Speaking of Tiffany Hayes

[vtcwbuff]

I meant to post this following the ND game but I must have had a senior moment. I don't remember reading any other posts (another senior moment?) that mention how she responded at ND.

She had a rough start and sat for most of the first half. She started the second half and put together a very good 20 minutes. Last year she would have pouted the second half and probably been ineffective. It's really nice to see her maturing and playing like a senior.

 

[speedoo]

There was the usual number of negative posts about her game, sadly. People were ignoring the fact that she was second leading scorer, had some good numbers for the game, and really scored most of UConn's points down the stretch, as I recall.

 

[EricLA]

agree with both of you. some others were bemoaning her play compared with players like Stricklen. i had to point out that Tiff is actually having a better season stats-wise than Shekinna Stricklen.

Tiff wasn't a top 10 kid coming out of HS. players like Stricklen, Johnson, EDD, Manning, Gray, and several others were all rated ahead of her. so it's not like she was a top 5 kid who's never really "blossomed". i think HG had her at 11 or 12, and i'm not sure where Blue Star or ASGR had her.

 

[MilfordHusky]

I think that Tiff also got into foul trouble against ND (twice) and Stanford last year. I recall distinctly that she made some key plays down the stretch as part of our rally to win the game in South Bend.

I think Tiff was rated in the 8-12 range by most services, though my memory often fails me.

After yesterday's game, Tiff is second on the team in scoring this season, just ahead of KML and about a point behind Bria.

 

[MilfordHusky]

From John A.:

"Tiffany Hayes comes into Monday's game against No. 22 North Carolina at Gampel Pavilion with 1,477 career points, 18th all-time in program history, more than contemporaries like Mel Thomas, Jessica Moore, Charde Houston, Sue Bird, Tamika Williams and Kalana Greene. Soon she will pass Asjha Jones and Jen Rizzotti."

Those are some pretty good players that Tiff has already passed or will soon pass. She was very, very good against UNC last year. I hope she has a huge game on Monday.

 

[alexrgct]

She's bringing max engery and max effort every game. She never blossomed into a superstar kind of player, and, to watch her playing at her best, it seems like she might have been able to. But she's showing a very young team how to go all out every game, which is an example that will pay dividends for UConn well after she's gone.

 

[ThisJustIn]

It's interesting -- I get the feeling that, within and without the fanbase, the perception is "Tiffany Hayes, meh." I'm guessing there are many reasons for this, but I wonder how the final half of the season will impact her draft status.

 

[alexrgct]

It's interesting -- I get the feeling that, within and without the fanbase, the perception is "Tiffany Hayes, meh." I'm guessing there are many reasons for this, but I wonder how the final half of the season will impact her draft status.

My interpretation of the "Tiffany Hayes question" is as follows:

• Tiff took on a role of starter as a freshman, a relative rarity, and had standout moments in that capacity, including in the NCAA tourney, on an historically great team.
• As a sophomore, she was a starter on another historically great team.
• At this point, with Rene two years removed from UConn, Tina graduated, and Caroline injured, it was assumed she could take the next step as a player and be a strong second banana to Maya Moore. Again, she showed tantalizing flashes, but the strong second banana role didn't quite materialize. And when Maya didn't get much help in the national semis loss, Tiff as the lone upperclasswoman of the other four starters definitely bore the brunt of fan disappointment, especially in light of poor performances against Baylor and Stanford earlier that year.
• Even though she has improved as a senior, she won't have the Huskies of Honor kind of a career it looked like she might.

In sum, she's not really guilty of anything other than not living up to many fans' expectations of her. But there is an understandable perception that perhaps her career at UConn could have been more than it was. By contrast, Kelly Faris will be adored because the sense will be that she got everything she could out of her ability.

It took me some time, but I came to be at peace with Tiff's career. Maybe her ceiling was exactly what she's doing now: occasionally brilliant, sometimes off and too wound up, always works her tail off. I guess I'd rather she have been occasionally brilliant than never at all, even if it meant she sometimes made me believe that consistent brilliance was within her grasp. In any event, her gifts are hers to do as she chooses, and I can only be a passive observer.

 

[DaddyChoc]

if Tiff didnt start out good early on (with Renee's support) who knows where she would be...starting (getting minutes) early in your career pays down the road.

 

[Kibitzer]

Ironically, when you access HuskyNan's January 16 "News" up at the top of page 1, one linked article is entitled "Hayes Leads the Way" and another has a headline indicating "More Expected of Hayes," or something like that. And I wouldn't quarrel with either assessment.

This kid just can't catch a break. Fortunately for her, there are some steady Stefanie bashers demanding regular attention but the Bria bashers seem to be taking an intermission.

I have always admired Tiffany and I would like nothing more than to see her end her career at UConn in a blaze of glory.

 

[cohenzone]

I don't think anyone says "Tiffany Hayes, meh". But the limitations in her offensive game, not her rebounding or her D, show up against the very good and well schooled upper echelons teams - teams that don't give her the room she needs to get off her 3 and don''t allow her drives to the hoop. She doesn't have a mid-range game, partly because she hasn't shown she can stop, elevate and shoot. She is really more of a throw back player on O to the time when few women elevated and shot true jumpers. I think what those of us who have watched her play from day one are a bit disappointed with is that she hasn't developed that part of her game and it would help plenty against the teams UConn must beat to be an NC team. Can UConn still win it all without her having the full arsenal on O? Maybe, but it wouldn't hurt if she had it. It is also what makes her success as a WNBA player a problem. She still has a tendency to commit bad fouls far away from the hoop, and of course, her drives to the hoop can lead to charging calls against teams that know how to cut her off. That's where an ability to stop short and shoot a jumper would help. As far as her stats against ND go, being on the bench from two early fouls certainly eliminated any scoring she might have done, and the 10 points is misleading because 3 of those came in OT when the game was basically already over, and maybe if she isn't in early trouble, the game never gets to OT. Anyway, because people notice flaws in her game does not mean she isn't any easy kid to root for, We all think she a fine player overall.

 

[DaddyChoc]

Ironically, when you access HuskyNan's January 16 "News" up at the top of page 1, one linked article is entitled "Hayes Leads the Way" and another has a headline indicating "More Expected of Hayes," or something like that. And I wouldn't quarrel with either assessment.

This kid just can't catch a break. Fortunately for her, there are some steady Stefanie bashers demanding regular attention but the Bria bashers seem to be taking an intermission.

I have always admired Tiffany and I would like nothing more than to see her end her career at UConn in a blaze of glory.

well said Kib

 

[Cafe Poliziano]

Tiff was / is perceived along with Farris and others of dropping the ball so to speak during the lose to ND, last season, this was when they amongst others seemingly refused to take open shots and passed the ball like it hurt their hands to shot the thing until Maya was basically forced by the rest of the team to take the vast majority of the shots that game. right or wrong this is why many here harp on them. Faris openly admitted this was a failing of the team last season. This seemed to have happened during big games last year and many are afraid so to speak that this may continue in big games this season. Again right or wrong this is the basis of the angst that some express here on the Boneyard.

 

[ChicagoGG]

I truly hope for Tiff that she ends her UCONN career on a high note. I remember that a great number of folks were frustrated by Charde's college numbers...and then in her last Big East Tournament she was MVP. And subsequently has gone on to a good WNBA career. Whatever the next few months hold for Tiffany, I hope for equally good results for her. I know she will try her hardest!

 

[Sonny44]

My interpretation of the "Tiffany Hayes question" is as follows:

• Tiff took on a role of starter as a freshman, a relative rarity, and had standout moments in that capacity, including in the NCAA tourney, on an historically great team.
• As a sophomore, she was a starter on another historically great team.
• At this point, with Rene two years removed from UConn, Tina graduated, and Caroline injured, it was assumed she could take the next step as a player and be a strong second banana to Maya Moore. Again, she showed tantalizing flashes, but the strong second banana role didn't quite materialize. And when Maya didn't get much help in the national semis loss, Tiff as the lone upperclasswoman of the other four starters definitely bore the brunt of fan disappointment, especially in light of poor performances against Baylor and Stanford earlier that year.
• Even though she has improved as a senior, she won't have the Huskies of Honor kind of a career it looked like she might.

In sum, she's not really guilty of anything other than not living up to many fans' expectations of her. But there is an understandable perception that perhaps her career at UConn could have been more than it was. By contrast, Kelly Faris will be adored because the sense will be that she got everything she could out of her ability.


It took me some time, but I came to be at peace with Tiff's career. Maybe her ceiling was exactly what she's doing now: occasionally brilliant, sometimes off and too wound up, always works her tail off. I guess I'd rather she have been occasionally brilliant than never at all, even if it meant she sometimes made me believe that consistent brilliance was within her grasp. In any event, her gifts are hers to do as she chooses, and I can only be a passive observer.

 

[Sonny44]

[

My interpretation of the "Tiffany Hayes question" is as follows:

• Tiff took on a role of starter as a freshman, a relative rarity, and had standout moments in that capacity, including in the NCAA tourney, on an historically great team.
• As a sophomore, she was a starter on another historically great team.
• At this point, with Rene two years removed from UConn, Tina graduated, and Caroline injured, it was assumed she could take the next step as a player and be a strong second banana to Maya Moore. Again, she showed tantalizing flashes, but the strong second banana role didn't quite materialize. And when Maya didn't get much help in the national semis loss, Tiff as the lone upperclasswoman of the other four starters definitely bore the brunt of fan disappointment, especially in light of poor performances against Baylor and Stanford earlier that year.
• Even though she has improved as a senior, she won't have the Huskies of Honor kind of a career it looked like she might.

In sum, she's not really guilty of anything other than not living up to many fans' expectations of her. But there is an understandable perception that perhaps her career at UConn could have been more than it was. By contrast, Kelly Faris will be adored because the sense will be that she got everything she could out of her ability.

It took me some time, but I came to be at peace with Tiff's career. Maybe her ceiling was exactly what she's doing now: occasionally brilliant, sometimes off and too wound up, always works her tail off. I guess I'd rather she have been occasionally brilliant than never at all, even if it meant she sometimes made me believe that consistent brilliance was within her grasp. In any event, her gifts are hers to do as she chooses, and I can only be a passive observer.

I think this is by far the most accurate assessment of Tiff that I have seen anywhere.

 

[DaddyChoc]

Tiffany Hayes, the freshman!

 

[Sonny44]

Tiffany Hayes, the freshman!

Seeeing that you'd have to predict a can't miss superstar.