Tennessee Postgame thread

[UConnCat]

 

[meyers7]

Still not happy we played this game. But if we're gonna, might as well put a smack down on them and win by 19.

 

[amb3096]

Be thankful that next year Aubrey Griffen, Paige Bueckers, and Caroline Ducharme will join Azzi, Aaliyah, and maybe Dorka for the rematch?

No idea if the series is still on after this season. Hopefully not. This was probably the high water mark for Tenn. Kellie can't recruit. They will be worse next year, and UConn will be better.

Sigh...and the season started off so promising.

 

[Amashutcha]

Also loved Amari's 'that's unfair' after Azzi's 7th trey.

It looked like she said, "She's on fire" but either way the statements are true.

 

[ucbart]

My thoughts:

1. I’ll get to Azzi
2. Finally! Is Tennessee overrated? Yes. Did we come out and play like UCONN? Yes. We’re injured, “going through hell,” and the season has been a monumental struggle. For one game, this game, the puzzle pieces fit together. Is there room for much improvement? Hell, yeah. Is the future bright? Ummmmmm, yup.
3. For all of her January struggles, E bossed that game in the first half. That’s what’s a senior captain does. She was fantastic.
4. Hey, Alliyah! Better late than never, my friend. She was very good in every facet.
5. Jordan Horston is a good mf basketball player who will be a fantastic pro. Her game is tailor made for the W. If she can start hitting 3’s, watch out.
6. Azzi. I won’t lie, I was worried and I can’t wait to see what’s next.

GO UCONN

 

[npignatjr]

One more comment on the game. When UConn was putting the game away in the 4th quarter, there was a transition play when I believe Evina fired a pass ahead to Azzi, who had run the court and was all by herself, behind the arc, on the left wing. As soon as Azzi caught the ball and squared up to shoot, the crowd began to emit a cheer, which built to a loud crescendo as Azzi knocked down her 7th and last 3 of the game. If that didn’t pump you up, nothing will.

#7 was a pass from Nika after she dribbled into the lane and passed back out. Was celebrating the basket before it went in. Great fun reaction from the bench.

 

[AzzisBraids]

This was a really good team win.

UCONN: Good games all around and UConn decided they were not going to lose this game today. Nika and Christyn in the 3rd. Olivia blocking shots. Evina's sneaky probed drives. Even Amari on the bench kept the energy up. Can't wait to see her bring that on the court. Each player made it a point to contribute.

TENN: Jordan Horston was great. Rae Burrell was the focus of this defense and her struggles were a result of that.

Azzi shined in this game and it didn't feel forced. She made all those shots look very easy including the and-one. The more comfortable she gets the scarier. She was a playmaker, a rebounder, a good help side defender, and the knock down shooter and top option.

Her and Paige really are a next level of all around basketball players who do everything really well and have a primary mastery skills. Azzi's is her shooting and Paige is the passer of all passers. Caroline is included as well. Good win on a Sunday, good vibes before the work week

 

[MD#12Fan]

I think she's done a very good job with the players she has.......to all of a sudden want her ridden out on a rail is crazy talk............exactly who do they think they're getting to replace her that could do a better job with that roster? I know there have been complaints about her recruiting but next year they are getting a really good player I've known of for many years named Justine Pissott from Red Bank Catholic in NJ....... she's got a game very much like Caroline Ducharme ......

Would an apt analogy for Harper at Tenn be Jen Rizzotti at UConn after Geno? A gritty, tough point guard leader. What's missing with them as coaches? Obviously competent as heck, their records speak for themselves, and Harper at a higher level.
I think big-time college coaches have to have charisma. (coming out of their ears) DT would have it. Bird, maybe. Coach K was a protege of Bobby Knight. Will be interesting.

 

[JellyBean]

Like many have already stated, WHAT A GAME!! So happy for Azzi! Seeing that smile, her knocking down shots, playing some decent defense, and just sheer joy in her body language, and the presser, was special. Same with Aaliyah. She has been super active these past 2-3 games. Loved the way she has been posting up and being extra aggressive. Her length playing the passing lanes is a huge plus.

Caroline Ducharme- not her best shooting game but she was a pest on defense.

Nika- The Heart of a Husky. Reminds me so much of Mel Thomas. She continues to be that spark. Love her motor!!

Evina- Another Heart of a Husky member. So mature and classy. She played well out there. Looking comfortable in any role, especially with the way the season has gone. Glad that she is on our squad.

Liv-I was very impressed with her. She hung in there with Tamari Key and held her to only 8 points. A hard 8 points. Nothing easy. Well done, Liv

Dorka and Piath- Glad to see them get in the game. Dorka gave us some huge rebounds and her ability to draw the defense allowed players, especially Azzi, to get better looks at the rim. Piath, getting valuable minutes out there on the floor. She is just a joy to watch. Love this young lady. Same with Amari. Love their body language on the bench.

Offensive: We are starting to click. This Tennessee game was the game I really wanted to see how well the team played. Tennessee, on paper, gave the team a challenge. But on the floor, as we saw today, it is a different story. This team is starting to look like the team we envisioned back in the summer. With so many options on the scoring end. Everyone is getting healthy at the right time. Options.

Defensive: I really like our defense. Some of the so called experts say that we are slow on the helpside. Whatever. Our defense looked great today and getting better each game.


Great win, UConn!!

 

[EricLA]

Not to downplay her loss but I thought Green was a backup for Key, and even the Vols fans are questioning how can a loss of Green could have had that much impact on Ten.

I think that is part of it, but as others have pointed out, add to that the chemistry issues that seem to have developed between Burrell and Horston. Both want to be the alpha-vole, and it seems like it's not working out well. Then add in losing a strong post sub off the bench...

In the old days, Pat would have just ripped them a new one. Sadly for Tenn, Harper seems more like a cheerleader-type.

 

[JonathanXIV]

First, I want to acknowledge that I haven’t read every post in this thread and I apologize if my observation has been previously noted. I was at the game today, close to the action (thank you daughters). The impact of Azzi on offense goes beyond the direct contribution of her going 7/9 from 3 (although that is pretty damn significant). The simple threat of her shooting makes a real impact.

Much like Steph Curry, Steph creates a gravitational like pull on the defense. Teams play her tighter when she is away from the basket, creating space for other players. When driving they switch on here quickly, allowing Azzi on multiple occasions today to make a bounce pass to a cutting teammate. And on one off ball screen today, both defenders followed her through the lane, leaving a teammate for a wide open 3.

I think this effect will only increase as teams increasingly focus on Azzi. And multiples again when Paige comes back. With defenses unable to leave either of them room to shoot, there should be lots of space for others to spot up or cut through the lane.

 

[HuskyNan]

No idea if the series is still on after this season. Hopefully not. This was probably the high water mark for Tenn. Kellie can't recruit. They will be worse next year, and UConn will be better.

Sigh...and the season started off so promising.

Because you’re a reasonable, rational LV fan I feel I should say something encouraging but - Tennessee. I will say I feel for you.

 

[uconnfan68]

This was a really good team win.

UCONN: Good games all around and UConn decided they were not going to lose this game today. Nika and Christyn in the 3rd. Olivia blocking shots. Evina's sneaky probed drives. Even Amari on the bench kept the energy up. Can't wait to see her bring that on the court. Each player made it a point to contribute.

TENN: Jordan Horston was great. Rae Burrell was the focus of this defense and her struggles were a result of that.

Azzi shined in this game and it didn't feel forced. She made all those shots look very easy including the and-one. The more comfortable she gets the scarier. She was a playmaker, a rebounder, a good help side defender, and the knock down shooter and top option.

Her and Paige really are a next level of all around basketball players who do everything really well and have a primary mastery skills. Azzi's is her shooting and Paige is the passer of all passers. Caroline is included as well. Good win on a Sunday, good vibes before the work week

The and-1 was a miss… I was shocked.

 

[EricLA]

I generally never bring posts over from other boards, but this was great and not offensive at all to anyone. A LV fan talking about Azzi said "She was so wide open on her 3's that she had time to braid her hair".

Thought that was clever and funny.

 

[Newfie]

Great win today, of course it’s always great to beat Tennessee. I went over just for curiosity and read some of the posts on VolNation. Some of the posts were brutal, but some people here can be equally unkind to our team. I can’t help but think we may be in their shoes when Geno retires. Really tough act to follow a legend, as it has been for Holly and Kellie to follow Pat Summit. Some are already calling for Kellie’s head. For now, I’m so happy for the team, especially Aaliyah, Azzi, Muhl and Evina. They are definitely playing better as a team. Don’t know how we will do come tournament time, but any losses won’t be be due to lack of trying.

 

[Centerstream]

This was a really good team win.

UCONN: Good games all around and UConn decided they were not going to lose this game today. Nika and Christyn in the 3rd. Olivia blocking shots. Evina's sneaky probed drives. Even Amari on the bench kept the energy up. Can't wait to see her bring that on the court. Each player made it a point to contribute.

TENN: Jordan Horston was great. Rae Burrell was the focus of this defense and her struggles were a result of that.

Azzi shined in this game and it didn't feel forced. She made all those shots look very easy including the and-one. The more comfortable she gets the scarier. She was a playmaker, a rebounder, a good help side defender, and the knock down shooter and top option.

Her and Paige really are a next level of all around basketball players who do everything really well and have a primary mastery skills. Azzi's is her shooting and Paige is the passer of all passers. Caroline is included as well. Good win on a Sunday, good vibes before the work week

Work week, what's that? Know your audience.

 

[amb3096]

I generally never bring posts over from other boards, but this was great and not offensive at all to anyone. A LV fan talking about Azzi said "She was so wide open on her 3's that she had time to braid her hair".

Thought that was clever and funny.

Yeah, that was me. And I only said that because one of the posters here has something about her braids as their handle. Stuck with me...

 

[donalddoowop]

Yikes, so many dislikes. I wasn’t intending to be offensive. If I counted correctly, the Vols lost 10 games last year (Including NCAAs). My point was that they didn’t bring in any big time recruits, so why would they expect to be vastly improved? I wasn’t knocking the UConn win, but it does seem the Vols we’re playing above their talent level until recently. Apologies to anyone I offended.

You were right about Tennessee playing above their head. Also, some of their competition, although ranked at the time, were overrated, such as Texas. They would have lost at least four more games if the other team's offense did not shut down late in the fourth quarter. There may be parity this season but not many elite teams. Some of the teams in the top 10 are not as strong as top 10 teams in years past, including UConn. However, when UConn gets all their players back, they should be an elite team. The same can be said for some other teams. The virus has weakened some teams that would otherwise be really strong, imo.

 

[Notyetready]

Oldude = faulty memory

I would criticize you but I can’t remember what you said.

 

[amb3096]

You were right about Tennessee playing above their head. Also, some of their competition, although ranked at the time, were overrated, such as Texas. They would have lost at least four more games if the other team's offense did not shut down late in the fourth quarter. There may be parity this season but not many elite teams. Some of the teams in the top 10 are not as strong as top 10 teams in years past, including UConn. However, when UConn gets all their players back, they should be an elite team. The same can be said for some other teams. The virus has weakened some teams that would otherwise be really strong, imo.

Texas beat Stanford. I think it's less that they are overrated and more that they are inconsistent.

As for my LVs...I don't know what to say. Obviously, the season hasn't been easy. They've had to come back to win in the 4th quarter more times than I can remember. I guess I can chalk it down to effort. They outrebounded opponents badly and played really good defense, and that masked their complete trainwreck of an offense. Because no matter how inefficient their offense was, their defense made their opponents look even worse. They even did that to Stanford. The defense has collapsed the last 4 games, and as a result, they haven't been able to compensate with better offense. Someone called them a paper tiger, and I think that's probably the best description. They weren't the 4th best team in the country, but played above their weight to get that ranking and now it's starting to all come undone unfortunately.

 

[BBallF]

The best part about this victory, as you savor it and think prospectively about it, is what didn't happen. CW did not have a good game at all, Liv had a decent floor game but was not a factor on the offensive end and Caroline did not play. Yet it was a crush and one that was generated from the start by the defense which can be a constant every game, unlike, for example, 3 point shooting for CW.

It is a new team now, with a whole new offensive dynamo out there in Azzi, a reborn Evina, a resurgent AE, and a whole lot of energy and emotion. More than anything, watching them revel in their victory and enjoy the moment was very cathartic, especially with what they have had to go through this year.

Sure, there are always notes about the players and plays, but right now it is about the fact that we needed this win as a team and we got it in a very demonstrative way. We still have a month of games left before the Big Dance and I assure you we are only going to continue to get even better. February is our month, finally.

 

[TeamFirst!]

I think we should call Azzi "Elmer" because after she shoots it's "That's All Folks"!