The Paige effect

[BlueSkyGLW]

Posted a version of this elsewhere but this is a better home:

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.

In doing so, 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 while she was sidelined, in the role expected of her: playmaker and scorer. 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. The odds are long but one hopes he will get more of Paige that he wants to see as they progress.

The reason he will persist? There are moments when the ball zips around better when Paige is on the floor. Alas, OTOH, there are moments when she doesn't like their positioning and movement, so she redirects causing a pause in the flow. He wants more of the former, less of the latter. She is doing fine on defense. I would guess that her teammates want her with them on the floor as well, hiccups and all for now while anticipating the outcome of Paige being a fast adjuster. Still, not easy coming back from a serious injury.......

Get used to it for the games they play in Bridgeport. 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, though now with a balanced role: playmaker and scorer, given that there are more scoring options, especially having Azzi roaming around to different launching positions. Does he really need to do this to have the best chance for #12? He has the regionals to see the progress he wants while thinking of putting Plan B at the ready.

 

[Superhuskies]

Speaking of Paige....was her....Mom...at Saturday or Monday's game....?
I didn't see her,...but did at all of Mohegan Big East tourney.....

 

[Cornell Lt]

Paige's contributions continue to grow louder with each passing game. I wouldn't be surprised to see her go off for 20+/10 against Indiana

 

[sun]

Regardless of what %% Paige is playing at, it’s a mistake to have this team rely on her to seal victories in upcoming games. It causes what we used to see from time to time. Players standing around watching the Paige show.

More than likely, we are going to have to win some close games if we have a shot at the NC. That means winning the 4th quarter. If the the players think that should be Paige’s job, we are in for a disappointing ending. Time for others to step up at crunch time and bring this thing to a successful ending. Especially the seniors.

And if Paige were sitting on the bench and not playing during crunch time, the wolves would howl
about "Where's Paige?", "Why isn't Paige playing?", "What's wrong with Geno?", "Fire Geno!"

 

[Cuango]

The team was playing well with Paige coming off the bench. It may be asking too much to ask her to play at the high level at which she played last season. What difference does it make who leads the team to the FF? I think trying to get Paige to take over at the risk of hurting team play and chemistry is not good. Continue to give all the players the leeway to make up for mistakes. The team needs the contributions Caroline and Nika are capable of giving. When players who have been benched see players on the floor making the same kind of mistakes and the team is struggling, yet are allowed to stay in the game, that can be a big blow to their confidence. I believe the only thing hindering Caroline is a lack of playing time.

Since it doesn’t make any difference, how about we go with the player that our HoF coach chooses?

 

[hoopsfan22]

Paige's contributions continue to grow louder with each passing game. I wouldn't be surprised to see her go off for 20+/10 against Indiana

We're going to need that Paige to win #12 I think. The team right now is composed of a bunch of solid to very good players, but we need a superstar to emerge to put this team over the top I think.

 

[Cuango]

Paige is not the best guard in the country..she's a good guard ..not great..and certainly not elite like she was last year..This is completly understandable.I really didn't think she'd even be back this year..hopefully next year she'll be the Paige of last year..I just shook my head reading all the posters saying she''ll only need a few weeks to be back like she was..The best example was when Geno called time out late in the game and set up for Paige to make that that 3 point shot..Last year she makes that shot..now I like a lot of people were waiting for Paige to take the game over the other night but it didn't happen
I would like to think that the team now knows Paige is maybe 70% or so of what she was and they can't wait around for her to take over the game..they just have to go back playing like they have been for the last month or so where every game it can be a different high scorer..If they keep playing the terrific defense with the addition of what Paige can bring they have a good shot at making the FF and then it's anyone's game.

While she may not be playing at her usual level right now, you are kidding yourself if you think she’s not the best guard in the country. If there were a draft for college point guards (even now with her not at 100%), it’s almost inconceivable that Paige would not be the first pick!

 

[nastynatty]

I don’t think it’s going to be reasonable to expect Paige to take over games like she has shown she is capable of in the past. Not saying I’d be surprised if she did at some point I’m just not expecting it. The difference between last year and this year is that we now have others who have shown that same capability. Particularly, we have Azzi. Does everyone remember Azzi’s takeover at the end of that Villanova loss that made it a close finish when it was looking like a blowout for about 37 minutes? I think Azzi has shown to be the most capable of emulating Paige’s big-time role from last year. If Paige can contribute like she is now and continue to grow more comfortable, #12 is still very much possible. Azzi is equally capable of taking over a big time game as Paige and I think everyone trusts her to do so. The fact that Paige has immense trust in Azzi to do so takes a lot of pressure off of Paige as well. She can play more freely and closer to her best because she knows her best friend is capable of carrying her previous load.

 

[my2cents]

I read these posts over the last few days, and I must admit, it makes me scratch my head in amazement.
Lets second guess the most successful coach in the history of college basketball as to who plays how many minutes and starts.
If the coaches of the teams we are about to play read these posts, they are cheering the sentiments of "Play Nika more than Paige", "Play a young freshman (CD) vs our seniors, who have played in '"
Our best Offensive players are Paige and Azzi, they will get the majority of the minutes moving forward as they and they alone have the ability to get hot from three's and can blow the game open.
Our Seniors, E and CW will the get more, times as Geno knows they have the most to lose as these games could be last in a UCONN uniform. CD has three more years.
I predict that ONO's mins will be shorter as these games become more physical and she disappears in those types of games. In last years Elite 8 game and national semis, she totaled three points ,TOTAL, in those two games.
We should do a "census", as I really believe a lot of posters on here put "Huskie" in their name but really are fans of other programs and take great pleasure in being negative and seeing us lose.

 

[Jewels]

Speaking of Paige....was her....Mom...at Saturday or Monday's game....?
I didn't see her,...but did at all of Mohegan Big East tourney.....

I looked for her but no sightings near the Fudds or close there by.

 

[donalddoowop]

This should not be about what was but what is. Geno, like any other HOF coach, is not above making mistakes. What difference does it make who it is who takes over the team and leads it to the NC? There are other players on the team who have the ability to do so if given the chance. If Paige is not ready don't try to press her into doing so. She will have to play better than she has shown and that may be asking too much. I just don't want the rest of the players to stand around waiting for her to take over. Up unto now, the players trusted everyone but now there is the danger of them looking too much for Paige to make things happen. Well, I've said my say.

 

[Bama fan]

What you say is true except I don't think we see Uconn shooting 29% in any games forward either

So... Do you mean not that well, or what?

 

[Superhuskies]

I looked for her but no sightings near the Fudds or close there by.

I saw the lady on Sat. and Monday night who was with Mom at Mohegan all BET.... I hope Mom can make it Saturday....

 

[Charliebball]

Paige is not the best guard in the country..she's a good guard ..not great..and certainly not elite like she was last year..This is completly understandable.I really didn't think she'd even be back this year..hopefully next year she'll be the Paige of last year..I just shook my head reading all the posters saying she''ll only need a few weeks to be back like she was..The best example was when Geno called time out late in the game and set up for Paige to make that that 3 point shot..Last year she makes that shot..now I like a lot of people were waiting for Paige to take the game over the other night but it didn't happen
I would like to think that the team now knows Paige is maybe 70% or so of what she was and they can't wait around for her to take over the game..they just have to go back playing like they have been for the last month or so where every game it can be a different high scorer..If they keep playing the terrific defense with the addition of what Paige can bring they have a good shot at making the FF and then it's anyone's game.

the good news is that the rest of the team now knows that they no longer need PB to carry them in order to win.........she's simply a great late season addition that makes the team more complete..........

 

[hoophuskee]

Two missed layups in four minutes doesn’t give me a good feeling of what my coach thinks of me especially after I carried his team for roughly 2 weeks. I guess he forgot about the end of the Depaul game. If he was looking for offenses Caroline has definitely been one of our better options. She should have gotten more playing time in the second half if she continued to struggle than sit her but four minutes in the first half and not see the game again not good

IMO DePaul game has to be put in the past. There is always talk about "2 seasons" so no we need to "revert back?"

She is 9th on the roster. Ninth on the roster has a meaning. And I felt she was scared to death. One consistent thing about her was on that breakaway she blew it- that's part of her bread-and-butter.

I don't think Geno "forgot" DePaul but he has recent memory of the blown very wide layups, her not playing as well since the concussion, the terrific late season play of Evina (who wound up being the 4th player that could fill the pg/sg/sf role), and overall a better feel that sometimes the moment is more apt to get big for freshmen than others. Also knowing that while CD is not the greatest passer.

 

[Kihaze]

Many are questioning Geno’s decison to limit Caroline’s minutes in the UCF game. A poster in a different thread noted that this decision may have been predicated on the fact that UCF is extremely physical and she’s coming off a concussion. A second concussion this soon could end her career and have a serious long term neurological impact. I like to think that Geno has his player‘s long term interests in mind. And forgive me if this thought has already been mentioned in this post.

 

[browns]

While she may not be playing at her usual level right now, you are kidding yourself if you think she’s not the best guard in the country. If there were a draft for college point guards (even now with her not at 100%), it’s almost inconceivable that Paige would not be the first pick!

Sure she would..no doubt about it.. with the expectations she would go back to being the Paige of last year..I'm saying right now the way she is playing she is not the best guard in the country..Clark is way better right now because it was prettty close last year and look at what Clark has done this year..have you even seen the freshman guard from Texas?That young girl is terrific..has carried Texas to the sweet 16..You admit she's not playing at her usual high level..than how can you say she's the best guard in the country? I'm not talking about her play of last year or when/if she gets back to 100%..Right now! She's good but there are a lot of good guards in the country.Maybe come Saturday she'll miraculously be back to the old Paige..that would be great and I'd like nothing better..it would sure give Uconn a better chance of winning it all but when Geno comes out and says his expectations are really low and doesn't feel she'll be back to normal till next year that kind of says it all

 

[Zarathustra]

Regardless of what %% Paige is playing at, it’s a mistake to have this team rely on her to seal victories in upcoming games. It causes what we used to see from time to time. Players standing around watching the Paige show.

More than likely, we are going to have to win some close games if we have a shot at the NC. That means winning the 4th quarter. If the the players think that should be Paige’s job, we are in for a disappointing ending. Time for others to step up at crunch time and bring this thing to a successful ending. Especially the seniors.

I anticipate the fourth quarter will be a Christyn, Evina, and Azzi "prime time" show with
more than adequate highlights from the " The Big Three + Caroline. " A few
gnat bites from Nika are in order also. Will the Hoosiers bring their bug spray? GO HUSKIES.

 

[Jletoile]

While she may not be playing at her usual level right now, you are kidding yourself if you think she’s not the best guard in the country. If there were a draft for college point guards (even now with her not at 100%), it’s almost inconceivable that Paige would not be the first pick!

While that's probably true, it won't help the team Saturday and (hopefully) Monday.

So, right now, she isn't the best guard in the country, imo, nor should she be, considering the injury!

 

[Zarathustra]

Sure she would..no doubt about it.. with the expectations she would go back to being the Paige of last year..I'm saying right now the way she is playing she is not the best guard in the country..Clark is way better right now because it was prettty close last year and look at what Clark has done this year..have you even seen the freshman guard from Texas?That young girl is terrific..has carried Texas to the sweet 16..You admit she's not playing at her usual high level..than how can you say she's the best guard in the country? I'm not talking about her play of last year or when/if she gets back to 100%..Right now! She's good but there are a lot of good guards in the country.Maybe come Saturday she'll miraculously be back to the old Paige..that would be great and I'd like nothing better..it would sure give Uconn a better chance of winning it all but when Geno comes out and says his expectations are really low and doesn't feel she'll be back to normal till next year that kind of says it all

The great Caitlin Clark and her Iowa Hawkeyes are "long gone" .. courtesy of our friends at Creighton: Jim Flanery and
Ms. Jensen. Go Bluejays, beat Iowa State! So... Caitlin is not "way better right now", correct?

 

[sun]

While that's probably true, it won't help the team Saturday and (hopefully) Monday.

So, right now, she isn't the best guard in the country, imo, nor should she be, considering the injury!

Paige doesn't need to be the best.
She only needs to help UConn beat Indiana by using whatever skill & talent that she has in her bag of tricks.
We can all rate each and every UConn player, but it still boils down to Paige being on the floor at crunch time.

 

[my2cents]

Paige is not the best guard in the country..she's a good guard ..not great..and certainly not elite like she was last year..This is completly understandable.I really didn't think she'd even be back this year..hopefully next year she'll be the Paige of last year..I just shook my head reading all the posters saying she''ll only need a few weeks to be back like she was..The best example was when Geno called time out late in the game and set up for Paige to make that that 3 point shot..Last year she makes that shot..now I like a lot of people were waiting for Paige to take the game over the other night but it didn't happen
I would like to think that the team now knows Paige is maybe 70% or so of what she was and they can't wait around for her to take over the game..they just have to go back playing like they have been for the last month or so where every game it can be a different high scorer..If they keep playing the terrific defense with the addition of what Paige can bring they have a good shot at making the FF and then it's anyone's game.

This has to be the all time WRONG post I think I have ever read here.
"She's a good guard?" Good? If she declared for the WNBA draft she would be the number 1 draft pick EASILY.
The people on this board have no clue about how Paige thinks about playing the game.
Her goal is to win the game...WIN, not score the most points. If she took 20 shots a game like her friend from Iowa she would lead the nation in scoring, easily.
The biggest difference from last year, Azzi Fudd. Paige knows that an OPEN Fudd vs her being covered from three, is a better option for the TEAM. She is always looking for her open team mates vs her own shot. Going to the last games 4th quarter, she was 4-6 67% shooting. The three she missed was in/out....a great shot.
We all wish she would take more shots ( Geno's frustration) but she will when she needs too. But since we blow most people out, she doesn't need to that often.

 

[gold2323]

So much analysis….is simple , Paige will be Paige….THE KID is the best….”How dare you”
She hardly has taken many shots but as each round gets tougher she will rise like the NPOY that she still is.
I guarantee you the other teams and coaches are not over analyzing….they fear her….enough said.

 

[Conndog]

I anticipate the fourth quarter will be a Christyn, Evina, and Azzi "prime time" show with
more than adequate highlights from the " The Big Three + Caroline. " A fewI m
gnat bites from Nika are in order also. Will the Hoosiers bring their bug spray? GO HUSKIES.

I might swap Caroline for Evina

 

[BobbyJ]

Many are questioning Geno’s decison to limit Caroline’s minutes in the UCF game. A poster in a different thread noted that this decision may have been predicated on the fact that UCF is extremely physical and she’s coming off a concussion. A second concussion this soon could end her career and have a serious long term neurological impact. I like to think that Geno has his player‘s long term interests in mind. And forgive me if this thought has already been mentioned in this post.

Only problem with your statement is that she didn't have a concussion.

UConn women’s basketball freshman Caroline Ducharme will miss second straight game with head injury

The freshman is unavailable for UConn’s game against Villanova after missing the win...

www.ctinsider.com

 

[browns]

I anticipate the fourth quarter will be a Christyn, Evina, and Azzi "prime time" show with
more than adequate highlights from the " The Big Three + Caroline. " A few
gnat bites from Nika are in order also. Will the Hoosiers bring their bug spray? GO HUSKIES.

I think Dorka could be huge in this game..supposedly she has had some big games against them while at Ohio State

 

[browns]

The great Caitlin Clark and her Iowa Hawkeyes are "long gone" .. courtesy of our friends at Creighton: Jim Flanery and
Ms. Jensen. Go Bluejays, beat Iowa State! So... Caitlin is not "way better right now", correc

This has to be the all time WRONG post I think I have ever read here.
"She's a good guard?" Good? If she declared for the WNBA draft she would be the number 1 draft pick EASILY.
The people on this board have no clue about how Paige thinks about playing the game.
Her goal is to win the game...WIN, not score the most points. If she took 20 shots a game like her friend from Iowa she would lead the nation in scoring, easily.
The biggest difference from last year, Azzi Fudd. Paige knows that an OPEN Fudd vs her being covered from three, is a better option for the TEAM. She is always looking for her open team mates vs her own shot. Going to the last games 4th quarter, she was 4-6 67% shooting. The three she missed was in/out....a great shot.
We all wish she would take more shots ( Geno's frustration) but she will when she needs too. But since we blow most people out, she doesn't need to that often.

Hello? Yes she would be the first person taken in the draft.When she's 100% she's the best guard in the country..she is not even close to 100% right now..The eye test shows that..Geno just said he doesn't expect her to be back to normal till next year. I'm talking right now! And her "friend" from Iowa also led the nation in assists which no woman has ever done. But I guess you want to live in the past or future because anyone watching her play since she's come back can clearly see she's not near what she was..who 's talking about scoring? She can go for 20 plus on Saturday and it still doesn't mean she's as good as she was..BTW how often do you talk to her knowing what she thinks about playing the game and what her goals are..are there any Division 1 players out there that their goal isn't to win
So i'll go what my eyes have shown me and Geno and most other people that have watched her since she came back..Unrealistic to think she could play like she did before the surgery..last year she was the best guard in the country..right now she's not
So if I'm so wrong I guess her coach is also

 

[faithfulfan]

No, we need everyone we have to get back to playing like they were. If you rely on one person and that person has an off night, you are out. The best teams have a balanced attack, the defense never knows who to focus on, because there is no one person who, if shut down, brings their team down with them. Look at Stanford, they are cruising and Haley Jones hardly scored. Everyone else was contributing. We need 10 to 15 points from Liv, CW, Azzi Fudd, AE, and we need 5 to 10 from Dorka, Muhl, CD, EW. That gets us to 70 and lets anything we get from Paige be the bonus that gets us over 80 and a win. and it keeps people from being exhausted in the fourth quarter. If someone keeps getting free and making shots, then yes let them have a big night. We get the shots, we just need to make those layups, the open jumpers, and God yes, the free throws. We needed CW to make those free throws at the end. Good thing with Azzi Fudd we just said after she got foulded, we got 2 points coming, no worry. But remember, PB only made one of 3. That shows she is not fully back yet, as Geno has noted. We can joke about our free throw defense being great against UCF, but if they made a few more free throws, we might be out. Other teams will not be missing that many free throws in the next few rounds.

UCF missed foul shots, UCONN missed 10 layups, its a wash, or if you want, UCONN should have won by 10 more!

 

[faithfulfan]

Hello? Yes she would be the first person taken in the draft.When she's 100% she's the best guard in the country..she is not even close to 100% right now..The eye test shows that..Geno just said he doesn't expect her to be back to normal till next year. I'm talking right now! And her "friend" from Iowa also led the nation in assists which no woman has ever done. But I guess you want to live in the past or future because anyone watching her play since she's come back can clearly see she's not near what she was..who 's talking about scoring? She can go for 20 plus on Saturday and it still doesn't mean she's as good as she was..BTW how often do you talk to her knowing what she thinks about playing the game and what her goals are..are there any Division 1 players out there that their goal isn't to win
So i'll go what my eyes have shown me and Geno and most other people that have watched her since she came back..Unrealistic to think she could play like she did before the surgery..last year she was the best guard in the country..right now she's not
So if I'm so wrong I guess her coach is also

You ignore that tomorrow, or the next day or the next day after that, Isn't Right Now! No one knows how she'll play this weekend, or the next if UCONN advances!

 

[JRRRJ]

In a game like the UCF one, you see who Geno truly trusts in those big moments where it's back and forth or UConn is trying to come from behind. I think blowing bunnies is a quick way to find yourself removed from that list. Some of those layups that Caroline and Dorka missed had to infuriate Geno in a game where points were going to be at a premium.

Dorka played 20 minutes, had 3 points (all on FT) and a few missed bunnies. Evina played 18 minutes, had 0 points and only took 2 shots. Caroline missing those shots is not then a sufficient explanation for her being yanked immediately.