UCLA Postgame Thread

[UConnCat]

 

[HuskyNan]

They started out terribly, got better, and finished the game in a horrendous fashion.
They took 3 steps forward and 7 steps back, IMO. What a hideous way to close out a game. Every bit of good they must’ve felt being up 14 was washed away with those FT’s

And again, to every person that’s said “we’re doomed” as a response to me complaining about FT shooting in blowout wins-I see you.

Every silver lining has a cloud, huh?

Haven’t seen you around in a while

 

[HuskyNan]

Don’t tell @ucbart

 

[jaydee602]

Anyone who bet on this game (like myself ) might have had a coronary.
UCONN was favored by 7 1/2. I was about to light up a victory cigar with 1 1/2 minutes left up by 14. With every missed UCONN foul shot & UCLA bucket, the lead dwindled until it was down to 4 & I was a loser. Then UCONN made a few foul shots & UCLA ran out of gas resulting in a 10 point win. Never in doubt!!

 

[UConnCat]

Ducharme's 3 to end the 1st half was huge. She missed some shots today that she's going to make in the future as she gets stronger and figures things out.

 

[bantamlaker]

I liked that Caroline was able to get off 13 shots and most of those were pretty good ones. She only hit 4 today but her percentage will pick up and she’ll be a real threat. Another good thing she was 4 for 4 from the line.

 

[UConnCat]

 

[eebmg]

Ducharme's 3 to end the 1st half was huge. She missed some shots today that she's going to make in the future as she gets stronger and figures things out.

and that Quality 3pt shot in the corner to go up 14. Caroline is going to be a great one. She looks like she knows what she is doing.

 

[veryolddog]

I liked the game and I did not like the game. The first half was a challenge to watch but then they made a comeback. I liked the way they started to click as a team. I think that everyone who played did well even the subs. This may be the start of a team that does not depend upon Paige. What I did not like was the turnovers, missed foul shots and missed layups.

they should have beat UCLA by 25 if they were firing on all 8 cylinders.

 

[my2cents]

I thought it was perhaps the worst officiated women's game I have ever seen. That incredible hack job on Evina in front of the referee, the out of bounds call that was reversed late in the game, the failure to call pushes on rebounds, restraints on drives, charges instead of blocks , is an embarrassment to the women's game. Whatever they are doing in training, they are doing it wrong. More and more players are going to get hurt due to the referees allowing this ridiculous amount of body contact and only calling easy ticky tack fouls or bad picks. On national television, it was just very badly done.

I have heard of a theory that the women's officials tend to let them be physical to a degree unlike the men because they feel that the players can't hurt each other because they are women. I am only repeating what one referee told me once. It is clearly a sexist assertion.

For a finesse team like UCONN, it works to our disadvantage. I do not know the reason, I only know that it is systemic, obvious, and outrageous. This crew of officials should never, ever work together again in women's basketball. Between the 3 of them, it seemed that the whistle was blown less on fouls, excluding the intentionals at the end of the game, than in an AAU game and that is saying something pretty harsh.

Probably better said than me.

 

[Sam.the.Man]

Ducharme got the start over Edwards, and she showed she deserved it. She missed some layups and had some head puzzling misses, but she is very active and long and works hard on the floor. Liked her out there a lot and she LOOKED like she belonged.

Absolutely! She's a freshman feeling her way and she's going to make some mistakes. I'm pleased Geno didn't pull her when she did. She can and did made some great passes that led to baskets today. I think she's going to be a big star for UConn, especially once she learns to set her feet, relax, and shoot in rhythm.

 

[oldude]

One other thing to point out. This was a really physical game today. I can't remember when I've seen so many bodies on the floor in one game. Dorka probably had a triple-double if you add in her stats today for hitting the floor to her points and rebounds.

 

[ucbart]

Don’t tell @ucbart

Lol. Had to get that off my chest.

 

[huskeynut]

Gee, despite all the uproar, Geno can still coach!!!!!!!!

A solid team win. All 5 starters in double figures. Out rebounded the Bruins. 16 assist on 25 made buckets.

Much better team chemistry. Just what I expected. Team didn't quit and fought the entire game.

Is it perfect - no. But it will get better.

 

[Heytherego]

 

[Carnac]

I thought the start of the game was a mess. Announcers noted that in the last 15 minutes of game time going back to the debacle at Ga Tech, Evina was the only player on UCONN to make a field goal. But UCONN battled back, had a nice run at the end of the 1st half, built momentum in Q3, and fought hard in Q4.

As much as my last post immediately after a game was mostly negative, this one is mostly positive. One other quick thing - normally I don't complain about officiating, but they were particularly bad (at times) in this game. The hacking of ONO, horrible missed hack job against Westbrook, and other missed calls were particularly noticeable. It almost felt like they wanted to keep UCLA in the game.

UCLA made a run late but our lead was too large. Osbourne had her own 8-0 run over the last minute. Good for her. UCLA scored 10 points in about 45 seconds. That was awful. Still, hard fought, and the team should feel really good about this game. 7-17 on FT's in Q4? That was not good. 16-28 overall on FT's? Come on guys.

Every single starter in double figures in scoring. Not our most fluid or flowing offense, but they found a way to get it done. I thought UCLA's defense was tremendous and Osbourne in particular was awesome, but I'mari Thomas (transfer from Cinci) and Penn were also both really good. It seems like Natalie Chou has been in college for 10 years (to me at least LOL)...

At any rate, Evina was really good. Yeah some brain lapses, but in the absence of Paige, she was much better this game than in the Ga Tech game. 15 points, 7 assists, 7 rebounds - at times I'd see other players with the ball and feel like they were a turnover waiting to happen, but when Evina had the ball, she was very confident. Down the stretch she tried to give the game away with missed free throws. Good grief. Great game till the last minute. Come on Evina. You are better than that.

How about Dorka with a double double? This should silence some of the doubters who kept saying "all big 10????". One thing I love about her game is she gets the ball and immediately goes to the basket - keeping the ball high and not dribbling like so many other post players do. She does not get stripped by smaller players like other posts (a'hem Olivia) do...

Ducharme got the start over Edwards, and she showed she deserved it. She missed some layups and had some head puzzling misses, but she is very active and long and works hard on the floor. Liked her out there a lot and she LOOKED like she belonged.

Christyn was awful in the 1st half. Loved the reporting when Holly said that Geno went to Christyn and basically said "do you want to play in this game? Yes or no? He made her answer. Then he made her recite the things she was going to do to help her team". I thought that was great reporting and great coaching.

Olivia BATTLED. For all that some have complained that she was soft or not strong enough, whatever, she was absolutely mauled in the paint. Made some nice outside jumpers, battled on defense, and was solid.

The bench didn't do much. I was hoping for more out of Amari, but she just didn't get enough time. Still, she did get in, while Mir did not. Aaliyah - at least she battled hard, but she was barely better this game than she has been all year. To quote one of our horde members, "What did the Canadian National Team DO to Edwards this summer?????"

Bottom line, a win. I don't care as much about the streak of not losing back to back games as I do about the improvements witnessed across the board in this game.

Great observations Eric. I agree 100%. 2 words describe this game…..Gut check. I was very pleased to see UConn pass. Especially with the slow start. Once UConn took the lead, they never relinquished it, though UCLA tried to wrest it away.

 

[jaydee602]

Ducharme's 3 to end the 1st half was huge. She missed some shots today that she's going to make in the future as she gets stronger and figures things out.

Good call! It was impressive that she was confident to take that shot without rushing & calmly sank the 3 pointer.

 

[oldude]

Ducharme's 3 to end the 1st half was huge. She missed some shots today that she's going to make in the future as she gets stronger and figures things out.

The great thing about Caroline is she absolutely has no conscience if she misses a shot or two or three. She and Christyn were competing for "most airballs" today. But that shot at the half was a thing of beauty.

 

[Sam.the.Man]

they should have beat UCLA by 25 if they were firing on all 8 cylinders.

shoulda coulda woulda. I'm just pleased they didn't blow it.

 

[BBallF]

Some thoughts on the UCLA game:

• Like UConn, UCLA is dealing with injuries to key players while trying to figure things out. Both teams had really good and really bad stretches. In the end UConn was able to grind out what felt like a really important win for the Huskies today.
• Evina pretty much kept UConn in the game single-handedly in the first half, leading the Huskies in points, rebounds and assists.
• UConn’s 11-2 “mini-run” at the end of the second quarter was huge heading into halftime.
• Dorka was tremendous today with 16 & 16. She provided some really big minutes in the second half, particularly with Liv in foul trouble.
• UConn had a distinct size advantage in today’s game. But the team struggled to get the ball into the paint in the first half, and when they did, inexplicably, the Huskies continued to miss way too many layups.
• If there was ever one player who shouldn’t “overthink” things, it’s Christyn. You could just sense the pressure she feels, particularly with Paige out. When Christyn finally hit a layup, after missing her first attempt, it was like the weight of the world had been removed from her shoulders.
• There are good technical fouls and there are bad technical fouls. Geno's T defending Evina after she got hammered was a good T. UConn responded to a terrible "no call" in a big way.
• UConn won this game on the defensive end, holding UCLA to 33% shooting, and also with some great work on the boards in the second half. I guess the Huskies proved that that they can close a tough game without Paige on the court, sort of.....
• One thing mentioned before the game is that UConn has had only one practice without Paige. The Huskies now have a week off to get through finals and reset themselves for another big matchup vs Louisville in 8 days. Foul shooting and layup practice next week.

All true but I would mention a few obvious deficiencies. One, how do you not box out the shooter on a free throw? How do you give baseline on a drive as a defender? How do you not box out as a team? How do you throw the ball away like we have done the last 2 games? These are all about fundamentals.

Why is AE taking outside shots? Her job should be to play defense, rebound and get layups off of put backs or passes. She really appears to have regressed and is playing like a freshman.

As for free throws, there was a fatigue factor, ( 2 of Evina's hit the front of the rim), that rim was tight, and we just have to get better at them. As for CW, we have been having the same conversation for years. She just gets into a psychological funk at times and is undependable. There is no easy fix since this is a career tendency, not an aberration. Hopefully, the NCAAs will spark her this year as it did last.

 

[BostonBay]

CD had a great 2H. Make some big 3s, pretty dimes under the basket, and never afraid to go after the ball inside. Perfect FT form. She'll be one of the favorites for Freshman of the Year award come March.

 

[LoboDays]

I’m just happy for the players that they can celebrate a win. They are just not a very good team right now but if this is what we will see from Dorka going forward and Nika, Azzi and and Aubrey finally get back to the lineup, they can still make a run for it.

 

[LarryLegend]

hats off to Dorka, also Caroline

 

[Centerstream]

One other thing to point out. This was a really physical game today. I can't remember when I've seen so many bodies on the floor in one game. Dorka probably had a triple-double if you add in her stats today for hitting the floor to her points and rebounds.

And nary a foul was called...