Small Lineup is our best

[BlueBlud115]

This small lineup with Aubrey playing the “5” is our best lineup. We get movement and the perfect spark we need to get everything else going. Need to continue to utilize it all year.

 

[Blond D.]

Although I really like the small lineup, I believe our best lineup is Aaliyah, Paige, Nika, Aubrey and KK. But i love Shade in there too.

 

[freshler40]

In the Marq game Nika had several deep drives and could have stepped through for a lay-up but chose to pass out. That minor change to shoot and possible draw a foul would create another 6-10 points. Hope she adopts it. Otherwise Nika played her best game of the year. She has adopted well to playing off the ball at times.

Recent games have shown more balanced scoring which creates major defensive problems for opponents.

 

[Boreifs]

Our best lineup is having any Five of the Top Seven on the floor. Let’s not forget that the team crawled back into the game with first Paige and then Alijah on the bench. I can’t wait to see what those seven are going to do in the Big East Tournament. By then, they could be unstoppable. They can shoot, pass, run, defend and rebound about as well as anyone should expect. Geno is a helluva coach putting an entirely new rotation together in season.

 

[Sluconn Husky]

Isn't every conglomeration they put out a small lineup?

 

[Plebe]

This small lineup with Aubrey playing the “5” is our best lineup. We get movement and the perfect spark we need to get everything else going. Need to continue to utilize it all year.

It will work better against some teams than others, most particularly those that aren't well equipped to make us pay for going small.

Aaliyah is one of our two all-Americans, so I am loath to have her spend too much time on the bench.

 

[Next 12]

Height is always preferred and when Jana is finally healthy, we will have height next year. I predict she will be a beast of a player after sitting her freshman year. I posted that this year with Jana and Azzi we would be undefeated with the team we now have.Not so! But I believe with the team we now have. height is not so important. Uconn has SPEED,AGILITY, SCORERS and DEFENSE, which to me will be enough to Go to the Final Four and all bets are off when that happens. Ye of timid heart, have faithand believe the possibility. Faith works miracles. GO FRESHMEN!!!! GO TEAM !!!!! GO HUSKIES!!!!

 

[Woof 101]

This small lineup with Aubrey playing the “5” is our best lineup. We get movement and the perfect spark we need to get everything else going. Need to continue to utilize it all year.

No personal attack here but this sounds like a fan of an opponent that would love to not see Aaliyah on the floor. She in my opinion is a linchpin to the teams success this year. NO team is going deep into March with four guards and a wing on the floor. Geno threw it out there today with a 30 point lead and a few minutes later reinserted her to secure the game / boards.
Sad our new big went down to injury as she would have meant a lot to a successful season.

Familiarity with what is to be faced down the road would help one realize in some contests an all small lineup would be destroyed.
IN GENO WE TRUST.

 

[Skeets]

I was surprised when Geno went with 5 "guard-like" players. I said to Mrs. Skeets that I think the tallest player out there is about 6'. But it worked. I'm not sure it's going to work all the time, but it did today.

I am not advocating keeping that line up and sitting AE on the bench. But there's something to be said for surprising the other team. Kinda shoots down whatever scouting they have done for things like neutralizing AE.

 

[Pharos]

Been watching UWBB since Diana. What I was impressed with yesterday was speed and quickness. These may be tightly linked with a short lineup - i.e. shorter people can be speedier and quicker. But I don't think it's a given. I think tall lineups can (at least theoretically) be fast and quick. But I wonder who will be faster or quicker than UConn has turned out to be. Fast pace can lead to more mistakes. But UConn is even keeping those to a minimum. Exciting!

 

[oldhusky]

Isn't every conglomeration they put out a small lineup?

With the top 7 yes, but on the rare occasion Aaliyah and Ice are in at the same time I wouldn't say that was a big, but more of a normal lineup. As it stands I think we have 7 players Geno wants to use, and one in Ice that he has to use some, even though she is not producing. When she enters for Aaliyah we are still small, so unless she gains Geno's confidence enough to pair her with Aaliyah we will remain small.

 

[hoophuskee]

This small lineup with Aubrey playing the “5” is our best lineup. We get movement and the perfect spark we need to get everything else going. Need to continue to utilize it all year.

No way UCONN's best lineup does not include Aaliyah. I find your point very odd - it's an omission is my guess? Marq couldn't handle her one bit as a case in point. And our best lineup also includes Defense no matter who the opponent is. Did you mean outside of Aaliyah this is our best lineup?

 

[Twolf]

No way UCONN's best lineup does not include Aaliyah. I find your point very odd - it's an omission is my guess? Marq couldn't handle her one bit as a case in point. And our best lineup also includes Defense no matter who the opponent is. Did you mean outside of Aaliyah this is our best lineup?

AE has to be in any lineup considered to be UConn’s best, and it’s not even debatable. Even a casual fan can see it offensively, but in my mind it’s more of an issue on the defensive end of the floor. UConn is playing pressure man and handling ball screens by switching 1 through 4 and hedging when the 5 sets a ball screen. There is not another big on the roster, as it is now composed, who can do that without causing multiple breakdowns and recovering quick enough to be a major factor on the boards. Without a big on the floor there are very few top 25 teams who would allow UConn to not pay both on the boards and on the low block.
I remember 3-4 weeks ago there were multiple posts about how UConn had to get more athletic, and many of the players GA was recruiting weren’t athletic enough. As Toby Keith might ask “how do you like me now”. IMHO most of the appearances of being slow and not athletic enough was having to fill roles that for the entire preseason weren’t the same ones they were being prepared for and consequently there was a lot of indecisiveness and hesitation. UConn’s season now depends on whether their 4 small defense can be part of their offense to offset their lack of size. JMO

 

[AmeriConn]

Although I really like the small lineup, I believe our best lineup is Aaliyah, Paige, Nika, Aubrey and KK. But i love Shade in there too.

Shade has my vote to continue to start.

 

[hoophuskee]

AE has to be in any lineup considered to be UConn’s best, and it’s not even debatable. Even a casual fan can see it offensively, but in my mind it’s more of an issue on the defensive end of the floor. UConn is playing pressure man and handling ball screens by switching 1 through 4 and hedging when the 5 sets a ball screen. There is not another big on the roster, as it is now composed, who can do that without causing multiple breakdowns and recovering quick enough to be a major factor on the boards. Without a big on the floor there are very few top 25 teams who would allow UConn to not pay both on the boards and on the low block.
I remember 3-4 weeks ago there were multiple posts about how UConn had to get more athletic, and many of the players GA was recruiting weren’t athletic enough. As Toby Keith might ask “how do you like me now”. IMHO most of the appearances of being slow and not athletic enough was having to fill roles that for the entire preseason weren’t the same ones they were being prepared for and consequently there was a lot of indecisiveness and hesitation. UConn’s season now depends on whether their 4 small defense can be part of their offense to offset their lack of size. JMO

The bold best sums it up. Also Geno talking at alftime how his Defense needs to be disruptive.

He also mentioebnd though per link below at about 1:25:38 about Offense and having to put the ball in the basket. IMO the 2nd part you menton I highilghited in bold - I think the Defense is going to have some eventual struggles no matter how hard they try. I can't believe with the number for freshmen UCONN has on their team playing the minutes that they are playing that there won't be some games that the opposing team won't be making UCONN "pay" in some manner as you mention in the above 1st part I highlighted in bold. In this case, they are going to have to score.

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[Rowdy831]

This small lineup with Aubrey playing the “5” is our best lineup. We get movement and the perfect spark we need to get everything else going. Need to continue to utilize it all year.

Any line up that doesn't include AE is not the best line up.

 

[Blond D.]

In the Marq game Nika had several deep drives and could have stepped through for a lay-up but chose to pass out. That minor change to shoot and possible draw a foul would create another 6-10 points. Hope she adopts it. Otherwise Nika played her best game of the year. She has adopted well to playing off the ball at times.

Recent games have shown more balanced scoring which creates major defensive problems for opponents.

How many of those passes resulted in a 3pt or 2pt shot? Thats a better % shot than Nika under the basket with a couple of bigs waiting to swat her.