St Johns Postgame Thread | Page 3 | The Boneyard

St Johns Postgame Thread

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Skeets said:
That plus there's a thing called sportsmanship. Geno has to live in a HC community. A good beating is OK, but rubbing the other team's nose in it is unsightly, unless of course it's Tennessee or ND.
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Geno has to prepare his team, not worry about what other teams think of his approach. Azzi isn't playing at her expected level and she was having a good game so he left her in to boost her confidence. To me that is way more important that someone getting their feeling hurt and scoring 10 in the last quarter isn't rubbing it in and Azzi scored zero in the 4th.
 
UConn has three players that they can count on right now, Paige, Azzi and Sarah. To beat SC or make a deep run in the tournament they need Jana to be a factor on defense and the boards and one other longer player to step up. To me they need to figure out what they need on the floor to beat the top teams, not win the Big East. I think they can count on the three to score the majority of the points with offensive help coming off the bench but they are going to need to stop people inside and that is glaring.

SC will be a test that UConn could win but I don't give them much of a chance with the lineup they currently like to play. Sometimes a player can be a good player and still not add to your team's ability to win. A good example of the is Dallas trading for AD. They gave up a better player but they didn't need another scoring guard to be better, they needed size. I think UConn is struggling with that exact thing right now.
 
Rowdy831 said:
You don't sit a player because they might get injured. Right now UConn needs to get in game shape to play better teams. Playing 20-24 minutes in a game simply won't do that and you saw last night what happens when they rely on the bench for scoring.
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You also don't play a star player when the game is well in hand and she is not needed. That is a good time to play your bench. There have been games this season where the UConn bench has outscored the other team's starters, in the BE.
 
DEFCONN1 said:
I watched Jana play in quite a few FIBA games for her national team, including one she injured her achilles (a non contact freak injury). She was clearly the best player on the team. She was mostly a high post player who would bring the ball up court frequently and shoot from 3 pt. land. Her free throw shooting was in the 90% range and a very good rebounder. Rarely was she coached to play the low post. So, in other words, she’s a freshman learning a new position. For all the Jana nay sayers, be patient. She is progressing every game and will be a pleasant surprise in years to come. Oh, and I forgot to mention, she always played with that fiery intensity in her eyes.
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You assume that Jana didn't play the low post in FIBA games because of poor coaching. The more likely reason, I think, is that she did not have teammates who could feed the low post effectively.
 
BRS24 said:
Paige got hurt right before she was due to be subbed out. It may have happened to Azzi too. And years ago, Geno left a player in and she got hurt, maybe vs Syracuse - guard, cannot remember name, wasn't Czel or Farris, but I can see her in my head and she might have written a book. I'm betting that Geno is not ever going to take that chance again.
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Mel Thomas?
 
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Crossover said:
You assume that Jana didn't play the low post in FIBA games because of poor coaching. The more likely reason, I think, is that she did not have teammates who could feed the low post effectively.
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Like her present team.
 
Rowdy831 said:
UConn has three players that they can count on right now, Paige, Azzi and Sarah. To beat SC or make a deep run in the tournament they need Jana to be a factor on defense and the boards and one other longer player to step up. To me they need to figure out what they need on the floor to beat the top teams, not win the Big East. I think they can count on the three to score the majority of the points with offensive help coming off the bench but they are going to need to stop people inside and that is glaring.

SC will be a test that UConn could win but I don't give them much of a chance with the lineup they currently like to play. Sometimes a player can be a good player and still not add to your team's ability to win. A good example of the is Dallas trading for AD. They gave up a better player but they didn't need another scoring guard to be better, they needed size. I think UConn is struggling with that exact thing right now.
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I think we have two players we can count on. And we are hoping this is the start of Azzi becoming player number 3 that we can count on.
 
Stagnant said:
I think we have two players we can count on. And we are hoping this is the start of Azzi becoming player number 3 that we can count on.
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But I hope you see the difficulty. If two of the three (Paige and Azzi for example) combine for 50 points, it’s not so easy for the third one to score in double figures. It’s not just an arithmetic problem. It’s an opportunity limit. But on the plus side, all three of them know how to contribute without scoring a ton. The chance I see for this team is that one or two of the big three will ‘go off’ on a given day and the other one or two will support her and build the rest of the infrastructure for a win
 
msf22b said:
I was somewhat encouraged by the game
Azzi and Griff shined, Paige was solid but still reticent to shoot at times

Jana is improving...but ready for prime time; probably not
Sarah may have hit the wall...perhaps a good time...for the soon to come inevitable bounce back.

Is it enough; better but probably not quite enough for SC, USC, ND et al.
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Glad to see her shoot so well but let’s look at the quality of the team she played against. Can’t compare with Tennessee. During the Tennessee game she at times looked like a deer caught in the headlights. If she plays as well against South Carolin, I’ll be a believer. Let’s see which Azzi shows up on Sunday.
 
donalddoowop said:
Like her present team.
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That's what I'm seeing. She'll be ahead of the pack, wide open, and whoever is bringing the ball up the court either keeps dribbling or looks to a wing. By the time anyone gets around to looking inside, she's mobbed. The potential for Jana would be greatly elevated if the guards caught sight of her as she's nearing her position under the basket, not already camped out. Then she can take advantage of the mobility she's already demonstrated. I think there's an easy 10 points a game being missed from her due to slow reads. Once again, Nika saw that stuff from a mile away and got the ball moving quickly. Those might not be extra points, as the possession still might result in a score, but a quick inside score like that is always demoralizing for the other team.
 
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Best description I have for this game is "efficient." The team played well on both offense and defense although production was not even across the players. Hopefully Azzi and Paige can be this productive against the Gamecocks on Sunday. And they will need a couple of others to produce to help them. Fingers crossed. Past experience for this season in not particularly encouraging, but let's hope this is the game where everything comes together and carries through to the end of the season.
 
oldude said:
Some thoughts on the St Johns game:
  • It's good to see UConn come out with a lot of energy, as they did tonight, pressuring the ball all over the court and attacking the basket on offense.
  • There are clearly times when UConn’s best offense is to just have Azzi spot up anywhere beyond the arc and get her the damned ball. :cool:
  • This past week Geno mentioned that UConn needs to get tougher, and then Nika shows up at the game tonight. Coincidence? I think not!!!
  • I loved Ash’s spin-cycle move in the 2nd qtr. I don’t recall seeing that particular move from Ash before, but it sure was a thing of beauty.
  • While Paige had 5 blocks tonight, I was a little disappointed that we didn’t see a single double-bicep flex in celebration….:(
  • Jana keeps improving…and she plays with an ATTITUDE. I like that she is starting to track down rebounds rather than hoping the ball bounces her way. She’s not there yet. But it’s coming.
  • I really liked Aubrey’s minutes tonight. She had 10 pts, attacked the basket, and was incredibly active with 9 rebounds, 3 blocks, 2 steals and played great defense.
  • BIG GAME coming up on Sunday in Columbia, SC. Can UConn hang with SC’s talent and depth? We shall see……
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Pretty unusual game when the brilliant Sarah registered two points.
 
Bone Dog said:
But I hope you see the difficulty. If two of the three (Paige and Azzi for example) combine for 50 points, it’s not so easy for the third one to score in double figures. It’s not just an arithmetic problem. It’s an opportunity limit. But on the plus side, all three of them know how to contribute without scoring a ton. The chance I see for this team is that one or two of the big three will ‘go off’ on a given day and the other one or two will support her and build the rest of the infrastructure for a win
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Playing well is more than just scoring. I think Paige and Sarah can definitely have good games and not score a lot.
 
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