MUST READ :This article quoting AD Dave Benedict answers a lot of questions

[Dezoworld]

At this point Iam afraid to hear that they are willing to shut down the season due to too many injuries. Crossing fingers these girls get better/healthy. It's unbelievable how every uconn players plus coaches delt with some type of issue this season.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

I think fans who for the most part or solely follow UCONN aren't aware that these interruptions occur with other teams. It happens more often than you think. It will work itself out, but I agree with the school that the well-being and privacy of players and coaches are the top priorities.

 

[Aluminny69]

So, the AD doesn't believe in the phrase "Everything happens for a reason." I'm not particularly fond of that phrase myself.

But to be clear, there is a reason for each individual injury ( e.g. Edwards ran into a chair and hurt her foot), but no overriding reason for the cluster of injuries as a whole.

One might consider that the women have gotten bigger, stronger, faster, and more aggressive over the years. Just a thought.

 

[my2cents]

Define "some". IMO...the public is entitled to know....if there is a game and to a lesser degree who might not play ( and that's a stretch as far as being 'entitled') and if there is a game. Airlines are a commercial venture and they don't tell you if the pilot is out or why. They sell tickets and you get the pilot they have available OR they cancel the flight. No commercial venture has to go into "detail" regarding why some personnel component isn't available. And to be honest, I don't even want a lot of detail.

Some....will the game on Wed be played or canceled?
Before I spend $100 for a ticket. who can i expect to see play?

 

[The deacon]

The players, coaches, trainers (they’ve been taking a beating in social media), and support staff are human beings. It’s gotten to the point where the physical and mental well-being of the human beings is more important than games, public perception, or the demands of the fans.

I’ve never talked to Dave Benedict but I bet he would take negative press and whatever hand slap the league or NCAA might hand out rather than risk the health of ANY athlete associated with UConn. He is, simply, that kind of guy and I’m glad he’s at UConn.

What you say is indisputable, or at least should be, and it's the MO I tried to follow in all my 41 years as a journalist, covering high school and college athletes much of the time. We agree.

I feel for the players and everyone else in the program, and, yes, I feel for us fans, too. For many of us, we're hurting since the Huskies are our favorite sports team and we have lots of emotion linked to the young women's well-being, physically and emotionally. We're not their family, yet we are an extended family, kind of...

As for Benedict, I would certainly hope he is everything you envision him to be. Our athletes deserve that.

 

[Argonaut]

Some....will the game on Wed be played or canceled?
Before I spend $100 for a ticket. who can i expect to see play?

Umm. You don’t necessarily get that level of info for players who are day-to-day on a pro team.

If you spend the money, you’ll get a ticket for Wednesday’s game, and if there are seven healthy players, the game will be played. If not, then you’ll be able to use that ticket when the game is played with whatever seven+ healthy players show up.

If you love the team, it won’t matter who is playing.

 

[huskeynut]

At this point Iam afraid to hear that they are willing to shut down the season due to too many injuries. Crossing fingers these girls get better/healthy. It's unbelievable how every uconn players plus coaches delt with some type of issue this season.

Nobody said anything about shutting down the season. Outside of Paige and Ice, no one is out for the season.

 

[maple]

Just read the article. Absolutely disgusted to see that some people are celebrating UConn having health/injury issues. Social media is a cesspool so I can’t say I’m particularly shocked, but I will never understand that mindset. Even teams I can’t stand playing again, I would never wish harm on them. Where does it go wrong in your brain that you’re happy that student athletes (or anyone) is injured or unhealthy.

 

[LoboDays]

1. As a degenerate gambler, I want to know as much as I can learn about injuries. I have no right to that information. that’s why locker room workers, mascots, trainers probably have nicer bank accounts than one would think.

2. Geno is a multi-millionaire coaching players who get a free ride for their education and (some) suck enough NIL $$$ out of the system to be set for life. I sympathize with all players who are injured. But, I don’t want to hear about pressure. Don’t want to hear about exhaustion. Scholarship players are treated amazingly well. They live a great life at school and receive the very best care when they are injured. Time to stop this sympathy ride. Suck it up. Play the game.

 

[maple]

1. As a degenerate gambler, I want to know as much as I can learn about injuries. I have no right to that information. that’s why locker room workers, mascots, trainers probably have nicer bank accounts than one would think.

2. Geno is a multi-millionaire coaching players who get a free ride for their education and (some) suck enough NIL $$$ out of the system to be set for life. I sympathize with all players who are injured. But, I don’t want to hear about pressure. Don’t want to hear about exhaustion. Scholarship players are treated amazingly well. They live a great life at school and receive the very best care when they are injured. Time to stop this sympathy ride. Suck it up. Play the game.

So you can’t feel sympathy for student athletes, some of whom are still teenagers, just because they are lucky enough to play at UConn? Injuries are bad for everyone. Exhaustion is real. Pressure is real. They are allowed to talk about it. Just saying “suck it up” is a bad mentality to have.

 

[HuskyNan]

1. As a degenerate gambler, I want to know as much as I can learn about injuries. I have no right to that information. that’s why locker room workers, mascots, trainers probably have nicer bank accounts than one would think.

2. Geno is a multi-millionaire coaching players who get a free ride for their education and (some) suck enough NIL $$$ out of the system to be set for life. I sympathize with all players who are injured. But, I don’t want to hear about pressure. Don’t want to hear about exhaustion. Scholarship players are treated amazingly well. They live a great life at school and receive the very best care when they are injured. Time to stop this sympathy ride. Suck it up. Play the game.

Got news for you, friend, not everything is about you.

 

[sun]

As a fan, our knowledge about injuries is only what we see during games or are told by UConn.
And in the Xavier game we saw a lot of UConn players hitting the floor hard.
But then we also need to read between the lines about what's going on.

The full extent of players injuries don't always manifest right away.
Yet coaches need to make quick decisions about whether they can suit up for the next game 3 days away.

IMO, the reality is that the availability of some players is questionable which doesn't necessarily mean that there was severe enough injury to not suit up for the next game.
But only that quite possibly they could be ruled out at this early stage as being questionable to suit up due to a health concern.

And because there's more than one player that's questionable, it has made UConn not able to guarantee that they would have the minimum players needed to suit up.

Even Lou with her observable head cold symptoms, could get worse and not better before the next game.
Yet the coach needs to predict whether she's going to be okay enough to play.
She may be okay to play but not for 40 minutes if there's a roster crunch.

Aubrey also face planted very hard onto the floor during the Xavier game.
And there could also be concern about her bruises and whether she should play 40 minutes.

Because fans saw Ayanna finish the Xavier game on the court, maybe they didn't realize that she hit her face or head and the extent of it.
That doesn't mean that she has a serious head injury because of it, only that they're not sure yet what her level of injury is.
She also previously had jammed fingers.
But whatever the reason, at the early date of the DePaul postponement, her status is questionable.

It's just like with Carol, her status is being evaluated day to day.
Yet UConn probably needs to decide by Monday whether to proceed with Wednesday's game.
Even if a player could possibly play. UConn will play it safe due to the number of players who have questionable status, especially if the UConn roster is only at the league minimum.

I guess my point is that having questionable status doesn't mean that a player can't play as much it means that they shouldn't play due to the staff looking out for the players exposure to risk.
Since playing with minor injuries can lead to greater injuries, they're being ruled out with questionable status.
By protecting the players now, they're protecting the program for later in the season, especially for the big upcoming OCC games that will be on national TV.

 

[AmeriConn]

1. As a degenerate gambler, I want to know as much as I can learn about injuries. I have no right to that information. that’s why locker room workers, mascots, trainers probably have nicer bank accounts than one would think.

2. Geno is a multi-millionaire coaching players who get a free ride for their education and (some) suck enough NIL $$$ out of the system to be set for life. I sympathize with all players who are injured. But, I don’t want to hear about pressure. Don’t want to hear about exhaustion. Scholarship players are treated amazingly well. They live a great life at school and receive the very best care when they are injured. Time to stop this sympathy ride. Suck it up. Play the game.

All I see in your post is Me Me Me.

 

[dabears17]

I hope UConn pushes the Big East to schedule with travel partners so most of the season during conference play they have two home games one week, two road games the next. That way they travel less and can attend most of their classes every other week.

I like the PAC-12 scheduling of mostly Friday/Sunday games, so they are on campus at least three days a week.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

1. As a degenerate gambler, I want to know as much as I can learn about injuries. I have no right to that information. that’s why locker room workers, mascots, trainers probably have nicer bank accounts than one would think.

2. Geno is a multi-millionaire coaching players who get a free ride for their education and (some) suck enough NIL $$$ out of the system to be set for life. I sympathize with all players who are injured. But, I don’t want to hear about pressure. Don’t want to hear about exhaustion. Scholarship players are treated amazingly well. They live a great life at school and receive the very best care when they are injured. Time to stop this sympathy ride. Suck it up. Play the game.

I just slapped myself (really hard) for not stopping after I read...'degenerate'. Even the mascots aren't safe! DANG!

 

[PAHuskeyFan]

1. As a degenerate gambler, I want to know as much as I can learn about injuries. I have no right to that information. that’s why locker room workers, mascots, trainers probably have nicer bank accounts than one would think.

2. Geno is a multi-millionaire coaching players who get a free ride for their education and (some) suck enough NIL $$$ out of the system to be set for life. I sympathize with all players who are injured. But, I don’t want to hear about pressure. Don’t want to hear about exhaustion. Scholarship players are treated amazingly well. They live a great life at school and receive the very best care when they are injured. Time to stop this sympathy ride. Suck it up. Play the game.

OMG... if your Daughter, or Grand-Daughter were one of the players what would your attitude be? IF it's "suck it up...play the game"... I pity your kin for having someone who doesn't care about their health.

 

[meyers7]

Got news for you, friend, not everything is about you.

All I see in your post is Me Me Me.

OMG... if your Daughter, or Grand-Daughter were one of the players what would your attitude be? IF it's "suck it up...play the game"... I pity your kin for having someone who doesn't care about their health.

Folks, don't get so riled up, @LoboDays did say he/she was a "degenerate gambler". I mean what do you expect from him/her?

 

[Centerstream]

Folks, don't get so riled up, @LoboDays did say he/she was a "degenerate gambler". I mean what do you expect from him/her?

Good point.

 

[Kaizen]

1. As a degenerate gambler, I want to know as much as I can learn about injuries. I have no right to that information. that’s why locker room workers, mascots, trainers probably have nicer bank accounts than one would think.

2. Geno is a multi-millionaire coaching players who get a free ride for their education and (some) suck enough NIL $$$ out of the system to be set for life. I sympathize with all players who are injured. But, I don’t want to hear about pressure. Don’t want to hear about exhaustion. Scholarship players are treated amazingly well. They live a great life at school and receive the very best care when they are injured. Time to stop this sympathy ride. Suck it up. Play the game.

Your post just shows how selfish you are.

 

[JordyG]

I guess you didn’t read the article. And before anyone gets on their soapbox, no, we aren’t entitled to information. Let the kids have some breathing room

The UConn injuries have ranged in nature from debilitating, such those sustained by Bueckers and Brady, to more minor, such as Ducharme’s neck stiffness or Juhász’s broken thumb. There has been one puzzling moment after another, from Amari DeBerry getting stuck in the Buffalo area due to blizzards to associate head coach Chris Dailey fainting before a game.

None of it is comical. Players have paid significant tolls, both physical and emotional. The injuries have been destructive in how they have snowballed. Healthy and available players are not unaffected, having to carry a greater game-day load while managing hopes, expectations, friendships and the fragile nature of an entire situation.

The program has become increasingly protective of players, choosing not to disclose certain injuries. Everyone involved is worn out by the discussion, the prevailing themes of which began during last season’s injury-plague run to a 14th consecutive Final Four.

When I joined the BY I was assured there would be no math, but I'd always thought reading was a requirement.

 

[ed4ourgirls]

. . . I like the PAC-12 scheduling of mostly Friday/Sunday games, so they are on campus at least three days a week.

This works well for the PAC-12 because most of the teams exist in geographical pairs that eases
travel problems somewhat. You play the Washington teams one weekend, then the two Oregon teams
the two bay area teams, the two LA teams, and the two Arizona teams. Utah and Colorado are a bit
farther apart but still manageable in a weekend.

 

[dabears17]

This works well for the PAC-12 because most of the teams exist in geographical pairs that eases
travel problems somewhat. You play the Washington teams one weekend, then the two Oregon teams
the two bay area teams, the two LA teams, and the two Arizona teams. Utah and Colorado are a bit
farther apart but still manageable in a weekend.

Not a perfect solution because of 11 teams for basketball and no one near Creighton, but I think a system that has less travel would work. In other threads people have opined that part of what is contributing to injuries is wear and tear from rarely having two home games in a row. Someone mentioned that a schedule pair like this would work:

UConn-Providence 50 miles
Butler-Xavier 129 miles
St Johns- Seton Hall 40 miles
Villanova-Georgetown 150 miles
Marquette-DePaul 90 miles

UCLA-USC are about 14 miles apart, but with LA traffic that can take an hour. Plus starting in 2024 they will be in the Big 10.
Oregon/Oregon State and Cal/Stanford are about 50-60 miles apart. The Arizonas are about 105 miles apart. The Washingtons about 290 miles apart. Utah/Colorado are 500 miles.

I love that there are basketball games I can watch on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, but I wish conferences would try to do a Thursday/Saturday, Friday/Sunday, and/or Saturday/Monday schedule to limit time away from campus for classes.

 

[Bald Husky]

I am really worried about Patterson, not knowing what happened to her. I don't need to know, it's their business. But, I am really worried if the problem is with her eye. She had her goggles ripped off her face and broken. Don't forget, she is blind in one eye, and if her good eye was scratched, or even something minor, it would be dangerous for her to play until completely healed. Realistically, none of these injuries can be called minor if it takes away the most favorite thing that they do. Praying for all of them to recover completely no matter how long it takes. Go Huskies

 

[DEpup]

I think the referees also have played a role here. I watch a lot of ncaaw games and the UConn opponents are allowed to do a lot of physical action that doesn't get called. I get that beat them up and make it a hard slog is an opponent's only prayer at a win but the UConn players are taking a beating. A referee right off the bat making it clear that it won't be tolerated would stop a lot of it. I feel like freedom of movement is gone in the game right now.

I'm just tired of these games with scores in the 50s and players being carried or hobbling off the floor on the regular.

 

[Kaizen]

I am really worried about Patterson, not knowing what happened to her. I don't need to know, it's their business. But, I am really worried if the problem is with her eye. She had her goggles ripped off her face and broken. Don't forget, she is blind in one eye, and if her good eye was scratched, or even something minor, it would be dangerous for her to play until completely healed.

I didn't know this. Now I have more respect and love for this young lady.