Tulane Postgame Thread

[BostonBay]

Yawn. Nothing learned tonight because Tulane, like most of the AAC, is very weak. Same patterns (good and bad) tonight as with most of the season. UConn is what it is this year - a sweet 16 or at best E8 team. There is definitely a ceiling here. They'll go undefeated until then.

 

[FridaFriend]

I liked Geno's comments on Anna:

"That's the kind of kid she is," Auriemma joked. "Some of our guys were open, she threw it to them. Some of their guys were open, she threw it to them. I think she had a great all around game for both teams. She was terrific."

Could we please make free throws; 4-13?

 

[uconnfan68]

Many of Anna’s TO’s are because she anticipates her teammates are going to move to an open space that is available and they don’t move. Quite often I ask myself why a player didn’t move to the spot Anna threw the ball. I wonder if Geno views those TO’s the same way.

True, but a couple of them they were waiting for her shot... she was only 8’ away.

 

[Boreifs]

The best thing I saw tonight was Ania finally taking some shots off the bounce. I believe she canned every single one of them. Baby steps, I know, but one has to start somewhere. Let’s face it, not many people can defend a pull up from a 6’3” guard who can dribble and penetrate.

 

[Jingo]

I watched Aubrey’s last 4 HS games in the NY FF and the Federation Cup. She put up 30+ in all four games, and much like tonight, she spent a lot of time on the foul line.

Right .. I saw the same four games and she was pretty awesome .. I thought she would score in bunches for the Huskies in her freshman season but, alas, my predictions fell flaaat!

 

[Jingo]

I thought Christyn and Danger made some exceptional passes to the 'open man' vs Tulane .. very exceptional .. somewhat typical of CD but a 'turnaround' for CW [6 assists] .. tonight, Christyn expanded her game which bodes well for the team heading into March, eh?

 

[eebmg]

Another a slow start. Tied to CD's slump at the beginning of games? I think of her as the ignition for the team's offense. She seemed to recede into the background in this game. Her practice of doing stretching during the game makes me wonder if she's having some physical issues. Or maybe it's upcoming senior day? Speaking of physical issues, there was a thread speculating on Kyla's absence from the last couple of games; apparently she had a foot problem. She substituted effectively, for the most part, this evening.

Megan did some excellent finishes in this game. Granted, Tulane is not top tier, but anything that gets her in rhythm where she has had difficulties must be a good thing. Nice to see Anna Mak getting out of her shooting slump; she made up for CD's lack of scoring in the game big time. The two of them were top scorers with 18 each. Team as a whole had 14 steals to Tulane's 7 & AM had almost half of them. One of the team's better defensive efforts. Used to be a steal was automatic transition points, but finishes have sometimes been inconsistent this season. In half court offense, problems holding on to the ball was noteworthy.

Christyn hopefully is slowly clawing her way out of her shooting slump while still continuing to play improved defense, and tonight twice as many assists as CD (6 to 2; TOs 2-1), one more than AM with fewer TOs (6-5, TOs 2-5). CW improved in efficiency but I don't think she scored much more than her previous game, which I recall as being inefficient. Liv again showing she can stay out of foul trouble; really improved shooting for the last couple games; team high 11 rebs. Aubrey seems to be playing more minutes & was involved in significant transition play, but her finishing has been inconsistent; and her FT shooting has been consistently poor. Both ONO & AG are going to get fouled a lot, and I'm sure rival teams' scouts are catching on that their FT percentage is not good. Still nice to have 2 tall players in the lineup at the same time.

Game got out of hand fairly early & allowed the starters to get more rest and avoid more wear and tear. Interesting that CW & AK are left in to keep the bench steady. Kyla seems to have worked through her injury & Evelyn got some more minutes. Nice to see Molly actually attempting a shot, though unsuccessful, and Kyla Irwin got a 3.

One amusing comment during the game, can't remember who said it. Thought Tulane was intimidated by the size of the crowd -- though the venue looked half empty to me.

How did you forget Batouly? Her grown woman basket was fun to see. If only.

 

[eebmg]

Three more observations about tonight. One, Meg shut down Freeman, their leading scorer and rebounder ( 14 and almost 8). She got 7 and 3. It was the best defense I can remember her playing. Two, we would all agree that CW is having an off year offensively. She is still averaging almost 15 ppg. Three, in his press conference Geno said they worked almost exclusively on defense this week. He joked it was a new way to make the offense better. Team D was relentless and old school UConn.

Geno said at the presser that Meg told him she was going to play great defense on Freeman.

 

[eebmg]

The best thing I saw tonight was Ania finally taking some shots off the bounce. I believe she canned every single one of them. Baby steps, I know, but one has to start somewhere. Let’s face it, not many people can defend a pull up from a 6’3” guard who can dribble and penetrate.

6' 3" ???

 

[Dokey]

Tulane is not a great team. Still, Liv was honing her craft, call it practice making permanent. Meg was making shots, and it was a victory that didn’t depend on Crystal. Anna has five turnovers, freshman stuff and she knows it and learns, but 18 points, five assists, five rebounds, two blocks and six steals speak for themselves. Meg is a junior and has had games with six turnovers. All it really says is certain players want to handle the ball more than others, certain players make things happen. Meg, Anna, Crystal and Liv do that. CW is trying to see how she fits in still. I think she misses Lou. She frequently makes her best plays with Anna at the other end. This year it’s against Tulane, next year against Oregon. There’s a lot of talk about players coming in next year but those players have yet to prove themselves in a college game.

 

[oldude]

The best thing I saw tonight was Ania finally taking some shots off the bounce. I believe she canned every single one of them. Baby steps, I know, but one has to start somewhere. Let’s face it, not many people can defend a pull up from a 6’3” guard who can dribble and penetrate.

6’3”?

 

[huskeynut]

Well, where is everyone?

Wednesday night is choir rehearsal then out to dinner with a couple of couples to our favorite Italian restaurant.
Had to use the phone to keep informed. A win is a win.

 

[veryolddog]

From what I observed, very little has changed in their style of play except a few scored more points than usual. Why because the other Team scored only 31 points. Why, because this team could not really challenge UConn Women to play UConn style of basketball. This team was not pressured and won the game because individuals have enough skills to score more points than an inferior team. Geez, my wife kept telling me to switch the channel. I finally gave in.

 

[oldude]

From what I observed, very little has changed in their style of play except a few scored more points than usual. Why because the other Team scored only 31 points. Why, because this team could not really challenge UConn Women to play UConn style of basketball. This team was not pressured and won the game because individuals have enough skills to score more points than an inferior team. Geez, my wife kept telling me to switch the channel. I finally gave in.

I would respectfully suggest that the other team was held to 31 points by a ferocious defensive effort from UConn’s entire team. Geno commented after the game that the team spent the last two days in practice largely working on defense, and it certainly showed, holding Tulane to their lowest point total of the season.

After 25 games it’s pretty clear that this UConn team has a number of challenges on offense. Geno is smart enough to know that this team will go as far as their defense takes them, and the team seems to be embracing that identity. It certainly won’t be pretty, but I will happily accept 13 more ugly wins this season.

 

[HopJim]

She may have shot more poorly early in her career. If these numbers are right, shooting 436 for 661 is almost exactly 66%. She may well have shot 70-72% as a senior. Note that 661 FTAs in 75 games is 8.8 FTAs per game. She really knows how to get to the line.

Including tonight, Aubrey has 64 FTAs in 394 minutes, so she is shooting a FT on average every 6 minutes. Comparable numbers, roughly, are 11 minutes for Meg, 18 minutes for Crystal, 13 for Christyn, 11 minutes for Liv, and 81 minutes for Anna.

I noticed tonight that almost all of Aubrey's misses were off the back rim. That reminded me very much of Gabby in her freshman year. How did the Gabulous One do as a frosh? 42-91 for 46%. She shot a FT about every 6.5 minutes, much like Aubrey. How much did Gabby improve? 75% as a sophomore, 72% as a junior, and 73% as a senior.

In beginning of year, Aubrey had a classic stroke. Heald the ball properly so she rotated properly to basket. Lately her grip is off the seams and she just seems to want to get it over with.

 

[HopJim]

Fun game. Fun to watch when they're playing well. But I had to remind myself that Tulane is a 155 RPI AAC team that's not even close to being in the same class as UConn* After thinking we were back on track, and then being disappointed 3 times already this year, I'm not getting lulled into believing that this game shows that the team is getting their issues all ironed out. This 43 point win means nothing unless they can translate the successful execution against these types of teams into successful execution against real competition.

* Example: Geno, from postgame presser: "There was no one on the floor that could handle Liv, so the strategy was, 'Liv, run as fast as you can down to the block, post up, and you guys better throw it to her.'" This doesn't work quite the same vs. Cox, Hebard or Boston.

That said, I'm optimistic. I think we'll get to the FF and I'm hopeful we'll be able to do something about it once we get there.

Players like Cox don't get off the floor. No reasons ONO's 5 foot turn around wouldn't be equally effective against her.

 

[oldude]

In beginning of year, Aubrey had a classic stroke. Heald the ball properly so she rotated properly to basket. Lately her grip is off the seams and she just seems to want to get it over with.

Her hands are a part of the problem, but I would also add that her shot appears to be a little flat. Getting a little more air under the ball with a higher release would likely result in more made FT’s.

 

[hart2hart]

Game was SO much fun! I was 4th row center and had a great view of the the players. All played well especially defense. Granted it’s a 12-14 team——but it was a good game to work on things. Anna was stellar except for her freshman turnovers. Loved that she had a few buckets that were “non-threes”. Her defense was very good and Mak tipped a lot of balls! I for one love her game and it was fun to focus on her and watch her every move!
Her end line violation I bet won’t happen again ! Liv and MW also stood out for me. Liv was looking for her shot and MW’s defense and offense were spot-on. I thought the movement was better but I found myself yelling at them to move in the second half. You could see the crowd was rootin for Evelyn to make her free throws. Anna was my player of the game. She flashed a couple of smiles.
Superb stat line except the freshman turnovers. Some of those were missed passes to a teammate that wasn’t paying attention or just wasn’t expecting the bullet pass! The gals played with passion and tenacity. It was SO fun to watch!

 

[BBallF]

Fun game. Fun to watch when they're playing well. But I had to remind myself that Tulane is a 155 RPI AAC team that's not even close to being in the same class as UConn* After thinking we were back on track, and then being disappointed 3 times already this year, I'm not getting lulled into believing that this game shows that the team is getting their issues all ironed out. This 43 point win means nothing unless they can translate the successful execution against these types of teams into successful execution against real competition.

* Example: Geno, from postgame presser: "There was no one on the floor that could handle Liv, so the strategy was, 'Liv, run as fast as you can down to the block, post up, and you guys better throw it to her.'" This doesn't work quite the same vs. Cox, Hebard or Boston.

That said, I'm optimistic. I think we'll get to the FF and I'm hopeful we'll be able to do something about it once we get there.

All true and the optimism is great. I think the big takeaway is not the size of the win but rather the intensity of the team defense, the best of the year. I also can't remember the last time Meg dove on the floor for a loose ball but she did it last night. Anna was much more animated and shuffling side to side on defense. They were all as a group simply better, tighter, more aggressive, switching at screens earlier and communicating. Geno said they stressed defense in practice and maybe that will be the team identity that has been missing. You are right that we have to remember who we are playing but if it is going to be team defense for March it has to be against everyone. Let's see what happens on Sunday.

 

[Boreifs]

6’3”?

I sit courtside; she looks to be an inch taller than Kyla, who is 6’2”.

 

[eebmg]

I sit courtside; she looks to be an inch taller than Kyla, who is 6’2”.

Ok. Maybe she was 6' 3" last night but was 5' 11" in the 3 prior games?

 

[oldude]

I sit courtside; she looks to be an inch taller than Kyla, who is 6’2”.

OK, I will respectfully defer to your first hand observation.

 

[Boreifs]

6' 3" ???

I sit courtside; she is an inch taller than Kyla, who is 6’2”.

 

[eebmg]

Maybe the way Anna is built (strong frame) makes her look taller on the court? Her official height is 6' 1"

 

[veryolddog]

I would respectfully suggest that the other team was held to 31 points by a ferocious defensive effort from UConn’s entire team. Geno commented after the game that the team spent the last two days in practice largely working on defense, and it certainly showed, holding Tulane to their lowest point total of the season.

After 25 games it’s pretty clear that this UConn team has a number of challenges on offense. Geno is smart enough to know that this team will go as far as their defense takes them, and the team seems to be embracing that identity. It certainly won’t be pretty, but I will happily accept 13 more ugly wins this season.

You may be correct in your assessment and you have a better grasp of this than I do. However, you still have to consider, that this Tulane team, may have scored 20 points less because UConn women practiced defense for two days. How would this defense be against Oregon or Baylor or SC? Playing together and making the ball go through the hoop when the other team is also playing great defense against you is a heck of a lot more challenging. I am not convinced that this team has the fortitude to step up and do this and maintain composure to win that game.

 

[oldude]

You may be correct in your assessment and you have a better grasp of this than I do. However, you still have to consider, that this Tulane team, may have scored 20 points less because UConn women practiced defense for two days. How would this defense be against Oregon or Baylor or SC? Playing together and making the ball go through the hoop when the other team is also playing great defense against you is a heck of a lot more challenging. I am not convinced that this team has the fortitude to step up and do this and maintain composure to win that game.

Certainly the 3 teams you mention pose a much bigger challenge for UConn defensively. But It’s worth noting that UConn held all 3 teams to double-digits less than their season average. UConn particularly clamped down on Baylor until the last 4 minutes of the game, and they did a really good job on SC for the first qtr.

 

[BBallF]

True, but a couple of them they were waiting for her shot... she was only 8’ away.

It makes me crazy when she doesn't shoot those first. Also, are there different rules in international play for putting the ball in play from out of bounds? She has made two turnovers this year just doing that. One, moving when she couldn't because it wasn't a made shot and the other having her foot on the line when she threw it in. It may just be a lack of focus.

 

[Ozimoto]

I need to see them put two good games together back to back before I have any reason to believe they will get past the elite eight. The poor free throw shooting is costing them significant points every game. That will catch up with them and bite them in the behind going into post season play, likely resulting in a loss in a close game.

 

[ucbart]

It makes me crazy when she doesn't shoot those first. Also, are there different rules in international play for putting the ball in play from out of bounds? She has made two turnovers this year just doing that. One, moving when she couldn't because it wasn't a made shot and the other having her foot on the line when she threw it in. It may just be a lack of focus.

She makes a lot of silly, silly turnovers. I think it's just a lack of focus and experience.

 

[psconn]

She makes a lot of silly, silly turnovers. I think it's just a lack of focus and experience.

Anna's got tons of potential and there's alot to love in her game. That end line violation/ turnover though... I'm surprised Geno didn't put her on a bus to Storrs to swim laps in the pool right then and there. He's getting soft in his old age.