So was Geno playing possum?

[pap49cba]

Went back and looked at the box score for the BET final against ND. MoJeff played 5 minutes and had 0 pts., 2 p.f. and 1 t.o. Clearly, something happened in the week between the BET and the start of the NCAAs.

Was it:

a) Devious Geno keeping an ace up his sleave;

b) Shea wacking her upside the head and resetting her brain circuits;

c) Geno saying WTF, we've got to change something to make it to the FF;

d) MoJeff having an epiphany and suddenly deciding to play like a sophomore; or

e) None of the above

Flame away.....

 

[Sonny44]

That kind of change would require all of the above.

 

[UConnChapette]

No flames. I am going with d.

I heard something somewhere, not sure where, that someone (Geno?) had a talk with Mo and asked her what she thought was limiting her production and performance. She replied that she wasn't using her quickness go past defenders. I think we have see her doing that much more in the NCAAs.

 

[Shenandoah]

No flames. I am going with d.

I heard something somewhere, not sure where, that someone (Geno?) had a talk with Mo and asked her what she thought was limiting her production and performance. She replied that she wasn't using her quickness go past defenders. I think we have see her doing that much more in the NCAAs.

I'm afraid to say that it might have been Lucy and Ethel doing the game the other night...

 

[RadyLady]

Geno had that talk with all of the guards...may have been the whole team. This was one of the topics discussed (instead of the game) by Doris and Co, and I think that Kara might have brought it up, too.

 

[jsloanjr]

The New UCONN team is unbeatable.........

 

[rocky rococo]

(e) Two steps forward, one step back. Her play had been improving by leaps and bounds. BET final, one step back.

 

[magic]

I think that Geno has been sitting on this team all year. Either that or magic dust was sprinkled on the freshman in their sleep. Going back and viewing all the games during the season, I just didn't seee the so called "terrible " play supposedly responsible for lack of playing time. I for one could not understand Stewie's removal from the staring lineup. Here are her stats for a couple games. I'll start with the Maryland game because supposedly she couldn't deal with contact.
Maryland- starter-13pts., 6 rebounds HORRIBLE !
Penn ST. -starter 1st half- 7 pts, 7 rebounds , replaced by Doty 2nd half starter
Stewie is no longer a starter
Oakland- 21pts., 7 rebounds
Hartford-27 pts., 7rebounds
Stanford-9pts.
I'll stop there.
If he did play possum with this team, What a genius!

 

[semper]

So does anybody get it?

 

[RegisteredUconn]

No flames. I am going with d.

I heard something somewhere, not sure where, that someone (Geno?) had a talk with Mo and asked her what she thought was limiting her production and performance. She replied that she wasn't using her quickness go past defenders. I think we have see her doing that much more in the NCAAs.

As I remember the reported remark by Mo Jeff about not using her quickness to go past defenders, she was then asked "Why not"? She replied that she was afraid she wouldn't know what to do then. It sounded like the most truthful answer I'd ever heard.

 

[attaboy]

Having set on the proverbial bench both as a player and a coach, I would say he was wrestling with the team component. Many times a one to one comparison is not as easy as it seems. I have seen much criticism on this board over the shortening of the bench over the years. I think he might be attempting to keep more options open instead of shortening his bench. Now we criticize for that. Actually, I believe he has rethought his rotation and determined that this plan gives him the most leeway and allows for contributions from nearly all players. However, this is just an IMO comment. I suppose he could have sat down back in December and thought maybe if he tricks everyone and plays possum that it might be a big advantage for March Madness.

 

[doggydaddy]

I think that Geno has been sitting on this team all year. Either that or magic dust was sprinkled on the freshman in their sleep. Going back and viewing all the games during the season, I just didn't seee the so called "terrible " play supposedly responsible for lack of playing time. I for one could not understand Stewie's removal from the staring lineup. Here are her stats for a couple games. I'll start with the Maryland game because supposedly she couldn't deal with contact.
Maryland- starter-13pts., 6 rebounds HORRIBLE !
Penn ST. -starter 1st half- 7 pts, 7 rebounds , replaced by Doty 2nd half starter
Stewie is no longer a starter
Oakland- 21pts., 7 rebounds
Hartford-27 pts., 7rebounds
Stanford-9pts.
I'll stop there.
If he did play possum with this team, What a genius!

You went back and watched all the games this season?

 

[msf22b]

Answer: None of the Above; Coach attempted to blow it but didn't quite succeed.

Ask my wife, she'll tell you more forcefully than any on the board would dare:

Geno didn't bring the kids along, the usual head games didn't work and now:
with Caroline hobbling, Kelly used up, Stef, injured and Bria just finding her way through the thickets,
he had no one else to turn to compliment KML and surprise, surprise, the freshmen fit the bill.

He still hasn't given enough minutes to Morgan, who almost won him the ND game in the first overtime and was rewarded by reduced minutes in her next game and let's not forget that on the day that Bria finally found her 3-point shot, her booby prize was to be taken out of the starting lineup.

I know, i know, its all...correction (new PC) mostly, about practice

But one guy (and spouses) opinion is that he almost blew it, but the sheer talent of the kids, together with the undoubtedly excellent training and coaching (see, not all negative) has prevailed and we now have a situ in which the other Final-4 participants have the interesting problem of attempting to plan a defense against potentially, one of the most exciting guards in the country to compliment the ridiculous tamdom of Stewie and K).

A National Championship is surely possible but I will not be aghast if doesn't happen this year because they will be completely unstoppable next year (barring injuries).

In celebration of my first rant in a while, I will defer to Vet commentator DaddyC's suggestion and "shutup" for the rest of the week, giving you all a rest.

Merde for Sunday

 

[doggydaddy]

Answer: None of the Above; Coach attempted to blow it but didn't quite succeed.

Ask my wife, she'll tell you more forcefully than any on the board would dare:

Geno didn't bring the kids along, the usual head games didn't work and now:
with Caroline hobbling, Kelly used up, Stef, injured and Bria just finding her way through the thickets,
he had no one else to turn to compliment KML and surprise, surprise, the freshmen fit the bill.

He still hasn't given enough minutes to Morgan, who almost won him the ND game in the first overtime and was rewarded by reduced minutes in her next game and let's not forget that on the day that Bria finally found her 3-point shot, her booby prize was to be taken out of the starting lineup.

I know, i know, its all...correction (new PC) mostly, about practice

But one guy (and spouses) opinion is that he almost blew it, but the sheer talent of the kids, together with the undoubtedly excellent training and coaching (see, not all negative) has prevailed and we now have a situ in which the other Final-4 participants have the interesting problem of attempting to plan a defense against potentially, one of the most exciting guards in the country to compliment the ridiculous tamdom of Stewie and K).

A National Championship is surely possible but I will not be aghast if doesn't happen this year because they will be completely unstoppable next year (barring injuries).

In celebration of my first rant in a while, I will defer to Vet commentator DaddyC's suggestion and "shutup" for the rest of the week, giving you all a rest.

Merde for Sunday

Or he played it perfectly and got these kids to play better just in time for the final four.

Now, based on the track record of the husband and wife at home or the actual coach of the team, I wonder who got it right?

 

[Vowelguy]

C and D

 

[DaddyChoc]

Answer: None of the Above; Coach attempted to blow it but didn't quite succeed.

Ask my wife, she'll tell you more forcefully than any on the board would dare:

Geno didn't bring the kids along, the usual head games didn't work and now:
with Caroline hobbling, Kelly used up, Stef, injured and Bria just finding her way through the thickets,
he had no one else to turn to compliment KML and surprise, surprise, the freshmen fit the bill.

He still hasn't given enough minutes to Morgan, who almost won him the ND game in the first overtime and was rewarded by reduced minutes in her next game and let's not forget that on the day that Bria finally found her 3-point shot, her booby prize was to be taken out of the starting lineup.

I know, i know, its all...correction (new PC) mostly, about practice

But one guy (and spouses) opinion is that he almost blew it, but the sheer talent of the kids, together with the undoubtedly excellent training and coaching (see, not all negative) has prevailed and we now have a situ in which the other Final-4 participants have the interesting problem of attempting to plan a defense against potentially, one of the most exciting guards in the country to compliment the ridiculous tamdom of Stewie and K).

A National Championship is surely possible but I will not be aghast if doesn't happen this year because they will be completely unstoppable next year (barring injuries).

In celebration of my first rant in a while, I will defer to Vet commentator DaddyC's suggestion and "shutup" for the rest of the week, giving you all a rest.

Merde for Sunday

actually this was a good post, I agree with what you're say here

 

[willtalk]

Posters tend to think to much into results that might just have a much simpler explanation. How well players play in relation to their norm runs in cycles . They have times when they are playing well and times when they are not. It just depends what part of the cycle hits when they're in the NCAA's. Talent and balance will make a difference in that it can mitigate the low points. If a player is having a bad game you another can pick up the slack.

I also agree with the msf22b. Sometimes Ucon fans give Geno too much credit for when things just fall into place.

 

[cferraro04]

Answer: None of the Above; Coach attempted to blow it but didn't quite succeed.

Ask my wife, she'll tell you more forcefully than any on the board would dare:

Geno didn't bring the kids along, the usual head games didn't work and now:
with Caroline hobbling, Kelly used up, Stef, injured and Bria just finding her way through the thickets,
he had no one else to turn to compliment KML and surprise, surprise, the freshmen fit the bill.

He still hasn't given enough minutes to Morgan, who almost won him the ND game in the first overtime and was rewarded by reduced minutes in her next game and let's not forget that on the day that Bria finally found her 3-point shot, her booby prize was to be taken out of the starting lineup.

I know, i know, its all...correction (new PC) mostly, about practice

But one guy (and spouses) opinion is that he almost blew it, but the sheer talent of the kids, together with the undoubtedly excellent training and coaching (see, not all negative) has prevailed and we now have a situ in which the other Final-4 participants have the interesting problem of attempting to plan a defense against potentially, one of the most exciting guards in the country to compliment the ridiculous tamdom of Stewie and K).

A National Championship is surely possible but I will not be aghast if doesn't happen this year because they will be completely unstoppable next year (barring injuries).

In celebration of my first rant in a while, I will defer to Vet commentator DaddyC's suggestion and "shutup" for the rest of the week, giving you all a rest.

Merde for Sunday

I do have some issues with this post... What do you mean, Kelly is used up? I don't think that is accurate at all. Kelly had 12 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 2 steals in the Kentucky game. This doesn't strike me as someone who is used up. I do, however, believe that Kelly is playing hurt. I think she and the UConn staff have been closed mouth about it but I think Kelly has been injured for some time now and is playing through it. Morgan has been battling an injury for most of the season...she herself has told Geno at different times during the season that she didn't feel good enough to play. So, playing time for Morgan has been hit or miss depending on how she felt. I also think that what we have been seeing out of Mo Jeff is partly a result of her own maturation, her desire to confront her own fears and to finally play at the level she was capable of, Geno was very encouraging to Mo Jeff all season, he said he knew what she was capable of as he had seen it in practice but it hadn't translated into the game play...until recently. Geno loves his guards...now that Mo Jeff is becoming the floor general...watch and see how much confidence and trust he puts in her...think S. Bird, D. Taurasi, Renee Montgomery. Stewart was given more play time than is the custom at UConn with regards to Freshmen. Even Maya came off the bench for the first half of her Freshman year (something that was hard to understand but it happened...it wasn't until injuries forced Geno to start her that she became a fixture in the Starting line-up). Steward started early, ran into some kind of psychological wall (Geno, pulled her from the starting line-up but she still played huge minutes), eventually she overcame her lack of confidence and is now back in the starting line-up. I just don't see the desperate picture that you have painted above. I do see a team who is hampered with a lot of injuries, a former All American who has had a down season brought on primarily by a summertime injury that took far too long to heal and has left an apparent mental scar that is even slower to heal, I see a very talented freshmen class who has needed time to develop and to adjust to the speed, physicality and nuances of the college game and specifically UConn's offensive and defensive sets. They have improved, made the necessary adjustments in what appears to be the nick of time and have been contributing in a big way during the post season. Keep in mind that Geno, as a result of coaching the Olympic team was out of his routine with this group and had to get back into the rhythm himself. At the end of the day...it is all good. We still have one of the best coaching staffs in the game, we have probably the most talented team in the game, they are peaking at the right time. ND is waiting for us in the semi-finals...if we haven't learned what needs to be done to beat them after three close losses then it will be time to acknowledge that ND is a team of destiny this year or that they are just better than us. However, after 3 tough losses to them...I believe that this team is poised to do something special. Beating ND would be huge...and not disrespect meant to either Louisville or California but I believe whoever wins the UConn / ND game will be the National Champion.

 

[connboy77]

The New UCONN team is unbeatable.........

I sure hope so!

 

[Icebear]

I do have some issues with this post... What do you mean, Kelly is used up? I don't think that is accurate at all. Kelly had 12 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 2 steals in the Kentucky game. This doesn't strike me as someone who is used up. I do, however, believe that Kelly is playing hurt. I think she and the UConn staff have been closed mouth about it but I think Kelly has been injured for some time now and is playing through it. Morgan has been battling an injury for most of the season...she herself has told Geno at different times during the season that she didn't feel good enough to play. So, playing time for Morgan has been hit or miss depending on how she felt. I also think that what we have been seeing out of Mo Jeff is partly a result of her own maturation, her desire to confront her own fears and to finally play at the level she was capable of, Geno was very encouraging to Mo Jeff all season, he said he knew what she was capable of as he had seen it in practice but it hadn't translated into the game play...until recently. Geno loves his guards...now that Mo Jeff is becoming the floor general...watch and see how much confidence and trust he puts in her...think S. Bird, D. Taurasi, Renee Montgomery. Stewart was given more play time than is the custom at UConn with regards to Freshmen. Even Maya came off the bench for the first half of her Freshman year (something that was hard to understand but it happened...it wasn't until injuries forced Geno to start her that she became a fixture in the Starting line-up). Steward started early, ran into some kind of psychological wall (Geno, pulled her from the starting line-up but she still played huge minutes), eventually she overcame her lack of confidence and is now back in the starting line-up. I just don't see the desperate picture that you have painted above. I do see a team who is hampered with a lot of injuries, a former All American who has had a down season brought on primarily by a summertime injury that took far too long to heal and has left an apparent mental scar that is even slower to heal, I see a very talented freshmen class who has needed time to develop and to adjust to the speed, physicality and nuances of the college game and specifically UConn's offensive and defensive sets. They have improved, made the necessary adjustments in what appears to be the nick of time and have been contributing in a big way during the post season. Keep in mind that Geno, as a result of coaching the Olympic team was out of his routine with this group and had to get back into the rhythm himself. At the end of the day...it is all good. We still have one of the best coaching staffs in the game, we have probably the most talented team in the game, they are peaking at the right time. ND is waiting for us in the semi-finals...if we haven't learned what needs to be done to beat them after three close losses then it will be time to acknowledge that ND is a team of destiny this year or that they are just better than us. However, after 3 tough losses to them...I believe that this team is poised to do something special. Beating ND would be huge...and not disrespect meant to either Louisville or California but I believe whoever wins the UConn / ND game will be the National Champion.

Spot on, cf. Where we are is a combination of development, maturity, and necessity. I believe Kib, myself and a couple of others way back in the fall discussions suggested Caroline would be the starting PG even before Bria went down. We, also, said it was very possible that by the Big East season or the end of the season MoJeff might replace Caroline once she had time to absorb the college game. Well, Bria went down and struggled and is, finally, shedding her problems and MoJeff has absorbed and adjusted to the college game. There have been a lot of dings, bumps and bruise and one major loss along the way.

The team was a hodgepodge of great athletes and individual stars like this:

The team has been forced to use a quilt work of line ups along the way that looked exactly like the patch it was.

 

[Icebear]

It has been pulled apart and put back together again and again. Now the expert quilters are done and it is transformed. We are down to two possible games and the team is ready to end up like this:

 

[trisailin]

For all the nay-sayers about Geno's methods of player development (who he plays, when they play, why he plays them...), I suggest you ask Ketia Swanier if she thinks it works.
Although I don't remember this, according to Wikipedia, Swanier was the only freshman to open the season as UConn's starting point guard. I know she did not retain that spot. Was Geno a failure by not keeping her starting? Was Geno unfair by not giving her more minutes? Did Ketia's college experience help her understand what it would take to "survive and advance" (as in survive college and advance to a professional career playing basketball)?

 

[Kibitzer]

Show me a national championship team -- any team, any sport, college or pro -- and I will show you a team that evolved through a long and arduous season characterized by ups/downs, injuries, roster adjustments, coaching decisions, trials/tribulations -- and ultimate triumph.

Think about it and review, if you wish, the start-to-finish of any championship team's season and you will find that the team and their coach had to battle through obstacles before collecting hardware.

Our UConn team fits the established pattern. Can they pull it off? As always, I like our chances.

 

[RadyLady]

Bria's booby prize is to come off the bench.. you know he talked about that in one or two of the news articles that Nan pins... and how difficult decision it was to bring Bria off the bench rather than have her start... he talked to her about it how we needed a spark of the bench and I must say she has certainly, certainly brought that.

It was no booby prize it was a coaching decision - he needed some energy off the bench that could be a game changer and he picked Bria. It was a good choice.

Sent from my SGH-T769 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Icebear]

Having a meeting with the guards and getting their input is pure psychological genius. Bria willingly stepping to the bench while Caroline starts and MoJeff gathering minutes means to some sense the kids all feel accountable for participating in specific roles and the health of the team. It shows.