Stanford over LV

[WestCoastFan]

Am I missing something regarding Russell. There were several times she was guarding Karlie Samuelson at the arc. Why?
She rarely posted up, or boxed out. She did her best to set high post screens. Nice use of a top ranked recruit.
Tennessee looks horrid, and it wasnt the plane ride out.

I feel kinda bad for Russell. She runs up and down the court kinda afraid to touch anyone...always has her hands up like she's apologizing...or afraid of catching something in the air. "Pardon me, excuse me, excuse me, pardon me..."

 

[msf22b]

I watched the 2nd half with open-mouthed astonishment
(missed the first due to a smashing dinner and consulting date),

Amazed at the wide open lanes to the basket generously offered to the Stanford charges by the comatose UTenn "D."
And that for the most part, these bountiful invitations were declined as the Stanford players gaped at yawning gaps, yet turned away from the hoop.

Perhaps, it was incomprehensible to the Cardinal kids that the one of basic tenets of BB;
(stay between your man and the basket), had been forgotten, unlearned, or was disdained by the demoralized UTenn squad.
I've seen more fundamental defense played at the Junior High School level then what Tennessee exhibited last night.

I certainly recall competing more vigorously and knowledgeably at the Jewel Avenue playground (renamed Utopia Playground, 73rd Ave and Utopia Blvd, Flushing Queens), some 60-odd years ago

It is difficult to imagine the Knoxville mob, making any sort of a success of their upcoming SEC season
Their fans are nervously counting on their fingers ...as to whether a 5th, 6th, or 7th-place finish is adequate to generate an invitation to the Spring Ball.

Perhaps not this year.

 

[WestCoastFan]

Didn't get to see much of the game last night, was watching the WNT. But I caught a little of it. Man, TN's offense really did look bad. I'd heard it wasn't good, but wow. My wife, who doesn't really watch WBB other than an occasional UCONN game, asked "why does it look so slow?, are they playing in slo-motion?" Spoiled by UCONN.

It was hard to watch for 4 quarters...felt like 8. Stanford certainly doesn't do itself any favors wearing those horrid red shoes. Makes them look even slower...which is hard to believe.

 

[WestCoastFan]

Since when has Stanford been in the Big 12?

Since Peck does the game.

 

[WestCoastFan]

I find her excuses for Tinnisee's shortcomings on both the offinsive and definsive inds if the court to be a manifistation of her baskitball acumin.

Yeah...what he said!!!

 

[msf22b]

don't think these 2 will fall like ODU or La Tech,

I would have agreed before watching last night's game.
Stanford should be fine with an increase in talent

Tennessee is headed for the garbage pail.
ODU/LA Tech may be a stretch now

 

[WestCoastFan]

And that's the positives for tonight

Still say the best part of the game was when Peck said Warlick has given up coaching the team and is letting them play for themselves. "Now Holly is sitting at the far end of the bench."

If she stops coaching during the games, does she still get a paycheck??

 

[Nuyoika]

I watched the game in its entirety. (Also watched the entire SCar last night as well) I believe this is the third or 4th game of theirs I have watched. Honestly they are "okay" maybe around a 22 to 25 ranked team when they TRY. They have the talent. The problem is most of the time they don't even try. I have never seen a team so bad at setting/using screens in my life. The offense is obviously bad we all know that but it is more than that. No hustle for longer than a 3 minute stretch and no clue what to do the rest of the time. I have said this before and I will say it again. I feel the worst for Graves. I don't know who is responsible for helping Russell but the post coach @ TN needs to help her figure out where she belongs on the court and what she should be doing. I don't think they should play Russell and Graves at the same time. Russell really just ends up getting in Graves way. They need to go 4 out 1 in and work on MOVING on offense and setting screens. If they knew how to get or create shots for people in a position where they could be successful their shooting percentage wouldn't be so terrible. Almost every shot they take during games is difficult and this is against not even good defensive teams how is that possible?

 

[WestCoastFan]

So if Tara had 7 McD AA and Holly 3, what would have been the score?

Final: 7 to 3.

 

[WestCoastFan]

A game played by two horrible teams! Stanford just wasn't as horrible as TN was so they won! Stanford had a 20 point lead then had 5 TO's in a row just to see if TN was awake to make a comeback. While trying to throw the game away Stanford decided to miss about 5 FT's in a row to help TN out but TN is so inept they couldn't even use that to make a comeback!
The refs wanted to show they also were clueless by non-calls, and phantom calls to might-have-been-a-foul calls!

I had nightmares last night!! I won't watch these two again.

 

[huskeynut]

Watched the Texas/ Stanford game and thought Stanford was making progress with the motion offense but not there yet.

Last night showed Stanford is continuing to make progress but they are still missing their reads. They are a top 25 program but not the beast they used to be. I beleive Tara will eventually get them there but not this year.

As to Tennessee - just a horrible mess. If they are running any sort of offense its unrecognizable. A lot of dribbling and a lot of standing around. Graves and Russell were not factors in the game, especially Russell. Shot selection was not good at all. On defense they seem to have no concept of what to do. Wide open drives down the lane, no one stopping the dribble and poor rebounding on both ends. They look like they are going through the motions. And the player rotation has no logic to it. It just looks like substitution for the sake of a substitution. And why is Diamond playing when it is clear she is not even close to 100%? Boggles the mind!

It is said to see such a storied program as Tennessee fall so far. I'm beginning to wonder if they will miss the big dance. If they do, a whole sale change in the entire coaching staff must be in order. But according to Tennessee fans, it looks like the AD is not concerned with the state of the program. Too bad.

 

[Zorro]

The "grind for nine" seems to have ground to a halt.

 

[Bayareahusky]

Mercedes seems to be playing way too soft..... needs to be playing (right LV9) under the basket and not at the perimeter, even Carolyn Peck is yelling for that..... and she needs to play way tougher, run the floor better (I understand her feet are at 100% ...per Mercedes herself).... have an attitude, and box out

 

[Nuyoika]

Mercedes seems to be playing way too soft..... needs to be playing (right LV9) under the basket and not at the perimeter, even Carolyn Peck is yelling for that..... and she needs to play way tougher, run the floor better (I understand her feet are at 100% ...per Mercedes herself).... have an attitude, and box out

Doesn't matter where she is if she has trouble catching the ball....

 

[ochoopsfan]

I certainly recall competing more vigorously and knowledgeably at the Jewel Avenue playground (renamed Utopia Playground, 73rd Ave and Utopia Blvd, Flushing Queens), some 60-odd years ago

When I lived in Flushing I played basketball and touch football in that same park. This was around the early 80's. One spring morning a group of girls came to play us guys. They said they were on the WBB team from St Johns, a few blocks away. They were pretty tough vs a bunch of mid 20-30 year old guys, They only came to the park that one time.

Small world

 

[vtcwbuff]

The "grind for nine" seems to have ground to a halt.

Maybe they meant grind for nine years without a Final Four appearance.

 

[RSHERMVIKES]

It looks like TN's GET UP AND GO HAS GOTTEN UP AND LEFT! Elvis has certainly left the building!
I have no sympathy at all for TN! All the NCAA reporting, nastiness to Maya Moore and her Mom, everything that continues even to today has left me jaded!
No amount of TN humiliating loses could equal that score! I hope Holly Warlick stays HC for 50 years!

 

[UcMiami]

There is absolutely no motion on offense for TN. There is no concept of setting screens for anyone except the ball handler. I have never seen two post players set up on either side of the lane and not move, not set a screen for each other or have a guard come in to set a screen so they can get better position as they switch side to side. It is all one or two person concepts focused on the ball - absolutely, unimaginably, incompetent coaching.

On defense, it is the same thing - no ideas about help defense, defensive rotation, nothing. The principle is completely individual - do not let your man beat you. Do not worry about anyone else on defense. The ONLY time you communicate or change anything is if the offense sets a simple screen - then you switch to a new offensive player, and hopefully the other team hasn't learned this new concept of pick and roll, because we haven't figured out how to defend it yet! And lord help us if anyone knows about back door cuts (one of those underhanded things that evil man in CT invented to embarrass us in that NC game in Philly.)

TN has lived on great talent beating inferior talent and maybe some of that 'aura' of invincibility is still remaining from bygone days, but this coaching staff is bad. I too wonder what happens in practice as I cannot imagine what is being taught or practiced by watching the product on the floor.

 

[msf22b]

Holly as quoted by ESPN

"I think Stanford has a great chance [to be a Final Four team],... WRONG
and I think we have a chance," Warlick said. ... ABSURD
"Look, I think we are a very talented basketball team. .... DEMENTED




But if you aren't going out and competing...you have to be competitive and you have to have energy. Defense is about getting down and getting competitive. And we can do it when we want to.

"It is up to these young ladies to figure out what's important to them. ... STAFF BEARS NO RESPONSIBILITY?

We have to get that hunger and desire. We have to get that. We will get there. We just don't have it right now."

 

[sarals24]

God, I want UConn to play them in the tournament with Stewie, Mo and Morgan. I just feel like we deserve to see it

 

[Nuyoika]

Maybe they meant grind for nine years without a Final Four appearance.

My goodness... brutal.

 

[meyers7]

It is said to see such a storied program as Tennessee fall so far. I'm beginning to wonder if they will miss the big dance. If they do, a whole sale change in the entire coaching staff must be in order. But according to Tennessee fans, it looks like the AD is not concerned with the state of the program. Too bad.

What? It isn't sad nor too bad. It's glorious.

 

[WestCoastFan]

It looks like TN's GET UP AND GO HAS GOTTEN UP AND LEFT! Elvis has certainly left the building!
I have no sympathy at all for TN! All the NCAA reporting, nastiness to Maya Moore and her Mom, everything that continues even to today has left me jaded!
No amount of TN humiliating loses could equal that score! I hope Holly Warlick stays HC for 50 years!

Amen.

 

[toadfoot]

Holly as quoted by ESPN

"I think Stanford has a great chance [to be a Final Four team],... WRONG
and I think we have a chance," Warlick said. ... ABSURD
"Look, I think we are a very talented basketball team. .... DEMENTED




But if you aren't going out and competing...you have to be competitive and you have to have energy. Defense is about getting down and getting competitive. And we can do it when we want to.

"It is up to these young ladies to figure out what's important to them. ... STAFF BEARS NO RESPONSIBILITY?

We have to get that hunger and desire. We have to get that. We will get there. We just don't have it right now."

Watched the replay last night. Ouch! Really hard to watch some of that (both teams). I spent a good deal of time watching DD when she was on the floor and I simply don't see any signs she's injured. What I see is a player who's only interested in playing when she has the ball.
Warlick's postgame presser was hilarious. She's either absolutely clueless or in deep denial (or both). If Tennessee doesn't improve over the course of the season, and I see no signs that will happen, they have a legitimate chance to be on the outs come NCAA tournament time. They could easily be 18-11 or even 17-12 and in 7th or 8th place in the SEC heading into the SEC tournament. An early exit there, which could happen, would probably send them to the WNIT.

 

[msf22b]

Tennessee played 6 guards for significant minutes last night:

DeShields, Nared Carter started

Reynolds, Cooper and Jackson...only the last named had limited minutes (7)

Between the 6 of them they had 38 points on 49 shots (DDS and Nared were the two leading scorers), 6 assists, 7 turnovers

The rest of the team took 14 shots

I imagine its hard to win with those kind of Stats.