South Carolina post game thread

[RockyMTblue2]

Cockytalk site is down for maintenance. Maybe overloaded or something like that??

 

[Carnac]

I saw one of the refs signaling it was tipped by UConn. Lou seemed incredulous at that call.

THAT was one of the worse "non-calls" of the evening.

 

[msf22b]

Some random thoughts

Dawn's team shot lights out and had a great game plan.
But Geno is still better at in-game adjustments...

Interesting that the SC kids seemed to lose heart as early as the 2nd quarter when UConn refused to go away....

Loafing on D: not getting up the floor; losing cutters for easy lay-ups, getting destroyed in transition; perhaps...(just perhaps) reflects the weakness of their coach...who is surely improving in most respects.

The loss; first to fouls and then to the injury of Te'a Cooper was a big blow to them...I remember her fouling a lot in her UTennn days, but she certainly is a tough defender and sure shot....She really seems to have found a home in SC. tough competitor.

Geno really has done a wonderful job turning around a season...As season in which we looked pretty run-of-the-mill at times....Terrific game.

On a personal note: We are skiing around the West this season and find ourselves in the Pacific Time Zone (Tahoe). It's weird watching a live game at 4 in the afternoon.

 

[MSGRET]

What happened on the backcourt violation that wasn't called?

They said that the ball was tipped into the backcourt off of a UConn player. Lou was pissed at the ref a second time on the ball going out of bounds and the same ref said it was off of her. She was telling him "That's the second time that you made a bad call on me." I just loved it.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Geno just seems to have Dawn's number. Most of the games haven't been particularly close. Somebody above said it was basically even for about 20 minutes, but South Carolina was up 10 in the 1st quarter and ended up losing by 18. Doesn't seem like it was particularly even after that opening salvo by the Gamecocks.

 

[ShmiCO]

Don't worry about some in the chat. Some seem to be there just to troll and offer strongly stated "contrary" opinions. And by contrary, I mean contrary to reality.

A nice feature of chat is that you can block someone so you don't see their posts -- it's one of the options when you click their name. As a rule I don't block people but I made an exception for an obvious troll and my chat experience has been good ever since.

 

[Carnac]

The win is great and Lou, Pheesa and Crystal played even better. But for me the most exciting thing was watching Christyn bring her game. This was the third straight game where offensively her game continued to elevate. Very exciting. It was also great to see the team clamp down on SCar in the 2nd period, and watching Liv clog the middle of the zone was just a treat. Something real good to build on for the Cotillion.

In the last two games, you could see her slowly coming out of the grips of the wall. She played with no fear tonight. Those two 3's she knocked down were huge and timely. This game was a huge confidence builder for her. I'll bet she was grinning all the way back to campus after the game. You know she's been stressing lately. Now she can relax, and mentor Aubrey Griffin next year when she hits her freshman wall. I guarantee you she'll sleep well tonight.

 

[shiverz45]

Cockytalk site is down for maintenance. Maybe overloaded or something like that??

Cockytalk has been down for several weeks.

 

[Carnac]

Geno just seems to have Dawn's number. Most of the games haven't been particularly close. Somebody above said it was basically even for about 20 minutes, but South Carolina was up 10 in the 1st quarter and ended up losing by 18. Doesn't seem like it was particularly even after that opening salvo by the Gamecocks.

In the game chat room, most agreed that SC could not keep up that pace and shooting percentage for too long. We were right. SC came out hot, but cooled down after the 1st quarter, and came out ice cold in the 3rd quarter. It was nice to see the UConn team we're use to. Definitely a confidence booster for the entire team, including the coaches.

I thought this game would tell us exactly where they were, and what we can expect from them in March. I think we're going to be OK. I feel a lot better going into the post season now than I did a week ago. I know Geno doesn't want to, but he now knows he can depend and count on his starters to go 40 minutes if he has to.

He also knows ONO can come in and give him a few minutes and not hurt him. Liv is getting a little better with each game. She's not as good as she will be come November, but she's a whole lot better than she was in October.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Cockytalk has been down for several weeks.

That's a bummer for SC fans. They saying what's causing such a long outtage?

 

[shiverz45]

That's a bummer for SC fans. They saying what's causing such a long outtage?

I am not sure but maintenance typically doesn't last that long.

 

[choochoo]

We know Sue was in the house. Just wondering if she gets to interact with the team either during pregame practice or postgame. Does anyone know what generally happens when former players are around?

Yes, they all go out to dinner with Geno and his staff and family after post game and team stuff!

 

[Carnac]

Cockytalk has been down for several weeks.

Invite them over here, we're friendly.

ND was UConns best game but this was a close second

ND lately has been the BIGGEST game on our schedule, and visa versa. Before the season begins, THAT is always the game we all look forward to. It's usually our first real test of the year.

 

[eebmg]

I am not sure but maintenance typically doesn't last that long.

Well you know the south has it's own pace.

 

[SCGamecock]

Congratulations on a nice win; you are still the team to beat in WBB.

And always will be as long as Geno is there. That third quarter adjustment was excellent. The other three quarters were pretty even. UConn came out of the half and ran away with it.

 

[eebmg]

And always will be as long as Geno is there. That third quarter adjustment was excellent. The other three quarters were pretty even. UConn came out of the half and ran away with it.

It was interesting. In the half time interview with Rebecca, he basically was tossing his hands up when asked how do you defend SC. Fast penetrating guards and our perimeter does not have the speed in general.

Kept the zone a secret. With ONO manning the zone, it looks really good and forces even really fast teams to shoot over it. SC did a good job but I think Geno will not mind the 3pt makes too much since it distracts teams from trying to get fouls on us. Even Sue was saying how they actually like it when a team starts out hot from the 3pt line because they get shot happy and the law of averages takes it's toll. (Except OU that is)

 

[BleedBlue72]

Was Boston at the game rooting for her gamecocks!! The one that got away!! Any recruits at the game??

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Lol no kidding. I mentioned this in another thread yesterday. South Carolina usually gets Connecticut’s best game of the year. I watched your games vs. Baylor, Louisville and a few others and tonight the Huskies were ON in a way they haven’t been all year. I’m used to it at this point haha..

@SCGamecock I'd edit that to "at this point ... haha"

 

[BobbyJ]

Reading some comments on the chat and there are some negative comments, especially about the defense and Ono's play. Anyone who finds something bad to say about tonight's performance, is just being unfair. We already knew the defense needed to improve and it did in the third quarter when it was most needed. Seems some people are just hard to please.

I'm surprised that you would waste your time going to the Cesspool. Nothing worth seeing there.

 

[SCGamecock]

It was interesting. In the half time interview with Rebecca, he basically was tossing his hands up when asked how do you defend SC. Fast penetrating guards and our perimeter does not have the speed in general.

Kept the zone a secret. With ONO manning the zone, it looks really good and forces even really fast teams to shoot over it. SC did a good job but I think Geno will not mind the 3pt makes too much since it distracts teams from trying to get fouls on us. Even Sue was saying how they actually like it when a team starts out hot from the 3pt line because they get shot happy and the law of averages takes it's toll. (Except OU that is)

The zone really slowed us down. We like pace and space-Transition and kick outs for threes-Perimeter passing and interior duck ins. The zone takes away all of that. Then we start “thinking” on offense. Kudos to UConn because a lot of teams would’ve buckled under the pressure that SC was putting on both sides of the ball in that first half...

I love our style of play. I love having lots of guards that can put pressure on teams offensive and bigs that can run. We need to come out of halftime better. Jennings was a big disappointment today... she didn’t impose her will the way she could’ve. I couldn’t see Collier or Samuelson stopping her in this game. She missed a few shots, loss confidence and completely checked out. Saxton (a freshman that played 5 for us tonight) is going to be a REALLY good player for SC. She can learn a lot from Collier’s development.

Good game for UConn and good luck the rest of the regular season. We have a tough road ahead so the team needs to refocus on conference play. SC still has A LOT to play for.

 

[eebmg]

The zone really slowed us down. We like pace and space-Transition and kick outs for threes-Perimeter passing and interior duck ins. The zone takes away all of that. Then we start “thinking” on offense. Kudos to UConn because a lot of teams would’ve buckled under the pressure that SC was putting on both sides of the ball in that first half...

I love our style of play. I love having lots of guards that can put pressure on teams offensive and bigs that can run. We need to come out of halftime better. Jennings was a big disappointment today... she didn’t impose her will the way she could’ve. I couldn’t see Collier or Samuelson stopping her in this game. She missed a few shots, loss confidence and completely checked out. Saxton (a freshman that played 5 for us tonight) is going to be a REALLY good player for SC. She can learn a lot from Collier’s development.

Good game for UConn and good luck the rest of the regular season. We have a tough road ahead so the team needs to refocus on conference play. SC still has A LOT to play for.

I was worried alot about Harrigan before the game. She has really blossomed and she came out sharp but sought of faded.

 

[Plebe]

The zone really slowed us down. We like pace and space-Transition and kick outs for threes-Perimeter passing and interior duck ins. The zone takes away all of that. Then we start “thinking” on offense. Kudos to UConn because a lot of teams would’ve buckled under the pressure that SC was putting on both sides of the ball in that first half...

I love our style of play. I love having lots of guards that can put pressure on teams offensive and bigs that can run. We need to come out of halftime better. Jennings was a big disappointment today... she didn’t impose her will the way she could’ve. I couldn’t see Collier or Samuelson stopping her in this game. She missed a few shots, loss confidence and completely checked out. Saxton (a freshman that played 5 for us tonight) is going to be a REALLY good player for SC. She can learn a lot from Collier’s development.

Good game for UConn and good luck the rest of the regular season. We have a tough road ahead so the team needs to refocus on conference play. SC still has A LOT to play for.

I said this during the Miss St game, but it is SCARY how much SC has improved since early in the season. Surely the most improved team in the country from November to now. They look dangerous and they'll only get better in the next month and a half.

 

[SCGamecock]

I was worried alot about Harrigan before the game. She has really blossomed and she came out sharp but sought of faded.

Another player that struggles with mental toughness. She didn’t get a few calls she felt she deserved and got frustrated. That happens to SC players A LOT in this game in particular... they get a few no calls against them or hand check fouls put on them and they completely lose all focus in the game. We need to do a much better job playing through frustration and adversity in this particular game. This is only an issue versus UConn. SC doesn’t have these kinds of ingame almost “emotional” breakdowns. We typically relish the underdog role and use that to stay in it.

I think our players want the win so bad that they succumb to emotion and lose focus when things get tough. Things got out of hand in the 3rd, but SC had more than enough time to breathe and refocus. That didn’t happen. We need to get better there.

 

[MSGRET]

I said this during the Miss St game, but it is SCARY how much SC has improved since early in the season. Surely the most improved team in the country from November to now. They look dangerous and they'll only get better in the next month and a half.

I agree with you 100%, earlier in the season I was stating that SC was not a top 25 team and that they wouldn't be in the top 5 of the SEC by the end of the season. Dawn has done some changes that have worked and if they keep on playing the way they are SC could have a chance in tying or winning the SEC regular season.

 

[Sluconn Husky]

Was Boston at the game rooting for her gamecocks!! The one that got away!! Any recruits at the game??

Azzi Fudd and Angel Reese were there.

 

[Sluconn Husky]

South Carolina was pretty impressive. I still think they are undermanned (underwomanned?) in the front court, but they played fearlessly. Very tenacious play and as Geno said harder to play against than last year's team, certainly matchup-wise against the Huskies.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

Game was what I asked for as far as pedal to the metal and playing the freshmen.

Collier just murdered Jennings. Samuelson must be shooting 80% vs SC for her career.

UCONN looked fine to me.

 

[Dokey]

Great game. Pheesa's best ever. Lou humming. Crystal being Crystal. Walker and Williams doing their jobs. Get ONO in the weight room and beef her up in off season.

 

[Boreifs]

I like Lou playing more in the middle of the floor.

This is a reworked offense that may force a different game from Oregon and MSU I think for sure and possibly Baylor.

Lots more high-low. Geno said as much in the presser. Pheasant and Megan have improved so much as passers that he felt comfortable returning to his favorite offensive sets. That high back screen off the ball was also deadly.

 

[Boreifs]

What happened on the backcourt violation that wasn't called?

It was a tip. The ref signaled it immediately.