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Message: [QUOTE="BlueSkyGLW, post: 4255838, member: 11281"] Hmmm.....OK, that's a good stance since Coach will decide anyway.....as he sees fit. In an interview with SNY after the Mercer game, Paige did say that Coach and she agreed for her to start - I assume her part was to assure him that she was fit enough and mentally ready. Since the Coach seems to have initiated this move, I can only surmise that he was thinking of getting her ready for the later stages of the tournament where he believes she is needed to have a better chance at winning the NC. So, conditioning her in this role earlier prepares her better and starting to do that with easier opponents balances the downside before she gets there. He is trying to give his best weapons (Paige, Azzi) a chance to be their best.....and that means, get Paige caught up playing with her teammates who have grown when she was sidelined, in the role expected of her. Not easy in the short run of games that was left when she returned. So, he is giving her as much chance to get there. If she doesn't, he will have to think of a different solution (on the fly), including putting Nika back in as a starter (which I seriously doubt will happen and, given his history with Paige, he will be slow to substitute her as well). This is what Coaches do: figure out a way for their best players to play their best when the team needs them most. Get used to it for the rest of the games they play. I believe they will get to the FF but Stanford is a harder team to beat than South Carolina without Paige being Paige of last year with now a balanced role: playmaker and scorer, given that there are more scoring options, especially with Azzi with her. That is one of the things he must prepare for to get to #12. [/QUOTE]

Verification: First name of men's bb coach

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