Season Hangs On Olivia and Christyn

[RockyMTblue2]

At least that's Alexa Philippou's point of view.

"Junior year? As Geno Auriemma said, "there is no, ‘my bad, we’ll get it next time.’ "

Rambling article with some Geno quotes. He's pleased with them. “Christyn and Liv, they’ve been exactly what we wanted them to be," Auriemma said. "They’ve been great.”

Poor Anna she's in the sophomore no mans land. Not to worry. She'll be doing great things.

In a season like no other, the UConn women will only go as far as juniors Christyn Williams, Olivia Nelson-Ododa take them

Christyn Williams and Olivia Nelson-Ododa face more responsibility than most juniors: They’re unexpectedly the elder statesmen of the team, with no seniors left after UConn’s 2017 recruits transferred and, in the case of Megan Walker, left early for the WNBA. On a team with six freshmen, two...

www.courant.com

 

[DEpup]

I wish Alexa would come up with something newsworthy or unique.... of course a season depends on the performance of your most experienced players... Tell me something I don't already know.

 

[Fairfield Fan]

I suspect that they are not the keys to the season. My hunch is that the season depends on Paige, Aubrey, and Aaliyah Edwards. And perhaps Evina's knee.

I suspect that those players have the ability to achieve break-out greatness. They could take us to great heights. ONO, not so much.

Willing to be proven wrong. But I'm guessing that the secret to success lies elsewhere than that duo.....

 

[CL82]

I wish Alexa would come up with something newsworthy or unique.... of course a season depends on the performance of your most experienced players... Tell me something I don't already know.

Meh, it's preseason. I thought it was a good read.

Alternative link

 

[RedStickHusky]

I suspect that they are not the keys to the season. My hunch is that the season depends on Paige, Aubrey, and Aaliyah Edwards. And perhaps Evina's knee.

I suspect that those players have the ability to achieve break-out greatness. They could take us to great heights. ONO, not so much.

Willing to be proven wrong. But I'm guessing that the secret to success lies elsewhere than that duo.....

Sort of agree... I don't think they get there on Liv's back... If the newcomers can spread the floor, though, she'll do her part.

 

[CocoHusky]

Sort of agree... I don't think they get there on Liv's back... If the newcomers can spread the floor, though, she'll do her part.

What/where is the "there"? Final Four, Championship, Championship game, undefeated season, Regional final?

 

[eebmg]

I think along the lines of this discussion, unless we have one of our top players earning an AA award (at least 3rd team), we do not reach the final 4 which leads me to the following question. Historically, how many teams have made a FF without an AA?

 

[CocoHusky]

I think along the lines of this discussion, unless we have one of our top players earning an AA award (at least 3rd team), we do not reach the final 4 which leads me to the following question. Historically, how many teams have made a FF without an AA?

i think the answer is Zero.

 

[mbr33ct]

In true form Anna and Nika get left out of these conversations...I mean even Evina's knee get's a mention but not Anna nor Nika.

 

[Littlemin]

i think the answer is Zero.

I was going to reply disagreeing but I assume you mean one of the three AA teams in which case you are very likely correct, especially in WCBB.

 

[huskeynut]

Not a bad article. But not that great. Too many keys factors left out of the article.

What I read is the physical and mental maturation of two talented players beginning to show. Christyn And Liv will be fine. Will they lead they way? I believe so.

But they do not have to do it by themselves. This is were Alexa misses the boat. How Evina, Anna, Paige, Nika, Aubrey and Aaliyah perform will be crucial to the team's success.

 

[CocoHusky]

In true form Anna and Nika get left out of these conversations...I mean even Evina's knee get's a mention but not Anna nor Nika.

The conversation and the article centers around leadership from the upper class men. From the article "
"Junior year? As Geno Auriemma said, "there is no, ‘my bad, we’ll get it next time."
If that leadership, on court, off court or statistically has to come from Anna and Nika we are in for a long season. A mention of Evina's knee is relevant to the conversation because Evina can't provide on court leadership or put up numbers if she is not healthy.

 

[CocoHusky]

Not a bad article. But not that great. Too many keys factors left out of the article.
What I read is the physical and mental maturation of two talented players beginning to show. Christyn And Liv will be fine. Will they lead they way? I believe so.
But they do not have to do it by themselves. This is were Alexa misses the boat. How Evina, Anna, Paige, Nika, Aubrey and Aaliyah perform will be crucial to the team's success.

I don't think she missed the boat at all. I think she nailed it. The opening paragraph sets the expectations for all UCONN WBB players by class without naming specific players. The focus (thesis) of the article is Christyn and ONO. Why? Because: "On a team with six freshmen, two sophomores and a transfer who has yet to suit up for the Huskies, they’re the most experienced players in Auriemma’s program."
This is SOP for UCONN WBB where upperclassmen are expected to carry the burden of leadership and are largely responsible for the fortunes of the team.
Last year that burden fell squarely on Crystal.
"Added Geno Auriemma: “It’s not like sophomore year we needed her (Crystal) to be great or we weren’t going anywhere. We really didn’t. But now, she has no choice.”

Dangerfield taking the lead for UConn

The Huskies unquestioned leader, Crystal Dangerfield returns to Tennessee for homecoming...

www.middletownpress.com

 

[Argonaut]

I think along the lines of this discussion, unless we have one of our top players earning an AA award (at least 3rd team), we do not reach the final 4 which leads me to the following question. Historically, how many teams have made a FF without an AA?

So I tried to do the research, but I can't seem to find a database of the AP All-American teams (I have one for WCBA...). I decided to start with 2000, thinking it would be easiest to find the info, but, alas...

However, it does look Rutgers did make the 2000 FF without an AA.

If anyone has a link for historical AP AA teams they want to share, I'll do the rest of the dirty work.

 

[CocoHusky]

I was going to reply disagreeing but I assume you mean one of the three AA teams in which case you are very likely correct, especially in WCBB.

I only used 1 source WBCA and did a quick check.

Past Teams - NCAA Division I

*Eastman Kodak Company became the first corporate sponsor of collegiate women’s basketball in 1975, sponsoring the first women’s basketball coaches clinic in conjunction with the AIAW championship and the the first-ever Kodak All-America team. The latter was the first All-America team selected...

wbca.org

.

 

[BobbyJ]

I suspect that they are not the keys to the season. My hunch is that the season depends on Paige, Aubrey, and Aaliyah Edwards. And perhaps Evina's knee.

I suspect that those players have the ability to achieve break-out greatness. They could take us to great heights. ONO, not so much.

Willing to be proven wrong. But I'm guessing that the secret to success lies elsewhere than that duo.....

I believe you're discounting ONO's value to this team. Without her in the middle they probably don't get to the FF. And that's just her defense. She is the linchpin.

 

[mbr33ct]

The conversation and the article centers around leadership from the upper class men. From the article "
"Junior year? As Geno Auriemma said, "there is no, ‘my bad, we’ll get it next time."
If that leadership, on court, off court or statistically has to come from Anna and Nika we are in for a long season. A mention of Evina's knee is relevant to the conversation because Evina can't provide on court leadership or put up numbers if she is not healthy.

My reply was purely in jest of course, primarily piggy-backing onto Fairfield's post where he mentions the season depends on Paige, Aubrey and Aaliyah Edwards...where I come in with my post.

 

[CocoHusky]

So I tried to do the research, but I can't seem to find a database of the AP All-American teams (I have one for WCBA...). I decided to start with 2000, thinking it would be easiest to find the info, but, alas...
However, it does look Rutgers did make the 2000 FF without an AA.
If anyone has a link for historical AP AA teams they want to share, I'll do the rest of the dirty work.

Rutgers? Who cares! I though we were strictly talking UCONN here! I believe a pair of teams Cal and Louisville made it to FF in 2013 without an AA.

 

[donalddoowop]

Did not Mississippi St. make it to the FF without an AA?

 

[Argonaut]

Rutgers? Who cares! I though we were strictly talking UCONN here! I believe a pair of teams Cal and Louisville made it to FF in 2013 without an AA.

LOL! I thought he was talking about teams from the history of forever, regardless of who they were, making it to the FF without an AA.

 

[Carnac]

I suspect that they are not the keys to the season. My hunch is that the season depends on Paige, Aubrey, and Aaliyah Edwards. And perhaps Evina's knee.

I suspect that those players have the ability to achieve break-out greatness. They could take us to great heights. ONO, not so much.

Willing to be proven wrong. But I'm guessing that the secret to success lies elsewhere than that duo.....

Fairfield, you’re reading my thoughts exactly!!! Two words I NEVER use in any of my comments is “we’re doomed“. If the success or failure of this team rests with ONO and Christyn, they’re in trouble. There is too much talent on this team to expect two players to carry the team on their backs.

This is 5X5, not 2x2. What happens if ONO and Christyn are playing well, and holding their man in check defensively, and the other 3 are getting beat like a drum on both ends of the court? You know how that game will turn out.

In my humble opinion, Paige, Aubrey, Anna, Evina, Aaliyah and Nika are going to have a say, and will have a huge impact on the outcome of this team’s success. ONO and Christyn cannot do it alone. They can lead the charge, but they’ll need backup.

 

[msf22b]

Don't agree with the premise....
There is a huge amount of talent on the premises.
How they all interact, perform and develop is a tale yet to be told.

I expect a myriad of surprises (mostly pleasant).

 

[eebmg]

Rutgers? Who cares! I though we were strictly talking UCONN here! I believe a pair of teams Cal and Louisville made it to FF in 2013 without an AA.

Actually my question was for any team. This was to get a sense of how important it is that one of our players has to reach that level.

 

[Centerstream]

Yesterday I watched the replays of last season's AAC Conference Championship Semifinal and Final games. (And a tear came to my eye watching Kyla's terrible injury.) One thing I noticed was on how many offensive possessions Liv would be down low, moving with her arm outstretched, wanting the ball. She didn't get the ball all that much, which was fine because we were still making a high percentage of our shots. I am hoping that this season the other players can feed her the ball more often and she becomes much more dominant.

 

[Sam.the.Man]

...If that leadership, on court, off court or statistically has to come from Anna and Nika we are in for a long season.

Well, "in for a long season" can be taken both negatively and positively. Based on what we've actually seen to date, I'm a long way from being convinced that Liv, Christyn, or a combination of the two can lead us to the promised land. This is a team that must come together and play unselfishly with a common goal of winning it all regardless of who shines in the box score. If they can do that, there definitely appears to be enough talent on this squad to go all the way. Personally I believe Anna will play a big role in achieving that goal. Can't speak to what Nika's role might be, because like most (if not all) of us here we've only seen her in highlight videos.

 

[Bajan Best]

Obviously UCONN can win most games without either Christyn or Liv having great games, but if we want to return to the status of dominating women's basketball in the coming seasons, we need both of them to up their games and to become more consistent players... I personally would like to see them both averaging Double, Doubles this season, close to or about 20 pts and 8-10 rbs each.. in addition, Liv 3 blks per game, shooting 58% field goal.. and Christyn 40% from deep plus 2 steals per game.

It's nice to have the young guns contributing this year by any means possible, but it's the goal of our program to be able to develop our players each year, it does not bode well for the future if our juniors/seniors are not showing significant signs of growth and improvement..

 

[DEpup]

I always see Liv and Chrystin a lot like Dolson and Hartley. These duos were put in the fire a lot sooner than anyone would have liked and therefore we are watching the ups and downs because we have to depend on them as opposed to other underclassman.

I personally believe that Anna will be the key to this season. I truly believe that Chrystin and Liv will be leaps and bounds better than last year and if Anna can use her new fitness to push pace all game and fill the stat lines with assists, points from all over the court, and more rebounds than last year everyone else better watch out. She is the best example of the new versatility Geno has been talking about. If you are the opposition, who guards her? Bigs and then she just finds Liv inside or uses guard skills to get around and shoot. Guards? She either shoots over them or passes to the other side where Chrystin is ready to work her magic.

I feel like regular smart combinations of Liv, Aaliyah, Aubrey, Anna, Evina, Chrystin, Paige, and Nika throughout the competitive parts of a game pose a lot of mismatches for most teams that will lead to doubling and tripling which will leave multiple huskies open for good shots. Pick your fresh legs poison.. .

 

[oldhusky]

I agree with everyone who has downplayed Williams and Nelson-Ododa being "the" key to the season. The key to a season is often the player with the biggest range of possible outcomes. Christyn and Liv are expected, like most juniors on other teams to make modest improvement and show more leadership.

Are there reasons it could be more than that? Sure, in Christyn's case, she says it was her worst year in some time. So maybe we expect a little more than the usual soph to junior improvement. In Liv's case perhaps we can expect a more than normal jump because she has put on a few pounds.

But that doesn't mean look for a total breakout kind of season. We largely know what they are, expect them to be somewhat better, but the keys to the season clearly involve the unknowns more than the knowns.

Are Paige and the freshman class the real deal? If so that has a huge impact on this year, and in fact for three years after that. Quite possibly the key to next year's team will be the 2021 class as well, although probably not as crucial because this year's class more far more needed, and next year is a little like the cherry on top.

 

[Cuango]

It is a mystery to me how people are ignoring Anna! I believe there’s going to be a lot of pundits dining on crow as this season progresses. I’m pretty sure she is the best 3pt shooter on the team, she is big and has really worked to get in good shape. She is one of the best passers on the team and she has good bball IQ to boot! ??? I just don’t get it!

 

[mbr33ct]

It is a mystery to me how people are ignoring Anna! I believe there’s going to be a lot of pundits dining on crow as this season progresses. I’m pretty

What would be the right wine for eating crow, a red or a white?