News from Big East Media Day in NYC

[UConnCat]

BE media day in NYC this morning so hear's a thread on news as it trickles out.

Early morning news from John A is that Bria Hartley suffered a concussion at practice on Monday and is not in NYC. Rich Elliott says she was still experiencing some symptoms on Tuesday. Get well Bria.

We should soon know the preseason rankings, All-BE, etc.

 

[pap49cba]

Rich Elliot with all the info....

Uconn #2 pre-season; Tiff and Bria all BE; Step Hon. mention; KML is FOY

LINK

 

[UConnCat]

As expected, Notre Dame is preseason #1, followed by UConn, Louisville, Rutgers and Georgetown. (I wonder if the vote was before news on Chelsey Lee)

Preseason All-Big East includes Hayes and Hartley, but Stef Dolson is Honorable Mention. Wow. So Stefanie is good enough to be on the Wooden List but not to make preseason All-BE. Go get'em Stef.

KML is preseason FOY.

Diggins is preseason POY, of course.

 

[UConnCat]

Wow. The vote for #1 was close -- ND beat UConn 219 to 217. ND received 9 first place votes and UConn received 7. Very interesting. I expected the vote for ND as #1 to be close to unanimous.

 

[UConnCat]

So, Kayla Alexander (Syr), Shenneika Smith (StJ) and Da'Shena Stevens (StJ) make preseason All-BE but not Stefanie. UConn and St John's have the same number of players on all-BE yet one team is picked to finish #2 (and two votes shy of #1) and the other is picked to finish #7.

I think we're going to see a very motivated Stefanie Dolson this year.

 

[Georgestarr7]

The media is focused on preseason standings, my mind is focused on Bria...

 

[speedoo]

The media is focused on preseason standings, my mind is focused on Bria...

Me too. On the positive side, I don't recall that she's had any previous concussions.
Still, would be nice to get an update.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Which players are there? Tiff, Caroline, maybe Kelly?

 

[UConnCat]

Me too. On the positive side, I don't recall that she's had any previous concussions.
Still, would be nice to get an update.

I feel fairly certain that Geno will be asked by the media as soon as the more formal part of the media day is complete. What we know is that she was still experiencing symptoms on Tues and the team probably had off Wed. All teams are very cautious with concussions and rightly so.

 

[alexrgct]

Assuming it was not a serious concussion, she should be ready go for Stanford, if not sooner. If it's more serious, KML, your time is now.

 

[jennyo70]

I predict Sarah Hammond(Louisville) to be a beast this year. Surprised to not see her mentioned in some of these preseason polls.

 

[Wonkster]

.

So Hammond is the beast of the BEast? We'll soon see about that.

.

 

[pap49cba]

Which players are there? Tiff, Caroline, maybe Kelly?

Tiff and Kelly

 

[NCorBust]

Will Skylar Diggins play like the POY with Brianna Banks blanketing her with stifling "D?"

 

[UConnCat]

I predict Sarah Hammond(Louisville) to be a beast this year. Surprised to not see her mentioned in some of these preseason polls.

Last week I mentioned Hammond as someone who would compete for FOY and likely make the All Freshmen team. The league doesn't do a preseason All Freshmen team and there's no basis for including a freshman on preseason All Big East. So I'm not sure what poll you think she should be in. Mosqueda-Lewis was the #1 high school player last year so it's a no-brainer that she'd be the preseason FOY. But that doesn't mean she'll win it.

 

[UConnCat]

Geno thinks ND should be preseason #1. Eight other BE coaches agreed. Seven BE coaches (including Muffet) thought UConn should be preseason #1.

Here's what Kelly had to say about the upcoming season:

“He’s always looking for different ways to motivate us and challenge us,” junior Kelly Faris said. “He’s told us that basically we are a new team and whatever happened last season does not matter anymore. And he’s trying to get us to figure it out by ourselves by placing us in positions during practice that force us to solve situations by ourselves.”

 

[FairView]

“He’s always looking for different ways to motivate us and challenge us,” junior Kelly Faris said. “He’s told us that basically we are a new team and whatever happened last season does not matter anymore. And he’s trying to get us to figure it out by ourselves by placing us in positions during practice that force us to solve situations by ourselves.”

I think that Kelly brings up something that I am sure has been discussed many times, but UConn tends to only recruit smart kids, not just basketball smart, but smart smart. That makes it easier to teach them across the board, from basketball to team expectations. That's a plus when it comes to figuring things out.

 

[jennyo70]

Last week I mentioned Hammond as someone who would compete for FOY and likely make the All Freshmen team. The league doesn't do a preseason All Freshmen team and there's no basis for including a freshman on preseason All Big East. So I'm not sure what poll you think she should be in. Mosqueda-Lewis was the #1 high school player last year so it's a no-brainer that she'd be the preseason FOY. But that doesn't mean she'll win it.

point taken. let me rephrase my post.
I predict Sarah Hammond to be a beast. I expect her to be in contention for FOY by seasons end.

 

[HuskyNan]

Wow. The vote for #1 was close -- ND beat UConn 219 to 217. ND received 9 first place votes and UConn received 7. Very interesting. I expected the vote for ND as #1 to be close to unanimous.

This is amazing. I had expected UConn to get one #1 vote - from Muffet, who can't vote for her own team. I would love to see those ballots.

 

[doggydaddy]

This is amazing. I had expected UConn to get one #1 vote - from Muffet, who can't vote for her own team. I would love to see those ballots.

It just shows the respect that Geno gets.

 

[Kibitzer]

Seems like a few coaches (picking UConn #1) are as astute as Zorro and me. Or as optimistic. Or as biased. Take your pick.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Will Skylar Diggins play like the POY with Brianna Banks blanketing her with stifling "D?"

That is a really good question. If Brianna is beyond her years and can shut down players like Diggins, Syms, and Shimmel, we win those games.

Suppose Skylar lights up most teams but really struggles against UConn, and the Huskies have a player who is more consistent--Stef, Bria, Tiff, Kaleena, et al.--can a Husky grab the BE POY award?

 

[MilfordHusky]

I think we're going to see a very motivated Stefanie Dolson this year.[/quote]

Yep!

 

[FairView]

I don't think that Stefanie Dolson is the kind of kid who is motivated by perceived slights in pre-season voting. I think she will be motivated by wanting to contribute and help her team win.

 

[PacoSwede]

Seems like a few coaches (picking UConn #1) are as astute as Zorro and me. Or as optimistic. Or as biased. Take your pick.

Astute is clearly what we're talking about.

But actually, it ain't all THAT astute. Seems obvious to me. But, apparently some people are convined that Maya carried last year's team all by her lonesome. SHE knows that's not the case, and I believe her.

This team has 7 (8? -- 4 sophs, kelly, tiff, heather, plus inactive caroline) who lost 2 (TWO!) games last season returning. Four of them starters. Plus, they add 3 outstanding recruits. Yet their fans don't tbink they'll be all that great, huh?

That's a tad pessimistic, dont ya think? Especially considering the coaching staff and simple history. Guess some BYers are gonna get very surprised at how good this team is gonna be.