Number one reason for the 5 losses

[Happydad745]

I can name 5 reasons before anything else: 5 injuries Edwards is great, but needs a 6'5 post player to help her. Paige is great, but needs a prolific outside shooter to help her. KK is fast, but needs maturity to be a dynamic point guard. Shade is good, but inconsistent, Nika is great at 1 end (too many fouls though), but is not a scoring threat, so teams double up on someone who is. The bench is non-existent, so no one to come in and change the game. UConn could have lost more than 5 games, and will be have to make a great effort to reach the sweet sixteen. Nothing I stated should be a surprise to anyone.

 

[Blond D.]

And those championship teams always had that. 2015 Stewie, Tuck, Stokes, then Collier replaced Stokes as the 3rd interior defender.
It isn' a coincidence that since then Uconn hasn't had multiple great interior defenders, and hasn't won a championship.

It isn't the interior thats hurting us. Its OUR low shooting percentage and the other teams high percentage. When we hit the 3s or long 2s that draws the defense out allowing us to drive in or get the ball to girls on the inside. Without good shooting the other team packs the inside.

 

[uconnever]

Lack of depth is a big problem. The starters play way too many minutes. That affects their legs which then affects our shooting. The inexperience of the freshman is another problem, especially on the defensive end.

Exactly, plus not many second chances because Edwards is all alone rebounding.

 

[Artifact]

Everyone has there point & glad to read them. My point is that I see a lot of basket immaturity, mostly the Freshman members. As to passing, as to shot taking, missing the easy lay up, turnovers. We have five experienced coaches at practice & at the games. Are they not getting thru ?

 

[BBallF]

It's a talent, power and size gap. What defense can Paige play on a 6'4" player? She is 2-3 spots out of position and as great a defender as she is, and she is very underrated in that respect, she can only do so much for so long. Liyah is a 4 not a 5 so she is out of position also. How can Ice defend SC? She didn't. Like I said, when you shoot lay ups and short put backs you are going to have a higher FG %. The problem is that you can't suddenly become a good interior defensive team when you are vastly undersized.

 

[BobbyJ]

And those championship teams always had that. 2015 Stewie, Tuck, Stokes, then Collier replaced Stokes as the 3rd interior defender.
It isn' a coincidence that since then Uconn hasn't had multiple great interior defenders, and hasn't won a championship.

Agreed. And their last best shot was 2021-22 when they had both Juhasz and ONO to play together if needed. But Juhasz got hurt against NC St. and SC buried them inside in the final.

 

[tchalla1]

First I want to mention that other posters and pundits have said what I am going to say. The number one reason for the losses is "Open Looks - Shooting Woes." Let's start with the SC game. Check the stats - the game was close in 4 major areas. Turnovers were even at 13 each. Offensive rebounding was SC 14 to UConn 13. Fouls were SC 15 to UConn 11. Shots were dead even at 71 each. That's close so far. UConn played hard and aggressive the entire game.
Even Geno talked about all the open looks. UConn worked the play to get good looks. They shot 36% overall and 30% 3 pt. SC shot 46% and 36%. One TV pundit said -- making shots in practice is not the same as making shots in the game--even open looks.

Some quick stats on the other losses. **Take note - other posters here have said--why do other teams shoot so well against us. Well, it shows in the stats. Listed will be overall and 3 pt %.
NC State - 52% and 38% UConn 46% and 31%
UCLA - 45% and a crazy 48% 3 pt. UConn - 33% (are you kidding me) and 39%
Notre Dame - 55% and 41% UConn 43% and a horrible 28%

So far every game UConn is well below their shooting %. Again, the open looks and even lay ups are there. That's 4 out of 5 games.
Texas was the only game that the shooting % were flipped. UConn shot better. However, the loss came from UConn 21 turnovers to 9 for Texas. Also, offensive rebounds was 16 to 5 for Texas.

Anyway, it does not matter if you have 5 starters over 6'2" or taller if a 5"6' guard can score 30 --like HH on Notre Dame. Or the Texas guard.

Of course, it is obvious --- you have to put the ball in the basket. The open looks are there.
Can that be fixed for the playoffs? Maybe.

Good assessment on a challenging area for UConn- BTW, the same thing haunted us last year as well... Included in the open looks category has to be the uncontested 2-foot bunnies and layups that we missed against SC--I counted 7 of them. Almost everyone on the team missed one or two, and I'm afraid Ice has lost her confidence because she continually misses point blank shots.

As far as missing the wide-open looks,, both Marino and Lobo have suggested that this may be due to fatigue, that jump shooters "lose their legs" and subsequently leave the shot short. I have seen this with Paige and Ash.

It remains a mystery to me when we have these 20-30 point leads, why Geno leaves Paige in and recently now the starting five is nearly playing the whole game. Makes no sense to me--I don't know what he's trying to do, playing Paige, Ash and KK this much...

 

[Fossil]

The biggest problem is on the defensive end.
The 2014 team With Dolson, Stewie, Stokes, and Tuck made life miserable for everyone.

6’5–6’4 —6’3—big 6’2. Might say a big difference

 

[cohenzone]

Other team outscored us.

 

[JoePgh]

If the present active roster had been the roster on November 1, UConn would have been ranked between #15 and #20 and 5 to 8 losses (possibly more, given their schedule) would have been projected by the pundits. All injuries except Jana's occurred or were known only after the season started.

So the ranking and number of losses for the current active roster is not very different (and possibly a bit better) than what most WBB observers would have predicted if that had been the roster at the start of the season.

Looking for detailed explanations for how this roster could have won more games is somewhat futile, in the same category as asking whether a different arrangement of deck chairs on the Titanic would have resulted in fewer casualties.

 

[jdote33]

Kinda tongue and cheek but I think Paige has lost this season more than she has her previous two seasons when she played. Obviously, in reference to this question, I think the injuries play a huge role. We've played some really good teams that may have each played their best game against us (specifically Texas and NC State). So it's hard to say how many of those losses turn to wins, especially since most were on the road. So my number one reason is the competition. That Texas team fully healthy was pretty scary. Similarly, UCLA with basically their full roster was pretty good as well.
Aside from that, I think they are having a hard time figuring out how to optimize this roster. It's ironic cuz Paige is plug in play in that she can probably fit anywhere. But she's been hard to fit back into place. She fit so well her freshman year but since it's been a bit of a struggle (obviously not her fault and partially because of injury). What's her best position? Should she score more, should the ball be in her hands more ? Probably more importantly who should she defend on defense. Not blaming Paige, she's had a very good season. And without question is still a top 10 player in the country. I think if u don't believe in Ice or Amari going small kinda makes sense. But in a high paced game where both teams have a lot of possessions im just not sure u have enough consistent scorers. Ashlynn has been amazing. One of my favorite players. But even if AE and PB go for 20 each, Ashlyn goes for 15. That's 55. To get to 80+ which I think each of the opposing teams scored maybe aside from ND., u really need solid numbers from Nika and KK scoring wise. IDK that's a lot to ask. So second reason is fit of available personnel.

 

[Orc]

Lack of quality bigs. Uconn still wont beat the top teams even if we have fudd and griffin this year imho

 

[Charliebball]

First I want to mention that other posters and pundits have said what I am going to say. The number one reason for the losses is "Open Looks - Shooting Woes." Let's start with the SC game. Check the stats - the game was close in 4 major areas. Turnovers were even at 13 each. Offensive rebounding was SC 14 to UConn 13. Fouls were SC 15 to UConn 11. Shots were dead even at 71 each. That's close so far. UConn played hard and aggressive the entire game.
Even Geno talked about all the open looks. UConn worked the play to get good looks. They shot 36% overall and 30% 3 pt. SC shot 46% and 36%. One TV pundit said -- making shots in practice is not the same as making shots in the game--even open looks.

Some quick stats on the other losses. **Take note - other posters here have said--why do other teams shoot so well against us. Well, it shows in the stats. Listed will be overall and 3 pt %.
NC State - 52% and 38% UConn 46% and 31%
UCLA - 45% and a crazy 48% 3 pt. UConn - 33% (are you kidding me) and 39%
Notre Dame - 55% and 41% UConn 43% and a horrible 28%

So far every game UConn is well below their shooting %. Again, the open looks and even lay ups are there. That's 4 out of 5 games.
Texas was the only game that the shooting % were flipped. UConn shot better. However, the loss came from UConn 21 turnovers to 9 for Texas. Also, offensive rebounds was 16 to 5 for Texas.

Anyway, it does not matter if you have 5 starters over 6'2" or taller if a 5"6' guard can score 30 --like HH on Notre Dame. Or the Texas guard.

Of course, it is obvious --- you have to put the ball in the basket. The open looks are there.
Can that be fixed for the playoffs? Maybe.

Give some credit to the winners of those five games.........did they play any defense? Not having taller and more athletic players matters even more when the team is not shooting well from outside.........easy low post baskets and second-chance shots can make all the difference between winning and losing and don't forget how important height can be on the defensive end of the court.....

 

[JoePgh]

Lack of quality bigs. Uconn still wont beat the top teams even if we have fudd and griffin this year imho

If UConn had Jana, Ayanna, and Caroline healthy for the full season (either with or without Azzi and Aubrey), could they have notched victories against top teams?

My opinion is that with a full 14-player roster, UConn would be a Top 5 team, and would have at least an even record against other Top 5 teams

 

[PhillyCoach]

Give some credit to the winners of those five games.........did they play any defense? Not having taller and more athletic players matters even more when the team is not shooting well from outside.........easy low post baskets and second-chance shots can make all the difference between winning and losing and don't forget how important height can be on the defensive end of the court.....

Hey charliebball - I am giving all the credit for winning those games to the other teams.
Yes, they scored more because they hit their shots at a much higher %. Looking at the SC game, for example, many stats were EQUAL. UConn lost and SC won because of the shooting %. SC gets the credit for winning. Both teams played hard. Most stats were neck and neck----except shooting %. That was my single point. The #1 reason for the 5 losses.
Of course they played defense. However, both teams were good enough to get 71 shots. AS Geno said, most of the shots were--open looks. SC made them and UConn did not.
Most coaches would start with the most obvious reason for losing and work to fix it. Not having taller players is a problem that CANNOT be fixed this year. Shooting % can be improved. Maybe improved enough to reach the elite 8.

 

[CL82]

Number one reason for the 5 losses​

The other team scoring more than us in five different games?

 

[uconnfan68]

Other team outscored us.

5x

 

[EasyEd]

It is rather flippant to just say that the other team scored more. The question is why. Did their superior defense cause us to miss layups and wide open threes? I think the problem is between their ears. Somehow Geno has to get them to the same mental state they had against Louisville and other top Big East teams. I've seen Paige, Ash, KK, and even Nika shoot more and better percentages than hey have in the losses. I think the head troll in Frozen had it right "Fear will be your worst enemy". I don't think they fear the other team, but they fear losing. I think Nika doesn't shoot a lot because she's afraid they will lose if she misses. If they're tense, their shot will be much more difficult to make and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. When UConn is hitting the shots I know they can make, they are a very formidable opponent. I think their starting five can compete with anyone in the country.

​

 

[TheFarmFan]

Injuries. It's not the only reason, but it's definitely No. 1.

 

[Dublin]

At the beginning of the last off-season, there were people here who were concerned that our 14-player roster would prevent many of the players from getting any real playing time, Come February, there are now only 2 players not getting real playing time.

The reason: 4 players lost for the entire season and Aubrey !!! Azzi's 2 games is just a footnote.

 

[Glenn]

Our defense has not been up to UConn standards. And it has been the guards that have torched us, in general. We gave up 92 points to an NCState team that averages 76. Against UCLa, 78, to a team that averages 81-- barely below their average. Then 80 to Texas, 82 to ND, 83 to SC. In all these games, top scorers were guards.

 

[Aluminny69]

Short quick guards seem to have their way with UConn.

 

[Charliebball]

Hey charliebball - I am giving all the credit for winning those games to the other teams.
Yes, they scored more because they hit their shots at a much higher %. Looking at the SC game, for example, many stats were EQUAL. UConn lost and SC won because of the shooting %. SC gets the credit for winning. Both teams played hard. Most stats were neck and neck----except shooting %. That was my single point. The #1 reason for the 5 losses.
Of course they played defense. However, both teams were good enough to get 71 shots. AS Geno said, most of the shots were--open looks. SC made them and UConn did not.
Most coaches would start with the most obvious reason for losing and work to fix it. Not having taller players is a problem that CANNOT be fixed this year. Shooting % can be improved. Maybe improved enough to reach the elite 8.

I agree but don't you find it interesting that UConn shot poorly against those four highly ranked teams plus a solid Notre Dame team? I'm too lazy right now to do the analysis but perhaps those team's defenses had some impact on the overall shooting even if some of the shots were uncontested..........the most successful UConn teams could score inside when they weren't shooting well outside........other than Aaliyah UConn has no inside game at the moment......those "easy" baskets really can be difference makers....

 

[azfan]

It's not one thing here, it's many. It's size, experience, lack of good college defense in the earlier games, and a flawed team that was put together because there was no alternative. Put a healthy Azzi, Caroline, Aubrey, Jana and Ay on that team and things change immediately. I love Nika, but she is not a solid college scorer and that leaves only Paige, Ash and Liyah since Ice and Q are not dependable scorers either and Kk is still developing and still trying to drive into traffic instead of pulling up or out. We shoot well usually against the lesser teams. Why? One is weaker defensive pressure. Second we are better players, especially Paige and Liyah. Third, we then get quality shots and several inside shots.

Where you are shooting from and the defense on you, make all the difference in the world in your shooting percentages. We are just not going to do well against bigger, longer, older and equally athletic teams. Shooting is not just physical, it is mental also. Being harassed or pounded on defense takes its toll and having to take tough shots doesn't show in statistics. We all want a magic answer but I am afraid any answer was replaced long ago only by questions when we had yet another year of a Biblical plaque of serious injuries.

Will not makes to the second weekend of the dance. Aaliyah has no help in the paint.