tOSU Postgame Thread

[Aluminny69]

-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.

Serah Williams only played 14 minutes. After playing close to the full 40 minutes in previous seasons, how will she feel about diminished minutes?

 

[RSHERMVIKES]

I miss Gary Apple and Kara Wolters pregame, 1/2 time and post game!
Joe Zone and friend are terrible!
SNY always gave us their best!
I have a feeling (and at 78 I don't get too many feelings!), that the new coverage group won't be up to UConn standards!

 

[1974yankees]

I guess Blanca is the real deal. It won't be long before she is in the starting lineup.

18 points in 23 minutes....

And Sara is by far the best player in America.. She is the only player that has ever reminded me of Maya....

 

[MilfordHusky]

I prefer, “UConn is bad for WBB.” 😎

I need to give credit to a BY friend: Sarah Strong is bad for basketball. She was a woman among girls!

 

[MilfordHusky]

Had the pleasure of attending the game with @MilfordHusky. Two quick thoughts: 1) When the game is still in question and competitive, the team looks much more confident and composed with Sarah Strong on the court versus the times she's on the bench. 2) Teams experiencing Blanca for the first time are not prepared for her speed and athleticism. I think that the Big East teams should be very afraid.

It was good to see you my friend! One question after the game:

Who was that muscular, 24-year-old, 6'3" WNBA player wearing #4? She was flying down the court!

Blanca reminds me of Sveta: tall, fast, skilled, beyond her years.

 

[MilfordHusky]

When was the last time we shot 50/40/90 for a game?

This team is likely to excel at FT shooting this season. We have several good FT shooters, including the players who get to the line most often. Sarah is 11-12; 5 others have 0 misses. Only Kayleigh has more than a single miss.

 

[Skeets]

Also, a shoutout for her remarkable drive which included dribbling between Serah’s legs!

I was at the game, so no luxury of a replay. I said to myself, "Did I just see what I think I saw?" Also, for anyone who was at the game, did you notice that the PBA is running out of rafters? (This is a good problem to have.)

 

[Bald Husky]

Well said, BobbyJ. Katie should settle down... either market the shirts herself, or wait 'til Azzi's in the pros.

Actually, there was only one other jersey being sold, that being #34. Yes, no name on the back, but I find it strange that the only jersey of a current player is one who hasn't played in two years. No disrespect to Yanna, but just seems strange. In this world of NIL, all their jerseys should be available.

 

[Skeets]

It was good to see you my friend! One question after the game:

Who was that muscular, 24-year-old, 6'3" WNBA player wearing #4? She was flying down the court!

Blanca reminds me of Sveta: tall, fast, skilled, beyond her years.

Yeah, I can see that. One difference is that some of Blanca's passes are reckless. Svet's no-look passes were deadly for the opposition and fellow teammates if they weren't ready for the pass. Even when Svet bounced a no-look pass off of a teammate's head, it was hugely entertaining.

 

[oldude]

When was the last time we shot 50/40/90 for a game?

This team is likely to excel at FT shooting this season. We have several good FT shooters, including the players who get to the line most often. Sarah is 11-12; 5 others have 0 misses. Only Kayleigh has more than a single miss.

Here’s a trivia question for you. At present, there is one player on the team who is averaging 50/40/90 shooting for the season to date, and it’s not Sarah or Azzi.

Who is that player?
(No checking on the UConn stats page) 🤯

 

[HuskyNan]

It was good to see you my friend! One question after the game:

Who was that muscular, 24-year-old, 6'3" WNBA player wearing #4? She was flying down the court!

Blanca reminds me of Sveta: tall, fast, skilled, beyond her years.

Blanca turned 19 in August.

 

[WiseWillie]

You haven't been to the big store in the Student Union on campus? They have jerseys for all the players. I'm going next weekend and I'm going to pickup a #2. Fat, old dude wearing a point guard #.

Love it. Just the vision of that makes me smile. We are (at least some of us 😀) old but definitely happy and lucky fans.

 

[cabbie191]

tOSU is not Loyola and yet UConn spanked them real hard. What's scary is that UConn is only going

I know what you mean. It’s not just the two commentators, who were not focused enough on the action. The camera work was only so so, and the choices of when to cut away for a replay was flawed. And it wouldn’t have hurt to have better stats work on the screen occasionally. I hope they get better at this as the season goes forward.

One more nit to pick about Peacock’s coverage - incorrect graphics.

At least twice they had a visual saying all UConn victories this year have been by 30 or more points.

I know 13 (MOV vs Louisville) sounds a bit like 30 but ………

 

[victor64]

My favorite Peacock graphic:

OSU lost 6 starters from last years team. Hmmm😎

 

[Majic Hands]

KK isn't always thinking clearly when she chooses to drive to the hoop, and the paint is already packed with three 6'4 players. That's why some of her drives are unsuccessful. But it is fun to watcher charge the lions nonetheless.

I thought she had figured it out but apparently not quite there yet. I’ve only noticed it twice this year so far. Not twice a game. Which is a massive improvement.

I think there’s probing the defense and then there’s having no idea what you’re wanting to do. . . Turnover.

 

[Dogstar]

Here’s a trivia question for you. At present, there is one player on the team who is averaging 50/40/90 shooting for the season to date, and it’s not Sarah or Azzi.

Who is that player?
(No checking on the UConn stats page) 🤯

I'd say either Caroline or maybe BQ

 

[oldude]

I'd say either Caroline or maybe BQ

Pick one and you will be right or wrong.

 

[Dogstar]

Pick one and you will be right or wrong.

I'll go with....BQ, bcus i don't really remember Caroline shooting a FT.

 

[Zinethar]

I think my pick would be KK for the 50/40/90. She makes her FT rarely shoots the 3 but has been making them, and many or most of her other shots are layups which she at times misses but would make over 50%.

 

[oldude]

I think my pick would be KK for the 50/40/90. She makes her FT rarely shoots the 3 but has been making them, and many or most of her other shots are layups which she at times misses but would make over 50%.

Good guess….but wrong.

 

[BBallF]

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!!!

Great review as usual and you hit all the major points. Here are some corollaries.

Blanca is actually less of a finesse player and more of a sheer power player than Sarah and she ,like Sarah, is almost impossible to defend in the open court. That 18 points was only the beginning for her. I think it was just an average game for her. Her defense with her length was very unexpected and is just a real problem. That reach in, touch the ball, steal, get it and go full court was perfect. Without her length, that's a foul.

Azzi apparently had a cold yesterday but it really didn't matter. She just has this supreme confidence in her shot and her 3s seem to come at the most disheartening moments for the opposition. Key to her is her pull up jumper working. That sets up her 3 and her drives.

K9 as insurance for KK is a game changer. It allows KK to be aggressive all game long and gives her rest time and Kayleigh is almost psychotic out there when the ball is loose. I am reminded a little of Dennis Rodman. In that vein, Sarah diving onto the floor when the game was effectively over is a pretty, pretty, good leadership lesson.

Compared to 2023, we have KK, Allie, K9, Ash, and Sarah as ball handlers not to mention Azzi who was there and is much improved now. I just wished Nika was there. That loss was devastating to her.

By March the defense will be even better, which is always the Geno Metamorphosis. It's hard to imagine that right now.

We have several improved players in Sarah, Azzi, Allie, KK, Jana, Ash( it's coming) to go with K9 and Serah and the strongest and deepest bench in maybe forever.

What will this team look like for the Big Dance? Let's just enjoy the ride and the development each game. We have at least 3 players now worth the price of admission in Azzi, Sarah and Blanca. All 3 will be up on the Wall someday.

 

[BBallF]

I think my pick would be KK for the 50/40/90. She makes her FT rarely shoots the 3 but has been making them, and many or most of her other shots are layups which she at times misses but would make over 50%.

The logical choices are Azzi and Sarah but we have to appreciate how hard that is to achieve.

 

[Centerstream]

My favorite Peacock graphic:

OSU lost 6 starters from last years team. Hmmm😎

I didn't follow OSU last season, but maybe they didn't have the same starting five all season? So theoretically, more than 5 players could have started games. Sort of like a pressing starting five, or a big starting five, etc.

 

[uconnever]

Blanca looks like she will have a Sarah Strong like impact on this team this year. I'm not sure I've ever seen anyone score so many points so easily. Imagine when she cleans up some of her mistakes and poor decision making.

 

[Centerstream]

I miss Gary Apple and Kara Wolters pregame, 1/2 time and post game!
Joe Zone and friend are terrible!
SNY always gave us their best!
I have a feeling (and at 78 I don't get too many feelings!), that the new coverage group won't be up to UConn standards!

But we are comparing apples to oranges. With the SNY broadcasts, and Rebecca too, they are "homers" (and I don't mean that in a negative way) and UConn is the team they follow for many games over many years.
The announcers that we will be listening to on Fox, TNT, and Peacock most likely will be doing multiple games a week all season long, UConn isn't the only team that these networks will be broadcasting. I could be wrong but I thought I heard yesterday's Peacock play by play announcer mention that the analyst will be working the Minnesota game, on Fox.