Murderers' Row schedule coming up?

[Blakeon18]

Our OOC schedule has been a tough one. But in the next few weeks we have games
against Butler/Xavier/DePaul/St. John's/Georgetown/Seton Hall and Butler...last one on
January 21. With proper focus and as Aubrey and Azzie return I would think we should be able
to get minutes for the bench in several of those...with a couple being tighter [including St. John's away?]

We will have a 5 day gap till our visit to LadyVol on January 26. They got off to a downright poor start but are talented and seem to
be headed in the right direction...a solid winning streak underway. A good test on the road when hopefully we are relatively
healthy ['relatively' meaning we still will be missing our ace redshirt frosh not to mention the best player in the country].


BTW: I see that South Carolina comes up here on Sunday February 5...noon game. I am guessing that gametime
is a nod to the Super Bowl later that day? Uhh...varsity game first...JV game to follow

BTW #2: MLK weekend ends Monday January 16...second semester starts Tues?
I am still [fruitlessly?] hoping to see Jana ElAlfy arrive before that date to get a jump-start
on all things UConn...on and off the court...am assuming 'on court' would be limited to
practices so she would keep her 4 years of athletic eligibility. Weight program/nutrition/conditioning...experiencing
big game atmosphere [LadyVol/South Carolina/tournament play...in April!...all would smooth her entrance on
the court come next November.

Go Huskies!

 

[ochoopsfan]

BTW: I see that South Carolina comes up here on Sunday February 5...noon game. I am guessing that gametime
is a nod to the Super Bowl later that day? Uhh...varsity game first...JV game to follow

Go Huskies!

Super Bowl is on Sunday Feb 12th this year.

 

[Next 12]

My prediction for the Huskies with the up-coming schedule is they will sweep the schedule. Earlier I predicted Uconn would go undefeated in conference play and with all the setbacks, I have not changed my mind.We will have Azzi and Aubrey back for those games and since we did OK with them playing, we will still be OK. GO HUSKIES!!!!

 

[Blakeon18]

My mistake: NFC/AFC championship games on January 29...no games on our date with
South Carolina...so the JV game is a week later....better focus on our game...that
crowd should be great.

 

[Boreifs]

There still has not been a game played with all 10 players available.

 

[JellyBean]

For the upcoming games, up until the Lady Vols, only DePaul and St. John's worry me and that is only because of the physical style of play from St John's and if we are only going 6-7 deep, that pace DePaul plays at could be a huge factor. Heck we might get 120-points in that DePaul game.

 

[Mrhoops33]

Don't look ahead, focus on Butler ! Uconn really must take 1 game at a time.

 

[TheGOAT23]

I’m quite sure that the players aren’t looking ahead of the Butler game. Us rabid fans on the otherhand….

 

[Huskee11]

I think that varsity game first, JV game to follow is a prep school thing.

In high school it was the other way around. If you played well in the JV game you might get to suit up for the varsity game.

 

[Bone Dog]

Don't look ahead, focus on Butler ! Uconn really must take 1 game at a time.

The coaches and players need to take 1 game at a time. What they do actually matters on the court. By contrast, the fans really ought to think ahead and let their imaginations run, not just because there’s no harm in it, but because that’s a little less than half the fun of following the team.

 

[huskeynut]

The simple answer to all this - take it one game at a time.

Butler is tomorrow. We'll see who plays and who doesn't.

 

[Bald Husky]

Ok, back in the top 5. Azzi coming back, Aubrey coming back, I think we are ready to roll. Should not lose any games before Tennessee, and we could make a statement by knocking the crap out of them on the 26th. Feb 6, our friends at SC coming to town. Not guarantying a win, but it will be a great, great game, and the results will show that a NC showdown by these two teams will really be a WBB showcase. If the injury bug leaves us alone finally, we will be hard to beat. I'm really psyched now, so let's get it going. Go Huskies

 

[DefenseBB]

Ok, back in the top 5. Azzi coming back, Aubrey coming back, I think we are ready to roll. Should not lose any games before Tennessee, and we could make a statement by knocking the crap out of them on the 26th. Feb 6, our friends at SC coming to town. Not guarantying a win, but it will be a great, great game, and the results will show that a NC showdown by these two teams will really be a WBB showcase. If the injury bug leaves us alone finally, we will be hard to beat. I'm really psyched now, so let's get it going. Go Huskies

There, I fixed it for you. Even "mighty" Tennessee has lost some post depth with Key going down. Since their disastrous Thanksgiving Carribean sojourn they have played 10 games and are 10-2 but haven't beaten anyone of note. Their two loses were to VaTech and Stanford. I am not worried.

Schadenfreude aside, the only challenging game left (barring further injuries) is Carolina at home. This team is different and lot tougher than the past few years so I have more faith they will not take anyone lightly and will not lose a game like Villanova last year. As long as Nika is on the court, she will keep the energy, focus and ball distribution working well.

 

[Bone Dog]

As long as Nika is on the court, she will keep the energy, focus and ball distribution working well.

I couldn't agree more. Our success in the big games is going to depend on everyone playing their best. But this is where Nika is so important. She will get everyone's best game out of them in the big games.

 

[LoboDays]

Our OOC schedule has been a tough one. But in the next few weeks we have games
against Butler/Xavier/DePaul/St. John's/Georgetown/Seton Hall and Butler...last one on
January 21. With proper focus and as Aubrey and Azzie return I would think we should be able
to get minutes for the bench in several of those...with a couple being tighter [including St. John's away?]

We will have a 5 day gap till our visit to LadyVol on January 26. They got off to a downright poor start but are talented and seem to
be headed in the right direction...a solid winning streak underway. A good test on the road when hopefully we are relatively
healthy ['relatively' meaning we still will be missing our ace redshirt frosh not to mention the best player in the country].


BTW: I see that South Carolina comes up here on Sunday February 5...noon game. I am guessing that gametime
is a nod to the Super Bowl later that day? Uhh...varsity game first...JV game to follow

BTW #2: MLK weekend ends Monday January 16...second semester starts Tues?
I am still [fruitlessly?] hoping to see Jana ElAlfy arrive before that date to get a jump-start
on all things UConn...on and off the court...am assuming 'on court' would be limited to
practices so she would keep her 4 years of athletic eligibility. Weight program/nutrition/conditioning...experiencing
big game atmosphere [LadyVol/South Carolina/tournament play...in April!...all would smooth her entrance on
the court come next November.

Go Huskies!

Butler/Xavier/DePaul/St. John's/Georgetown/Seton Hall and Butler... ????. If that’s the definition of Murderer’s Row…..we’re in deep doo doo.

 

[Carnac]

We’ve been talking about the reserves getting more playing time, and how little they got in recent games. Be reminded that Amari has been dealing with a calf injury, and Ines was injured in a practice several days ago and received 7 stitches on bridge of her nose (I believe). That could certainly be an underlying reason why Geno has been reluctant to use her these last two games. Even our reserves are injured.

 

[Boreifs]

As of Monday, UConn has five of the Top 11 teams on its schedule according to the Massey ratings (SC, NC State, ND, Duke and Maryland). In addition, six teams in the Big East have been in the Top 25 at some point (St. Johns, Creighton, Seton Hall, Villanova, Marquette and DePaul). Add Texas and TN to that and it is easily the toughest schedule; they will certainly be ready for March.

 

[Carnac]

As of Monday, UConn has five of the Top 11 teams on its schedule according to the Massey ratings (SC, NC State, ND, Duke and Maryland). In addition, six teams in the Big East have been in the Top 25 at some point (St. Johns, Creighton, Seton Hall, Villanova, Marquette and DePaul). Add Texas and TN to that and it is easily the toughest schedule; they will certainly be ready for March.

If Geno insists on playing these Uber tough OOC schedules, he might want to consider expanding his roster to 13 players after being down to 7 for several games last month. Just a thought.

 

[Blakeon18]

@LoboDays : I thought it was clear that I regard the upcoming few games as being
a relative breather compared to our OOC schedule...both played and upcoming.

 

[Boreifs]

If Geno insists on playing these Uber tough OOC schedules, he might want to consider expanding his roster to 13 players after being down to 7 for several games last month. Just a thought.

The roster next year could number 14.

 

[huskeynut]

If Geno insists on playing these Uber tough OOC schedules, he might want to consider expanding his roster to 13 players after being down to 7 for several games last month. Just a thought.

I don't think Geno can predict injuries.

 

[Carnac]

I don't think Geno can predict injuries.

You’re right, he can’t. Expanding the roster to 13 would be done as “insurance” against only having 7 players for a game. I don’t think any of us wants to relive that nightmare again.

 

[Boreifs]

You’re right, he can’t. Expanding the roster to 13 would be done as “insurance” against only having 7 players for a game. I don’t think any of us wants to relive that nightmare again.

Let’s not forget that the program also lost three players to the transfer portal. That is even more unpredictable than injuries. In an ideal world, UConn would have a roster of 15 this season.

 

[Cornell Lt]

You’re right, he can’t. Expanding the roster to 13 would be done as “insurance” against only having 7 players for a game. I don’t think any of us wants to relive that nightmare again.

I think Geno knows that a 13 person roster would result in 3-4 players ultimately finishing their career elsewhere.

 

[hoopsfan22]

We have a 12 person roster now. Is one more player going to make that much of a difference?

 

[TeamFirst!]

I think we have a chance against SC but it will not be easy. We need their guards to be cold from the 3 point line. We know we are going to lose the rebounding battle and will get next to zero points in the paint. We will need Azzi, Lou and Caroline all scoring.

 

[MSGRET]

I think we have a chance against SC but it will not be easy. We need their guards to be cold from the 3 point line. We know we are going to lose the rebounding battle and will get next to zero points in the paint. We will need Azzi, Lou and Caroline all scoring.

South Carolina's bigs will not be able to keep up with UConn's, if they try they will be winded by the end of the first quarter. Why do you think that UConn will lose the rebounding battle and not many points in the paint?

 

[LoboDays]

@LoboDays : I thought it was clear that I regard the upcoming few games as being
a relative breather compared to our OOC schedule...both played and upcoming.

You were clear. Comedic license.

 

[ConnMotors]

I believe that UConn has survived the hurricane that was came our way. Two losses I believe that many of us are happy with. Notre Dame beat us. However, Maryland we lost too.

The Huskies have two upcoming Big East games against talented teams. DePaul on Sunday will be a huge challenge. Morrow is a beast of a player. Coach Bruno got himself a good one here. And much kudos for her accomplishments.

Then the St. John’s game. They recently lost after entering the Top 25. How excited that they must be with their upcoming game against UConn. A meaningful game for both teams. And, it’s being played at a professional area on Long Island where the NHLs Islanders play.

I’m looking forward to both of these games. Am hoping that Edwards didn’t hurt herself hurdling over the chairs last night against Xavier. This young lady as Kara mentioned should be included in the All American chats. And, rightly so.

Caroline is on concussion protocol. Am not sure for how long. She had not played on this road-trip so she must be close to coming back again. Thankfully Aubrey returned from Covid with a vengeance.

In case anyone missed it but Azzi’s parents were at the game last night. Am not sure if they travel to all of the games or not. But, I bet that they thought that their daughter was going to play.

Azzi was cleared for shoot around before the game. That’s an awesome sign. Basically meaning that she may or will play against DePaul. I sure hope so. She is very much needed.

At game time on Sunday take a look at UConn’s bench. We may see these people sitting there with game faces on; Geno; Chris; Janelle; Morgan; Dorka; Lou; Aliyah; Nica; Azzi; Aubrey; Caroline; Ines; Ayanna; Ines and Amari.

How sweet is that? Finally.

 

[HuskyNan]

Caroline is on concussion protocol. Am not sure for how long. She had not played on this road-trip so she must be close to coming back again.

I don’t know about UConn but I’m aware that some schools don’t allow players in the concussion protocol to fly out of an abundance of caution. It’s generally considered safe to fly but a decision might be made to avoid it especially when there’s been more than one whack to the head, like Caroline.

And don’t forget, the original whack took place vs Xavier last year. As CD said at halftime, Xavier is very physical. (Emphasis hers)

https://ncaaorg.s3.amazonaws.com/ssi/concussion/a5prot/SSI_A5Prot-StanfordUniversity.pdf