tOSU Postgame Thread

[oldude]

Some thoughts on the tOSU game:

• Heck of a 1st qtr with UConn & tOSU trading shots. Jaloni Cambridge is scarry good.
• The Huskies tightened up their D in the 2nd qtr and powered to a 20 pt lead at the half.
• Blanca is the real deal. She gives UConn another Sara Strong type talent, and she will only get better.
• Serah looked much more comfortable in game 4 of her UConn career, while Ash found her range from the arc.
• I am starting to have the same level of comfort with Sarah as I did with Paige. No matter what’s going on, Sarah will make the right decision, make a play whenever one is needed and lead her team. She certainly looked like the NPOY today. 🤩
• I have memories of KML & KLS starting off cold as the North Pole and then finally hitting a shot to take the lid off the basket, after which they couldn’t miss. It’s a shooter’s mindset that Azzi absolutely possesses. No matter how many shots you miss the next one is going in.
• KK is one of the most ferocious defenders in college basketball, and she will pick up a foul or two, or three. It’s nice to have Kayleigh as insurance.
• Payback? UConn’s last meeting vs tOSU was in 2023, when the Buckeyes snapped the Huskies string of 14 straight FF’s with a Sweet 16 upset. Remember how much trouble UConn had with tOSU’s press during that game. Today, the Buckeye’s pressure was barely a factor.
• Despite putting up 100 points today, the Huskies aren’t quite firing on all cylinders on offense, as Geno tries out multiple lineups. But they have easily dispatched 3 good teams during a 4-0 start to the season. By March UConn will be firing on all cylinders and every team they face will have one hell of a challenge trying to take down the Huskies! 😁
• Looking forward to seeing UConn play a very good Michigan team next Friday. GO HUSKIES!!!

 

[victor64]

-OSU’s full court pressure gave UConn all kinds of problems in defeating the Huskies in the tourney two years ago today. I bet the team watched a ton of tape of that game because it was not much of a factor today.

-With Blanca’s inevitable bump in minutes, someone else’s would decrease. Today, at least,
it was Jana. I don’t think it is concern about Jana, Blanca is just that good.

-If I was an opposing coach, how would game plan to slow Strong down? I would box and chase her, double her when she gets and take my chances with others when she passes out of the double. Playing her straight up is becoming a waste of time.

-Being patient with Serah is of course pay off. Each game her comfort level increases.

-KK can get to basket at will but missed layups off those penetrations is becoming a concern.

-Allie got significant minutes even though it was not her best shooting day. She continues to reinforce the idea that she is more than just a 3 point shooter.

-Two thoughts why Geno stayed with the Sarah and Azzi a little longer than normal. OSU kept pressing and I think Geno had a little revenge or payback on his mind for the NCAA loss. Just a guess.

-Peacock’s production of college football is terrible. Sadly, that has carried over to basketball. The announcers were OK but somebody has to be reminded that replays should appear when baskets and action are going on.

-Watching Sarah dominate is great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

 

[EricLA]

That was absurd!! In a good way.

If OSU can play like like they did in the first quarter (which BTW felt like a battle vs. a top 5 team), they will be really good. I like to think our depth wore them down.

• Special shout out to Sarah - NPOY worthy game
• Azzi came on strong after a slow start
• Loved seeing Serah involved early
• Blanca coming out party
• KK is an elite defender

The rest of the team looked really solid. A few hiccoughs and there was a lineup in there that was NOT good (I forget who maybe Jana, Blanca, Azzi, Kayleigh, and Allie?- OSU went on a 13-2 run), but a great game to mix and match and try things out. And even the players who didn't score looked really good out there. Overall a really enjoyable game and the team should be really pleased with it.

 

[Stagnant]

Just to talk about something different. I am going to key in on Allie Ziebell. Didn’t really have her shot today. And I thought she had a couple of defensive lapses; especially in the third quarter when Sarah Strong was on the bench,

But I was actually very impressed by Allie. I thought we got great minutes from her. She handled the press way better than I thought she would have. I kind of thought maybe Ohio state wasn’t a great opponent for her because of their pace… but I was wrong. She looked like she belonged on the floor.

 

[Bone Dog]

We made lots of mistakes -- silly fouls, even sillier passes -- and still rolled like a millstone over tOSU. They were little more than gnats on the visor. Like a Luxury car rolling over a paper clip. If this group can come together as tightly as last season's did, come March it will look like the greatest show on Earth!

Sarah was like an adult playing against kids. Azzi was ice cold in the first, but ended with 19.

Ash looked like she was out of sorts at first, but ended with 10 pts, 4 assists and 2 steals -- and 2-3 from beyond the arc.

And Blanca, OMG! 18 pts (7-11) 4 rebounds 2 steals and, of course 5 TOs. But even with the mistakes, she's still totally worth the price of admission. And the TOs were all on bad passes.

And yes, Allie looked composed and focused in her 17 minutes, and was often the press breaker. Go, Allie!!!

Geno is still so far from realizing the full potential of this group!

 

[maple]

I really loved UConn’s intensity and effort. Especially how they kicked it up into an even higher gear after Q1.

tOSU came out of the gate swinging and landed some good punches. UConn absorbed them and punched back even harder. Granted, the 2023 S16 game was a completely different beast, but when UConn was struggling a little against the press early on, I couldn’t help but think back to that previous game. It was awesome to see UConn not only continuously break the press but also get some massive buckets out of it.

Love that even when players aren’t lighting up the scoreboard they are still doing so many little things to contribute to the game. Kudos to all of the players. This was one of our first big “challenges” to start the season and I was very impressed with how the team handled it.

 

[HuskyNan]

 

[Tonyc]

This team is undescribable. They are that good.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Well it seems we have a Power 3 (at least) back among us. Do you think Geno will find the offense back on track?

 

[jcoton56]

We just played a really decent team and punked em.

 

[HuskyNan]

 

[HuskyNan]

 

[jcoton56]

Announce team: these two set a new low. Just terrible

 

[DEpup]

-OSU’s full court pressure gave UConn all kinds of problems in defeating the Huskies in the tourney two years ago today. I bet the team watched a ton of tape of that game because it was not much of a factor today.

-With Blanca’s inevitable bump in minutes, someone else’s would decrease. Today, at least,
it was Jana. I don’t think it is concern about Jana, Blanca is just that good.

-If I was an opposing coach, how would game plan to slow Strong down? I would box and chase her, double her when she gets and take my chances with others when she passes out of the double. Playing her straight up is becoming a waste of time.

-Being patient with Serah is of course pay off. Each game her comfort level increases.

-KK can get to basket at will but missed layups off those penetrations is becoming a concern.

-Allie got significant minutes even though it was not her best shooting day. She continues to reinforce the idea that she is more than just a 3 point shooter.

-Two thoughts why Geno stayed with the Sarah and Azzi a little longer than normal. OSU kept pressing and I think Geno had a little revenge or payback on his mind for the NCAA loss. Just a guess.

-Peacock’s production of college football is terrible. Sadly, that has carried over to basketball. The announcers were OK but somebody has to be reminded that replays should appear when baskets and action are going on.

-Watching Sarah dominate is great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

I actually think he went so long with Azzi and Sarah because the others look pretty good no matter the mix with them. Maybe this is the first step in building the depth. Then maybe as the season goes they can be good with just one of them and eventually good in short stretches with neither. Its a process.

 

[Gael]

Buckeyes sacrificed on the altar of a UConn holy quaternity of outside scoring, inside scoring, assisting and defense. Divine!

 

[RockyMTblue2]

When will the Break Up The Huskies laments start I wonder?

PS. Good game Ash.

 

[pghhuskydoc]

Interesting in the post game interview that Sarah said the team noted the need to play shut down defense and started flipping the switch prior to the coaches.
If the team is exhibiting that level of maturity already, look out!!

 

[oldude]

When will the Break Up The Huskies laments start I wonder?

I prefer, “UConn is bad for WBB.” 😎

 

[dtbtbtb]

The scary thing is that it's clear that UConn will get much better and they are already very very very good! oh, and Sarah Strong is a women playing against girls.....

 

[Bone Dog]

I prefer, “UConn is bad for WBB.” 😎

Incredibly bad!

 

[ballhawk]

Wow! A juggernaut. UConn looks as good as the Stewie teams from 2014-16.

 

[Centerstream]

When UConn forced OSU to take another timeout, UConn's shooting percentages were really, really fascinating:

 

[RoadMaster]

 

[DEFCONN1]

One thing that stood out watching the game was how much bigger and more athletic we were compared to OSU. I was also thinking they would be quicker than the Huskies and they were not.

 

[RoadMaster]

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