Stanford Postgame Thread

[hookshot]

I love you Sifaka, but rightly or wrongly, I think differently. What she didn't say was how that physicality affected her teams gameplay, nor the fact that Brink had so much difficulty getting off her shot. She did say that Brink was knocked down a few times, but in reality Liv wasn't the real physical one, but it was AE that was the bruiser inside. So she misidentified the real culprit. She also failed to mention that Geno pressed her wings and guards hard on the perimeter forcing them to dribble inside, which is not their game. As I mentioned, Geno stifled their high and low split screens into spit which made them run down the clock and take long contested shots. They really lost for two reasons 1) Because their vaunted 3 point game and outside shooting, was stifled. Lexi Hull was 2-12, and Tara said that her shooting, indeed the entire teams, was merely off tonight. 2) They also lost because Tara got out coached. Whenever UConn went small Tara's substitutions failed to take advantage of their height advantage inside and on the wing. How about running that little punch off that chin offense inside and post up against Nika or CW, or Evina?

Tara said that getting the ball inside was emphasized at half every timeout but was easier to say than execute - poor coaching or pressure defense ? - either way, they didn't get it done. Brink getting 3rd and 4th fouls on consecutive plays didn't help - she has been prone to doing that.

 

[jazz]

The operative word here is ‘huge’ because we made and even gave up so many huge plays!

Too bad I predicted an extra 10 points for each team, otherwise I would have gotten the final score perfect. Ok that is a stretch but heyho…

I thought we made Stanford play a bit faster in their half court than maybe they are used to. As a result, they missed a lot of shots. They were a bit off as well.

EW had a tough assignment with Belibi and Jones. Too bad CD isn’t ready to play tough defense against players like this, or at least GA doesn’t think so. EW got beat for 6 points over a two-minute stretch in Q2 but also put up 9 on threes which were huge! She also gave up points in the second half fairly consistently as well. The late FTs she hit were huge though. The TOs were also huge..

AE played huge. She is like a ‘mini boston’ on the glass. The Rbs were absolutely beast-mode and none better than the ORB at 1:26 giving a possession that culminated in hitting 2 FTs to give us an 8-point advantage. Took a huge charge at 1:04 giving us another possession. Possessions are something I pay close attention to because it does two things: keeps the other team from scoring and gives us another scoring opportunity. It’s like a ‘double whammy’ to the other team – deflates the hell out of them as well.

Speaking of possessions, the Queen of possession is NM. She gave us a couple extra ones (many more if you count the rebounds against taller players) and had to play defense against a player 4 inches taller than her. If you don’t think that is really difficult, then you have never had to do it. Think of how great it is for a coach to trust a 5’9 player to guard somebody 6’1.

18 minutes of work and gave up 2 points on defense. Had an incredible number of rebounds for the smallest player on the court – must have approached 8-10 rebounds. She defines the word tough! GA must like her given that she played so many minutes. Yes, she missed the FT and now I will say this is concerning. But at least she got to the FT line to begin with! The stroke looked good though, unlike the last two. I still think she shoots closer to 70% than she does to 25%.

With NM in the game were outscored Stanford by 6, which is really huge, especially when you consider we won by 5.

We hit 16 of 20 FTs and that was huge. Equally as huge was the roughly 20 TOs we had, none worst than the late ones against and two by EW. PB was not very good in this area either. She must have had a half dozen herself.

Liv was huge defensively and on the boards as well. She had trouble finishing at times, but she played well enough.

The switching on defense has really improved during the tournament. I would say that this is a pretty good defensive team. Nothing really easy.

CW played ok at best and for a senior with so many expectations, that is just not good enough. Defense was really good. She just can’t seem to hit enough shots, but she hit some big FTs late and the 3 in the 4th was huge as well. It would be nice if she could just finish the season and her career with a HUGE game against SC and not just an ok or solid game. She will have her opportunity. We don’t beat SC unless CW has a huge game. She needs to hit big shots all game and get to the basket.

PB was solid not great and didn’t play nearly as well as I thought she might. SC length was a problem. I’ve never seen a team so long at every position on the floor. This caused roughly 8 of our TOs alone. PB still hit some really tough shots and we wouldn’t be here without her. Even if she doesn’t go for 20 plus, she creates great opportunities for others…EW took advantage of those opps in Q2 – great for her and us! CW needs to do the same and more often and consistently against SC.

was huge on offense two times and the FTs were huge, but she was also huge screwing up at times as well. Her defense can be really spotty. She missed way more than she hit, but I’m going to be bullish and say she will hit more than she misses against SC. She gets shots, thanks to PB and NM, but she needs to drain them. She has a sweet midrange that she can use when teams overplay the 3 as well.

Bring on SC. Uconn wins 67-66 with a last second 3 from…..CW to end her career. Wouldn’t that be….HUGE!!!

By the way, is there a rift with Tara and GA? They dont seem very friendly at the hand shake line...

 

[GoCardinal]

You never said UConn matched up just fine with Stanford, you said they matched up just fine with Oregon. That aside, thanks for the nice congrats. I knew going in that at least one of the UConn guards would kill you guys, and this time it was Evina Westbrook with her timely three’s and quick hands on defense, and her jumping ability on a couple of rebounds. CW also had a couple three’s. A lesson for Tara, when fouling in the closing minutes and hoping UConn misses at the charity stripe, don’t foul Azzi Fudd. I thought both Hull sisters could have been a little more aggressive on defense. Prechtal really impressed me, Tara should have played her more, could have been a difference maker. I also thought that both Edwards and Ono, though not dominant, were steady all game and together they helped a lot in getting the win.

No, I said UConn matchups up fine and compared the type of matchup problems they’d give us to what Oregon did. Last night’s game was extremely similar to the rock fight we had with Oregon later in the season. You took that as a dig because Oregon disappointed this season despite the talent they have. Below is the comment I made straight from the other thread.

“I think UConn matches up fine. I see them as comparable to Oregon, who gave us a lot of problems each time.”

We did exactly what I said we’d do. Force UConn to beat us from the perimeter. We did that and neither team shot well. We put up way too many 3s instead of feeding Brink in the post. UConn’s defense played a part, but we didn’t help ourselves by making adjustments either.

 

[housekeys]

Normally, Geno saves all of his time outs until the end of the fourth quarter. Geno did something he rarely does in last night’s game. He called a time out early in the third quarter. Does anyone know what that was all about?

Just commented about this. It was right after Prechtel entered the game and hit a 3. I sensed it was to adjust for a tall "kid" who can step out and knock down 3's.

 

[Los24]

It's pretty common at this point in the season. Tara's team just lost a tough game. There wasn't going to be many pleasantries.

Not case with NC State game

 

[jazz]

I thought she was pretty much spot on in all her comments, and was echoed by Geno who said Uconn (despite their good defense) needed some help from Stanford to get a win - and, they got that help. To say that Stanford had some uncharacteristic results offensively, is not to deny that Uconn played tough defense or lessened the overall effort of Uconn, which she cited some examples of.

I agree but something that gets lost is that uconn didnt play great offensively either.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Yes, I noticed both. In the in-game interview with Holly, Tara was critical of her team and gave no credit whatsoever to the UConn defense for their offensive woes. I'd wondered if something had happened -- some comment Geno had made that had maybe POed her. Then the brusqueness after the game. Contrast that with the way Geno and Wes greeted each other after Monday's game.

This goes way back. Tara is part of the girls club that believes men have no business coaching women.

 

[jazz]

FACT. When things were looking like they could turn Stanford's way E and Nika were as good as you could reasonably ask for. Geno has said on several occasions that no one has to do more than what they have shown they can do in the past. Just be great at what you do. They are two prime examples.

E's points we absolutely crucial and timely. Her 6 rebounds were icing on that offensive performance.

Nika snuffed Stanford possessions 6 times in her 17.5 minutes, once with a steal. She also grabbed 3 O-Rbs, presenting UConn with a total of 9 new possessions... in 17.5 minutes! You can feel her energy in the game.

I am thrilled that you recongise NMs contributions. keep in mind she is by far the smallest player on the floor as well.

 

[jazz]

She just said she likes Geno in the pre-game press conference. Like what more do people want? Hugs and kisses at the buzzer when her team just lost a tough game? And I thought our expectations for our own team were ridiculous.

do you expect her to say, 'no i really dont like GA. he kicks my ass every time we play!' ????

 

[jazz]

this brought back flashbacks of other times with the same quick no look handshake between the two...cant remmber when it was though.

 

[housekeys]

This morning I'm wondering whether AE (and others) might be able to draw offensive fouls on her. She bulls into the lane. Risky but perhaps...

Re: Boston, she is a talented big girl. There are untalented big girls where I can see them "bulling" into the lane. But I don't think that applies to Boston as much as opposing fans say it does. Of course, no one is perfect and sometimes she does foul, but overall Boston is just big and talented.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

Yes, I noticed both. In the in-game interview with Holly, Tara was critical of her team and gave no credit whatsoever to the UConn defense for their offensive woes. I'd wondered if something had happened -- some comment Geno had made that had maybe POed her. Then the brusqueness after the game. Contrast that with the way Geno and Wes greeted each other after Monday's game.

That was no surprise, they do not like each other. Goes back many years. TV never appreciated Geno dominating a womens game, she’s cordial but where UConn is concerned, down right snotty. TV as the Olympic team head coach, refused to give Lobo, the reigning NPOY, any significant PT, at the 96 Olympics, and don’t think Geno doesn’t remember that.

 

[hoopsfan22]

do you expect her to say, 'no i really dont like GA. he kicks my ass every time we play!' ????

I'll leave you with this infamous Geno quote on the subject:

"Sometimes we act like girls, like we're supposed to go to dinner every night. We're supposed to play each other, try to beat each other's brains in, try to win a national championship and compete like hell, Muffet and Geno. And then we're supposed to get together afterwards and go have a bottle of wine? That s--- is just not going to happen."

 

[jazz]

She refers to Liv as Nelson-Odi...

doesnt really matter. uconn wins anyway. and it isnt like we played great either on offense, we had many open shots and missed.

 

[mbr33ct]

Perhaps something to this I don't get - but at that point isn't an uncontested layup worth more than time off the clock with the attendant risk of a turnover?

You seem to have answered your own question, IMO it was a risky pass to begin with, the Stanford players especially the player going into the paint area made Evina throw the pass further under the basket and frankly I don't know if it would have been an uncontested layup. With 30 seconds left and UConn with 27 seconds on clock, the best Evina could have done there was to just pull it back or keep dribbling under the basket and back out until they foul her. Regardless it worked out in the end.

 

[jazz]

Desipte room, CW shot 3/13 and 2/6. The 2 of 6 is deceptive becuase one more hit is 50%. She needs to knock down the open shot and we know she can becuase she played very well down the stretch. I am hoping those 2 big FTs she hit will increase her confidence.

EDIT: Oh, and more Nika!!!

unfortunately CW is shooting closer to 25% in the tournament from 3. She isn't a great shooter, despite playing a position that usually is a great shooter, but I do expect her to shoot better than 25% and despite the multiple game and large sample size, I think she is a better shooter than that. Maybe she breaks out against SC...hopes so because we dont win if we get another game like this from CW.

 

[jazz]

Not when UConn was shooting three’s or short jumpers. I thought they gave too much room to Westbrook and CW, as a matter of fact, I remember TV yelling at them to keep their hands up in their faces. They defended Paige well, but she still managed 14 points. Both girls are tall and quick, they will learn though. Felt bad for them after they ran off the court in tears.

they played off of EW and CW to help if PB gets by her man against the Foul line pull-up. It was a great game plan by Tara and almost worked....but. this aint horse-shoes!

 

[jazz]

OK, I'll probably get demerits from Nan, but here goes. Why do so many people think Tara is "classy"? Please post some evidence of this. I have not seen very much class. I am still bent out of shape over Tara refusing to play Rebecca in the Olympics. I am convinced it was to spite Geno and UConn. Very Classy Tara...

i agree...bring the demerits on.

 

[npignatjr]

This morning I'm wondering whether AE (and others) might be able to draw offensive fouls on her. She bulls into the lane. Risky but perhaps...

The NCAA has a rule Boston is foul proof.

 

[jazz]

LOL...When Dorka went down, do you think Geno decided, "Don't worry. We'll get Nika to grab some rebounds."?
Muhl wound up with EIGHT boards, most of them contested against much taller players.

funny stuff. GA secret rebound weapon!

NM does what we needs to be done, almost every time. She has the heart of a lion and shows it every single time she plays. We were 6 pts up when she played. This is the same situation every game. We always outscore our opponents when she is playing. Terrific game that many may not talk about.

 

[eebmg]

Bring on SC. Uconn wins 67-66 with a last second 3 from…..CW to end her career. Wouldn’t that be….HUGE!!!

So Paige may be busy both celebrating with her teammates and consoling Boston after the game.

 

[psconn]

Not case with NC State game

Although if you watch that sequence after the game ends where Geno is getting all huggy with Wes Moore, Wes isn't saying much and kinda looks at Geno like he's looking at a bug crawling up his shirt sleeve.

They're buddies, I guess, but that is a tough time to be gracious when your season just ended in a significant upset. These coaches are highly competitive people. They wouldn't be coaching in these games if they weren't.

 

[amishboy]

CW played ok at best and for a senior with so many expectations, that is just not good enough. Defense was really good. She just can’t seem to hit enough shots, but she hit some big FTs late and the 3 in the 4th was huge as well. It would be nice if she could just finish the season and her career with a HUGE game against SC and not just an ok or solid game. She will have her opportunity. We don’t beat SC unless CW has a huge game. She needs to hit big shots all game and get to the basket.

++++++++!

 

[jazz]

Good points about Evina... I'll just note that, as a commentator later said, that late pass to Christyn was intended to hit her as she cut to the basket, but she cut off her path and it made Evina's pass look bad.

The thing is, she didnt need to pass the ball. same with the last game although that pass was a little higher on the 'need to' list given the limited options. but yeah, if CW continues she catches the ball and hopefully she dribbles it out bc she might get it blocked as well.

 

[hookshot]

She refers to Liv as Nelson-Odi...

Nelson-Odi awakened to put a hurt on her