Rich: Geno addresses Stef and her treatment by the officials

[pap49cba]

“And the referees have to give her a break. She gets called for (stuff) that other people in our league get away with every day. Every day. There’s a couple teams in our league that foul more than Stefanie does and don’t get called for it. Maybe they know how to foul better than she does. But I’ve been really good to the officials the last couple of years, but that (stuff’s) going to end and it’s going to end fast if they still pick on her like they have been.’’

Interestingly enough, Dolson has collected four fouls in each of UConn’s two losses to Notre Dame in the national semifinals.

“I’ve gotten older and I’m trying to be a little more mature and I try to leave the referees alone,’’ Auriemma said. “Nobody complains less than I do to the officials. We have people in our league that complain a lot to the officials. And I’m not one of them. But if they don’t start changing the way they officiate Stefanie Dolson then the (stuff) is going to hit the fan at some point this year.’’

LINK

 

[meyers7]

Without the "National Team Coach" moniker, watch out.

 

[Alydar]

Dolson has a bad habit of being overly aggressive defensively early in games. It's not so much what she does but when she does it, right in the first 2 minutes of the game or half. She also has a habit of looking guilty as she does it. I've watched her do it right in front of Bonita. I've seen games when she went over the back of an opponent for a foul and then tried to make up for it by reaching in for a steal. Bang, 2 fouls. I think that one thing experience should teach is ref patterns, which ones call which fouls. Dolson has had 2 years to learn this stuff. And thankfully, this year she isn't as vital a cog as the last 2.

 

[EricLA]

Good for Geno. I look forward to his getting t'd up several times this year to make a point. And he will probably be lodging complaints with the head of officials complete with game tapes as well. Time for the officials to wake up when it comes to the way fouls are called regarding Stef.

The amount of bruises on Stef's body from being manhandled and literally punched is ridiculous. There's no excuse for the refs to let that kind of overly physical play go. Kudos to Geno for speaking up. And any stupid fouls Stef commits has zero to do with the way other teams attack and beat the heck out of her...

 

[boontonbomber]

“And the referees have to give her a break. She gets called for (stuff) that other people in our league get away with every day. Every day. There’s a couple teams in our league that foul more than Stefanie does and don’t get called for it. Maybe they know how to foul better than she does. But I’ve been really good to the officials the last couple of years, but that (stuff’s) going to end and it’s going to end fast if they still pick on her like they have been.’’

Interestingly enough, Dolson has collected four fouls in each of UConn’s two losses to Notre Dame in the national semifinals.

“I’ve gotten older and I’m trying to be a little more mature and I try to leave the referees alone,’’ Auriemma said. “Nobody complains less than I do to the officials. We have people in our league that complain a lot to the officials. And I’m not one of them. But if they don’t start changing the way they officiate Stefanie Dolson then the (stuff) is going to hit the fan at some point this year.’’

LINK

geno

Dolson has a bad habit of being overly aggressive defensively early in games. It's not so much what she does but when she does it, right in the first 2 minutes of the game or half. She also has a habit of looking guilty as she does it. I've watched her do it right in front of Bonita. I've seen games when she went over the back of an opponent for a foul and then tried to make up for it by reaching in for a steal. Bang, 2 fouls. I think that one thing experience should teach is ref patterns, which ones call which fouls. Dolson has had 2 years to learn this stuff. And thankfully, this year she isn't as vital a cog as the last 2.

i agree. and i don't think that geno's groaning is what she needs to hear. she commits a lot of dumb fouls.

 

[EricLA]

i agree. and i don't think that geno's groaning is what she needs to hear. she commits a lot of dumb fouls.

I'm actually stunned to see a comment like that from any UCONN fan. Firstly, I guess you think you know more than Geno. And 2nd, no one is harder on his players than Geno, especially if they are good and he is trying to get them to be the best they can be. So if Geno is saying the refs need to back off on Stef, and call fouls evenly, I agree with him.

 

[boontonbomber]

Good for Geno. I look forward to his getting t'd up several times this year to make a point. And he will probably be lodging complaints with the head of officials complete with game tapes as well. Time for the officials to wake up when it comes to the way fouls are called regarding Stef.

The amount of bruises on Stef's body from being manhandled and literally punched is ridiculous. There's no excuse for the refs to let that kind of overly physical play go. Kudos to Geno for speaking up. And any stupid fouls Stef commits has zero to do with the way other teams attack and beat the heck out of her...

nobody is getting more "womanhandled" than griner. all the effective big players are having to deal with more of that now. that's the way the game has evolved, and coaches getting t'd up, evn geno, probably isn't going to significantly change things. stef would be better off if she stopped looking like she never committed a foul herself, and learn how to be physical without getting called for fouls. that's where the coaching staff comes in.

 

[EricLA]

nobody is getting more "womanhandled" than griner. all the effective big players are having to deal with more of that now. that's the way the game has evolved, and coaches getting t'd up, evn geno, probably isn't going to significantly change things. stef would be better off if she stopped looking like she never committed a foul herself, and learn how to be physical without getting called for fouls. that's where the coaching staff comes in.

I've seen about 2 Baylor games so i can't speak to that at all. What does that have to do with the BE officials Geno is referring to?

To come out and say that "Geno's groaning is not what she needs to hear" is a crazy comment. You are implying that not only is Geno wrong about Stef's treatment, but that you know how to handle her better than she does. and at the BET, which i actually saw in person, I saw ND players ball their fists, make a huge overhead swing in trying to block Stef's shot, only to clock her in the arm and shoulder, and it was not called.

 

[Drumguy]

nobody is getting more "womanhandled" than griner. .

well. if that's not a homer quote But it's besides the point.

I think the "stars" of the women's game overall get fouled and battered beyond belief and it's allowed to happen, be it Stef or BG or Diana - the coaches on opposing teams use the only weapon to counter the inequality of talent they have, which is to pull, shove, hold and body the talent, and hope the refs can't call all the fouls. One of the negative ways the girls game is resembling the men more now.

 

[CONNFAN23]

nobody is getting more "womanhandled" than griner. all the effective big players are having to deal with more of that now. that's the way the game has evolved, and coaches getting t'd up, evn geno, probably isn't going to significantly change things. stef would be better off if she stopped looking like she never committed a foul herself, and learn how to be physical without getting called for fouls. that's where the coaching staff comes in.

Your joking right? BG gets away with murder on the defensive end and on the offensive she constantly leads with her elbows to clear space and if you even look at her the wrong way you are going to get whistled, Do you really think that WCBB wants their most visible and well known player on the bench every game in foul trouble?

 

[Sonny44]

I'm actually stunned to see a comment like that from any UCONN fan. Firstly, I guess you think you know more than Geno. And 2nd, no one is harder on his players than Geno, especially if they are good and he is trying to get them to be the best they can be. So if Geno is saying the refs need to back off on Stef, and call fouls evenly, I agree with him.

Amen bro.

 

[boontonbomber]

well. if that's not a homer quote But it's besides the point.

I think the "stars" of the women's game overall get fouled and battered beyond belief and it's allowed to happen, be it Stef or BG or Diana - the coaches on opposing teams use the only weapon to counter the inequality of talent they have, which is to pull, shove, hold and body the talent, and hope the refs can't call all the fouls. One of the negative ways the girls game is resembling the men more now.

what on earth do you mean by a homer quote? the only place i've ever been to in waco is the branch davidian complex, or what's left of it.
yes, the game is beginning to resemble the men's game more. and the "mature" approach to curb this trend might be for coaches to collectively open discussions with the officials. geno's comments, which actually sound a bit threatening to me, in my opinion are not going to achieve much. maybe it will get him a few more calls in uconn games, but overall won't do much for the women's game.
regarding stars getting battered, if you've watched any wnba games lately you'll see lots more physical play than in any college game. so if stef has wnba ambitions, she'd better get used to it.

 

[VAMike23]

I'll be happy if Stef can cut down on the moving screen fouls.

As Ice and others have pointed out the past, there is shared blame here with the ballhandler who must do her part by getting close enough on the way by so that Stef isn't tempted to slide out and draw the whistle. 'Bigs' like Stef are easy targets for the refs in these situations. Easy pickin's. And Stef is used a lot at the high post. So there you go.

As to the rest of the stuff under the basket--which I think is probably more what GA is talking about--I think that experience will help her somewhat, as will having other another big body to help on the glass much of the time (Bre or Morgan).

 

[slimmer56]

It is time for Geno to out for Stef. Ever since her Freshman year she has been singled out. She IS bigger than most everyone, but that doesn't mean she should be singled out. I am tired of seeing her work her tail off for her teamates, trying to set screens. I have seen her posting up on offense and the defensive player just flops and gets the call ! Come on ! Besides, you can't guard Stef one on one down on the block, she's too big.
Eric's right. Kudos for Geno for stepping up

 

[vtcwbuff]

"I'll be happy if Stef can cut down on the moving screen fouls."

+1

 

[Tonyc]

Treat Dolsen like Griner. That should be easy. Griner reaches over the top, bangs and dosnt get called. Equal Rights for Dolsen.

 

[Icebear]

Treat Dolsen like Griner. That should be easy. Griner reaches over the top, bangs and dosnt get called. Equal Rights for Dolsen.

And constantly puts her second hand on the body of the shooter while going for the block with the other hand.

 

[Kibitzer]

Geno should take a page or two from the Master at working officials, Red Auerbach.

First, Red had two techniques. One would be the traditional histrionics (Geno is good at this, too, complete with CD restraining him when he gets apoplectic).

The other was more subtle. He wouldn't nag the refs for making bad calls, he would accuse them of being lazy, out of position, unprofessional, or giving a half-hearted effort. This would go unnoticed by most fans but really got under the skin of refs who could shrug off the "bad call" stuff but who seethed when he needled them for not hustling.

Red also worked his own players, genius that he was. In those days, there were no assistant coaches. He was it. And he has often smiled, puffed his cigar and said, "Go back and check the records and you will see that we were losing in almost all the games when I got tossed, but we won most of them. It wasn't because my players were trying to win the game(s) for 'Dear Old Red,' it was because they wanted to prove they didn't need me to win."

Auerbach. Genius. How to Work the Refs 101. [;-)

 

[diggerfoot]

Well, this has been an interesting thread. The woman's game is becoming more like the men's because the stars are getting roughed up. No, wait, it's becoming more like the men's because the stars are getting star treatment. Dolson has a problem with looking guilty about the fouls she obviously committed. No, wait, Dolson has a problem with complaining about the fouls she gets.

Some folks seem not to comprehend that committing dumb fouls and being fouled unfairly are not mutually exclusive events. Auriemma has in fact chewed out Dolson for dumb fouls in the past, just as he ripped into Abrosimova and others, and I'm sure he'll continue to do so if needed. But ripping into Dolson for her fouls does not preclude Auriemma from also standing up for her when he perceives the officials are not calling the game fairly because of her size. He has enough Italian in him to get after both Dolson and the officials.

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

Diggerfoot nails a valid point, I must say. The Bigs and the Stars can't win.

The stars do tend to be the victims of more physical play - because the other player can't keep up. The Bigs bang each other in the post beyond belief - I remember a game MANY years ago where the RU and BC power forwards spent the entire game shoving and elbowing in the post with few fouls called. The RU player was bruised the entire upper arm at a team-fan event after that game.

On fouls, a lot are called on rep. That's just the way it is.

I want to share my favorite (correct) foul call. Pointer and a BC point guard coming up the court. Clear foul committed by Pointer, BC player stumbles, whistle blows, RAC boos. Announcement: foul on BC. Went home and watched the replay and - in slo-mo - you could clearly see the BC player commit the foul. The commentator (Nancy Lieberman) went from questioning what was wrong with the ref to a mumbled "that was a good call". My point - they do try to get it right.

 

[magical2]

Good for Geno. I look forward to his getting t'd up several times this year to make a point. And he will probably be lodging complaints with the head of officials complete with game tapes as well. Time for the officials to wake up when it comes to the way fouls are called regarding Stef.

The amount of bruises on Stef's body from being manhandled and literally punched is ridiculous. There's no excuse for the refs to let that kind of overly physical play go. Kudos to Geno for speaking up. And any stupid fouls Stef commits has zero to do with the way other teams attack and beat the heck out of her...

Eric great post and followups! Geno has reasons for speaking up like this! Making a statement for the Refs,the Coaches and players of other teams to hear,and for Steph as well as the rest of the team!

Geno,is brilliant, and his bringing this up now is making a statement! I expect we are going to see positve results which are to going help Steph!

Those complaining/commenting on Steph's fouling are going to see a vast improvement in this area as a Jr! The other posts/bigs are going to benefit by Geno's comments! I believe he is going to make sure his young posts/bigs do not get the physical treatment Steph has gotten!

Geno's comments are one more indicator of the HOFer doing his magic
Ira