S Conn exhibition Post game

[Spaceman213J]

She doesn't have to. Its not her role. Every role needs to be represented. The role you are describing is already being performed by Azzi, Sarah, and Serah.

The glue players like Shade, Kelly Faris, Kaleena Greene, and Kia Nurse are just as necessary to win.

Literally, just saw this after I nearly posted the same thing. You beat me too it.
Shade just needs to be steady and reliable. I think a lot of people forgot that she was the Big East FOY just two years ago. She may not do any one thing great, but she does an awfully lot of good things out there and her effort will never be questioned.

 

[hookshot]

Different take. It's all good!
I think she's gunna push Serah Williams for minutes. Ice too. Serah's gotta learn. IMO she isn't guaranteed to get huge minutes.
She was a major factor in the NCAA tournament. You can't coach big, and Jenna is big. Ask Betts if she knew when Jenna was on her. We left her one-on-one with Betts a lot.

Serah is miles beyond Jana and "will" actually get huge minutes, that is immediately obvious, but that does not mean that Jana and, particularly, Ice, can't play significant minutes in what will initially be a 10 deep rotation. The 7 deep rotation with Heckel and Blanca is pretty well set. The battle for post / PF back-up minutes will largely be between Jana and Ice, with Ice showing more versatility in the early going. Ali Z leads the pack so far for rotation wing minutes (maybe Carolyn and Morgan can compete at some point). Kellis will pick up some limited minutes. Patterson and Gandy continue to look like a year away

 

[BBallF]

The potential is definitely there, but she's needs to develop. She needs to understand how the American game is officiated. She needs to know when to defer and went to shoot. Being in a program as structured as Connecticut takes time to learn. I think it won't be until January or February until we see her playing her best basketball consistently. Just my opinion.

Heckel probably has a lower upside, but again just my opinion she is further ahead than Blanca at this point in the season. She really seems like a kid we're going to love.

I agree but I will take January or February for Blanca. In fact I will take the day before the Tennessee game. As for Kayleigh, she will be fine. She can do things KK can’t and is a good back up PG.

 

[HuskyNan]

But she doesn't need to anyways. Fudd, Strong and Williams look like they are perfectly capable.
Shade brings consistency and experience in the system. KK hopefully has matured and moved past it, but has history of occasionally getting sped up and a bit out of control. Shade helps keeps things flowing and on track.

Ash plays a role similar to her fellow Hoosier, Kelly Faris.

 

[CL82]

Ash plays a role similar to her fellow Hoosier, Kelly Faris.

Agree. I will say on many other teams Ash would probably the first option. She's a talented kid and a very unselfish player.

 

[Bone Dog]

All this worrying about Jana seems misplaced. Yes, she doesn’t score much yet. But she is also insurance against front court foul trouble. If Serah picks up that second foul before halftime, it really won’t matter much. Geno can sit her for a bit and then the post position gets even bigger.

I want to see Jana recover some of her fearlessness from before the injury. It will come, maybe later this season, maybe next season. But in the meantime, she is a valuable part of the team even as is.

Also, Azzi appears to be in mid-season form already. Ash and KK, too. And Sarah isn’t far from it. And Kelis is not as far from being playable as some of us feared. She is Big East ready right now. And personally, I see nothing but upside in Blanca. It may take until January for her to settle in to her eventual role. But I think we can give her some time.

 

[DemonDeac22]

This is shaping up to be an exciting year. Don’t count out Morgan - she’s a gamer and once we get to Jan/Feb I’m confident she’ll be contributing quite a bit to this team.

 

[ConnMotors]

This is shaping up to be an exciting year. Don’t count out Morgan - she’s a gamer and once we get to Jan/Feb I’m confident she’ll be contributing quite a bit to this team.

I mentioned this before but if Morgan returns in January or February she would be better off taking a red shirt year

 

[WBBZen]

This is shaping up to be an exciting year. Don’t count out Morgan - she’s a gamer and once we get to Jan/Feb I’m confident she’ll be contributing quite a bit to this team.

Not sure about this. I still would not be surprised to see her red shirt, just because Geno has recently talked about a roster of 14

 

[cferraro04]

—Still some things to work on, but a significant improvement from BC. Ball pressure was terrific.

—Shade played well as usual but I still think she has more impact coming off the bench. She will continue to start until Blanca’s decision making on offense improves.

—Blanca though, might be the most athletic on a ridiculously athletic team. She will have to be a starter. She is too talented not to.

—For the second straight game, Geno used full court pressure. I wonder if he is taking a small bit of Kim Caldwell and tipping his hand that he has as many as ten that he trusts.

—I hope Ziebell’s early appearance in both games is indication of how well she is practiced.

—I still don’t think UConn is thin at point guard. K9’s comfort level will only increase over time.

—At this time, Ayanna’s and CD’s minutes will be limited. There are just so many other options.

-Every time I think the game is finally slowing down for Jana, she makes a couple of decisions that indicates she is not there yet.

-Ice’s body language indicates that she is healthy and confident. She will get regular rotation minutes. May be the backup 5.

-Everybody has opinions on how minutes should be distributed in a game like this. I thought the staff did a great job with mixing combinations.
—Bring on Louisville.

I think Jana El-Alfy/s time will also be limited

 

[JellyBean]

Like the rest of the yard family, I was pleased with what I saw out there today. Everyone that dressed, ate. Allie looked confident out there. The team looked and played decent and will only get better with each practice and each game.

 

[Bone Dog]

I think Jana El-Alfy/s time will also be limited

The only players whose time won’t be limited are Azzi and Sarah. They will play as long as it takes to guarantee a win. In the BE games, that will likely not exceed 20 mins by very much. But in some of the OOC games like USC or Tennessee, they will likely play a lot longer. So sayeth the crystal ball.

 

[JoePgh]

Several of you seem to think that Ice will be ahead of Jana on the front court depth chart. I totally disagree with that, having watched both exhibition games in person.

Have you looked at the rebounding comparison between those two? Against BC, Jana had 4 rebounds in 7 minutes of playing time, while Ice had zero rebounds in 12 minutes. Against SCSU, Jana had 7 rebounds in just 9:23 of playing time, while Ice had 3 rebounds in 13:45 of playing time. Jana has shown herself (last year as well) to be a much stronger rebounder than Ice, and that is probably the most important stat for a backup center / power forward.

When Ice didn't enter the SCSU game until the second quarter, I wondered if she was in Geno's chateau bow-wow. I think it's simply that he also judges that Jana is ahead of her in the current depth chart.

I think Jana's limited playing time in the two exhibitions is solely due to her lingering injury, and she seems to be working her way out of that. I did not see any physical limitation in her play in either game, and in fact I wondered why she played so little.

I agree that Serah has earned the starting 5 spot -- she is as strong a rebounder as Jana and a better scorer. But I think Jana is clearly her first backup, and Ice is behind her. My hunch is that this is also Geno's thinking.

 

[Martin84]

Love Maggie but I think she meant whacked

View attachment 112680

Now do Joe Pesci. 😎😎

 

[Skeets]

Havent seen the games so I'm only going by descriptions. I hear small forward foreigner whose game is at an advanced stage for a frosh but also makes a lot of mistakes, and I start thinking Svet. Any similarities? The key will be if she's as stubborn as Sveta.

Some similarities, i.e. athleticism and stubbornness. There it ends. Svet was much more ready as a freshman. Some of her turnovers were due to those receiving her passes were not ready, or incapable of handling them. Not because they were stupid or ill-advised passes.

 

[Majic Hands]

The nice thing about having several players who you can put in without a drop in preference is that it enables the coach to reduce minute for a player who is a little banged up. Or even set out a game or two.

This allows time for recovery instead of over working and over stressing that can lead to more serious issues and ultimately less time on the floor.

I’m recovering from a broken wrist it’s a slow process. Yes, it’s a lot faster for an athlete that’s 18-22 years old. But we’re expecting these kids to function at the highest level of D1.

Reading some of these posts I’m beginning to think that there’s a lot of BY’ers that have not had to get their mojo back after suffering a physical injury.

Enjoyed the two exhibition games. Ready for the ones that count.

 

[DEpup]

Several of you seem to think that Ice will be ahead of Jana on the front court depth chart. I totally disagree with that, having watched both exhibition games in person.

Have you looked at the rebounding comparison between those two? Against BC, Jana had 4 rebounds in 7 minutes of playing time, while Ice had zero rebounds in 12 minutes. Against SCSU, Jana had 7 rebounds in just 9:23 of playing time, while Ice had 3 rebounds in 13:45 of playing time. Jana has shown herself (last year as well) to be a much stronger rebounder than Ice, and that is probably the most important stat for a backup center / power forward.

When Ice didn't enter the SCSU game until the second quarter, I wondered if she was in Geno's chateau bow-wow. I think it's simply that he also judges that Jana is ahead of her in the current depth chart.

I think Jana's limited playing time in the two exhibitions is solely due to her lingering injury, and she seems to be working her way out of that. I did not see any physical limitation in her play in either game, and in fact I wondered why she played so little.

I agree that Serah has earned the starting 5 spot -- she is as strong a rebounder as Jana and a better scorer. But I think Jana is clearly her first backup, and Ice is behind her. My hunch is that this is also Geno's thinking.

Ideally Ice should get to a point where she can be Strong's back up and Jana is Serah's back up.

 

[Skeets]

I was at the game, and first off a few things about the arena. It is noticeably better. Everything - walls and seats - are in a charcoal grey color and it gives the arena a darker feel, even as the lighting seems better. This is not a criticism, I think it works. The seats, at least our seats in Section 106, are more comfortable and seem a bit wider.

There are what I refer to as the "monster seats" along the sidelines just above the first level. Two rows with small counters in front, and the seats are similar to what you get in a relatively new movie theater without the recline feature. nice enough. I tried to sit in one with about five minutes left just to see what would happen and I was politely told to scram. Which is interesting in that in prior years no one at XL gave a rat's *** where you sat.

The sound system seems much better. Conor was conspicuous by his absence. Is he gone for good or is it just because this was an exhibition game? The arena announcer was different as well, and he has a daytime game show host quality to his delivery. The whole thing felt a little more corporate than the minor league baseball feel that I am used to at that venue.

I did not notice anything significantly different in the concession area, other than perhaps a new concession stand on the north end of the arena. It does have more of a blueish feel with the signage.

Things are switched around - the benches are on the other side of the court, and the student section is on the other end of the court. I think there are more seats at floor level, at least more than I remember. Three or four rows, including a row directly behind the opponent's bench. I am sure those seats go for quite a lot of $, but I think one is better off with something more elevated. For example, I would hate to be directly behind the opponent's bench, as you can't very well tell the players to sit down. It may be that those seats go to boosters of the opponent.

Oh there was a game being played. Some observations - stifling defense, Fudd automatic and smooth as silk, Allie looking good! The press is weakened when the opposing center is allowed to bring the ball up, Serah has to be defending full court as well. I think Geno can easily go ten deep if he wants to.

I think a message went out to this group to get in the best shape you possibly can. Message received. They all look amazing. Somewhat surprisingly the one who stood out the most to me was KK, who is noticeably thinner and (presumably for that reason) seems taller. That probably means increased quickness, when she was pretty darn quick to begin with.

Sometimes the things you notice are unusual. For example, I noticed that the super quick Kelis and the ultra athletic Blanca both have very long arms. Part of the reason they will defend well and get a lot of steals.

Decent crowd for an exhibition game, not nearly filled but respectable.

A couple of things. First there were some new seat arrangements. But in my opinion not enough to warrant forcing all seat season ticket holders to re-seat from their PROMISED seats. My seats only degraded by 1 row, but the couple to the left of me and to the couple to right of me were very upset by their new seats. The couple to the right of me also said they were screwed on their men's seats. Lastly, the one improvement that could have been made was to replace the world's worst scoreboard. That didn't happen. It is a total embarrassment and remains that way. Shame on CT.

For those not in attendance, everything is now a mirror image. The student section, the band, they players benches are all flip around. Not necessarily a bad thing, just different. I wonder what the thought process was that went into that. Sit behind the UConn bench? Too bad, you are now behind the visitors.

Ok, back to basketball. The starting five looked very good. In very competitive games Geno is going to have to leave 3 of the starters in while 2 are getting breathers. To sub deeper than that is going to risk a falloff in quality. For short periods of time Geno could get away with just 2 starters, but 1 starter and 4 subs against a competitive team? I dunno...

 

[Blond D.]

I mentioned this before but if Morgan returns in January or February she would be better off taking a red shirt year

Taking 2 years off is not a good idea. (most of last year and this year). The sooner she gets back on the court the better.

 

[hookshot]

A couple of things. First there were some new seat arrangements. But in my opinion not enough to warrant forcing all seat season ticket holders to re-seat from their PROMISED seats. My seats only degraded by 1 row, but the couple to the left of me and to the couple to right of me were very upset by their new seats. The couple to the right of me also said they were screwed on their men's seats. Lastly, the one improvement that could have been made was to replace the world's worst scoreboard. That didn't happen. It is a total embarrassment and remains that way. Shame on CT.

For those not in attendance, everything is now a mirror image. The student section, the band, they players benches are all flip around. Not necessarily a bad thing, just different. I wonder what the thought process was that went into that. Sit behind the UConn bench? Too bad, you are now behind the visitors.

Ok, back to basketball. The starting five looked very good. In very competitive games Geno is going to have to leave 3 of the starters in while 2 are getting breathers. To sub deeper than that is going to risk a falloff in quality. For short periods of time Geno could get away with just 2 starters, but 1 starter and 4 subs against a competitive team? I dunno...

Agree, the scoreboard is a disgrace. How could thy not have addressed that ? Also a marginally dangerous problem with the excessive gaps between hand rails (for the steep stairs) was made clearly dangerous by increasing the gap spacing at the top of the lower tier, adjacent to new luxury seating. This seems like a lawsuit waiting to happen.

 

[KCD]

No Jana, no backup center?! Jana will be in the mix for sure. Only Jana can play defense against the really big Bigs such as Betts, Crooks, Beers etc.

Jana did really well last year in the tournament, but Serah spent 3 years in the Big 10 against some great bigs (including Betts). So Jana isn't the only big that can play D against the bigger Bigs.

 

[NYCHUSKIES]

Few thoughts..
- Sarah and Serah's inside one on one game is elite. If they were our only scoring option (lets say) , this offense will make it to the sweet 16...thats how good i believe they're going to be this year.
-Blanca just needs like 3 or 4 more games under her belt. Watch what this young lady will do on the floor come big east tournament. Her defense will be lethal too once she adapts to uconns style.

• Our guards are going to exhaust so many opponents this season. Heckle and KK did good today.
• Its easy folks... Its Sarah, Serah, and Azzi.

-Our bench has the potential of having 3 players who can have a breakout season or run towards No13.

 

[veivoli]

And who can forget this one? It was amazing how many in the comments didn't see it for what it was!

 

[jabstep]

I really like the starting 5 for now. The thing about Ash I like is she can be a deadly 3 point shooter if left open in one of the corners. That opens the middle for either Sarah or Serah to operate down low. I don't think anyone can stop the two of our big's and with that much room to work. Sarah can also jump outside the high and that opens the middle for backdoor cuts on overplay defenses and the high low game. Our defense will lead us to another national championship like it did last year. The non starters who have a chance to help us are many and time will tell who is healthy and picking up the UConn offense and defense. Sara or Azzi could win player of the year.
Lets Go Huskies!!!!!

 

[freshler40]

While it's true that Blanca leads the free world in turnovers, it's also true that she looks taller than 6'2" and moves with smooth athleticism- - impressive to watch. She's raw, and with coaching she'll improve a lot. Meanwhile, with Allie, Azzi, KK, K9, and Ash we have no shortage of guards for a three guard lineup.

It's the relentless full court possibilities our depth brings that will be telling on opponents. An additional factor is the large, small and in between lineups that bring joy to all. I also love that our players are competing in practice against the best in the land so that impact will be long lasting. You have to play against the best to be the best!