S Conn exhibition Post game

[freshler40]

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.

Jana brings an intimidation factor and has NCAA experience against other bigs. She was very very impressive then and a key to our winning IMO. There will be match-ups that our coaches will dial up the right combinations. Jana is a rebound force with a determination few possess.

 

[oldhusky]

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

Agreed, and of the two, Jana's minutes in the rotation are more secured than Ice's. Both had to play the 5 last year because Geno had no choice. This year Serah can be penciled in for big minutes at the 5, and we don't have to play people out of position.

That means Jana and Ice can be used mostly at their best position, the 5 for Jana, and the 4 for Ice. They may have been overall close in productivity last year but Jana has way more upside. There is no comparison on rebounding and blocked shots. The only reason it was close last year was Jana made far more mistakes, a situation that she should improve substantially this year. Having Serah to go against in practice will help both, but particularly Jana.

If Jana improves even modestly, I doubt if Geno would even consider Ice at the 5. He has a very good starter in Serah, a great option if they go small moving Sarah there, and very good backup in Jana even at last year's level. Ice is probably the 4th best option there and only considered if injuries hit again.

Ice has apparently stayed ahead of Ayanna, her returning challenger for backup 4, but also faces potential threats from above and below. If Jana has a major improvement, Geno could use a three big rotation where Serah could take the backup 4 minutes with Jana at the 5, in a big lineup. In the other direction he could go smaller and use Blanca as the backup 4, in addition to getting significant minutes at the 3.

 

[topogigio]

Can people stop undervaluing SHADE!

She is a starter. Deal with it.

Blanca will be a great spark off the bench but she doesn't have the maturity yet to be a starter. She has plenty of future years at UConn to be a starter.

Shade is as steady as they come, and we all know Geno likes steady. He knows exactly what he is getting with her game in and game out!

 

[browns]

Heckle looks good at pg..backing up KK or playing with her..she looks really good as an on ball defender too
Watching both games as much depth Uconn has now Azzi or Sara should be on the court at all times..you can see the differance when both are on the bench
Watching the growth Blanca will make should be really enjoyable

Should be a really fun year

 

[DEpup]

I agree Heckel made forward movement on both sides of the ball. I thought Blanca made defensive strides.

Blanca's offensive side still needs work. She looks like she is playing a pick up game rather than organized basketball, hence all the turnovers and missed shots.

Still Allie was the star of that game for me. The starters did what I expected but Allie seems to be a whole new player. I hope it carries over to top competition.

 

[Cuango]

We have some serious firepower on this team! As long as we continue to play “UConn” defense, this team is going to be very hard to beat!

 

[Ozimoto]

This team will be fun to watch. What the team has in the starting rotation is a wrecking crew offensively, I was quite pleased with Allie. She showed that she can do more on offense than just sit outside the three point line and bomb away. Blanca is playing like a freshman right now, but what potential! Kayleigh showed she will be a reliable PG and tough defender.

I was quite happy with the ball movement for this early in the season, and the defensive effort, if not the balletic switching that was so obvious last year, is there. We will see how things go against Louisville.

 

[JellyBean]

Shade is a good player but she can't take over a game unless everything drops

What about on the defensive end? Shade can take over on that side of the ball, which she has done time and time again. Plus, she doesn't have to take over a game. It's not her role at this time.

 

[JellyBean]

We have some serious firepower on this team! As long as we continue to play “UConn” defense, this team is going to be very hard to beat!

Yes! Finally getting the vision of the Golden State Warriors offense during their historic run a decade ago. We got an inside/outside or outside/inside game going.

 

[Basingstoke]

What about on the defensive end? Shade can take over on that side of the ball, which she has done time and time again.

What about 20 points in the first quarter vs Iowa State???

 

[Rowdy831]

It really is difficult to see what a player is doing right or wrong when playing a team that is much lower in talent that UConn. To me Azzi looked really sharp with her quick release and accuracy. After her it was just a bunch of players playing a game of pickup ball. It will be interesting on Tuesday once they see a real D1 team to see what players not named Strong or Fudd can do.

 

[FanSince17]

It really is difficult to see what a player is doing right or wrong when playing a team that is much lower in talent that UConn. To me Azzi looked really sharp with her quick release and accuracy. After her it was just a bunch of players playing a game of pickup ball. It will be interesting on Tuesday once they see a real D1 team to see what players not named Strong or Fudd can do.

Yeah, people are making too much of yesterday’s scrimmage. Especially with the bigs. Serah has to slow down, see what the defense is giving her and go strong. Looking forward to Louisville.

 

[RoadMaster]

 

[BobbyJ]

For anyone wondering why El Alfy's minutes are still limited, progress is slow, and what Williams was brought in for, there's a hint in here and it points to her lack of recognition and decision making. Right after Fisher's jump shot there's a sequence where El Alfy has the ball within 5 feet of the rim. With a kid about 6-0 on her, she spins around and throws the ball out to the 3 point line. Why? El Alfy is 6-5 and at this point that shouldn't happen, she should know better by now.

 

[Boreifs]

Agreed, and of the two, Jana's minutes in the rotation are more secured than Ice's. Both had to play the 5 last year because Geno had no choice. This year Serah can be penciled in for big minutes at the 5, and we don't have to play people out of position.

That means Jana and Ice can be used mostly at their best position, the 5 for Jana, and the 4 for Ice. They may have been overall close in productivity last year but Jana has way more upside. There is no comparison on rebounding and blocked shots. The only reason it was close last year was Jana made far more mistakes, a situation that she should improve substantially this year. Having Serah to go against in practice will help both, but particularly Jana.

If Jana improves even modestly, I doubt if Geno would even consider Ice at the 5. He has a very good starter in Serah, a great option if they go small moving Sarah there, and very good backup in Jana even at last year's level. Ice is probably the 4th best option there and only considered if injuries hit again.

Ice has apparently stayed ahead of Ayanna, her returning challenger for backup 4, but also faces potential threats from above and below. If Jana has a major improvement, Geno could use a three big rotation where Serah could take the backup 4 minutes with Jana at the 5, in a big lineup. In the other direction he could go smaller and use Blanca as the backup 4, in addition to getting significant minutes at the 3.

Blanca did indeed see time at the four.

 

[FanSince17]

I love last year’s team! I wonder if there would be a good argument as to why they aren’t the best ever. What couldn’t they do? And no one really tested them. They may have had gears we never saw.
The core from 2024 and 2025 are playing great!
Azzi, KK, Ash, Ally, Jenna, Sarah, and there are injured players getting better. They deserve the nod right now.
I love slashers like Blanca, long, athletic, give her a chance to get her footing. Saying she should start over Ash is ridiculous.
Sorry analogy: we’re like spoiled kids at Christmas spending 10 minutes on our new toys with beautiful toys in our toy box that we don’t play with.
I’m sorry: last year was serious.

 

[64Zcode]

Apologies for what could be a clumsy link. This is on the public FB page, I don't have an account so maybe there is a better way to do it.
Pretty cool 1 min video and I like the background music a LOT more than what usually gets used. Seems to fit pretty well.
(And if it has already been linked and I missed it, more apologies.)
Lots to look forward to this year.....

 

[Doctor G]

For anyone wondering why El Alfy's minutes are still limited, progress is slow, and what Williams was brought in for, there's a hint in here and it points to her lack of recognition and decision making. Right after Fisher's jump shot there's a sequence where El Alfy has the ball within 5 feet of the rim. With a kid about 6-0 on her, she spins around and throws the ball out to the 3 point line. Why? El Alfy is 6-5 and at this point that shouldn't happen, she should know better by now.

With respect, I just want to note that there was nothing wrong with Jana’s unselfish decision in this game situation. She collected the rebound and decided to turn and pass the ball inside out to an open all-american, all-world teammate who made the 3.

 

[BobbyJ]

With respect, I just want to note that there was nothing wrong with Jana’s unselfish decision in this game situation. She collected the rebound and decided to turn and pass the ball inside out to an open all-american, all-world teammate who made the 3.

You obviously missed the point of my comments.

 

[Doctor G]

You obviously missed the point of my comments.

I didn’t miss your point and I understand your pov on Jana’s current level of play. I was just pointing out that you used the wrong example to make your point.

 

[BobbyJ]

I didn’t miss your point and I understand your pov on Jana’s current level of play. I was just pointing out that you used the wrong example to make your point.

How so? What do you think my point was?

 

[BBallF]

Shade is as steady as they come, and we all know Geno likes steady. He knows exactly what he is getting with her game in and game out!

Shade is UCONN's "Happy Warrior".

 

[Hoopster80]

Still Allie was the star of that game for me. The starters did what I expected but Allie seems to be a whole new player. I hope it carries over to top competition.

Absolutely! I would image her confidence will grow and if she continues to hit the 3s it will be hard to keep her on the bench.

 

[PacoSwede]

allie was most impressive with her overall activity. constant movement on office, hustle on defense. excellent advance over frosh year (OTOH, she rarely had opportunity to demonstrate this as a frosh).