untested. We have seen with Stewart how freshmen can struggle. Mabrey the younger and Ogunbowale started last season hot but IMO peaked in the UConn game. By the end of the season both were much less effective.

And since when is having 5 or 6 teams out of 350 vying for a title called "parity"? Is parity defined as "when your team is a contender"?

Despite all that is written above, if asked to pick the most likely NC I would say Notre Dame. And my reasons would be talent and experience at the post, the point ... and most importantly, the coach.

 

[BroadwayVa]

McGraw: NCAA women might see parity in '16-17

Seems she and the rest of the NCAA, except UConn, lost little talent. How will Madison Cable feel about that?

How old is Madison Cable??? 34?? She seems to have been at ND forever. Tough old lady --I like her..

Muffet said Nothing WRONG! What she failed to say is ---there has been parity with Uconn for the last 4 years--who has Uconn faced in the NC these past 4 years?? Tx, Baylor, USC, ND all had equivalent teams--Uconn was just a bit more equal. If Turner was more aggressive as Stewie was--who knows? Does Muffet mean PARITY means being able to beat Uconn?? Bad premise!
Parity comes when everyone achieves the level of technical play and coaching as Uconn--it's not about breeding down but breeding UP!

Other than that Muffet was truthful and ambitious for her team--but I think she did not do ND WBB a service by alluding to the departure of Uconn's Golden 3 as a reason for Parity or success of ND WBB.

It never was about how Badly UConn played but how well everyone else did.

 

[BroadwayVa]

LOL And have you read, or do you expect to read, all about the talent on this year's UConn squad? No, all that has been written has been about who left.

And why isn't the entire press conference video on the Notre Dame site? Where did you get the added information about what she talked about? I'd like a link please.

I think MM gave last year's seniors a kick in the ass going out the door with the "little talent" comment. There could have been a nicer way to say it. While they may not have been in the same class as the UConn trio they played 50 minutes a game last season and, along with Turner and Allen were the core of the team. So in fact, Notre Dame lost half it's starting core. And if you compare this year's preseason roster with last year's Notre Dame is missing nearly a third of the minutes. Remember, last year at this time Reimer was also part of the roster. So Notre Dame goes into this season with 3 starters missing from last year's starting lineup. Of course one can say that Notre Dame has already adjusted to Reimer's loss. yeah, All the way to the S16. But Boley hasn't yet played a single minute and despite all the accolades is untested. We have seen with Stewart how freshmen can struggle. Mabrey the younger and Ogunbowale started last season hot but IMO peaked in the UConn game. By the end of the season both were much less effective.

And since when is having 5 or 6 teams out of 350 vying for a title called "parity"? Is parity defined as "when your team is a contender"?

Despite all that is written above, if asked to pick the most likely NC I would say Notre Dame. And my reasons would be talent and experience at the post, the point ... and most importantly, the coach.

Pre-season--MOST LIKELY to win the NC---that could have been written about ND most of the last 4 years (maybe just the first 3).
They had the best shot --when Baby Mabrey went off on Uconn I thought it would be a different final 4.

 

[Florida Fan]

McGraw: NCAA women might see parity in '16-17

Seems she and the rest of the NCAA, except UConn, lost little talent. How will Madison Cable feel about that?

Muffet's idea of parity is the Irish run the table, something they could have done the past four years, except for one thorn in the coach's competitive side. But, this year, ND is really, really loaded, McGraw's only problem, how to keep her talented bench happy. Granted, the top teams are all better, so rotating number #1's is a possibility, but all smarmy humility aside, Muffet's fangs are showing a little red at the chance to mow down the competition, Uconn first among the expected victims. Women's basketball being "more exciting" is Muffet talk for the also-rans fighting it out for second and third.

 

[huskeynut]

Muffet has her opinion like everyone else. Muffet is probably the second best coach in WCBB. Makes no difference.

Things will be settled on the court, as usual. As to Allen being the best pg in the country and Turner the POY, Muffet said that all of last year. So it will be her campaign speech all season. I don't see either of these two players obtaining those lofty ranks.

UConn has come back to the pack - a little. We will see how far. Do I think UConn will run the table this year - no. I believe come March and April, UConn will be there in contention for #12. After all - we have Geno and they don't!

 

[Vowelguy]

Me I just love to poke at Ms. Thin Skin.

Lol.

Pot: "Kettle, you are black."