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Heck I wouldn't mind if UConn picked up one of Paige's teammates in HS that was their center. Left the Arizona team earlier this season and would be available if she wanted to play.
 
Charliebball said:
If Azzi isn't 100% ready at the start of the season, I think you'll see Ziebell more than you think........she's a three-point shooting savant and players that can score consistently from outside usually get a fair amount of court time.....
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Like the sound of tht....this team has the firepower...how's her defense thts whts gonna determine her minutes
 
Zinethar said:
Heck I wouldn't mind if UConn picked up one of Paige's teammates in HS that was their center. Left the Arizona team earlier this season and would be available if she wanted to play.
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She’s in medical school there and wanted to be able to focus more on that. That ‘ at least, was her initial reason for leaving the team. Later she said the team atmosphere was “toxic” but then clammed up and as far as I know has said nothing else.
 
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jeff30189 said:
What he said. Olsen, Chen or any other instant starter at a P5 program is not coming to UConn... nor should we want them. Depth up front is our achilles heel - there is plenty of size already, but it's all very much unproven size of unknown potential.
  • Jana hasn't played a minute of college ball and is the recipient of the same hype heaped upon Ayanna, Ice and Amari... 'nuff said.
  • Ayanna and Ice - inconsistent freshmen seasons with some highs, alot more lows and even more questions. Haven't lived up to their initial pre-UConn expectations.
  • Strong is a wing and hasn't played a minute either. She has some size, she's a adequate rebounder, but she's not playing the post.
  • The rest of the 6'1 and 6'2 "size" consists of Caroline, Audrey and Ice - good rebounders for their size, but not playing the post.
That leaves six guards: Paige (proven star), Azzi (proven star), Ash (proven starter), KK (proven starter) and the two incoming freshmen.

With 2 open roster spots which group looks like they need the most help? Front court or back court?
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Both. - Shop for both. We saw going small got UCONN to Final 4 and seconds to the Finals with Paige as the PF. Basketball players are best to get - very good ones not just Big for Big's sake.

And -- Cheli is also a 4. For example- you can have Sarah on Offense play the 3 while Cheli could be part of the high-low at 4. Then they switch on Defense. I know some will mention South Carolina -- well for 1 thing UCONN won't be playing South Carolina 30 times. And if Caroline is healthy she has played the 4. And when Aubrey comes back she has also played the 4.

And if we don't count Caroline or Aubrey able to play much then Azzi is questionable to a degree - we don't know how healthy she is. Since her H/s soph year Azzi has missed a ton of games due to injuries.

I am not arguing. They can use 2 bigs but they can also use a wing/guard if there are questions with Azzi as an example and if Geno is more confident with Jana and Ayanna being healthy – and Brady ofc can play. UCONN wants to play fast. And Big they get has to be beneficial to play fast.
 
hoophuskee said:
For example- you can have Sarah on Offense play the 3 while Cheli could be part of the high-low at 4. Then they switch on Defense.
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I agree with your whole post, but I’m highlighting this bit because I think it’s worth considering a style of play we might be well suited for. Morgan played pg at Mitty HS and was the tip of the full court press they ran. Which tells me she’s especially good at playing defense between the arcs. She can also be at the high post on offense, but Sarah may be even better suited to that role. Letting Morgan play low post/wing on offense with Sarah at the high post, and switching them on defense would shorten the court for each of them and also have them in position for the transition game they’ll create. Morgan slashing to the rim and along the baseline and ball-hawking o-boards with Sarah shooting 3s and passing from the top, and ruling the low post and the d-boards sounds like a great partnership.
 
AzzisBraids said:
If Beers or Iriafen enter the Portal, they should be targets. Chen would be a good get if it fits but otherwise UConn has a strong roster, but Geno probably has PTSD like the rest of us and can't afford to have options on the bench that can't contribute.
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If Beers or Iriafen enter the Portal, they should be kidnapped. FIXED. :p
 
ALL this shopping and it looks as if...I'm getting another tie and socks. But...I do thank you.
 
DaBball said:
I believe Bueckers has started following Raegan Beers on twitter. Beers has not officially entered the portal, but I’d expect her to in the next day or two.
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Paige just wants to replace her masked friend with another.

IMG_0783.jpeg
 
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Bone Dog said:
I agree with your whole post, but I’m highlighting this bit because I think it’s worth considering a style of play we might be well suited for. Morgan played pg at Mitty HS and was the tip of the full court press they ran. Which tells me she’s especially good at playing defense between the arcs. She can also be at the high post on offense, but Sarah may be even better suited to that role. Letting Morgan play low post/wing on offense with Sarah at the high post, and switching them on defense would shorten the court for each of them and also have them in position for the transition game they’ll create. Morgan slashing to the rim and along the baseline and ball-hawking o-boards with Sarah shooting 3s and passing from the top, and ruling the low post and the d-boards sounds like a great partnership.
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So many exciting things they can do - and could have done in the past - as long as they could have been and hopefully will be "healthy."

One thing regarding Sarah, when I think of high post it means you are also looking to dump the ball inside. You really can't do that if you are at the 3pt line. So, having Sarah play a lot of high-low in which she is the high probably takes away from her ability to take 3's.

And if she is a threat to take 3's - she is a natural mismatch because 6'2 is a terrific height to be taking 3's.
 
Bone Dog said:
I don’t get this sentiment. “Terribly undersized”? The list you just rattled off is a very large team not an undersized one. It’s true that we don’t have a second 6’5” player to backup Jana. But we have a lot of big strong kids. 6’5” 6’3” 6’2” 6’2” 6’2” 6’2” is a very large team — larger than almost any team we’ll meet.

I’d like to see a backup post player besides Ice for Jana. But that’s not a desperate need. Remember, we just made the final four with only Aaliyah and Ice. That’s it. It’s time for folks to reflect on who Geno is and what he’s built here. One thing we ought to have learned is that Geno can run a small team — Paige Azzi KK Ash and Sarah — and press opponents relentlessly. He now has the roster for that. Or he can run a big team, with Jana Sarah Paige Aubrey and Morgan on the floor at once and not sacrifice speed. Think of the possibilities!!!
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Some of you people have to realize that we need another big to compete for a national title. We may be ok to compete for a Big East title.
 
Barkin Out said:
Normally I would agree 100% with the sentiment that we should build through recruitment. But the injury history of so many of our players makes me anxious. Can we realistically think that Azzi, Carol, Aubrey, and Ayanna will be reliably available and at the top of their game. Azzi has struggled to maintain the shooting touch she had as a recruit and freshman. To me that’s representative of the challenges faced by athletes recovering from major injury. Even Paige took awhile to get back up to speed. These four wonderful talented young athletes are almost a third of the team. I think UCONN would be gambling if it did not take the opportunity to deepen the bench. Probably don’t need more shooting guards- but having another solid point guard that could split time with KK and prevent the zebras from blocking our defensive intensity would be a nice luxury. I also like the previously mentioned idea of adding another post so we can play fast with fresh legs.
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As a former soccer coach & a parent of an athlete who suffered multiple concussions (not all due to sports) I hope for her health’s sake that Caroline doesn’t ever play a contact sport again.
 
hoophuskee said:
So many exciting things they can do - and could have done in the past - as long as they could have been and hopefully will be "healthy."

One thing regarding Sarah, when I think of high post it means you are also looking to dump the ball inside. You really can't do that if you are at the 3pt line. So, having Sarah play a lot of high-low in which she is the high probably takes away from her ability to take 3's.

And if she is a threat to take 3's - she is a natural mismatch because 6'2 is a terrific height to be taking 3's.
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I think Sarah gives a triple threat at the high post on screening action, she can screen and role to the hoop, screen and pop to the 3 pt line or simply stay put and take the open 15' shot - gives defenses three issues in defending, and in highlights I have seen all three run by her.
 
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So I'm with some others in that im really looking forward to watch our underclassmen get an opportunity. I think it's kinda been lost but Ice may not have played against USC if others were not in foul trouble. Geno kinda said as much post game. And if she doesn't step up in that moment then who knows if she plays against Iowa. Q did step up against USC and still didn't play against Iowa. So I don't like the thought of adding players. However there's always an exception to every rule. Reagan Beers, Kiki Iriafen are special cases. Also if u do get a 5th year who truly just wants to be a part of Connecticut and is not worried about minutes that would work. But I really think Kaitlyn Chen is starting point guard on a final four team good, I'd be bummed for her if she sat behind kk and Paige the whole year. Like I have to see to believe Geno will go 9 deep and additionally in the big games he won't place Paige and Azzi and kk all 40 minutes.
 
tower1 said:
Some of you people have to realize that we need another big to compete for a national title. We may be ok to compete for a Big East title.
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Wrong on the facts as the past two years have amply demonstrated. We just competed for an NC, made it all the way to the semifinal game, with two 6’3” players. And like Iowa, who started a 6’2” post player and only played 7, we were competitive. I think a lot of people need to watch these games a bit more closely.

That said, I’m all for adding an extra post player, whether it be Kiki at 6’3” (effectively replacing Aaliyah) or Raegan at 6’4” (slow moving but effective in half court sets). But this is not a desperate need. We will be competitive as is. What some people need to do is trust Geno and his staff and trust the process. The season will be a lot more dint that way.

I’m also wary of filling the scholarship chart if that limits next year’s recruiting.
 
tower1 said:
But S.C. won because mainly because of their height. That is what separated the two teams. Athletic bigs are most important on a team.
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SC didn't win because of their height, it was their athleticism and depth. The previous year, as stated by Nan, LSU won with 1 player at 6-4. That year, SC had 6-5 and 6-7 in the post and didn't win.
 
tower1 said:
But S.C. won because mainly because of their height. That is what separated the two teams. Athletic bigs are most important on a team.
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You think So Carolina won just because Cardoso is 6-7? She had 15 points, one lass than Iowa’s Martin. Tessa Johnson, a 6-0 guard, was the difference in that game.

Have you actually watched the Gamecocks I wonder?
 
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HuskyNan said:
You think So Carolina won just because Cardoso is 6-7? She had 15 points, one lass than Iowa’s Martin. Tessa Johnson, a 6-0 guard, was the difference in that game.

Have you actually watched the Gamecocks I wonder?
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Height is nice but South Carolina also puts quick and super athletic players on the court ten deep.........they also found some proficient three-point shooters which was a weakness in the past........that said, I'll take an athletic 6'2" player over an athletic 5'10" player any day of the week.....
 
tower1 said:
Some of you people have to realize that we need another big to compete for a national title. We may be ok to compete for a Big East title.
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How many 6' 5" to 6' 7" players are out there?

How many post players do we need?

Give it a rest. We can compete with next seasons roster.
 
HuskyNan said:
You think So Carolina won just because Cardoso is 6-7? She had 15 points, one lass than Iowa’s Martin. Tessa Johnson, a 6-0 guard, was the difference in that game.

Have you actually watched the Gamecocks I wonder?
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I watched the Gamecocks, and made special note of the number of rebounds in each tournament game, including the 17 in the final against Iowa. I think we could debate who was the difference.
 
HuskyNan said:
You think So Carolina won just because Cardoso is 6-7? She had 15 points, one lass than Iowa’s Martin. Tessa Johnson, a 6-0 guard, was the difference in that game.

Have you actually watched the Gamecocks I wonder?
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Heights ha matter, SC definitely doesn’t go undefeated and I’m not really sure they win the Natty w/o Cardoso. True they are very athletic, long, and talented but they were a beast with her addition.
 
UcMiami said:
I think Sarah gives a triple threat at the high post on screening action, she can screen and role to the hoop, screen and pop to the 3 pt line or simply stay put and take the open 15' shot - gives defenses three issues in defending, and in highlights I have seen all three run by her.
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Sarah and Jana both have guard skills. They both have four years of eligibility. That is two triple threats.
 
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