So Carolina vs Texas A&M, other ranked teams (merged thread)

[Blueballer]

TAMU should have been at the free throw line with the and 1.

Yep. Another mistake I thought was made by the refs was after that foul that sent TAMU's Jordan to the line they set the clock back to 4.5 secs. It's supposed to be set at the time the whistle was blown not the time of the foul. It should have been more like 3.8 secs. But that game had coaching mistakes on both sides.

 

[bschwartz]

Texas A&M wbb made one of the best plays I have ever seen then the dumbest in a span of two seconds. Glad @GamecockWBB won. Want them undefeated on 2/8.

 

[Kmoney]

WHY would you foul??????

I am assuming she is not a math major.

 

[Huskies Rule]

Considering A&M was coming out of a timeout only seconds before the incredibly dumb play by Shlonte Allen that literally handed the game to SCarolina, you have to believe coach Blair laid out their options. And fouling with .9 seconds left in a 58-58 game was absolutely NOT one of them. Goes to show that the game isn't all physical- the mental component, when absent, will kill you.

 

[baggerbob]

Just a question, with Stewie, Tuck, and Lou on the floor, who on SC is going to go outside the paint to guard, Lou, and Stewie?

 

[HoopsFan21]

Texas A&M wbb made one of the best plays I have ever seen then the dumbest in a span of two seconds. Glad @GamecockWBB won. Want them undefeated on 2/8.

CoLA is a tough place to play. That's why they have the longest home winning streak in WCBB right now. Between the shrieking coaches and that loud rooster sound effect you can understand why. Don't think it will be as easy as last year's game at Gampel.

 

[Roundball fan]

Against SC, let the Huskies loose, run um till they drop.

 

[Wbbfan1]

IF UConn is hitting their outside shots, So Carolina can't score enough points to beat UConn. Wilson and Coates will get their points, but don't see the remaining So Carolina players having a great game. Now if UConn is jacking up bricks, then it will be a close game.

Don't see So Carolina beating Notre Dame if they meet in the tournament. ND too much fire power and they're well coached and will make any necessary adjustments.

 

[Tenspro2002]

South Carolina is actually a great matchup for us.

Our biggest weakness is defending the perimeter. South Carolina made 2 threes today. That's not going to get it done against us.

 

[toadfoot]

Temple should probably be #2 then.

Well... Temple did beat Florida and Florida has played all their SEC games pretty close with the exception of at Mississippi St.

 

[uconnfan68]

I'm not sure I agree the beatdown will be that bad but... I'm looking forward to this game for several reasons - mainly that IMHO one of 3 outcomes will result:

1. Very close game where UCONN wins by single digits - this will give the SC team and their fans lots of reasons to be hopeful they can beat UCONN in the NCAA's should the teams face each other (I think this is the least likely scenario)
2. Moderate UCONN win - somewhere between 15-20 - since the game is AT SC, I would think a won by UCONN on SC's home court would show that the teams are still somewhat far apart talent and execution wise, but it still won't stop the fans from being hopeful. I think this is the most likely outcome. Probably a 17 or 18 point UCONN win
   
3. Blow out UCONN win - by 25+ - this would be a huge statement and shut down any talk that SC is anywhere in the same stratosphere as UCONN. It would probably come about because SC collapses at some point - the game would likely be close for a while, but UCONN would wear them down and beat the tar out of them as SC gets confused and frustrated...

Good to know we can't lose.

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

I'm not sure I agree the beatdown will be that bad but... I'm looking forward to this game for several reasons - mainly that IMHO one of 3 outcomes will result:

1. Very close game where UCONN wins by single digits - this will give the SC team and their fans lots of reasons to be hopeful they can beat UCONN in the NCAA's should the teams face each other (I think this is the least likely scenario)
2. Moderate UCONN win - somewhere between 15-20 - since the game is AT SC, I would think a won by UCONN on SC's home court would show that the teams are still somewhat far apart talent and execution wise, but it still won't stop the fans from being hopeful. I think this is the most likely outcome. Probably a 17 or 18 point UCONN win
   
3. Blow out UCONN win - by 25+ - this would be a huge statement and shut down any talk that SC is anywhere in the same stratosphere as UCONN. It would probably come about because SC collapses at some point - the game would likely be close for a while, but UCONN would wear them down and beat the tar out of them as SC gets confused and frustrated...

You've forgotten the scenario that I expect, which is a Gamecock win. We played awful today, but I hope you don't count on us playing this poorly against you guys.

 

[HuskyJohn]

Shlonte Allen, who fouled Sessions with time running out must have felt terrible afterward. I'm sure the whole team did. However, as several on this board have noted in the past, Gary Blair is a class act. We have this from the ESPN account:
===========================================
[Blair] blamed himself for the late-game gaffe.

"That was not knowing the game," he said. "We weren't trying to steal the ball. As an athlete and as a coach, you live with that the rest of your life. I'll take the blame because that was basically her first play of the game."

Blair had just subbed Allen in after Jordan Jones had fouled out with 3.4 seconds remaining. Jones hit just one of two free throws a second earlier that would have tied the game.

 

[Monte]

Some of you guys just need to accept the fact that regardless of ranking no team will play the same brand of dominating basketball that UCONN plays..

40-50 point blowouts are nice.. but seeing your team win a hard fought game is also satisfying. The sooner y'all accept that the sooner you'll be able to enjoy a fun game!

If you watch the fans, you'll see more smiles at a blowout than in a close game.

 

[Monte]

Not sure about the coaching to end this game.

..and, I think the last 28 seconds took about 15 minutes to play; it is getting pretty ridiculous near the end of these type of games where time out after time out is called; a well coached team practices the moves they will make in game ending situations...TOO MANY TIME OUTS!

 

[RSHERMVIKES]

Today SoCar had 36 points at the end of the 3rd quarter, and twice this year UCONN had 34 and 32 in one quarter!
How can SoCar score enough points to beat UCONN? Simple fact UCONN averages about 86+ and SoCar averages about 68 points per game, with the defense they've shown, how can they hold UCONN to 65 points!
Sessions is a non factor, MoJeff has shown she can shut down Mitchell, Stewie, Tuck, Williams, Butler, Collier, & KLS can more than handle Wilson & Coates inside, so...................................................................
There's a saying in Baseball a player lives up to the back of their baseball card stats, how can SoCar beat UCONN living up to their card stats?
UCONN is Secretariat and SoCar is Mr. Ed according to both teams stats!
If both teams are healthy UCONN wins by 25+!

 

[Nuyoika]

I expect them to play to their season averages and us to play to ours and if that happens we win. Being that they will be at home lets say they play 5% better than normal... we still win. I hope it's just as exciting as it was last year.

 

[HoopsFan21]

I expect them to play to their season averages and us to play to ours and if that happens we win. Being that they will be at home lets say they play 5% better than normal... we still win. I hope it's just as exciting as it was last year.

Last year wasn't that exciting aside from the fact that the game was played during a snowstorm. It was close for the first 10 minutes, then the score went from 18-18 to 36-20 just like that, and the game was over.

 

[Nuyoika]

Last year wasn't that exciting aside from the fact that the game was played during a snowstorm. It was close for the first 10 minutes, then the score went from 18-18 to 36-20 just like that, and the game was over.

That was exciting for me... mainly because the announcers thought that Vegas was wrong and Vegas was clearly right. Also I had a bet going that we would win by 23+... cha-ching!

 

[SCGamecock]

Shlonte Allen, who fouled Sessions with time running out must have felt terrible afterward. I'm sure the whole team did. However, as several on this board have noted in the past, Gary Blair is a class act. We have this from the ESPN account:
===========================================
[Blair] blamed himself for the late-game gaffe.

"That was not knowing the game," he said. "We weren't trying to steal the ball. As an athlete and as a coach, you live with that the rest of your life. I'll take the blame because that was basically her first play of the game."

Blair had just subbed Allen in after Jordan Jones had fouled out with 3.4 seconds remaining. Jones hit just one of two free throws a second earlier that would have tied the game.

Gary Blair is BY FAR one of my favorite coaches in WCBB. Win or lose, he always has complimentary things to say about SC. When they beat us a few years ago he spent the majority of the post game presser talking about how great a team SC was. I was very impressed. Even today, in defeat, he was extremely classy. He's quite the fellow..

 

[Gus Mahler]

There's a saying in Baseball a player lives up to the back of their baseball card stats, how can SoCar beat UCONN living up to their card stats?

Really? I've never heard that. About a half century ago I used to pore over baseball card stats. I think it's a good thing for little boys to do. Plus read comics.

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

Today SoCar had 36 points at the end of the 3rd quarter, and twice this year UCONN had 34 and 32 in one quarter!
How can SoCar score enough points to beat UCONN? Simple fact UCONN averages about 86+ and SoCar averages about 68 points per game, with the defense they've shown, how can they hold UCONN to 65 points!
Sessions is a non factor, MoJeff has shown she can shut down Mitchell, Stewie, Tuck, Williams, Butler, Collier, & KLS can more than handle Wilson & Coates inside, so............
There's a saying in Baseball a player lives up to the back of their baseball card stats, how can SoCar beat UCONN living up to their card stats?
UCONN is Secretariat and SoCar is Mr. Ed according to both teams stats!
If both teams are healthy UCONN wins by 25+!

We average 77 a game, but what's a little matter of 9 points?

 

[HoopsFan21]

Here are some stats, though we'll have an answer as to who is the better team in a few weeks. Average UConn score 89-52 (average margin of victory 37.3), average South Carolina score 77-55 (average margin of victory 21.5). UConn has scored 90+ 7 times, and 100+ 3 times. South Carolina has scored 90+ 2 times, and 100+ 0 times. UConn's lowest score was 73, South Carolina's 59.

 

[j66kicker]

I expect them to play to their season averages and us to play to ours and if that happens we win. Being that they will be at home lets say they play 5% better than normal... we still win. I hope it's just as exciting as it was last year.

I expect both teams to play below their season averages, given the level of competition. If they both play the same amount below, then UCONN wins. If UCONN plays below its average and SC plays a little closer to its average, UCONN wins. If SC scores its average points, and UCONN scores 13 points less than its average (still 21 more than SC gives up, on average), SC wins. Could be a good game.

 

[donalddoowop]

I don't know about that and-1... the A&M player had Cuevas soundly beat. She was nowhere near her to foul.

There was no foul on that play. However, that was an unnecessary foul by the A&Mplayer.