Tonyc
Optimus Prime
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2011
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Preseason are hopes were sky high. We had a great freshman class coming in along with a highly touted transfer who said she would be with us for 2 years. We had the talent the size and we thought we had everything we needed to win the NC. What we needed was our freshman and transfer to learn UConns system and then looking ahead to January/February we figured they would be ready for prime time. Then the unexpected. Injuries and transfers and our deep bench just got shorter and shorter with more injuries. The big blow was Paige and we were down to a skeleton crew who could play. A team that was full of guards has dwindled down to a shortage of guards . We are missing a true point guard and we are missing players who have experience at the college level. All of a sudden we are a different team and it showed as UConn struggled because they depended too much on Paige and it was exposed.
Uconn needs to get healthy. Do we have the time left in the season for our injured to get healthy, back up to speed and gain the playtime they need at the college level to be effective as we move forward? I expect we will have a couple of injured players back before the end of the month which will help our bench. Will they be able to come back and play effective minutes or just see limited action? Either way they will help and be able to get ready for the post season.
So heres what we're looking at.
The injuries have crippled UConn which has allowed Caroline Dorka and Deberry more minutes and it has showed. On the other side of the coin we have lost 3 games 2 of which we shouldve/could've won and the other a game we might've won if played later in the season. It looks like the trade off could benefit us down the road as we get healthy as Dorka and Caroline has emerged.
The long layoff between games because of the holidays and Covid has given our injured time to heal however it has also left a long time between games and lets face it we have to be rusty.
With Paige and Nika out we have lacked a true point guard and that has hurt us with Evina playing out of position. It has hurt us in many ways as our seniors have not stepped up because teams can now pack it in and over guard our 3 seniors. To open things up we need shooters and that will happen when our injured come back.
With 2 months of the season behind us now we have to start all over. Will our underclassman be ready for March with 2 months already gone? Can we turn that around? What will it take and how long to turn it around ? Well we need those injured to come back healthy and see minutes and play through their mistakes. One positive thing that has come out of the injuries is Dorka and Caroline have gotten alot more playtime and seem to be coming along very well. Both have earned more playtime whether they start or not they have proved themselves and earned more minutes.
So here we are with 3 losses. We dont know what to expect moving forward until/if someone returns off the injured list.
When will Nika and Azzi come back? I have a feeling it will be before the end of the month. Then they need to get up to speed.
When will Griff come back? Good question. That we dont have any idea.
Paige we have been told could be back sometime in February. Will that happen and will she be able to play significant minutes?
There are alot of "IF's". One thing is for sure Dorka and Caroline have improved which should make us better when everybody/anybody gets healthy and can play again. We are going to be stumbling forward for the next few weeks until we get our injured players back and up to speed. During that time we need to find a way to win. As our injured come back and are worked into games it will take time to reestablish the chemistry and confidence. Once we are up to speed we will have more scorers and imo we will have double digit scoring from every position because of our depth. Lets say when Nika and Azzi come back first and within the next 2 weeks. That will give us a point guard and allow Evina to play her natural position. It will also give us depth at the guard position and give us more outside shooting. Just the threat of Azzi on the floor will take pressure off everybody else and extend opponents defenses. This should open things up for Christyn and allow Evina to get more open shots. Dorka can rebound and score another addition we didnt have earlier in the season and Liv gives us height and a high low and with Liv up top and Nika and Azzi in the lineup things will open up. Nika will provide the leadership at the point to make the offense flow. We will have many more pieces then we have right now. UConns future this season all depends on getting back some of our injured, getting them up to speed and reestablishing our team chemistry.
So looking at the possibility of Azzi and Nika returning and ready to go. Although Azzi hasnt had much time on the floor if healthy she will get it now especially with Paige down for at least another 5-6 weeks. Alot of the rest of this season will also depend on our seniors steppin up. It should be easier for them with the injured players returning. If not we have other players to replace them. What we thought pre season could become a reality now. The addition of steppin it up Caroline and Dorka and Azzi coming back and getting up to speed is a huge plus. Yeah we will be back and I feel by March if we remain healthy anything is possible. I can tell you this. When healthy and up to speed there is not one team in WCBB that wants to see us in their bracket...NOT ONE.
Uconn needs to get healthy. Do we have the time left in the season for our injured to get healthy, back up to speed and gain the playtime they need at the college level to be effective as we move forward? I expect we will have a couple of injured players back before the end of the month which will help our bench. Will they be able to come back and play effective minutes or just see limited action? Either way they will help and be able to get ready for the post season.
So heres what we're looking at.
The injuries have crippled UConn which has allowed Caroline Dorka and Deberry more minutes and it has showed. On the other side of the coin we have lost 3 games 2 of which we shouldve/could've won and the other a game we might've won if played later in the season. It looks like the trade off could benefit us down the road as we get healthy as Dorka and Caroline has emerged.
The long layoff between games because of the holidays and Covid has given our injured time to heal however it has also left a long time between games and lets face it we have to be rusty.
With Paige and Nika out we have lacked a true point guard and that has hurt us with Evina playing out of position. It has hurt us in many ways as our seniors have not stepped up because teams can now pack it in and over guard our 3 seniors. To open things up we need shooters and that will happen when our injured come back.
With 2 months of the season behind us now we have to start all over. Will our underclassman be ready for March with 2 months already gone? Can we turn that around? What will it take and how long to turn it around ? Well we need those injured to come back healthy and see minutes and play through their mistakes. One positive thing that has come out of the injuries is Dorka and Caroline have gotten alot more playtime and seem to be coming along very well. Both have earned more playtime whether they start or not they have proved themselves and earned more minutes.
So here we are with 3 losses. We dont know what to expect moving forward until/if someone returns off the injured list.
When will Nika and Azzi come back? I have a feeling it will be before the end of the month. Then they need to get up to speed.
When will Griff come back? Good question. That we dont have any idea.
Paige we have been told could be back sometime in February. Will that happen and will she be able to play significant minutes?
There are alot of "IF's". One thing is for sure Dorka and Caroline have improved which should make us better when everybody/anybody gets healthy and can play again. We are going to be stumbling forward for the next few weeks until we get our injured players back and up to speed. During that time we need to find a way to win. As our injured come back and are worked into games it will take time to reestablish the chemistry and confidence. Once we are up to speed we will have more scorers and imo we will have double digit scoring from every position because of our depth. Lets say when Nika and Azzi come back first and within the next 2 weeks. That will give us a point guard and allow Evina to play her natural position. It will also give us depth at the guard position and give us more outside shooting. Just the threat of Azzi on the floor will take pressure off everybody else and extend opponents defenses. This should open things up for Christyn and allow Evina to get more open shots. Dorka can rebound and score another addition we didnt have earlier in the season and Liv gives us height and a high low and with Liv up top and Nika and Azzi in the lineup things will open up. Nika will provide the leadership at the point to make the offense flow. We will have many more pieces then we have right now. UConns future this season all depends on getting back some of our injured, getting them up to speed and reestablishing our team chemistry.
So looking at the possibility of Azzi and Nika returning and ready to go. Although Azzi hasnt had much time on the floor if healthy she will get it now especially with Paige down for at least another 5-6 weeks. Alot of the rest of this season will also depend on our seniors steppin up. It should be easier for them with the injured players returning. If not we have other players to replace them. What we thought pre season could become a reality now. The addition of steppin it up Caroline and Dorka and Azzi coming back and getting up to speed is a huge plus. Yeah we will be back and I feel by March if we remain healthy anything is possible. I can tell you this. When healthy and up to speed there is not one team in WCBB that wants to see us in their bracket...NOT ONE.
