Stanford 11 straight Sweet 16’s

[shizam]

Tara has done a nice job turning this team around from the beginning of the season.
UConn 25 straight Sweet 16’s. All glory to Geno.

 

[Wbbfan1]

Stanford was 6 - 5 after their first 11 games. If you had told me then that they would easily make the Sweet 16 I wouldn't have believed you. I watched some of their early games and they looked horrible as a Basketball team. They ended up with a 24-10 record and now in the Sweet 16. They'll give Louisville fits.

 

[Bronx23]

Yes it's very impressive and not surprising being Tara is one of the very great coaches of all time. Probably just a bit below Geno and Pat.
And yes I think they will give Louisville fits and it's possible they will even win.
Actually I would rather play Louisville than Stanford. Even though Jeff is a very good coach he is not yet, or maybe ever, at that level.
We would beat both but Louisville won't even make it a competitive game, like earlier in the season.
Bronx23

 

[Fairfield Fan]

Yes it's very impressive and not surprising being Tara is one of the very great coaches of all time. Probably just a bit below Geno and Pat.
And yes I think they will give Louisville fits and it's possible they will even win.
Actually I would rather play Louisville than Stanford. Even though Jeff is a very good coach he is not yet, or maybe ever, at that level.
We would beat both but Louisville won't even make it a competitive game, like earlier in the season.
Bronx23

Be careful what you wish for.

Tara is a very fine coach. But I believe that Walz is a better coach. Indeed, he is probably the top of the next generation of great coaches. What he did in his early years with little acclaimed talent is amazing. How he got Shoni Shimmel to morph into a top point guard, dealing with her attitude that often was difficult, is amazing. And now that he's recruiting top talent, he's turning those talented players into an excellent team.

Geno once said that Muffet McGraw is to him what he was to Pat Summit- the next big thing and biggest competitor. But I might suggest that Walz is Muffet's Geno Auriemma. He's that good.

But he's no Geno Auriemma.

 

[bags27]

Both Tara (6-5) and Muffet (so many injuries and then that incredible blow-out by Louisville) faced the abyss, didn't panic, righted their ships, and got their kids competitive. There is no substitute for decades of experience.

 

[UcMiami]

Tara is an impressive coach and Stanford is a 'frightening' opponent if she has a week to prep for your team because she will have a plan A and B and maybe C. That said, Jeff is pretty good this time of year as well - he took Louisville to two NC games against the odds, and I think Louisville this year is just too good and Stanford just doesn't have enough.

 

[Fairfield Fan]

How many Sweet Sixteen's (at least) in a row is it for UConn? I recall that even at the low point of the program the year after D left, UConn made it to the Sweet Sixteen and almost to the Elite Eight.

 

[cabbie191]

Stanford was 6 - 5 after their first 11 games. If you had told me then that they would easily make the Sweet 16 I wouldn't have believed you. I watched some of their early games and they looked horrible as a Basketball team. They ended up with a 24-10 record and now in the Sweet 16. They'll give Louisville fits.

Actually, it was worse - they started the season 6-6. Granted that all but one of these losses were to ranked teams but they also lost to Western Illinois, at home!

I saw the Stanford/UConn game which put them at 0-2 with both losses being by 20+. Tara walked by me on the way to the locker room after the game and I've rarely seen a coach so dejected/agitated. So I find their turn around unexpected and I give her all the credit in the world, as well as the players, for their resilience and turning the season around.

 

[Fairfield Fan]

How many Sweet Sixteen's (at least) in a row is it for UConn? I recall that even at the low point of the program the year after D left, UConn made it to the Sweet Sixteen and almost to the Elite Eight.

A reporter after the Q game answered the question: 25 straight years going to the Sweet Sixteen or higher.

 

[LoTrader]

Stanford was 6 - 5 after their first 11 games. If you had told me then that they would easily make the Sweet 16 I wouldn't have believed you. I watched some of their early games and they looked horrible as a Basketball team. They ended up with a 24-10 record and now in the Sweet 16. They'll give Louisville fits.

They will give Louisville fits. Louisville will not dominate the boards. Stanford is BIG. Stanford plays lock down defense. Stanford is confident. I believe this will be an excellent match up.

 

[willtalk]

Be careful what you wish for.

Tara is a very fine coach. But I believe that Walz is a better coach. Indeed, he is probably the top of the next generation of great coaches. What he did in his early years with little acclaimed talent is amazing. How he got Shoni Shimmel to morph into a top point guard, dealing with her attitude that often was difficult, is amazing. And now that he's recruiting top talent, he's turning those talented players into an excellent team.
.

His coaching ability is a different matter, but he never ever got control over Shoni Shimmel. You just had to check out their forum to get a clue how frustrated their fans were in that regard. She pretty much did what ever she wanted and when she was on they won, but when she was not they lost to teams the should have beaten because she was out of control. If he really had influenced her it would have carried over into her attitude and work ethic into the pros.

 

[LoTrader]

They will give Louisville fits. Louisville will not dominate the boards. Stanford is BIG. Stanford plays lock down defense. Stanford is confident. I believe this will be an excellent match up.

The PAC 12 has an interesting mix of styles. I would put UO & UCLA in the same "style", get up and down the court and not worry too much about the shot clock. I would put OSU & Stanford in the same "style". Defense first, well run offensive sets, and conscious use of the shot clock. Both OSU and Stanford have picked up their offense over the course of the year (meaning scoring more points), but very typical for both OSU & Stanford to win a game when scoring in the 60s.

Stanford won't have a problem with Louisville's style, as the PAC 12 has conditioned them to a wide variety. Stanford (Tara) will be able to adapt on the fly to anything Louisville throws at them. I'm predicting that Stanford will be playing the winner of Baylor & OSU.

 

[Carnac]

Actually, it was worse - they started the season 6-6. Granted that all but one of these losses were to ranked teams but they also lost to Western Illinois, at home!

I saw the Stanford/UConn game which put them at 0-2 with both losses being by 20+. Tara walked by me on the way to the locker room after the game and I've rarely seen a coach so dejected/agitated. So I find their turn around unexpected and I give her all the credit in the world, as well as the players, for their resilience and turning the season around.

Their last two losses were to Oregon during the Pac-12 conference tournament finals by 20 points, and Cal on the road by 12.
They can be beat. Don't count the Cardinal out too quickly though, they do slay giants. They knocked out #1 seed Notre Dame last year in the Lexington regional final to advance to the final four. It would not surprise me if they beat both Louisville and Baylor this weekend. They're resilient like that. It would be a very tall order, but I would not bet against it. She has the ability to motivate her teams to play their best basketball of the season in March.

 

[DefenseBB]

A reporter after the Q game answered the question: 25 straight years going to the Sweet Sixteen or higher.

The even more remarkable aspect is only twice (1999/2005) in the 25 years has UConn lost in the S16 to not advance to the Elite 8...woe is the person that follows Geno...

 

[MilfordHusky]

As part of Stanford’s streak, they also had the third longest streak in the Final Four (5, tied with LSU). Tara is an excellent coach. Having players like Nneka certainly helped.

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

Be careful what you wish for.

Tara is a very fine coach. But I believe that Walz is a better coach. Indeed, he is probably the top of the next generation of great coaches. What he did in his early years with little acclaimed talent is amazing. How he got Shoni Shimmel to morph into a top point guard, dealing with her attitude that often was difficult, is amazing. And now that he's recruiting top talent, he's turning those talented players into an excellent team.

Geno once said that Muffet McGraw is to him what he was to Pat Summit- the next big thing and biggest competitor. But I might suggest that Walz is Muffet's Geno Auriemma. He's that good.

But he's no Geno Auriemma.

I think Walz is a better recruiter; Tara is a better coach. If Tara had spent all these years coaching at a big state U, such as UCONN or SC, she probably would have had slightly better recruiting and more wins.

 

[shizam]

Be careful what you wish for.

Tara is a very fine coach. But I believe that Walz is a better coach. Indeed, he is probably the top of the next generation of great coaches. What he did in his early years with little acclaimed talent is amazing. How he got Shoni Shimmel to morph into a top point guard, dealing with her attitude that often was difficult, is amazing. And now that he's recruiting top talent, he's turning those talented players into an excellent team.

Geno once said that Muffet McGraw is to him what he was to Pat Summit- the next big thing and biggest competitor. But I might suggest that Walz is Muffet's Geno Auriemma. He's that good.

But he's no Geno Auriemma.

L’Ville played lousy basketball the last two years before this one. They couldn’t beat anyone but lesser teams for the most part finishing way below their projected preseason rankings. Finally, this year the team starts playing watchable basketball with some really nice moments . Good job.

 

[shizam]

I think Walz is a better recruiter; Tara is a better coach. If Tara had spent all these years coaching at a big state U, such as UCONN or SC, she probably would have had slightly better recruiting and more wins.

I think you may be right Tara being stronger coach and Walz better recruiter. It’s nice to see L’ville playing better this year though. I think they’ll beat Stanford.

 

[shizam]

They will give Louisville fits. Louisville will not dominate the boards. Stanford is BIG. Stanford plays lock down defense. Stanford is confident. I believe this will be an excellent match up.

Tall and long reach players are hard to handle for Hines-Allen getting her shot off. Duke blocked 4-5 of her shots. Hines Allen can be beast mode or on occasion invisible. I think she’ll do ok. It’s Durr who you have zero idea what you’re going to get. She can be surprisingly mentally fragile lately. I think she’ll do ok. It’s the teams with fast smart team defense that can get in her head.

 

[cockhrnleghrn]

I think you may be right Tara being stronger coach and Walz better recruiter. It’s nice to see L’ville playing better this year though. I think they’ll beat Stanford.

It should be a good game. I expect it to be close.

 

[shizam]

His coaching ability is a different matter, but he never ever got control over Shoni Shimmel. You just had to check out their forum to get a clue how frustrated their fans were in that regard. She pretty much did what ever she wanted and when she was on they won, but when she was not they lost to teams the should have beaten because she was out of control. If he really had influenced her it would have carried over into her attitude and work ethic into the pros.

Shoni had her moments for sure but all in all the fans loved her and Lville program benefited tremendously during her 4 years. She was way overweight the first half of her junior year and it hampered the team. Walz dealt with it head on suspending her, she straightened out and they went on to the championship game vs UConn. It did cost them the KY game and probably a few more earlier in the year.