This game will say a lot and I consider it a must win

[Replicant]

A win would mean added pressure and ridiculous press hype leading into the Baylor game.

That's the good kinda pressure and hype that the program has thrived on, and handled masterfully for almost 2 decades now.

I'll take another big old serving of pressure and hype, please!

 

[easttexastrash]

A loss against Stanford would take the pressure off of UCONN a bit, but could also hurt their confidence. Players go to UCONN for the pressure of being number 1 and I suspect that the team would thrive on being top dog again.

If UCONN wins and UCONN and Baylor are 1 and 2 going into the February game, it will be one of the biggest non-tournament games in years (since UCONN vs. Tenn). WCBB needs more matchups like this. Mulkey previously said that she would like a home and away series with UCONN each year. It's too bad that this year could not have been a year when that happened.

 

[Tonyc]

I keep reading all these posts where UConn fans are worried about todays game. Preseason everybody was saying it was UConn and Baylor and everybody else. What has changed? What makes a Nneka-less Stanford better then UConn with its fab freshman class and the emergence of BB? Who for Stanford is going to pick up Nnekas 25 pts from last season? The fans? The refs? I dont think so. I think to calm everybody down you need to ask yourself, how can Stanford outscore UConn? They cant, to many weapons. Will Chiney their top player score 35 pts and pull down 25 rebounds? No Maybe Im wrong but I just dont see it happening.

 

[EricSD]

I hate losing and I dont think losses are good losses for this team. Baylor has Simms and Griner. We have KML Hartley Breanna Stewart BB Kelly and all can put up alot of points. They can all put up as many points as Chiney. Now we have to slow Chiney down and even if we dont I think we win because Stanford has to slow down everybody at UConn. It s simple. Stanford IMO cant keep UConn under 80 and Stanford cant score 80 againest UConn unless, there are injuries and or phantom calls and even then with our bench we can put up alot of points.

Alot of this may be hype and because its at Maples. We have to may scorers who can put up big numbers. They dont.

I agree with some of what you said but disagree with the 80 point benchmark. UCONN didn't even get to 70 against PSU or Maryland. Sure it was without Bria at 100%, but UCONN will be still fighting the injury bug and i'd be very surprised if we get to 70 against a Stanford team i think is better than Maryland or PSU.

Additionally we are playing AT Stanford in a small venue with hostile fans. Breanna didn't do well with the physical way she was played against PSU. She's only a freshman. Has she learned quickly enough? Kiah's still out. Morgan is coming back from an injury. I'd love to see a 15-20 point win with UCONN getting in the high 70's or low 80's. I don't think that's going to happen tho...

You asked what has changed since the start of the season feelings that it was UCONN and Baylor light years ahead of everyone else? Baylor lost to stanford (granted they only had Simms for 5 minutes in that game). UCONN had 2 games against teams barely in the top 10 that were way closer than fans ever thought they'd be. UCONN simply has not proven it's THAT much better than the rest of the legit top 10 teams out there.

And I think Stanford is appreciably better than PSU or Maryland, and i think they will be equally as physical in disrupting UCONN's offense.

 

[Vowelguy]

I'm guessing it originates from a widely held perspective that the competition will be weaker next year (BG graduation) and/or that UConn will be a vastly improved team next year.

I dont know if UConn will be better next year or not. But BG wont be around. Griner is that rare player who completely changes the game offensively and defensively. I like UConn's chances in a game of 5-on-5, which is why I think we have a good chance next year (though it's hardly inevitable), but Griner has potential to be unstoppable.

 

[Replicant]

Griner has potential to be unstoppable.

Folks said the exact same thing about 7'2" Artis "The A-Train" Gilmore, until he met UCLA and Sidney Wicks in the 1970 Nat'l Championship game.

 

[Vowelguy]

Preseason everybody was saying it was UConn and Baylor and everybody else. What has changed?

I guess we should have just cancelled the season and had a Baylor/UConn best of 7 series.

What has changed? The results of 10+ games.

Stanford beat Baylor. Yes, it was without Sims, but I didn't even think Stanford was that good. And we've seen their young players (Orrange, Greenfield, etc) start to take shape.
And UConn's fab frosh? If UConn wins, it's not going to be because of MJ or Tuck. It's because of the improvement of Dolson, Faris, Banks, etc, and the immediate impact of Stewart.

I still believe UConn will win.
But to assume that pre-season expectations still matter at this point boggles my mind.

 

[Plumber Luigi]

80 pts is just an easy benchmark that you can keep track of during a game with rudimentary math skills rather than a hard and fast rule. 2pts a minute. If we're below it is it because we're having one of those times we couldn't hit a peach basket placed at our feet or is it because the other team has knocked us off our game? If the other team is about that rate then is it a case that they can't miss if they tried or is it because they are getting through our defense like water through cheesecloth?

If we score 80 or more points, we generally win. If we let the other team score 80 or more points, it usually doesn't end as well for us.

 

[Icebear]

Kiah on the bench is going to make things tougher for us in a game like this. We could really use her size and length against the Cards.

Stef is going to have to play a smart game, keep her head and stay away from foul trouble. Stewie is going to have to take it up a notch from where she was against PSU and MD. (She doesn't have to be AA, she just needs to be more of the force that we know she can be.) If these two things happen, I like our chances. If they don't, it's anybody's ball game IMO.

Stef's foul trouble is most often the result of official's getting overly involved. She is not a serial offender.

 

[pinotbear]

Artis played for the old ABA Kentucky Colonels. I grew up in Louisville, and, on two occassions saw him just playing on the outdoor courts at the park down the street. One time, there was a pretty good crowd watching, but the other time, he was by himself, just having fun. Seriously big and strong man - I could never quite tell whether the 7'2" included his formidable 'fro.

 

[Icebear]

I guess we should have just cancelled the season and had a Baylor/UConn best of 7 series.

Well that would help avoid us having to play ND 87 times.

 

[Husky68]

Didn't ND and Texas A&M lose 3 times in the regular season a couple of years ago to the same teams that beat them to get to the the Final game or the FF. No matter which of the top 3 or 4 teams play the best in the regular season there will be no odds on favorite for the NCAA tournament.

 

[easttexastrash]

I dont know if UConn will be better next year or not. But BG wont be around. Griner is that rare player who completely changes the game offensively and defensively. I like UConn's chances in a game of 5-on-5, which is why I think we have a good chance next year (though it's hardly inevitable), but Griner has potential to be unstoppable.

IMO, if Baylor properly feeds the ball to Griner they should be unbeatable. However, some of the guards tend to take very ill advised shots, resulting in wasted possessions. BG is typically going to make a shot or get fouled and many of her missed shots result in offensive rebounds since so many players are guarding her. Feeding her the ball early also gets the opposing post players in foul trouble as they tend to be hyped up for the challenge and want to show that they can stop her. I get so frustrated when Mulkey is interviewed at half time and says "we need to get Griner more touches." How can her teammates not already know that she needs lots of touches?

 

[Replicant]

Artis played for the old ABA Kentucky Colonels. I grew up in Louisville, and, on two occassions saw him just playing on the outdoor courts at the park down the street. One time, there was a pretty good crowd watching, but the other time, he was by himself, just having fun. Seriously big and strong man - I could never quite tell whether the 7'2" included his formidable 'fro.

 

[HuskyNan]

I still believe UConn will win. But to assume that pre-season expectations still matter at this point boggles my mind.

I'm boggled that after 10 years of reading Tony's posts that you still get boggled by them.

 

[01Neaggrad02]

To those who thought my comment was rude, it was not my intent..... but I refuse to cancel the season if UCONN loses todays match. I actually found the chicken little the sky is falling comment to be rather rude and inappropriate at this time. There is still another two months of basketball. If we lose and we are two players down, (Does anyone know the status of Kiah and Morgan)????, does that mean we will lose in March/April? Also, freshman grow during the course the of the season.

 

[Vowelguy]

I'm boggled that after 10 years of reading Tony's posts that you still get boggled by them.

Yes I thought of that as I was writing but was too lazy to think of a different wording.

By the way, with respect to your avatar: in Providence, Friendship St is one way.

 

[Vowelguy]

To those who thought my comment was rude, it was not my intent..... but I refuse to cancel the season if UCONN loses todays match. I actually found the chicken little the sky is falling comment to be rather rude and inappropriate at this time. There is still another two months of basketball. If we lose and we are two players down, (Does anyone know the status of Kiah and Morgan)????, does that mean we will lose in March/April? Also, freshman grow during the course the of the season.

You missed his point.
Yes, no regular season game is all-defining.
But in UConn's history, a loss in a game like this often means an NC won't happen.

 

[Jonathan Husky]

Tomorrow is a must win for Stanford, if they lose to UConn at home they know they have no chance at a title. Before the end of the season Geno will get the most out of Breanna, but this early she is just learning what she needs to do to help this team. The team tomorrow is no-where near a finished product, it will get better all through the season.

There are no "must" wins in December for either Stanford or UConn. A loss now is a road map for the coaches for improvement later.

The only "must" wins are in the NCAA's where you are eliminated if you lose.

 

[01Neaggrad02]

You missed his point.
Yes, no regular season game is all-defining.
But in UConn's history, a loss in a game like this often means an NC won't happen.

So what does a loss to a team like Villanova mean when it happens in early March? No National Title? Don't tell Taurasi that. And that team was unranked if I am not mistaken. Last year we lost to St. Johns who was unranked but still made the final four... I am failing to see the point.

 

[arty155]

I'd call it a nice to have win...if the goal is the NC (it is)...then this game is to indoctrinate our freshman into big-time D1 basketball, and experiment with various ways to attack Stanford's personnel. If we just go for the win, we miss an opportunity to learn about ourselves and a likely Final Four opponent...

A December game against #1 Stanford on its home court is not a must win. It just isn't. It's more important that the team play well and handle the environment. But no game in December falls in the must win category,...

I hope we win and think we will. However it would be just a first loss and provide lots of info on things to work on against the best teams.
Only must wins are in March unless you are on the bubble for the tournament imo

There are no "must" wins in December for either Stanford or UConn. A loss now is a road map for the coaches for improvement later.
The only "must" wins are in the NCAA's where you are eliminated if you lose.

- Nice posts. I believe you have neatly summarized Coach Auriemma position .
- This team's goal is a National Championship, and that will not change in the slightest after today's results.
- We'll all be pumped up. It seems only natural that a loss feels like a sports catastrophe (for a few weeks) to either team’s enthusiastic, true blue, loyal fan(atics). But in truth, superb leaders like Coach Auriemma and Coach VanDerveer use these big games – won or lost - to simply make their teams stronger.
- Or as Coach Auriemma put it...
……

“If you win that game then you know you beat a really good team on their own court, and it kind of validates some of the things you’re doing, where you are at this point of the season. And…

“ If you lose, then, you know as a coach you can go back and tell your team “See I told you guys you weren’t that good!”

“You can do a lot with this particular game.”

Coach Geno Auriemma, at ESPN, commenting on impact of today’s game: Published 28 Dec 12,
The Interview is here: http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=8787130

 

[01Neaggrad02]

With less than 6 minutes left and a 24 point lead... can we resume our schedule? I mean since this was a MUST win we can resume our season. No need to cancel everything right?