This is what depth is for

[Vowelguy]

..... hopefully you can better ride out injuries

Some years it's not needed so depth could seem unimportant
Then there's this year

A Nika-CW-EW-AE-Ono lineup is still pretty good, esp with Dorka and CD off the bench.

Just hoping that this isnt a repeat of 98-99, which was injury plagued* and the 2nd weakest team in the last 25 years.


* Bird ACL, Swin stress fracture, I think Shea broke her hand, Walters had various ailments IIRC, others

 

[CTyankee]

This is the time for Paige's teammates to shine. A sort of, bring home the wins for Paige.

 

[hoopsfan22]

We have 3 injured players and 3 that Geno will not play under any circumstances. How much depth does that really leave?

 

[LwrcasefaN]

I don't know why some see the other team members as cannon fodder. They are more than capable, otherwise, they wouldn't be on the team. They'll be fine.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Everyone needs to step up. We have lots of talented players. Let’s support them and see what they can do.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

We have 3 injured players and 3 that Geno will not play under any circumstances. How much depth does that really leave?

Easily answered, just replace Paige with Azzi next week. Presto Chango. Do that and Geno still has Ducharme coming off the bench. Remember the starting five still consists of two experienced seniors also. I would give Azzi 2 or 3 games to find her stride once she is cleared to play.

 

[Conndog]

When is Azzi expected to return? And, when is Aubrey expected to return? Maybe team goes big line-up to play more of an inside game/crash the boards, get other team's bigs in foul trouble. Now would be the time for the bigs to shoot FTs better (Edwards is good though).

 

[Conndog]

Just saw this on ESPN website:

UConn's depth, which looked like a strength heading into the season, has dwindled in the first month of the season. In addition to Bueckers, freshman Azzi Fudd is also sidelined with a foot injury. She will be reevaluated next week. Junior Aubrey Griffin also is unavailable because of ankle and back injuries, and no timetable on her return has been shared.

 

[UConn82]

Nika will start. She started much of last year, until she got injured. No way Geno starts CD. But CD will contribute much coming off the bench.

 

[Mirmir]

Just saw this on ESPN website:

UConn's depth, which looked like a strength heading into the season, has dwindled in the first month of the season. In addition to Bueckers, freshman Azzi Fudd is also sidelined with a foot injury. She will be reevaluated next week. Junior Aubrey Griffin also is unavailable because of ankle and back injuries, and no timetable on her return has been shared.

Thus, don't count on Aubrey Griffin or Azzi Fudd anytime soon (maybe sometime in January, at best). Until such time that both Aubrey and Azzi are able to return to the team to be those Extremely Important Cogs in the Wheel of this UCONN Team, now that Paige is out for awhile, this team will now have the opportunity to truly test it's deep bench. Players like Mir McLean, Piath Gabriel and Amari DeBerry, along with Caroline Ducharme, Nika Muhl and Dorka Juhasz, will be counted on more over the next couple of months.

 

[hoopsfan22]

The starters will be Nika, CW, Evina, Edwards, and ONO. The bench will be Dorka and Caroline. That's still a good, but not great, team.

 

[HuskyNan]

..... hopefully you can better ride out injuries

Some years it's not needed so depth could seem unimportant
Then there's this year

A Nika-CW-EW-AE-Ono lineup is still pretty good, esp with Dorka and CD off the bench.

Just hoping that this isnt a repeat of 98-99, which was injury plagued* and the 2nd weakest team in the last 25 years.


* Bird ACL, Swin stress fracture, I think Shea broke her hand, Walters had various ailments IIRC, others

OMG Marci Glenney and Tihana Abrlic at the point

 

[HuskyNan]

The starters will be Nika, CW, Evina, Edwards, and ONO. The bench will be Dorka and Caroline. That's still a good, but not great, team.

People will have to step up. It’s why they’ve been practicing all this time

 

[jchusky]

The starters will be Nika, CW, Evina, Edwards, and ONO. The bench will be Dorka and Caroline. That's still a good, but not great, team.

why would Caroline come off the bench?

 

[HuskyNan]

why would Caroline come off the bench?

Geno doesn’t like to start freshmen. Too unpredictable

 

[Vowelguy]

OMG Marci Glenney and Tihana Abrilic at the point

omg thought was 97-98 but ur right

 

[boontonbomber]

Hey, maybe we'll see more of Mir, and maybe she'll have a few surprises. She is certainly a scrapper. Would enjoy seeing more of just why she was recruited.

 

[hoopsfan22]

why would Caroline come off the bench?

I think the better question is why would Geno not replace his current starting PG with the starting PG from last year's team to instead start a freshman who has played a grand total of 39 minutes of college ball and is not a point guard?

 

[fireford]

Wasn't there a song about this topic?

 

[meyers7]

Easily answered, just replace Paige with Azzi next week. Presto Chango.

Some posters had Fudd starting this year. Not too many had her starting for Bueckers.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

Thus, don't count on Aubrey will be Griffin or e Azzi Fudd anytime soon (maybe sometime in January, will bat best). Until such time that both Aubrey and Azzi are able to return to the team to be those Extremely Important Cogs in the Wheel of this UCONN Team, now that Paige is out for awhile, this team will now have the opportunity to truly test it's deep bench. Players like Mir McLean, Piath Gabriel and Amari DeBerry, along with Caroline Ducharme, Nika Muhl and Dorka Juhasz, will be counted on more over the next couple of months.

I heard Azzi will be playing in two weeks.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

Geno doesn’t like to start freshmen. Too unpredictable

Yeah, that Maya Moore was way too unpredictable as a freshman.

 

[Vowelguy]

Yeah, that Maya Moore was way too unpredictable as a freshman.

Maya Moore did not start at the beginning of her frosh year.

She became a starter when there was an injury midseason.

 

[diggerfoot]

why would Caroline come off the bench?

I'll give you three reasons.

1. Sometimes the sixth person can be more valuable than some of the starting five. Havlicek is perhaps the most famous example, but UConn has its own precedent in Sales and Ralph, two players as freshmen clearly better than some of the starting five, but came off the bench nonetheless throughout the entire year.

2. One of the factors that gives a sixth person value is versatility, the ability to play multiple positions and/or provide help on defense/offense. That allows the coach to assess what might be going wrong at the start of a particular game and better plug in the ingredient to fix it. In contrast, players who specialize in a role provide a greater chance of starting a game without surprises, something Auriemma in particular values. Muhl is the most specialized, Ducharme the most versatile, out of all the options.

3. Experience also helps to minimize surprises for a coach. Muhl has the most experience of the options, particularly for the needed PG role. She may not get as many minutes in the end if Ducharme really shines, similar to Doty not getting the same minutes as Hartley, but she still is the most likely to start the game off on the right foot, ie, make the least mistakes.