UCLA Postgame Thread

[Charliebball]

The thing is by Uconn standards, any statistic where Uconn is only in the top third or so nationally would be considered a team weakness. With the healthy players, we do not have as much three point or foul shooting as most Uconn teams. We were an easy team to deliberately foul.

In that scenario you don't want the ball in Liv, Dorka or Aaliyah's hands, and Evina and Christyn are only mediocre options. Part of me wanted to get the ball to Caroline despite her lack of experience in clutch situations. I am pretty sure when her uconn career is over her FT percentage will be way better than Evina's or Christyn's, as will of course Paige's and Azzi.

Ducharme should be a 90% plus free throw shooter at UConn.............she was well over 90% in high school as I remember......

 

[STLCardinal]

This game reinforces something I don't understand. With all the talk by the "experts" about improving the women's game, not once have I seen anyone write about the officiating needing to get better. Sean McDonough said many years ago, while calling a game, that in order for the women's game to improve, the officiating needs to improve. He was right. If the powers that be really want to make changes to bring the women's game to a higher level, they will quit worrying about goodie bags, March Madness usage and adding four teams to the tournament just to match the men and focus on something that really makes a difference. Better officiating. All that other stuff is rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic

As far as the games goes, today was a big step in the starting over process. Yes, starting over. They need to play as if none of the injured are coming back. If they can do that, then when players do start coming back, this bunch will have improved and maybe won't depend on the others so much. Dorka figuring out how she can move within the read and react offense and then approaching Geno with it is an example. And Geno did what good coaches do, adjusted, to the players he has right now.

Enjoyed the game.

 

[phil sampieri]

I would have tried Mir

The reason is ?

 

[phil sampieri]

one other thought on the refs, for this whole year the refs seem to be calling tie ups very quickly. On one today it seemed like there was a fight for the ball, it was never tied up, we came away with it but the ref had already blown the whistle. Is this a change in focus this year?

Me too, it happens often.

 

[donalddoowop]

Please correct me if I am wrong, but I thought I heard one of today’s announcers go into
the nature of Paige’s injury. She surmised that it would take much longer than 6 to 8 weeks to fully recover.

ESPN just showed that Paige is considering surgery which would get her back by February. Her original projection was for January.

 

[tchalla1]

The inside opened up when UConn started hitting threes. They shot 41.7% from the arc today.

There were several inside-out plays that set up some threes. Christyn couldn’t hit the water from a boat today but she had some great drives and dishes

I will say this and leave it alone, but CW's immense inconsistency is utterly baffling. Her confidence level reverts back to her second game as a freshman: Very poor decision-making, air balls, stupid, silly fouls, tentative passing--then all of a sudden, she becomes the dazzling, scoring machine and near- All-American that we've seen glimpses of over the past four years. The most hot-to-cold player I believe I've ever seen. I can see why she drives Geno nuts...

 

[The deacon]

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

I agree about Caroline's shot, arguably the most important of the game.

Credit to Christyn on that play, too. She's not typically known for finding her open teammates, and was closing out a shaky half. Yet instead of continuing on another ill-fated drive into a pack of defenders, Christyn spotted Caroline unguarded and zipped the pass for what might have been her most consequential assist of the season.

It was a team win, and that play best exemplified it for me.

 

[Aluminny69]

Just watched the end of the UConn men vs. St. Bonaveture game. Very similar the our UCLA game with one notable exception: UConn men made their free throws, easily. Also of note, two key injuries to the men's team, so there's that.

 

[The deacon]

One thing that bothers me about Dorka is that she appears to lose the ball from her hands when nobody has touched it. But her overall game today was outstanding. And she looked like she was enjoying the game.

I'd agree, Centerstream. I'm a fan of Dorka and her rebounding numbers are impressive, but it does seem she occasionally loses the ball with virtually no provocation. Meanwhile, she's tearing down the rebounds... could be her apparent injury has something to do with it?

 

[tchalla1]

UCLA had a double-digit lead and lost it; UConn had a double-digit lead and never fell behind. In the end, UConn was more resilient and, yes, tougher than UCLA. Good win.

UH, don't you think your comparative is more factored by the level of talent difference between the two teams rather than "toughness"?

 

[Fairfield Fan]

ONO again. The team went to the free throw line 28 times. But ONO, not once. Didn't force a single foul resulting in a free throw attempt. And she also almost fouled out- 4 fouls. High for the team. She's leading the team in fouls per minute played. By a lot. Further, four turnovers, a third of the team's total. She also was almost equaled in rebounds by EW, who gives up over six inches. All in all, a very mediocre performance for the starting post. Again.

 

[Vowelguy]

ONO again. The team went to the free throw line 28 times. But ONO, not once. Didn't force a single foul resulting in a free throw attempt. And she also almost fouled out- 4 fouls. High for the team. She's leading the team in fouls per minute played. By a lot. Further, four turnovers, a third of the team's total. She also was almost equaled in rebounds by EW, who gives up over six inches. All in all, a very mediocre performance for the starting post. Again.

I thought she played well.

 

[willie99]

The stars are aligned again

Thank you NASA

 

[topogigio]

I will say this and leave it alone, but CW's immense inconsistency is utterly baffling. Her confidence level reverts back to her second game as a freshman: Very poor decision-making, air balls, stupid, silly fouls, tentative passing--then all of a sudden, she becomes the dazzling, scoring machine and near- All-American that we've seen glimpses of over the past four years. The most hot-to-cold player I believe I've ever seen. I can see why she drives Geno nuts...

A huge bonehead play was the foul on the UCLA player as she was driving for a lay-up with about less than 3 minutes left. Lay-up was made, foul shot missed, but UCLA got rebound and scored - 4 pt play. That gave UCLA some life, and they responded. Just can't do that stuff as a senior! Overall, very proud of the team. The officials were atrocious. The tip ball by Evina and off the UCLA player was evident watching live, 150 miles away. It was right in front of the zebra. The 3 refs looked like the Keystone Cops looking at the replay, ad nauseum. They were a disgrace!!!

 

[pvdoggy]

ONO again. The team went to the free throw line 28 times. But ONO, not once. Didn't force a single foul resulting in a free throw attempt. And she also almost fouled out- 4 fouls. High for the team. She's leading the team in fouls per minute played. By a lot. Further, four turnovers, a third of the team's total. She also was almost equaled in rebounds by EW, who gives up over six inches. All in all, a very mediocre performance for the starting post. Again.

She was fouled plenty, just not called.

 

[UcMiami]

I think the GaTech game looked like a team that had lost its heart and soul at the end of the last game and was floundering. Today looked like a team that was starting to learn how to play without it's star.

It is a long season and clearly going to be an ER room season, but today is a good step forward.

They are likely to have a hard time with Louisville, and DePaul may give them trouble as well, but they should be pretty good otherwise through January.

 

[Stymie]

I say we are 50/50 against Louisville though. I wouldn't have said that until seeing the approach Geno is taking currently. Dorka and Caroline need to play. Long term, even if they don't end up starting, we are going to need them to be sharp. Now is a great time to give them the opportunity to contribute. We should have had more than a 6 rebound advantage against this team though, especially when they shot only 32.9%. We should be a dominant rebounding team. If we continue the strong defense and continue to play Dorka for the rebounding edge all we have to do is hit 35% of our 3 shots to beat even a top 10 team.

Aaliyah and CW play like they did today- we lose to Louisville.
They step it up- we compete.

 

[ABCDFE]

Great win. Proud of the team. I thought after watching the first quarter it was an extension of the fourth quarter of GT, ppl turn ball over, can’t hold on to the ball, shooting air balls, no ball movement. Then I saw them fight and play better within themselves. It was far from great, but given who we are putting out on the court really nice to see them get that first win without Paige.

Also this experience without Paige will prove invaluable for Caroline and Dorka. And also for Azzi/Nika/Aubrey.

 

[donalddoowop]

She was fouled plenty, just not called.

Yes, and she handled it with a calm response.

 

[Bald Husky]

Dorka overall is a plus contributer, but I agree her ability to hold onto the ball
is not one of her strengths.

Before she got going (finally) I told my buddy that her new name was Dorka Scissorhands. Once she did get going she was great. If she can continue this play and Caroline follows suit we may become pretty good. Just need Nika to get healthy so she can run the show and let the others do what they do best. When Azzi gets healthy, we will be hard to beat by most teams, but not SC until Paige gets back.

 

[oldude]

ONO again. The team went to the free throw line 28 times. But ONO, not once. Didn't force a single foul resulting in a free throw attempt. And she also almost fouled out- 4 fouls. High for the team. She's leading the team in fouls per minute played. By a lot. Further, four turnovers, a third of the team's total. She also was almost equaled in rebounds by EW, who gives up over six inches. All in all, a very mediocre performance for the starting post. Again.

Stop it! Just stop it!

Liv had 2 turnovers, not 4. She also had 10 pts (5/8), 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals & 1 block. In addition, in what was a very physical game, while Liv had 4 fouls, the UCLA center did foul out.

Furthermore, Liv’s effort and toughness has been exceptional since the SC game. UConn has a number of concerns right now. Liv’s play is most definitely not one of them.

 

[Golden Husky]

UH, don't you think your comparative is more factored by the level of talent difference between the two teams rather than "toughness"?

As someone way wiser than me, @oldude, noted...

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.

So, yes, while talent always is a factor, I believe grit, determination and toughness played a larger role in UConn's success versus UCLA.

 

[Vowelguy]

whens the last time a UConn player had 16 rebounds?

Answer:

Mar 2020 vs Temple by Aubrey Griffin​

(last year the highest was 14 on several occasions)

 

[hoophuskee]

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.

Geno can't win here.

During the summer I argued quite bit with the comment that Edwards is being wasted playing Power Forward. I disagreed big time with that. The counter they make is that in their opinion, Edwards won't be prepared for pro ball if she is stuck in the paint. I countered that Geno doesn’t pigeon-hole his players to one position/ one spot so even though she is a Power Forward, he'll let her shoot from the outside.

Now you are posting "She shouldn't be taking outside shots." If she were to stop doing that, then we'll hear comets ad nauseum that Geno doesn't "develop" his players.

Can’t win.
-------------------------

On a different subject- just asking your opinion and/or anyone else's; Can we officially stop ever ever speaking of assuming most players of a "sophomore jump" (not to say some players we can't suggest they will improve. I think CD in each of her next 3 years is gonna get pretty damn awesome.) again? I always felt that there used to be for the most part a soph jump.. Heck, last year Edwards looked so much better in the paint, didn't she? What has happened so far?

 

[CL82]

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.

Somewhat, but more importantly, she looks unafraid.

 

[and one]

We won. Not easily, nevertheless, a win. There were some bad minutes early and late, with a very respective stretch in between. All the players (AE the exception) can get GT behind them and look forward to the coming schedule with some enthusiasm. I think they'll get better although I suspect we can expect many games that would generally have been laughers to be close. Adding Azzi and Aubrie will give us some breathing room.

I'm convinced that the team was well aware of the humongous no back to back loses streak and don't particularly want to be the team that ended it.

 

[Happydad745]

ONO again. The team went to the free throw line 28 times. But ONO, not once. Didn't force a single foul resulting in a free throw attempt. And she also almost fouled out- 4 fouls. High for the team. She's leading the team in fouls per minute played. By a lot. Further, four turnovers, a third of the team's total. She also was almost equaled in rebounds by EW, who gives up over six inches. All in all, a very mediocre performance for the starting post. Again.

Liv takes a physical beating in the post, but she does her best and toughs it out...some games she scores, others she gets rebounds, whatever she does it for the team as a unit. Without her, UConn would have more problems than it could deal with.

 

[tchalla1]

A huge bonehead play was the foul on the UCLA player as she was driving for a lay-up with about less than 3 minutes left. Lay-up was made, foul shot missed, but UCLA got rebound and scored - 4 pt play. That gave UCLA some life, and they responded. Just can't do that stuff as a senior! Overall, very proud of the team. The officials were atrocious. The tip ball by Evina and off the UCLA player was evident watching live, 150 miles away. It was right in front of the zebra. The 3 refs looked like the Keystone Cops looking at the replay, ad nauseum. They were a disgrace!!!

I thoroughly agree--from junior high, you're taught to either prevent the shooter from making the layup and make them earn the two at the line, or you give up the layup, but what you absolutely do not do is to make a touch foul and give them a three-point opportunity, and in this case, it became a four-point play. This is what Geno keeps lamenting about--the basketball I.Q. of some of our players...... But like you said, I admire the grit--especially EW and Dorka--they pulled it out in the end, and I think it will be a huge confidence booster.....

 

[browns]

ONO again. The team went to the free throw line 28 times. But ONO, not once. Didn't force a single foul resulting in a free throw attempt. And she also almost fouled out- 4 fouls. High for the team. She's leading the team in fouls per minute played. By a lot. Further, four turnovers, a third of the team's total. She also was almost equaled in rebounds by EW, who gives up over six inches. All in all, a very mediocre performance for the starting post. Again.

Again? Take out Paige and Evana and Liv has played the most consistent of any other player

 

[Ex Nutmegger]

I have to add to the comments regarding the refs today by EricLA, Victor64, vowel guy, jaydee602, BBallF, oldude, HopJim, STL Cardinal, top ogigio, and pv doggy. In my mind the refs were clearly biased against UConn today. Why is that? We know a lot of people are biased against UConn because of their success. Are some of the people who are becoming refs allowing their biases to affect their ref work?

One of the people above suggested that the wcbb refs were simply inferior to mcbb and the pro refs. If that were the only problem the bad calls would be evenly distributed to both teams on the floor. No, I believe there is a jealousy/bias factor working here. I am reminded of the NotreDame/UConn game a few years ago where the Notre Dame tank came up behind and literally kicked Dangerfield’s feet out from under her. There was a ref trailing the play with a clear view, and she did nothing. Those actions(or lack of action, more precisely) must not be tolerated. Those refs must be fired.