Some thoughts on the finals and Mohegan Sun

[tomcat]

For whatever they are worth:
1. First, the venue, from a first-timer. The place is wonderful. No bad seats. But the arena announcer is the worst I have heard in my life. Opinions about her overly dramatic style are a matters of taste, but missed foul announcements and missed substitutions were really annoying. In one game, she was even missing calling the name of the scorer, opting for "UConn basket."
2. IMHO, UConn's point guard play was a disappointment. Numerous unforced errors and both KK and Chen had their pockets picked. Th3y both seemed to be playing too fast. Do that against a halfway decent team in the NCAAs, and UConn is toast.
3. UConn seems to only do two types of defense, from what I can see. The chaos defense, which we all know and love, and a more relaxed, regular defense. When they do chaos, it almost invariably results in something good, and sometimes a UConn basket. The other defense, not so much.

What is interesting, IMHO, is that when they fo chaos, the whole team seems more energized, both on O and D. On offense, there is less ofvthe standing around that Geno hates.Players seem to hit their spots more consistently and there are more crisp passes.

4. Sarah Strong is amazing. 'Nuff said.
5. There are still an awful lot of lapses on three-point defense. They will be there wally good for a while and then tge opponent gets open two or three times in a row.
6. It's hard to argue with three wins in a row and a trophy, but the team has work to do to be ready for the next rounds. I dan hardly wait.

 

[ERWUC65]

For whatever they are worth:
1. First, the venue, from a first-timer. The place is wonderful. No bad seats. But the arena announcer is the worst I have heard in my life. Opinions about her overly dramatic style are a matters of taste, but missed foul announcements and missed substitutions were really annoying. In one game, she was even missing calling the name of the scorer, opting for "UConn basket."
2. IMHO, UConn's point guard play was a disappointment. Numerous unforced errors and both KK and Chen had their pockets picked. Th3y both seemed to be playing too fast. Do that against a halfway decent team in the NCAAs, and UConn is toast.
3. UConn seems to only do two types of defense, from what I can see. The chaos defense, which we all know and love, and a more relaxed, regular defense. When they do chaos, it almost invariably results in something good, and sometimes a UConn basket. The other defense, not so much.

What is interesting, IMHO, is that when they fo chaos, the whole team seems more energized, both on O and D. On offense, there is less ofvthe standing around that Geno hates.Players seem to hit their spots more consistently and there are more crisp passes.

4. Sarah Strong is amazing. 'Nuff said.
5. There are still an awful lot of lapses on three-point defense. They will be there wally good for a while and then tge opponent gets open two or three times in a row.
6. It's hard to argue with three wins in a row and a trophy, but the team has work to do to be ready for the next rounds. I dan hardly wait.

It is painfully obvious that the team misses Aubrey. Not only does she bring offensive rebounding, but adds to the defensive rotation giving KK and Ash more time to rest and hopefully improve their offensive production. While the big 3 seem to be in tournament form, I continue to be concerned about the supporting cast playing with confidence against the better teams.

 

[ConnMotors]

The next three rounds are play a game and win. Next day is off. Play a game and win then next 4 or 5 days are off. Repeat this three times.

I agree on both Chen and Arnold. There point play was not spectacular. To fast. To many turnovers. To many missed layups.

Shade has to get into the games. Can’t miss shots. Even, Azzi couldn’t hit a bucket in the second half. Then again no one did.

Sarah is amazing. Just watching her get so many rebounds.

I will leave the 5 spot alone because we don’t know what we are going to get.

 

[tomcat]

I didn't even mention Aubrey, but should have. If healthy, she will be a big factor in the team's play in the tournament. We don't know enough about her condition to be able to speculate, but I hope Geno can keep her out of the first two games, even if healthy, except perhaps a brief cameo appearance/farewell to the CT fans.

Also, I apologize for all the typos in my original post. I am working off a cell phone (not my skill, to be sure) while waiting for a plane home.

 

[msf22b]

I didn't even mention Aubrey, but should have. If healthy, she will be a big factor in the team's play in the tournament. We don't know enough about her condition to be able to speculate, but I hope Geno can keep her out of the first two games, even if healthy, except perhaps a brief cameo appearance/farewell to the CT fans.

Also, I apologize for all the typos in my original post. I am working off a cell phone (not my skill, to be sure) while waiting for a plane home.

I cam sympathize with cell phone issues (especially for older folks)
My solution: Hardly use it!...Never for typing. We all lived fine w/o them.

I was surprised at the picking of the pockets of Chen and KK...coupla theories why...
1. Over-confidence
2. Fatigue
3. (And most likely) The famous Louis/Schmelling 1..."I zee something."
Good coach...I bet Jim saw something...and Geno will fix it for next time.

 

[Rowdy831]

KK is much better at initiating the offense than KC and a much better ball handler. KC is Geno's fav this year so there is that but when the team needed a bucket or to be settled down Paige took the ball and made the offense work. Paige is also being very assertive on the offensive end of the court and she hasn't done that since her freshman year.

To win it all they will need three players to step up and contribute on the offensive end of the court. Paige and Sarah will be there every night, that is how they are wired. Azzi, KK or Ash will need to step up if one of the others is having an off night which I think they are capable of doing and will do when the time is theirs. KC hasn't shown me much this year on offense but in the tournament and in a couple games she has shown she can be an offensive weapon. For the next 6 games she needs to play like she knows she belongs.

What really makes UConn tough is they can turn up the defensive heat and take a team out of their rhythm. If they have a weakness of defense they have a tendency to overplay the help and be out of position to recover to defend the weak side three. If they limit those threes I don't see anyone who will challenge them.

 

[Bone Dog]

The BE tournament ended a day later than the P4 tournaments. I wonder if this is a good thing, since the ~week and a half until the NCAAs may be just long enough for some teams to lose their edge.

 

[BBallF]

KK is much better at initiating the offense than KC and a much better ball handler. KC is Geno's fav this year so there is that but when the team needed a bucket or to be settled down Paige took the ball and made the offense work. Paige is also being very assertive on the offensive end of the court and she hasn't done that since her freshman year.

To win it all they will need three players to step up and contribute on the offensive end of the court. Paige and Sarah will be there every night, that is how they are wired. Azzi, KK or Ash will need to step up if one of the others is having an off night which I think they are capable of doing and will do when the time is theirs. KC hasn't shown me much this year on offense but in the tournament and in a couple games she has shown she can be an offensive weapon. For the next 6 games she needs to play like she knows she belongs.

What really makes UConn tough is they can turn up the defensive heat and take a team out of their rhythm. If they have a weakness of defense they have a tendency to overplay the help and be out of position to recover to defend the weak side three. If they limit those threes I don't see anyone who will challenge them.

I don't agree about KK. I think Chen has become a reliable 3 point shooter, has a pull up J , and has stopped for the most part the wild, nowhere to go drives. KK hasn't. She is a poor outside shooter and will be left alone the entire tourney for good reason. She came into the game yesterday and instantly made 2 turnovers. She doesn't yet know how to modulate her speeds, often drives and forces, and rarely looks up court on a break. KK is the better defender to be sure, but I don't think it is just personal preference by Geno that gives Chen the nod.

 

[BBallF]

KK is much better at initiating the offense than KC and a much better ball handler. KC is Geno's fav this year so there is that but when the team needed a bucket or to be settled down Paige took the ball and made the offense work. Paige is also being very assertive on the offensive end of the court and she hasn't done that since her freshman year.

To win it all they will need three players to step up and contribute on the offensive end of the court. Paige and Sarah will be there every night, that is how they are wired. Azzi, KK or Ash will need to step up if one of the others is having an off night which I think they are capable of doing and will do when the time is theirs. KC hasn't shown me much this year on offense but in the tournament and in a couple games she has shown she can be an offensive weapon. For the next 6 games she needs to play like she knows she belongs.

What really makes UConn tough is they can turn up the defensive heat and take a team out of their rhythm. If they have a weakness of defense they have a tendency to overplay the help and be out of position to recover to defend the weak side three. If they limit those threes I don't see anyone who will challenge them.

In addition, we need 4 offensive threats out there not 3 and that is because they will double Paige all game and likely try to face guard Azzi. Give Sarah her points and boards but if Paige gets 18 and Azzi 12 and we only get the points we got last night from the bench, we lose in the Elite 8. We need Ash. She cannot disappear. If she averages 10-12 points in the tourney, I like our chances.

 

[Bone Dog]

In one of the pressers after the final Geno speculated about using the next week to encourage Jana [and Ice?] to take more elbow jumpers. As he put it, "if she doesn't take a few of those, they won't guard her out there, and then we're playing 4 on 5." [not a precise quotation]

 

[NycUcWbbFan]

KK is much better at initiating the offense than KC and a much better ball handler. KC is Geno's fav this year so there is that but when the team needed a bucket or to be settled down Paige took the ball and made the offense work. Paige is also being very assertive on the offensive end of the court and she hasn't done that since her freshman year.

To win it all they will need three players to step up and contribute on the offensive end of the court. Paige and Sarah will be there every night, that is how they are wired. Azzi, KK or Ash will need to step up if one of the others is having an off night which I think they are capable of doing and will do when the time is theirs. KC hasn't shown me much this year on offense but in the tournament and in a couple games she has shown she can be an offensive weapon. For the next 6 games she needs to play like she knows she belongs.

What really makes UConn tough is they can turn up the defensive heat and take a team out of their rhythm. If they have a weakness of defense they have a tendency to overplay the help and be out of position to recover to defend the weak side three. If they limit those threes I don't see anyone who will challenge them.

It is Geno’s team after all. There is that.

And he has honed the team into vintage peak postseason form and sure knows what he is doing. There is that.

I am not sure why there is an urge to phrase things in a way to denigrate a player to praise another (and simultaneously engaging in a wild conspiracy theory of favoritism) when the roster’s strength is having 10 starters/ prior starters (9 of whom had good regular season games and can be a difference makers for any postseason game) that can give a 40-minute barrage of mix-match diverse offense and relentless defense;

• The urge to “vote off the island” is rather pointless (see attached pic), when Geno specifically takes advantage of the Big-3 and connected high quality depth to win games;
• Geno’s beautiful basketball is predicated on winning possessions with a team of “basketball players” collectively instinctively making basketball plays for 40 minutes;
• So while the Big 3 have lately been able to match or outscore opponents by themselves, it is only made possible by other players making possession-efficient basketball plays, not all of which are captured by boxscore, or appreciated by average fans on a board;
• Geno and CD are the most successful coaches in WCBB, with methods that prepare the most players for the next level; and they see much more than fans do with their rigorous practices that Diana, Paige and Nika have credited for their development.

 

[Skeets]

For whatever they are worth:
1. First, the venue, from a first-timer. The place is wonderful. No bad seats. But the arena announcer is the worst I have heard in my life. Opinions about her overly dramatic style are a matters of taste, but missed foul announcements and missed substitutions were really annoying. In one game, she was even missing calling the name of the scorer, opting for "UConn basket."
2. IMHO, UConn's point guard play was a disappointment. Numerous unforced errors and both KK and Chen had their pockets picked. Th3y both seemed to be playing too fast. Do that against a halfway decent team in the NCAAs, and UConn is toast.
3. UConn seems to only do two types of defense, from what I can see. The chaos defense, which we all know and love, and a more relaxed, regular defense. When they do chaos, it almost invariably results in something good, and sometimes a UConn basket. The other defense, not so much.

What is interesting, IMHO, is that when they fo chaos, the whole team seems more energized, both on O and D. On offense, there is less ofvthe standing around that Geno hates.Players seem to hit their spots more consistently and there are more crisp passes.

4. Sarah Strong is amazing. 'Nuff said.
5. There are still an awful lot of lapses on three-point defense. They will be there wally good for a while and then tge opponent gets open two or three times in a row.
6. It's hard to argue with three wins in a row and a trophy, but the team has work to do to be ready for the next rounds. I dan hardly wait.

I agree with point #2. KK and Chen combined for 10 turnovers, 5 apiece. That is not going to work in the NCAA tournament. I'm hoping it was just an anomaly because I know they are better than that.

 

[kjkj3]

Mohegan Sun needs to step up their concessions. Being there all four days, the offerings of hot dogs, nachos, popcorn, pretzels and pizza (with ridiculously long lines) is just a bit lacking. Years ago, you could get sandwich wraps and goldfish snacks. Granted, we left between sessions to dine in the casino, but for something quick inside the arena, just poor choices.
And, for a sold out arena, they could have had more concessions open. JMO.

 

[freshler40]

In addition, we need 4 offensive threats out there not 3 and that is because they will double Paige all game and likely try to face guard Azzi. Give Sarah her points and boards but if Paige gets 18 and Azzi 12 and we only get the points we got last night from the bench, we lose in the Elite 8. We need Ash. She cannot disappear. If she averages 10-12 points in the tourney, I like our chances.

Our best chances are to have all players being an offensive threat, especially El Afy and KK, both who have the ability to drive unexpectedly. KK needs to slow down a bit at the shooting end. Chen is a fine 3-point shooter and needs to hunt her shot more.
Early in games it might be best to also hunt for offensive rebounds. We tend to ignore that until later in the game. Sarah is a fine offensive rebounder. Our guards have great hands to tie up defensive rebounders. Shade is especially good at this with KK a determined quick rebounder and gather of loose balls.

 

[Bone Dog]

Early in games it might be best to also hunt for offensive rebounds. We tend to ignore that until later in the game.

I wonder if this isn’t a result of the defense they play. I think there may be a tension between smothering defense and hunting offensive rebounds. In the second half, once the opponent has been worn down by the defense, offensive rebounds may be a lot easier to get.