Seton Hall Postgame Thread

[oldude]

This is not new but an ongoing problem
The teams we need to beat for number 12 will not shoot 15% of their 3s

You play the team you play, not the one down the road. Geno and his staff are as good as anyone in WBB at putting together a game plan and executing it.

 

[BobbyJ]

Congrats to Jana El Alfy on taking less than 10 games to figure out which way to bang the game opening jump ball. Well done. And a shoutout to another freshman, Morgan Cheli, she just gets it. I knew her BB IQ and fundamental skills were better than most incoming freshmen but at the rate she's adjusting to the physicality and pace of play, by tournament time she is going to be a serious factor in the short rotation. Nothing bothers her and she plays her butt off.

 

[oldude]

Congrats to Jana El Alfy on taking less than 10 games to figure out which way to bang the game opening jump ball. Well done. And a shoutout to another freshman, Morgan Cheli, she just gets it. I knew her BB IQ and fundamental skills were better than most incoming freshmen but at the rate she's adjusting to the physicality and pace of play, by tournament time she is going to be a serious factor in the short rotation. Nothing bothers her and she plays her butt off.

I thought the same thing about Jana.

 

[rubymae4]

Ashlynn Shade vs Seton Hall: 15 minutes, 8 points on 100 % shooting ...
3/3 field goals, 2/2 three pointers, four rebounds, three assists, and
tied for the most steals (with KK) at three. She had a +/- of + 30! and
had the third best efficiency rating on the team today 18... behind
Paige and Sarah and slightly ahead of Azzi who was rated at 11.

I love Shade’s game. She doesn’t get enough credit for her solid play and ability to play the role that is needed each game.

 

[packwrap]

I thought the same thing about Jana.

She likes American Football, 'we won the toss and elect to kick'.

 

[ABCDFE]

Looks like a really nice win. The big three getting in rhythm is starting to show us the potential. Im intrigued now to see how we do against a top ten/15 team that plays good defense. We have the parts but can we consistently shoot well enough, because we don’t really have a post game.

 

[BBallF]

Good point! Our point guards dribble a lot but with improved down court options, that might change. In this game we shot so well it didn't matter but being able to get the ball into El Alfy more or a double high post option could result in improved inside play. Hoping KK can finish better. She sure can find the seams and needs to complete the play.

I don't think she should be trying to finish or even thinking about finishing. Get the ball up court to Azzi, Paige or Sarah and now Aubrey and sometimes Morgan all of whom know how to get ahead of the defensive rebound. Problem is neither Chen nor Arnold are true point guards and KK is still trying to do what she did in high school and Chen is trying to do what she did last year. I'm not being critical, just realistic. Nika would average 12 assists a game with this team.

 

[MSGRET]

UConn's bench almost matched Seton Hall's total points 33 to 36 and was a point off of matching their starting 5 33 to 34. Today the bench played more total minutes than the starters, 101 to 99.

 

[MSGRET]

I don't think she should be trying to finish or even thinking about finishing. Get the ball up court to Azzi, Paige or Sarah and now Aubrey and sometimes Morgan all of whom know how to get ahead of the defensive rebound. Problem is neither Chen nor Arnold are true point guards and KK is still trying to do what she did in high school and Chen is trying to do what she did last year. I'm not being critical, just realistic. Nika would average 12 assists a game with this team.

Only 12?

 

[BBallF]

Only 12?

I should also add Ash to the above post since she runs the floor so well on a break. I really can't believe that this has not been corrected yet. Whenever we do it, we get open shots, layups, and up tempo the game. They both dribble way too much.

 

[Zonepress]

Only 12?

Or maybe have Paige the best point guard in the country actually play as the point bgustd

 

[ERWUC65]

I was wicked bummed toward the end of the game, knowing the naysayers would be denied the chance to flood this thread with their doom and gloom.

I'll make you feel better by saying "It's about time they played well".

 

[Linart]

Great to have Aubrey back. I remember a couple of years ago, my favorite players on both the men's and women's teams wore #44--Aubrey and Andre Jackson Jr. Both were so exciting to watch.

 

[MSGRET]

Or maybe have Paige the best point guard in the country actually play as the point bgustd

What is a point bgustd? Just asking for a friend.

 

[ERWUC65]

Great job today, out of this world shooting, especially from 3 pt. land. Congrats to Paige, she earned it. Sarah Strong looks like a first or second team All-American.
The only change I would make, and many will disagree, but in my opinion Bueckers should be the PG, with Shade starting instead of Chen or KK...offensively UConn could generate more points because of her passing skills and would still benefit from her shooting.

Ash is in the perfect role for her abilities and I believe is more comfortable coming off the bench (she is not a pressure shooter). The combo PG of Kaitlyn/KK allows the big 3 to operate closer to the basket and gives the opposition more shooters to cover.

 

[packwrap]

Paige at point also largely relegates KK and Chen to the bench.

This was issue from last year, Nika was a pure pass first point, so if Paige played point where did Nika play?

Paige off the ball gives most flexibility to get most out of the whole team.

Plus the offense is very flexible, plenty of options to have Paige and even Sarah show up at point for a posession.

What Paige at point does offer, however, this year is a big positionless lineup of Paige, Azzi, Ash, Aubrey, Sarah with Morgan as #6. Interesting, but I'm not sure we will see this one.

 

[pvdoggy]

I don't know if it is true but lately, Allie seems to have an even quicker release in her 3-pt shot than Azzi.

 

[BBallF]

Or maybe have Paige the best point guard in the country actually play as the point bgustd

I would actually like to see that at times. Paige sees the floor unlike anyone else in the country. She will not waste a break by dribbling it away like our PGs do too often.

 

[Bone Dog]

…but in my opinion Bueckers should be the PG

This is a recurring idea, and I get it. But I’m not sure Geno’s offense really depends on the PG in the way this thought presupposes. I mean, which of the various PG responsibilities are we thinking of when we say this? I can think of a few on offense and defense.

1. Bringing the ball up the court and maybe even breaking the press
2. Initiating the half court offense
3. Distributing the ball off dribble penetration
4. Initiating the transition offense
5. Making sure there’s court balance on the offensive end in case there’s a turnover
6. Guarding the opposing PG

I’ll stop there. Paige can clearly do all of these. And with typical PGs, if they pass the ball and it doesn’t result in an immediate score, the offense may stall until the ball is back in their hands. This is a natural sentiment I can understand. I think we all feel like we want the ball back in Paige’s hands as soon as possible. At least we used to feel that way until Sarah came along and Azzi returned.

Also if Paige is given all of these assignments, it might limit her on both ends of the court. For example, as PG we might not want her to shoot from the corner or drive the baseline, since it would take her out of defensive balance. And if we have her guard the opposing PG exclusively, it might sap some energy that could be used defending in the lane or on the wing.

Obviously this a question of balance and compromises have to be made. In the 1st quarter of this game Paige spent the first 5 mins guarding Jada Eads as if she were a PG and it was quite effective. And she stayed mostly at the top of the key and Handed Eads off to Azzi or Kaitlyn. But at other times, she guarded Faith or Messiah Hunter and switched between the wing and the 4. When Geno put Morgan and Sarah in the frontcourt, Paige switched with everyone, 1-5. There’s good reason to think this is Geno’s most effective defense, but he’s clearly experimenting with having Paige defend the point.

On offense, and in response to SHU’s press, Paige often brought the ball up the court alongside Azzi, KK or Kaitlyn, and this makes sense since they are the best ball handlers. And Paige did initiate and distribute as PG would, but she also took several shots from the wing or drove into the lane. The 3-woman game with Azzi and Sarah was very effective early on and was often initiated from the wing In the first half. With Ash on the floor instead of Azzi, these same patterns were visible.

All in all, the PG position appears to be dissolved among several players — Kaitlyn, KK, Paige, Morgan, even Sarah — and I’m not sure how much sense it makes to think Geno should reconstitute the traditional form of the point guard.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Not a lot to add ...

Congrats to Paige for reaching 2,000 points. She'll probably finish in the top 5 in UConn history.

My local girl Azzi looked really good, both defending and scoring. The ball goes from her hands through the net in no time at all.

Sarah came back from her first single-digit game and made 20+ look easy.

Ash played hard, grabbed loose balls, and made shots.

Aubrey can still beat everyone down the floor. What a weapon! It was great to see her back.

Great ball movement and shooting. Plus lock-down defense. Pretty much everyone looked good. Beating a solid team by 60 is crazy.

 

[Majic Hands]

Some thoughts on the Seton Hall game;

• In the words of Dorothy and Geno, “There’s no place like home!”
• UConn WBB is steeped in history. Today there was more UConn history as Paige became the fastest player to reach 2,000 pts, in just 102 games, 6 games faster than Maya. Paige is the embodiment of perseverance and she has been an absolute joy to watch.
• In 2019 I was in awe seeing Aubrey light up the scoreboard as well as the stat sheet in her last 4 HS games, all of which were played a short drive from my home. Seeing her on the court again following yet another major injury, playing against her mom & dad’s alma mater was wonderful. I suspect that I wasn't the only UConn fan to get emotional when Aubrey sprinted down the court on the break in the 4th qtr, catching a pass in stride for a fastbreak layup.
• I know there was some concern expressed on the BY about UConn’s 3-pt shooting. In today's game the Huskies were 17/32 (53%). Nuff said…
• There are times when UConn’s ball movement is mesmerizing for fans as well as opposing defenses. The sequence during the 2nd qtr when every UConn player touched the ball as it was fired around the court, ultimately ending up in Ice’s hands for an easy layup, was a thing of beauty.
• After a somewhat quiet game vs St John's, Sarah was back to being Sarah with 23 pts (9/11) and 11 rebounds while giving Faith Masonius fits (3/15 with 9 turnovers). In fairness, Sarah did get some help on Masonius as both Morgan & Aubrey took a turn hounding the Pirate’s leading scorer.
• Today's game was the first that we've really seen UConn's 3-headed monster with Paige, Azzi & Sarah combining for 59 pts. Here we come.....
• Villanova is up next for the Huskies, also at Gampel. Good luck to the Wildcats in trying to slow down these Huskies at home….

Additionally,If I did my math correctly our non-starters “bench” accounted for 34% of the total points.

 

[Centerstream]

I think Bozzello (sp?) used it as a teaching moment. UConn is the yardstick other Big East teams use to measure themselves by

I agree with you because I posted this earlier in this thread about SH pressing in the 4th quarter "I guess the coach, who I like, was running a practice using UConn as his practice players."
I believe that the post of mine that you replied to was me responding to someone that commented on my earlier post.
Clear as mud?

 

[JellyBean]

Watching the game today, I love what I saw. The Big 3 (Sarah, Paige, & Azzi) were on point! The supporting cast did their part and looked pretty decent there. You can see the growth in the player's game. For example. I have been on record with being on the fence about Morgan. Over the last 5-6 games, I am impressed. She has a high motor and not afraid to get into the paint. She had some nice plays out there today. Huge shoutout to Morgan. Also, I love that we are going deep with the bench. This is going to pay dividends down the road.

Way to go, Huskies!!

 

[Stagnant]

We have actually started to look decent in games even with Paige, Sarah, and Azzi on the bench. That wasn't the case earlier this season. We had no ability to score with 5 bench players in the game. That looks like it has changed.