South Carolina vs Mississippi St - 3/04/18
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cockhrnleghrn
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I think Mississippi State felt the pressure; I like their team and coach. Obviously, I wanted my Gamecocks to win, but I do feel bad for State. They lose 4 starters and they don't have much of a bench this season so I don't see them being nearly as good next season. USC loses A'ja, which is a huge loss, but with 4 starters + returning, I think we'll be good next year, especially if Cuevas-Moore plays her senior year. It would be nice to be the 2 in Lexington; we would take a lot of fans to that Regional site.
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This team seems to have found its trademark. Defense. Total opposite of what we have seen during the regular season. Dawn is starting to open up Hebert Harrigan and Grissetts skill set by playing them at the 3 to stretch the floor. I thought HH was phenomenal both defensively and offensively. She did a very respectable job on Vivians keeping her to 17 points, 3 points under her season average. The guards are starting to defend very well too, especially Jackson. I thought she was a big reason Blair went 0-5 from 3. Ty had an complete game tonight and showcased why she's the best PG in the SEC and one of the best in the country.
Next year we should be solid. We will have depth and both guard and forward. I expect us to be run and gun next year. 4 guards 1 stretch 4 (HH/Grissett), would be fast and potent.
Hopefully the NCAA sees that SC fans travel well and could be a potential sellout in Lexington (with both SC & Louisville) versus Albany which is probably sold out with UCONN fans at this point. Last year the Lexington Regional had the lowest attendance among the 4 with ND and Stanford, Texas and Ohio State. While in Stockton SC, Oregon St., Florida State, and Qunnipiac had more fans. I just hope they take that into consideration. If you watched the SEC final and the ACC final you can see that both fan bases travel well and would sellout Rupp Arena.
Carnac
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cockhrnleghrn
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There is no way the Regional at Rupp would be a sellout; I doubt the Final Four would even sellout Rupp unless all four participants were relatively close by with large fan bases. Something like UCONN, USC, Louisville and ND.
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It would certainly gather a crowd bigger then what it was last year. I think it would certainly be well over 10,000 fans in attendance.
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triaddukefan
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Rupp arena seats about 23,500....... when was the last time a WCBB game of any kind drew that many people
huskeynut
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Well I picked SC to win. Two factors determined my pick. One, SC's experience in big games - this includes players and coaching. Experience is a great teacher and SC has taken their lumps. This factor can never be overlooked. Two, the pressure on MSST being undefeated and playing for their first tournament title. Not knocking MSST, but they don't have the experience in big games that SC does. Experience does count.
How this will all play out for the NCAA's will be interesting. MSST still gets a #1 seed. SC will be a #2 seed. It will be interesting to see what region SC ends up. I'm sure SC doesn't want the Albany region!
How this will all play out for the NCAA's will be interesting. MSST still gets a #1 seed. SC will be a #2 seed. It will be interesting to see what region SC ends up. I'm sure SC doesn't want the Albany region!
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I think the SC / MS game demonstrated a lot of things only one of which might be not so good for U Conn.
First of all, McGowan still has huge flaws in her game when she's facing a very good big. She doesn't move well offensively or defensively. What she does is take huge advantage of is her size and strength. If these are somewhat neutralized, so is MS.
MS is an excellent defensive team but I think offensively challenged when pressured.
I thought this last year too. I was shocked they were even close let alone beat us. They surely won fair and square but they played their best game and we surely did not. Yes, they now know they can beat us and as stated previously, confidence is very important. But so too is a program's history and what that brings in big moments. I have no doubt that Geno, CD and the other coaches, and especially the players will see everything that occurred in this MS loss and more, that we will be fully prepared and ready this time. I expect us to beat them by 12-15 points or more.
As to SC this was a great win for them deserving all the kudos. Wilson had a very strong game, and as much as I want and believe KLS is player of the year, I think this win clinched it for Wilson. (That's the bad news). I can't see them coming close to beating us, as even with Wilson having a good game, it's not enough, and she's yet to do that.
I do think there are maybe six other very good teams but only one excellent maybe superb team, and that is U Conn BUT, we must stay focused, not overconfident, injury free and out of serious foul trouble. If we do, there will be a 12th NC.
Bronx23
First of all, McGowan still has huge flaws in her game when she's facing a very good big. She doesn't move well offensively or defensively. What she does is take huge advantage of is her size and strength. If these are somewhat neutralized, so is MS.
MS is an excellent defensive team but I think offensively challenged when pressured.
I thought this last year too. I was shocked they were even close let alone beat us. They surely won fair and square but they played their best game and we surely did not. Yes, they now know they can beat us and as stated previously, confidence is very important. But so too is a program's history and what that brings in big moments. I have no doubt that Geno, CD and the other coaches, and especially the players will see everything that occurred in this MS loss and more, that we will be fully prepared and ready this time. I expect us to beat them by 12-15 points or more.
As to SC this was a great win for them deserving all the kudos. Wilson had a very strong game, and as much as I want and believe KLS is player of the year, I think this win clinched it for Wilson. (That's the bad news). I can't see them coming close to beating us, as even with Wilson having a good game, it's not enough, and she's yet to do that.
I do think there are maybe six other very good teams but only one excellent maybe superb team, and that is U Conn BUT, we must stay focused, not overconfident, injury free and out of serious foul trouble. If we do, there will be a 12th NC.
Bronx23
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the one game you lost this year (and by double digits) was your worst game of the season...I would say so yes.
South Carolina matched Miss State's intensity and then did not falter when Miss State made its run. And the difference this time was Wilson's teammates making some plays around her.
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I'm not sure how South Carolina had the experience advantage. Miss State is the much more experienced team and they've been in big games plenty the last three years, including an NCAA final and two previous SECT finals.
No one wants the Albany region.
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No reason to feel bad. They won the SEC and have a #1 seed locked up and figure to be a great bet to make a Final Four. Their losing the SEC tournament final isn't a big deal because the SECT doesn't really mean anything.
You would expect Miss State to slide back but I wouldn't think it would be a big slide. They and South Carolina will probably both be in the mix because both coaches have shown they can build up programs and win a lot with less than great talent.
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Yes, the defense has been so much better. And the body language of the team has been better in the tournament.
They look like they want it and are playing intensely.
But to me, Bianca Jackson and Harrigan scoring in double figures, plus Harris matching buckets during Miss State's run, and Cliney suddenly knocking down big threes has been just as important.
I will say that USC has also started running plays with Wilson being secondary to the initial action and I think that's helped get her some more open looks as the play develops than when they were just trying to dump it in there against a sagging defense.
In short, South Carolina at least in the SECT looked like a more committed and better team on both ends of the floor. Hope that it carries into the big tournament.
Carnac
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Carnac
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The same thing that happened to UConn last year happened to MS yesterday. They did not bring their "A" game. When McCowan went out in the 1st quarter with 2 quick fouls, that opened up the door, leveled the playing field, and allowed Wilson to come in and operate freely. The Bulldogs, who lost the past two SEC tournament finals and last year's NCAA championship game to the Gamecocks, just were not sharp from the start. Mississippi State coach Vic Schaefer and his players talked Saturday about being concerned with not playing well in the first quarter, and that happened again Sunday.
It was worse this time, though, because it carried over into a dreadful second quarter in which the Bulldogs scored just five points. Center Teaira McCowan got into early foul trouble and played just four minutes in the first half, after which the Bulldogs trailed 30-19. Schaefer was asked if he considered putting McCowan back in during the second quarter as South Carolina extended its lead and the Bulldogs' offense was sputtering.
"I thought about it, [but] I thought, 'We're going to be all right,'" Schaefer said. "We had protected her and got through the first half."
McCowan added, "I just wanted to come back out and dominate in the second half. Foul trouble is part of the game, so it wasn't too much worried about it."
Indeed, down 11 with 20 minutes to go might not have seemed too high a mountain to climb for a Mississippi State team that came in averaging 83 points per game and had beaten every SEC opponent but one this season by double digits. But Sunday, the offense never got on track.
The Bulldogs finished with their lowest point total of the season. They shot 34.5 percent from the field and 15.8 percent (3-of-19) from behind the arc.
"It's not a good feeling," said Mississippi State senior Victoria Vivians, who led the Bulldogs with 17 points. "But I'm glad it's not the NCAA [tournament], when it's the end of a career."
You know the old saying........on any given day.......................
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IWearShoes
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It wasn't the worst game because they lost by 11, it was the worst game because they made mistakes, missed shots and committed fouls they haven't been making, missing or committing all year. I absolutely give some of the credit for that to SC, but a lot was on MSU. They got tons of the same open looks from 3 they've been used to hitting at a 40% clip all year, they simply missed them (along with a boatload of layups). That and T sitting the entire 1st Half was the major difference in the game.
Anybody who draws too much of a conclusion about the quality of either team from that one game is probably making a mistake.
Edited to Add that I think MSU, along with UConn, U of L, ND and Baylor will breeze to the Elite 8 with probably not a scare amongst them. In those regional championship games the fun shall commence!!
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UConnCat
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Geno always says that it just takes one night of not making shots. Miss State had plenty of open shots yesterday, including shots they've been making all season. Yesterday they weren't falling. Schaefer was 0-5, Johnson was 3-12 and Vivians shot 7-20. The team shot 3-19 from beyond the arc. With all of those misses, MSU grabbed only 4 offensive rebounds. Not the winning edge.
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Make no mistake yesterday was bad. The team was ice cold and SC played very well. Aja showed her toughness and supporting players stepped it up when needed. MSU couldn't throw a pebble in the ocean and looked tired from the start, just like the NC game last year.
Honestly I'm glad they lost a game. The undefeated pressure is so tremendous and all I want is a NC out of this group. If a loss is what it takes to address these issues then great.
Honestly I'm glad they lost a game. The undefeated pressure is so tremendous and all I want is a NC out of this group. If a loss is what it takes to address these issues then great.
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The two South Carolina-Miss State games were pretty similar except for the fourth quarters.
Miss State shot poorly in both games. Vivians was inefficient in both.
USC folded in the fourth quarter in the first game at Starkville and went shot for shot with Miss State down the stretch in the second.
I did not see the first game, but looking at that box score, the 20 rebounds from McCowan stand out as the thing that probably made the difference in game one.
I think 20 boards was about as unlikely as the 6? she had Sunday.
I think the two teams are pretty close in talent. Schaeffer is a really good coach and he's done a great job with that program. And those top 6 or so know what they are supposed to do.
I wish Miss State all the luck in the world. I would imagine you should be pretty clean through the elite eight unless you get a weird matchup. I think your squad is a lot like the one we had that lost on the final possession vs Notre Dame in the FF.
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Watching both the MS-SC and ND-Louisville games, it sure looked like parity has come to WBB. The crowd were really into the games, all the teams played their heart out,. Every possession counted. I found myself watching the whole 2 games instead of doing something chores I had planned. Discussion in this thread is really informative and interesting. Thank you all.