SEC 21-22

[Gamecockfan77]

Although I’m a MSU I try to be realistic regarding our season outlook. If Coach Schaefer had stayed it would not have been unheard of that the same players would not have still left after the season, even A Matharu. He had players leave every season. However the key is that he had consistently won in the SEC, especially the SEC Tournament.
I’m not overly optimistic but Coach McCray-Penson did have a big jump in his second season at Old Dominion. She also brought in some very good defensive guards for the pressure she likes to play. The biggest issue I still see is the lack of a three point threat. That is going to clog the middle for R Jackson, A Hayes, and J Carter.
The thing that surprises me most on this board is the optimism that fans of other schools have that MSU will be better next season. Could someone please expand on the reason(s) for your outlook?

You have two all conference level players, a solid senior pg, a scoring guard, , and an interesting transfer.

not sure why that translates to 6 wins.

 

[garddog]

State boils down to 1 thing for me. Will NMP take control and kick arse when a player starts sulking. Inmates ran the asylum last year.

 

[Drew8]

Texas could crack the top 5. Oklahoma somewhere in the bottom.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

Texas could crack the top 5. Oklahoma somewhere in the bottom.

given Texas's first real recruiting class and I think a relative vacuum at the top … top 3 is a good bet when they arrive.

 

[SECbbfan24]

9. LSU- Great coach and some good talent but a lot of off-season changes makes me believe that this first year won't be that great.

If LSU finishes the same place as last year despite having more talent and an upgrade at coach, something must be going terribly wrong. Not saying there won’t be struggles transitioning to a new style of play but I feel Kim is too competent to finish that low in the standings

 

[GamecockFam]

Marta's performance against the Gamecocks always sticks out in my mind for whatever reason. She brings instant energy off the bench. I expect her to do good things for the Vols.

 

[stwainfan]

Marta's performance against the Gamecocks always sticks out in my mind for whatever reason. She brings instant energy off the bench. I expect her to do good things for the Vols.

A foot injury slowed her at the end of the year. I think she will do good things this year.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

I kind of need to sit down and do a reset as to what everyone added in the portal and recruiting.

I feel like I'm lower on Arkansas than before and it's largely that close didn't play Wolfenbarger much in Hungary and she looked like she needed a little work when she did.

 

[cancontent]

I kind of need to sit down and do a reset as to what everyone added in the portal and recruiting.

I feel like I'm lower on Arkansas than before and it's largely that close didn't play Wolfenbarger much in Hungary and she looked like she needed a little work when she did.

I have to get caught up on the US games. Question though.

Is it possible that she's not used to the International style of play, where others on the squad are more familiar? I know for some, the physical contact that is allowed can be an adjustment.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

I have to get caught up on the US games. Question though.

Is it possible that she's not used to the International style of play, where others on the squad are more familiar? I know for some, the physical contact that is allowed can be an adjustment.

I'm not quite sure how playing time was decided upon, but played a lot of minutes with four perimeter players on the floor.

Citron playing a really productive 4 helped USA do that I guess. I'm not sure how much run she's had with team USA in the past. She was really good.

Betts I think has extensive experience with team USA and excelled but the other bigs struggled.

I'd include Ware from Oregon in that group and she got a large block of minutes. Feagin got in good, but declining as competition went on, backup minutes. DeBerryand Wolfenbarger played almost not at all.

obviously it's a very different environment. I had to remind myself watching Citron that I loved Horston in an international setting surrounded by great players but it hasn't worked quite that way at UT.

I'm not sure if the last two games will be viewable outside of ESPN+. They shortened bench in those. I'd like to see them.

 

[cacoastfan]

1. South Carolina - no explanation...
2. Georgia - senior heavy team with tons of experience and bringing in 2 good recruits
3. Tennessee - a toss up, lose R. Davis, but definitely have talent - the key no pun intended to me is the development of their junior class (JH and TK)
4. LSU - bringing in an elite coach and keeping Pointer and Aifuwa as well as Ursin could elevate LSU to 4/5 imo, we'll see how they adapt
5. Kentucky - coaching here is very suspect, which is why I have them at 5, easily could be top 4 though
6. Texas A&M - Coach Blair is a gem, but losing two experiences post players with not much to back them could leave them in trouble, however they could also easily bump up
7. Miss St. - truly a wild card, and could be higher too - a core of Jackson, Hayes, Taylor, and Carter on paper looks good, but coaching here is suspect too
8. Arkansas - losing key seniors is hard to replace but bringing in Goforth, Wolfenbarger, and keeping Martinez should keep them top 8, again this team could fluctuate
9. Ole Miss - I see them improving from this past year and am a fan of Coach Yo but how far do they improve? who knows
10. Florida - keep Briggs but lose their head coach, who knows how that will effect them
11. Mizzou - has Blackwell and Frank but this past year was a doozy and could see the same happening
12-14. Alabama, Vandy, Auburn - bottom 3 could be in any order

Truthfully everyone past SC is a toss up and rounding out the top 4-8 (besides SC) could be a bloodbath.

 

[cancontent]

I'm not quite sure how playing time was decided upon, but played a lot of minutes with four perimeter players on the floor.

Citron playing a really productive 4 helped them do that I guess. I'm not sure how much run she's had with two USA in the past. She was really good in that setting.

Betts I think has extensive experience with team USA and excelled but the other bigs struggled.

I'd include Ware from Oregon in that group and she got a large block of minutes. Feagin got in good, but declining backup minutes, and DeBerryand Wolfenbarger played almost not at all.

obviously it's a very different environment. I had to remind myself watching Citron that I siloved Horston in an international setting surrounded by great players but it hasn't worked quite that way at UT.

I'm not sure if the last two games will be viewable outside of ESPN+. They shortened bench in those.;

Thanks for the insight.

Agree about Betts. Watched her during the U16 Americas tourney in 2019 and was really impressed.

Thanks for the heads up regarding the semis and finals. In Canada we have to use DAZN or ESPN+ with a VPN. Fortunately, I hadn't cancelled the service after the Americup so I still have time to catch these games.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

I kind of need to sit down and do a reset as to what everyone added in the portal and recruiting.

I feel like I'm lower on Arkansas than before and it's largely that close didn't play Wolfenbarger much in Hungary and she looked like she needed a little work when she did.

I think Close knows that Jersey will not be playing guard at the college level....unless she's the next Magic Johnson. She was playing her at wing/forward and if you listen in on some of the timeouts...she was running plays for Jersey from the forward position. You can hear her ask Jersey...if she understands the play. She says yes, but you can tell she still looks lost during the execution. That's natural. It's a very different read from that position and when you aren't the ballhandler, but the recipient. She's as tall as I thought, but, she has put on some muscle.

 

[stwainfan]

 

[Dwilliams02]

1. South Carolina - no explanation...
2. Georgia - senior heavy team with tons of experience and bringing in 2 good recruits
3. Tennessee - a toss up, lose R. Davis, but definitely have talent - the key no pun intended to me is the development of their junior class (JH and TK)
4. LSU - bringing in an elite coach and keeping Pointer and Aifuwa as well as Ursin could elevate LSU to 4/5 imo, we'll see how they adapt
5. Kentucky - coaching here is very suspect, which is why I have them at 5, easily could be top 4 though
6. Texas A&M - Coach Blair is a gem, but losing two experiences post players with not much to back them could leave them in trouble, however they could also easily bump up
7. Miss St. - truly a wild card, and could be higher too - a core of Jackson, Hayes, Taylor, and Carter on paper looks good, but coaching here is suspect too
8. Arkansas - losing key seniors is hard to replace but bringing in Goforth, Wolfenbarger, and keeping Martinez should keep them top 8, again this team could fluctuate
9. Ole Miss - I see them improving from this past year and am a fan of Coach Yo but how far do they improve? who knows
10. Florida - keep Briggs but lose their head coach, who knows how that will effect them
11. Mizzou - has Blackwell and Frank but this past year was a doozy and could see the same happening
12-14. Alabama, Vandy, Auburn - bottom 3 could be in any order

Truthfully everyone past SC is a toss up and rounding out the top 4-8 (besides SC) could be a bloodbath.

It's funny how #2-8 could scramble around in the rankings all year. This is still a very good take.

 

[GoChips20]

I think Close knows that Jersey will not be playing guard at the college level....unless she's the next Magic Johnson. She was playing her at wing/forward and if you listen in on some of the timeouts...she was running plays for Jersey from the forward position. You can hear her ask Jersey...if she understands the play. She says yes, but you can tell she still looks lost during the execution. That's natural. It's a very different read from that position and when you aren't the ballhandler, but the recipient. She's as tall as I thought, but, she has put on some muscle.

Wolfenbarger is a huge question mark for me. A 6’5” / 6’6” wing should be a matchup nightmare and would seemingly make her a top-three recruit, but she’s a few spots back, and as someone above pointed out, she didn’t play much in Hungary. Is she underdeveloped in spots? If so, where? Haven’t seen much of her game.

 

[SCspur]

Wolfenbarger is a huge question mark for me. A 6’5” / 6’6” wing should be a matchup nightmare and would seemingly make her a top-three recruit, but she’s a few spots back, and as someone above pointed out, she didn’t play much in Hungary. Is she underdeveloped in spots? If so, where? Haven’t seen much of her game.

I’ve seen her on the circuit quite a few times and she was very good as a big guard/wing type player at 6’2” but since she’s grown to 6’5” her game has changed a little. She isn’t as quick as she was then. She’ll likely play the four and still be able to play from the perimeter in mike neighbors system like Dungee did. I’m interested in seeing how it works. She has a nice skill set for someone that tall she can pass, pull up and attack off the bounce.

 

[GoChips20]

I’ve seen her on the circuit quite a few times and she was very good as a big guard/wing type player at 6’2” but since she’s grown to 6’5” her game has changed a little. She isn’t as quick as she was then. She’ll likely play the four and still be able to play from the perimeter in mike neighbors system like Dungee did. I’m interested in seeing how it works. She has a nice skill set for someone that tall she can pass, pull up and attack off the bounce.

For sure. Her rebounding ability may be imperative to Arkansas’ seasonal success this year; they’ve never been good at it, but they’ve not had height like hers.

Dungee was a player but Arkansas should, to me, be at least as good this year as last. Slocum never really found her scoring touch (IMO) at Arkansas. They lose those two but return Daniels and Ramirez; add Goforth and Wolfenbarger.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

Wolfenbarger is a huge question mark for me. A 6’5” / 6’6” wing should be a matchup nightmare and would seemingly make her a top-three recruit, but she’s a few spots back, and as someone above pointed out, she didn’t play much in Hungary. Is she underdeveloped in spots? If so, where? Haven’t seen much of her game.

I don't read much into her general ranking. I think her biggest obstacle will be making an adjustment to a new position. I'm also not sold that Neighbor's offensive system of random animals (lol) is a good fit. With her present skills and size, she would be a problem at the 4 IF Neighbors ran a traditional 4. He doesn't. BUT...he's a creative guy and she's a very good player, so it will be fun watching them work this out. Might take a minute.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

I don't read much into her general ranking. I think her biggest obstacle will be making an adjustment to a new position. I'm also not sold that Neighbor's offensive system of random animals (lol) is a good fit. With her present skills and size, she would be a problem at the 4 IF Neighbors ran a traditional 4. He doesn't. BUT...he's a creative guy and she's a very good player, so it will be fun watching them work this out. Might take a minute.

I struggle keeping this straight. Is Dauda coming in this year for Arkansas? I feel like I was told there was some holdup with her, maybe injury?

I'm interested to see what Neighbors does when he has more size to work with not having much knowledge about his Pac 12 days.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

I struggle keeping this straight. Is Dauda coming in this year for Arkansas? I feel like I was told there was some holdup with her, maybe injury?

I'm interested to see what Neighbors does when he has more size to work with not having much knowledge about his Pac 12 days.

She was released because Mulkey bolted, so I'm assuming she plays this year. You never know how Neighbors will use size, but when he does he usually plays to their strength. I wouldn't expect him to use Jersey like he did Osahor. Both big, but different strengths and skills. Last season his bigs seemed to be an afterthought....sort of like his defensive coaching skills.

 

[SECbbfan24]

She was released because Mulkey bolted, so I'm assuming she plays this year. You never know how Neighbors will use size, but when he does he usually plays to their strength. I wouldn't expect him to use Jersey like he did Osahor. Both big, but different strengths and skills. Last season his bigs seemed to be an afterthought....sort of like his defensive coaching skills.

Dauda is redshirting this year I believe due to a knee injury, or that is what I read at least.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

She was released because Mulkey bolted, so I'm assuming she plays this year. You never know how Neighbors will use size, but when he does he usually plays to their strength. I wouldn't expect him to use Jersey like he did Osahor. Both big, but different strengths and skills. Last season his bigs seemed to be an afterthought....sort of like his defensive coaching skills.

I don't feel like he had any bigs to speak of last year.

defense...well you maybe have a point there.

 

[dws3665]

8. Arkansas - losing key seniors is hard to replace but bringing in Goforth, Wolfenbarger, and keeping Martinez should keep them top 8, again this team could fluctuate

Ramirez.

Don't sleep on Elauna Eaton joining the lineup, either.

 

[dws3665]

I think Close knows that Jersey will not be playing guard at the college level....unless she's the next Magic Johnson. She was playing her at wing/forward and if you listen in on some of the timeouts...she was running plays for Jersey from the forward position. You can hear her ask Jersey...if she understands the play. She says yes, but you can tell she still looks lost during the execution. That's natural. It's a very different read from that position and when you aren't the ballhandler, but the recipient. She's as tall as I thought, but, she has put on some muscle.

Totally agree that Jersey looked a little confused much of the time -- but, that's to be expected considering that she was asked to play totally out of position - down on the block. I don't think she was out on the wing for the US unless she was setting a pick. She was obviously very uncomfortable at the beginning, and became slightly less uncomfortable as the tournament wore on. I think she understood her role pretty well - she was there to set picks, rebound, and be the 4th or 5th option in offensive sets. And when Clark, Johnson, and Paopao are running your offense, you're not going to make it to the 4th or 5th options very often, if at all.

I expect her to play more on the wing for Arkansas, away from the basket and very, very occasionally go down low to post up (not her game yet), and to defend in the low block.