Preseason All Americans

[MilfordHusky]

Morgan Tuck will be a first team AA this coming season unless one of UConn's incoming freshmen blow the country away.

On a 10-person team, I agree.

Regarding your caveat, both Lou and Napheesa may blow the country away.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Regarding the OP, there are a few players I would move around. I agree that Jewell and Amanda leaving "early," changes things a lot. Last season's AP team consisted of them, Stewie, Tiffany Mitchell, and Nina Davis. I look for Stewie, Tiffany, and Nina to repeat. None of them was a fluke last year, and they should improve.

I think that Diamond will get a lot of pub, but Tennessee has to win 30 games before the NCAA tourney and she has to shoot 45% and 35% or better to get my vote. Being uber athletic and jacking up a ton of shots won't do it.

Players I would move up include Brianna Turner, who could be THE megastar at ND; Courtney Williams of USF, who is almost unguardable; and Alexis Jones, if healthy.

Kelsey Mitchell will get recognition if she scores over 20 ppg and makes over 100 treys again. Her shooting percentages should determine which team--1st, 2nd, or 3rd.

One thing that has been alluded to is the impact of newbies. Will someone make a big leap from last year to become an impact performer? Maybe Lindsay Allen. Maybe Alexis Jones (who sat out). Maybe one of the UCLA players. I think we could have multiple players fitting this category: Kia Nurse, Gabby Williams, Natalie Butler, Katie Lou Samuelson, and Napheesa Collier. Lou is a scoring machine, and Napheesa does everything and outwork the opponent. As folks have noted, many teams get better next year, but I'm still liking the stellar recruiting class from 2012 and their supporting cast, many of whom will be AAs in time.

 

[easttexastrash]

I may be wrong, but I think that Beatrice Mompremier may be a surprise in the conversation. She is big, super athletic and can finish equally well with each hand around the basket. It may take a few games like it did with Nina Davis to convince Kim that she should start, but I think she will be in the starting lineup by mid-season.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

They wont put 3 players from the same school on a 5 member first team

True. But I was thinking 10. But I do believe she will have a 5 member AA team season, but the way these things work weigh heavily in favor of Stewie and the BumbleBee!

 

[Huskies Rule]

Pretty good analysis except about Briana Turner: "She was arguably the best frontcourt player on the floor in the title game". That is a ridiculous statement!

I couldn't agree with you more, mhshuskies. Stewie was clearly hampered by her badly rolled ankle that she injured in the first half. It was retaped twice, and it clearly affected her mobility and the ability to cut and pivot.
That enabled Turner to get several little putbacks that a healthy Stewie would have otherwise made her eat. Note that Turner did absolutely nothing in the first half against a healthy Stewie. The halftime delay only exacerbated the pain and swelling, which is why Stewie limited herself to just rebounding and blocking shots, what her team needed from her, and knowing that making sharp offensive moves could end her championship game for good. [To her credit, Stewie never made excuses for her lack of 2nd half offense- and the fact that she took so few shots in the final 20 minutes tells you it was all about the ankle and nothing about Turner's defense on her. A healthy Stewie for 40 minutes and Turner has a 2nd half as totally non-productive as her first half. Stewie is a warrior.]

 

[Tonyc]

Well with and outside shot and a trey I would say Tuck should be a 1st team AA. Turner and Wilson wont come close to Tuck and Nina is terrific but wont have the deep shot that Tuck has. However the voters may not give UConn 3 first team AAs . NPOY will be between Stewie and MoJeff and both will be first team AAs.

 

[rvwsleep]

I may be wrong, but I think that Beatrice Mompremier may be a surprise in the conversation. She is big, super athletic and can finish equally well with each hand around the basket. It may take a few games like it did with Nina Davis to convince Kim that she should start, but I think she will be in the starting lineup by mid-season.

Mompremier will be playing more minutes per game at the end of the season than Brown will. She is much more athletic than Brown is and will be more effective against top rated teams.

 

[bballnut90]

Stewart gets a lot more defensive attention than Turner, who is pretty much free to float around on offense. Turner had 6 more points than Stewart but Stewart had 5 more rebounds, however, Stewart had 4 blocks to Turner's 1, Turner had 2 turnovers to Stewart's 1, Stewart had 2 steals to Turner's 1. Neither really took too many shots, thus their relatively low scoring.

Based on those stats I see no argument for Turner being the better player that night. Stewart had much larger impact on defense than Turner, which often goes unappreciated because you cannot put a specific stat on it, but her defensive presence often did not allow ND to execute its offense as they wanted.

Turner bottled up Stewart all night. Before she rolled her ankle, Stewart only had 4 points. After her ankle turned, she had 4 again. I don't think ankle effected Stewart as drastically as some here are implying. Turner did an outstanding job on Stewart and helped negate her ability to beat you from both inside and outside. In the 2nd half, Turner single handily kept Notre Dame in the game with 14 points. When she subbed out for 2 minutes, UCONN when on a mini run to ice the game. She came back, but Notre Dame was deflated. You can make an argument either way, but 14 points, 10 rebounds, 7-9 shooting and lock down defense on the nation's most versatile offensive threat earns her my vote as having the best night of any frontcourt player.

 

[hoophuskee]

It's tough to say who had the better game without considering the attention they got from the opponent. Turner had a great second half after being a non-factor for the first 20 minutes. And a lot of her second half success was due to the fact that she wasn't a focus of UConn's defense, in much the same way that Tuck was treated by Notre Dame in the game in South Bend . Notre Dame's defense was geared to limiting Stewart while UConn's was focussed on Loyd.

The thing is- I don't recall seeing Stewie being guarded with all that much attention other than Turner or Reimer. And ND did have a ton of success on the backboards which should have been contained better by Stewie and Tuck. A player can get 12 rebounds but if the team is getting hammered on the glass it doesn't mean the player with 12 boards was terrific. Where was the player when the other team was getting off so many shots or getting some other offensive rebounds?

 

[bballnut90]

I couldn't agree with you more, mhshuskies. Stewie was clearly hampered by her badly rolled ankle that she injured in the first half. It was retaped twice, and it clearly affected her mobility and the ability to cut and pivot.
That enabled Turner to get several little putbacks that a healthy Stewie would have otherwise made her eat. Note that Turner did absolutely nothing in the first half against a healthy Stewie. The halftime delay only exacerbated the pain and swelling, which is why Stewie limited herself to just rebounding and blocking shots, what her team needed from her, and knowing that making sharp offensive moves could end her championship game for good. [To her credit, Stewie never made excuses for her lack of 2nd half offense- and the fact that she took so few shots in the final 20 minutes tells you it was all about the ankle and nothing about Turner's defense on her. A healthy Stewie for 40 minutes and Turner has a 2nd half as totally non-productive as her first half. Stewie is a warrior.]

Turner was timid offensively in the first half, see quotes she stated about the 2nd half turn around:
“I think I wasn’t aggressive enough. I was really timid in the first half,” Turner said.

“I don’t know, just being in the locker room at halftime, reflecting on my first half, I wasn’t happy with my performance,” Turner said. “So I just came out in the second half determined to rebound and get the shots I usually get.”

I think this had more to do with anything than Stewart. Stewart was phenomenal defensively all night, it was Notre Dame looking for Turner, and Turner actively looking for opportunities that escalated her 2nd half turn around rather than Stewart's ankle. Also worth noting is that Stewart wasn't lighting it up before she rolled her ankle. She had 4 points before the ankle and 4 points after. Also, not that she would use it as an excuse, but I can't recall ever seeing a statement from Stewart saying that her ankle affected.

 

[hoophuskee]

Turner bottled up Stewart all night. Before she rolled her ankle, Stewart only had 4 points. After her ankle turned, she had 4 again. I don't think ankle effected Stewart as drastically as some here are implying. Turner did an outstanding job on Stewart and helped negate her ability to beat you from both inside and outside. In the 2nd half, Turner single handily kept Notre Dame in the game with 14 points. When she subbed out for 2 minutes, UCONN when on a mini run to ice the game. She came back, but Notre Dame was deflated. You can make an argument either way, but 14 points, 10 rebounds, 7-9 shooting and lock down defense on the nation's most versatile offensive threat earns her my vote as having the best night of any frontcourt player.

I have to go to dispute some of your comments about Stewart. But one point - instead of your comment stating about the 4 pts before and after. One could say she had 6 points by end of half-time in 1st half and her ankle stiffened for 2nd half. Six points for a player that averages about 16 a game - not bad seeing hwo the pace fo the game was slow.

 

[bballnut90]

bballnut did not say Turner was better than Stewart. She meant/said again that overall Turner was arguably the best of (Stewie Tuck and Reimer.) of the bigs on the floor for that given evening. I agree with that. Though imo Stewie was hurt with her ankle. I thought her athleticism took a huge hit despite the rebounds she pulled down.

I think the one major question in the top 5 is Tiffany Mitchell.

I don't think Tuck will get the respect considering if another team wins 30/31 games leading into NCAA's. I see Stewie, MoJeff, And DD as a lock. Nina as close ot a lock as possible. I'm still stunned how she does it.

So if any other team such as USC, ND, FSU, MD or Ohio State - to name a few wins 30/31 games and have en elite performer, Tuck may not get the respect she deserves.

Courtney Williams from USF-- would love to see their ooc schedule this year. I think she is terrific. Hopefully, they have scheduled in OOC a winnable game or two vs a high-tier team where she could show her stuff.

I could definitely see Mitchell dropping to 2nd or 3rd team next year, as Wilson/Coates should improve their offensive output. That said, she is the 2x SEC Player of the Year, something neither Candace Parker nor Sylvia Fowles even accomplished, so she has a lot going for her and will surely be on whatever "3 to see" list there is next season.

With so many really good players on top teams next year, I can't see the likes of Courtney Williams of USF being a 1st team candidate unless she puts up big numbers against UCONN or other quality competition.

 

[bballnut90]

I have to go to dispute some of your comments about Stewart. But one point - instead of your comment stating about the 4 pts before and after. One could say she had 6 points by end of half-time in 1st half and her ankle stiffened for 2nd half. Six points for a player that averages about 16 a game - not bad seeing hwo the pace fo the game was slow.

She averaged 18 points per game, not 16. She also was averaging 21 ppg in the tournament and in her 3 previous games she put up 31 points, 23 points, and 25 points. 6 points in the first half is not at all on pace to continue that trend. Further more, it wasn't as slow of a game as you make it out to be. When you look at the Maryland game vs. Notre Dame game, there were more shots attempted, more turnovers and more rebounds in the Notre Dame game, all of which indicate it was a more up and down game than the Maryland matchup. And against Maryland, Stewart had 25 points, took 13 shots and went 9-10 from the line. What was the difference between the two? In my opinion, Turner's defense.

 

[bballnut90]

I watched several of Powers' games last year. I like her a lot. I also understand the injury situation at MSU. She definitely earned the HM awards last season. With more support in the upcoming season maybe she'll shoot more efficiently and commit fewer turnovers (154). I just don't consider her as one of the 10 best players in America right now. We'll see what the upcoming season brings.

Powers is phenomenal and probably should have been in the HM list, along with players like Mavunga, Niya Johnson, Kia Nurse, Brionna Jones and Walker-Kimbrough. I agree, there probably aren't 10 players in the nation who can do what Powers does, but MSU was so bad last year and badly underperformed. I know this has nothing to do with Powers, but if your team is a bottom dweller in an average conference, you aren't going to get the accolades at the end of the year than a good player on a stronger team will. Does anybody here think Powers should be on a preseason team over a player like Tuck? Outside of FG percentage, Powers has immensely better statistics in many areas than Tuck, but most here would agree that Tuck will likely be an All-American next year, where Powers has an uphill battle due to MSU's lack of success.

 

[Huskies Rule]

Also, not that she would use it as an excuse, but I can't recall ever seeing a statement from Stewart saying that her ankle affected.

Really? This is from Mechelle Voepel's report on the Championship game:

Voepel: "Still, considering she painfully rolled her ankle with about eight minutes left in the first half -- yet still missed just one minute of game action -- this effort will still go down in the Stewart chronicles as memorable. She showed toughness and resolve on a night when she faced a physical hurdle that could have affected her."

Stewie: "It did hurt, and I haven't seen it. I'm sure it looked gross," Stewart said of the video of the ankle turn. "But it's the national championship game. My team is counting on me. I got taped as quickly as I could and got back in the game. I'm sure it will hurt tomorrow, but the season's over now."

- Those are the courageous words of a kid who played through great pain, for her team. You are the best, Stewie.

 

[johnnyc]

It is not necessary that Stewart have the leadership role in order for UConn to win. Tuck and/or Jefferson could also easily fill that role.

 

[Alydar]

What I'm reading a player needs to be considered is:

to put up outstanding scoring numbers, so they should be the go-to player on their team. Forget worrying about doing all the little things that win games. Just score and rebound.

to play in a P5 conference where they get exposure.

not have other great players on their team since there's a per team limit


That's why I dislike individual awards in team sports. The only all-american team I am interested in is the one that gets the trophy next year in Indianapolis.

 

[hoophuskee]

She averaged 18 points per game, not 16. She also was averaging 21 ppg in the tournament and in her 3 previous games she put up 31 points, 23 points, and 25 points. 6 points in the first half is not at all on pace to continue that trend. Further more, it wasn't as slow of a game as you make it out to be. When you look at the Maryland game vs. Notre Dame game, there were more shots attempted, more turnovers and more rebounds in the Notre Dame game, all of which indicate it was a more up and down game than the Maryland matchup. And against Maryland, Stewart had 25 points, took 13 shots and went 9-10 from the line. What was the difference between the two? In my opinion, Turner's defense.

Okay regarding the 18 points point taken - I thought she average just 16 it was actually 17.6 . So Turner bottled her up the whole game?

She had 4 points before she got hurt and there were 8 minutes left in the half. In that time -- there were 22 possession by UCONN - 5 were fastbreak opportuntities of which one Stewie scored. The others were either scored conversions or missed turnovers so for those there is no value in determining who is guarding who. Of the other 17 possessions UCONN had -- 10 Turner guarded her, 5 Remier did and two Huffman guarded her. Seventeen possessions and you want to give all the credit to Turner? Or can we say it was ND's defense? In the 2nd half numbers are similar.

Stewie scored 15 points vs ND last game but was 3-12 from the floor. Nine for 10 from the ft line. So it's your opinion that Reimer's defense, the defenses that Muffett threw, Hoffman's defense and Cable's were irrelevant vs Turner's? And /or you think a defense can legitimately hold a healthy Stewart - the NPOY-- to just two points in the 2nd half of a title game? You think it is reasonable that a 6'4 or 6'5 player with her size and length in the 2nd half can only get off two shots because of the defense of 1 freshman player?

David from Dish n Swishin - had posted on here that Stewie dominated pros months before the USA Trials. So we're supposed to believe a freshman forced a 6'4 or 6'5 player who was as you mention was extremely hot leading into the finals -- all of a sudden she can only get off two shots in the 2nd half because the freshman bottled her up ?

You mean for example at the 5:51 mark when MoJeff starts driving from top of the key and Turner is guarding Stewie doesn't even help to defend but we're to ignore that this super defender just "missed" the help yet played near perfect defense every other minute (she would have had to be near perfect - in order to hold the NPOY to 2 shots)? No help defense off of Stewie yet UCONN certainly helped off of Turner, didn't they? There was no gimmick defense on Turner also- was there? Such as when Doris states during the game that ND was leaving Nurse open and MoJeff somewhat open -- and even sometimes they went into gimmick defenses such as triangle and two (On Stewie NOT on Turner) and you have Cable or Huffman also guarding her -- but it's all about "that the freshman bottled up Stewie?" And not the familiarity with ND vs UCONN in that for example we've already seen Stewie go 3-12 in a prior game? Nah- I'm not buying your analysis.

IMO ND's team defense geared to stop her- not just 1 player. And unlike Turner getting the ball from their guards penetration, Steiw wasn't because just as we saw with the gimmicks, leaving Nurse wide open, the open layup by MoJeff - they were all in as a TEAM to to stop Stewie - not just 1 player. ND sacrificed their team defense in order to let anyone else but Stewie (and tried to stop Lewis) beat them. That's why you saw the gimmick defenses. That's why they left Nurse wide open. Why they left MoJeff partially open. Why Turner let MoJeff get to the basket with absolutely no help off of Stewie. And most importantly - why you saw just two shots from Stewie the entire 2nd half is that she was hurt. It didn't matter if Turner, or Reimer or Cable was guarding her. She was hurt - and just as unable to get off a shot vs those two than she could vs. Turner.

 

[hoophuskee]

Really? This is from Mechelle Voepel's report on the Championship game:

Voepel: "Still, considering she painfully rolled her ankle with about eight minutes left in the first half -- yet still missed just one minute of game action -- this effort will still go down in the Stewart chronicles as memorable. She showed toughness and resolve on a night when she faced a physical hurdle that could have affected her."

Stewie: "It did hurt, and I haven't seen it. I'm sure it looked gross," Stewart said of the video of the ankle turn. "But it's the national championship game. My team is counting on me. I got taped as quickly as I could and got back in the game. I'm sure it will hurt tomorrow, but the season's over now."

- Those are the courageous words of a kid who played through great pain, for her team. You are the best, Stewie.

For a kid to admit she was hurting imo that says a lot. IMO it was obvious she was no longer as aggressive. The 2 shots in entire 2nd half should tell the story.

 

[CocoHusky]

For a kid to admit she was hurting imo that says a lot. IMO it was obvious she was no longer as aggressive. The 2 shots in entire 2nd half should tell the story.

Maybe not. In the Game at ND earlier in the year Stewie only took 4 shots in the second half. One of which was an attempted tip in.

 

[hoophuskee]

Maybe not. In the Game at ND earlier in the year Stewie only took 4 shots in the second half. One of which was an attempted tip in.

Or "MAYBE."

She actually took 3 shots in 2nd half but took 8 free throws.

Secondly, I don't know why you want to negate tip ins. This is a 6'4 - 6'5 player with enormous length. We've seen her make tip-ins too, haven't we? And if she tips it once with her long arms the person behind her at times it at a disadvantage the 2nd time aren't they? This isn't a small guard trying to tip in.


And another thing is - UCONN wasn't struggling much vs ND the 1sttime. Tuck was having her way. Only late did KML take over in game 2.

By the way, if you get a chance I would love to hear yoru perspective on a play at the 10:20 mark to about 10:05 -- watch Stewart move without the ball and watch Jefferson. Tell me what you think on that play happened. I'd like to hear your perspective on Stewie, MoJejf and ND's defense.

 

[bballnut90]

Okay regarding the 18 points point taken - I thought she average just 16 it was actually 17.6 . So Turner bottled her up the whole game?

She had 4 points before she got hurt and there were 8 minutes left in the half. In that time -- there were 22 possession by UCONN - 5 were fastbreak opportuntities of which one Stewie scored. The others were either scored conversions or missed turnovers so for those there is no value in determining who is guarding who. Of the other 17 possessions UCONN had -- 10 Turner guarded her, 5 Remier did and two Huffman guarded her. Seventeen possessions and you want to give all the credit to Turner? Or can we say it was ND's defense? In the 2nd half numbers are similar.

Stewie scored 15 points vs ND last game but was 3-12 from the floor. Nine for 10 from the ft line. So it's your opinion that Reimer's defense, the defenses that Muffett threw, Hoffman's defense and Cable's were irrelevant vs Turner's? And /or you think a defense can legitimately hold a healthy Stewart - the NPOY-- to just two points in the 2nd half of a title game? You think it is reasonable that a 6'4 or 6'5 player with her size and length in the 2nd half can only get off two shots because of the defense of 1 freshman player?

David from Dish n Swishin - had posted on here that Stewie dominated pros months before the USA Trials. So we're supposed to believe a freshman forced a 6'4 or 6'5 player who was as you mention was extremely hot leading into the finals -- all of a sudden she can only get off two shots in the 2nd half because the freshman bottled her up ?

You mean for example at the 5:51 mark when MoJeff starts driving from top of the key and Turner is guarding Stewie doesn't even help to defend but we're to ignore that this super defender just "missed" the help yet played near perfect defense every other minute (she would have had to be near perfect - in order to hold the NPOY to 2 shots)? No help defense off of Stewie yet UCONN certainly helped off of Turner, didn't they? There was no gimmick defense on Turner also- was there? Such as when Doris states during the game that ND was leaving Nurse open and MoJeff somewhat open -- and even sometimes they went into gimmick defenses such as triangle and two (On Stewie NOT on Turner) and you have Cable or Huffman also guarding her -- but it's all about "that the freshman bottled up Stewie?" And not the familiarity with ND vs UCONN in that for example we've already seen Stewie go 3-12 in a prior game? Nah- I'm not buying your analysis.

IMO ND's team defense geared to stop her- not just 1 player. And unlike Turner getting the ball from their guards penetration, Steiw wasn't because just as we saw with the gimmicks, leaving Nurse wide open, the open layup by MoJeff - they were all in as a TEAM to to stop Stewie - not just 1 player. ND sacrificed their team defense in order to let anyone else but Stewie (and tried to stop Lewis) beat them. That's why you saw the gimmick defenses. That's why they left Nurse wide open. Why they left MoJeff partially open. Why Turner let MoJeff get to the basket with absolutely no help off of Stewie. And most importantly - why you saw just two shots from Stewie the entire 2nd half is that she was hurt. It didn't matter if Turner, or Reimer or Cable was guarding her. She was hurt - and just as unable to get off a shot vs those two than she could vs. Turner.

For some reason I thought she went down with just a couple minutes left in the half. Even so, she wasn't on pace to have a huge night. Turner should get the majority of the credit since she was the primary defender on Stewart. Huffman is a scrappy defender, and Taya has the size and bulk to be physical with Stewart, but Turner was guarding her for most of the evening. I don't recall individual plays, but regardless of whether Stewart was 100% or not, I thought Turner was outstanding on both sides of the ball that night and outplayed any other frontcourt player.

 

[hoophuskee]

For some reason I thought she went down with just a couple minutes left in the half. Even so, she wasn't on pace to have a huge night. Turner should get the majority of the credit since she was the primary defender on Stewart. Huffman is a scrappy defender, and Taya has the size and bulk to be physical with Stewart, but Turner was guarding her for most of the evening. I don't recall individual plays, but regardless of whether Stewart was 100% or not, I thought Turner was outstanding on both sides of the ball that night and outplayed any other frontcourt player.

Sure Turner did outplay Stewie. I agree. But my issue was that Stewie was hurt.

However I agree with the poster that spoke of KML. Though I consider KML a wing. I thought KML was better as was MoJeff. Though I agree Turner was the best frontcourt player.

 

[Buzzyboy]

How is that ridiculous? She had 14 points, 10 rebounds, shot 7-9 from the floor and defensively did an outstanding job on Stewart. On the season Stewart was obviously the superior player, but that game I'd argue Turner had the best showing of anyone besides Jefferson.

You didn't say she had the best game of any forward in that game, you said she was the best forward on the court and that's where the "ridiculous" comes in. She's obviously talented or UConn wouldn't have put that much of an effort into recruiting her but she has a way to go to be compared to a unique talent like Breanna as I assume you know. I thought the same thing when I read your analysis which I thought was quite good, overall! Nice job!

 

[meyers7]

I may be wrong, but I think that Beatrice Mompremier may be a surprise in the conversation. She is big, super athletic and can finish equally well with each hand around the basket. It may take a few games like it did with Nina Davis to convince Kim that she should start, but I think she will be in the starting lineup by mid-season.

If you are looking for a FR post to make a splash, it's probably going to be Kristine Anigwe. She has really come on strong this past year.

 

[BuckLucas]

Ohio State has everyone back plus three pretty good players who had ACL surgeries. Think they will be top twenty at a minimum.

 

[CocoHusky]

Or "MAYBE."

She actually took 3 shots in 2nd half but took 8 free throws.

Secondly, I don't know why you want to negate tip ins. This is a 6'4 - 6'5 player with enormous length. We've seen her make tip-ins too, haven't we? And if she tips it once with her long arms the person behind her at times it at a disadvantage the 2nd time aren't they? This isn't a small guard trying to tip in.


And another thing is - UCONN wasn't struggling much vs ND the 1sttime. Tuck was having her way. Only late did KML take over in game 2.

By the way, if you get a chance I would love to hear yoru perspective on a play at the 10:20 mark to about 10:05 -- watch Stewart move without the ball and watch Jefferson. Tell me what you think on that play happened. I'd like to hear your perspective on Stewie, MoJejf and ND's defense.

No intention to negate a tip in- I gave her full credit the tip in was one of her 4 shot attempts. I am glad you mentioned FT attempts because that is also an indication of activity. In the first two minutes of the second half Stewie had 1 Block 1 rebound and 1 steal. She finished with 7 rebounds for the half. All great signs of activity IMO. Was Stewie hampered by the ankle? Absolutely ( she said as much) but to say that 2 shot attempts is proof positive of that is our point of disagreement.
Muffet was determined to let anyone on UCONN beat her except Stewie because that is a bad movie she had seen too many times. Stanford used the same strategy we'll let anyone beat us but not Stewie! The first 10 Minutes of the Stanford game Stewie had exactly 1 shot attempt.
In the last NC game what ND was willing to give up was the 3 point shot. KML took 4, Nurse took 2, MoJeff took 3, Tuck took 1 all in the second half. UCONN made 5 of the 10 3PT shots in the second half and kept ND at arms length and won the game. Many of the 10 shots where wide open shot when a ND player decided to help off of Stewie.
I will relook at the play at the 10:20 mark to about 10:05 with an open mind and see if that changes my opinion.

 

[bballnut90]

You didn't say she had the best game of any forward in that game, you said she was the best forward on the court and that's where the "ridiculous" comes in. She's obviously talented or UConn wouldn't have put that much of an effort into recruiting her but she has a way to go to be compared to a unique talent like Breanna as I assume you know. I thought the same thing when I read your analysis which I thought was quite good, overall! Nice job!

Thanks, Buzzy. People misinterpreted my comment, I meant that game I thought she had the best performance of all front court players, not that she was the best player generally speaking. I'm interested to see how they match up next year. I think Turner has potential to improve leaps and bounds in the off season, but at the same time, defenses are going to key on her now that Loyd is gone which presents a new set of challenges. I think if anyone has the ability to defend Stewart, it'd have to be Turner because of her size, length and quickness.

 

[Huskies Rule]

The Championship game stats:
- Stewie: 8 pts, 15 rebounds, 4 blocks, 2 steals, 1 t/o
- Turner: 14 pts, 10 rebound, 1 block, 1 steal, 2 t/o

FACT: Aside from scoring 6 fewer points, a clearly injured Stewie did EVERYTHING better than Turner on the stat sheet and on the floor to win.

FACT: Despite her bad ankle, Stewie played the entire game, impacting everything ND tried to do on both ends. On defense, Stewie controlled the boards with 12 defensive rebounds, blocked shots, and she deflected or altered at least 6 drives to the hoop, 3 by Loyd (I'm sure-I've watched the game 6-7 times ). On offense, particularly for the 10 minutes Stokes played and wasn't defended, ND had Huffman and Cable doubling and pestering Stewie non-stop. Didn't work- aside from the one charge Cable drew, that only resulted in better looks for Stewie's teammates. So even as physically limited as she was in the 2nd half, Stewie's mere presence caused ND huge problems they struggled to adjust to, all game long. And it cost them.

FACT: Stewie impacted the game for the full 40 minutes. Turner was invisible for the first 20 minutes. Whether you buy the excuse that her first half non-performance was the result of "nerves" or of a healthier Stewie (as I believe), the bottom line is that Stewie played hurt and played great, doing everything her team needed of her to win. Stewie took so few shots in the second half because of her hurting ankle and because her team needed her to defend and rebound and block shots and NOT because of Turner's defensive wizardry. Turner's inability to do anything in the first half put her team in a 10-point hole it could never get out of. Turner's first 20 minutes cost ND bigtime, maybe the game. Had Stewie likewise completely disappeared for 20 minutes, they would be celebrating still in South Bend.

FACT: You simply cannot say that Turner, who contributed only 20 productive 2nd half minutes for her team, no matter how effective, was the best frontcourt player that day. The game is 40 minutes, and what Turner was unable to do for her team in the first 20 minutes negated her excellent 2nd half. What I will grant the Turner crazies is that she had the best second half of any frontcourt player. But one half of great play does not a title get!

Last thing- Besides the off-balance foul line bank-shot chuck with the shot clock running out, Turner did not make or attempt a single shot from beyond 2 feet, literally. She only scored on put backs, and looking at replays of four of her other games, if she isn't scoring on fast break layups or 2 foot put backs, she isn't scoring. Talented but she has an incredibly limited offensive skill set. She has potential, but if she doesn't develop a shot, even just a 6-8 foot shot, she will never be great.

-Moriah was the player of the game. Period. And Turner was absolutely NOT the "frontcourt player of the game." That would be Stewie.

 

[hoophuskee]

No intention to negate a tip in- I gave her full credit the tip in was one of her 4 shot attempts. I am glad you mentioned FT attempts because that is also an indication of activity. In the first two minutes of the second half Stewie had 1 Block 1 rebound and 1 steal. She finished with 7 rebounds for the half. All great signs of activity IMO. Was Stewie hampered by the ankle? Absolutely ( she said as much) but to say that 2 shot attempts is proof positive of that is our point of disagreement.
Muffet was determined to let anyone on UCONN beat her except Stewie because that is a bad movie she had seen too many times. Stanford used the same strategy we'll let anyone beat us but not Stewie! The first 10 Minutes of the Stanford game Stewie had exactly 1 shot attempt.
In the last NC game what ND was willing to give up was the 3 point shot. KML took 4, Nurse took 2, MoJeff took 3, Tuck took 1 all in the second half. UCONN made 5 of the 10 3PT shots in the second half and kept ND at arms length and won the game. Many of the 10 shots where wide open shot when a ND player decided to help off of Stewie.
I will relook at the play at the 10:20 mark to about 10:05 with an open mind and see if that changes my opinion.

I thought the tip in you were trying to minimize it. I don't know why you mentioned it - when you said it was one of her 4 attempts. I didn't understand - still don't but it's not important - why mention it- if you weren't trying to minimize it? Ahh forget it. Not important.

Regarding the 10:05 to the 10:20 mark of 2nd half of game 2-- I'm not trying to change your opinion. I don't think either of us will change that. Just wondering what your observations are. I thought the play was comical relating to our discussion but won't sway either of our opinions.

Regarding the ft attempts - I brought that up when you had mentioned Stewie only took 3/4 shots in 2nd half of 1st game. SO I'm not sure why you're glad I mentioned it. My point of bringing that up was that she was healthy enough to get additional scoring opportunities so the number of field goal attempts you referenced as a comparison to my comment of two Stewie only taking tow as proof she was hurt -- I didn't agree with it.

Regarding two attempts in a 2nd half-- unless you or anyone else can reference to me a a great team's leading scorer (in this case one of the greatest wcbb of all-time) in a big game not in foul trouble and not hurt -- in what instance can you point out that great player only took two shots? I didn't reference free throw attempts because I felt I didn't need to. If a player is getting tot he line it shows they are active as you say- which Stewie was in game 1. IMO in Game 2 she could get tot he line much at all in 2nd half and could only muster up two shots - imo that is proof positive she was hurt.