UConn 95 and SC today

[hoophuskee]

I still can’t believe Griner only won one NCAA championship. I don’t think we’ll ever see another player like her in the women’s game

At UCONN we have seen greater.

 

[Centerstream]

I still can’t believe Griner only won one NCAA championship. I don’t think we’ll ever see another player like her in the women’s game

I totally agree. A 6'9" player that should have completely dominated the game for her 4 years after joining Baylor as the #1 rated HS player. Yet she only dominated in her senior year. Yup, we will probably not see another player like her. I hope the next 6'9" #1 HS player will dominate the game for at least 3 of her 4 years, which includes 3 NCs.

 

[HuskyNan]

You just saw Iowa beat SC and they were major undersized.
You saw Louisville beat the Baylor team you reference and they were undersized.
There's a reason why these big teams lost. Guard play beat them. So why are you ignoring that guard play can't beat them again? It is possible, right?

Despite all the obvious evidence that you've just witnessed you keep pretending like what you have seen didn't happen?

I don't even believe SC will be the best team in their conference next year, never mind your point on Cardoso individually. SC will still be suspect outside shooting. Basketball is not a game of one-on-one. And Cardoso probably won't even be the best player in her own conference. Never mind the country.

I mean you just witnessed Iowa handle her well enough to beat her team win which her team was loaded. And now you imply no one will handle her for the next 2 years?

To be fair, @UCTitleTown has been watching one of UConn’s freshman sensations, 7-2 Donovan Clingan overwhelm teams with his size and quickness. He’s a potent weapon for the Huskies. One of the reasons that people are gushing over him is because 7-2 men’s players, like 6-7 women’s players, are rare and Clingan’s IQ, quickness, and speed up the floor make him special.

If 7-2 men or 6-7 women of elite talent were common, Danny Hurley and Geno would be all over them. I’m not sure if people think Geno is ignoring big girls or what but this obsessive “we need more bigs” is kinda wearing thin.

 

[hoophuskee]

To be fair, @UCTitleTown has been watching one of UConn’s freshman sensations, 7-2 Donovan Clingan overwhelm teams with his size and quickness. He’s a potent weapon for the Huskies. One of the reasons that people are gushing over him is because 7-2 men’s players, like 6-7 women’s players, are rare and one with Clingan’s IQ, quickness, and speed up the floor make him special.

If 7-2 men or 6-7 women of elite talent were common, Danny Hurley and Geno would be all over them. I’m not sure if people think Geno is ignoring big girls or what but this obsessive “we need more bigs” is kinda wearing thin.

Interesting you brought up Clingan. I don't post much on the men's side but I was very active after the men lost to Marquette that UCONN either should have played both bigs together or tried a lot harder getting the hoop to Sanogo. The guards of UCONN were struggling, our bigs were having success, and Marquette was a small team. And I'm more of a fan of guard/wing play.

I'm 100% agreement with you. You get a super big that is huge for the team no pun intended. Any super player you get is huge. It doesn’t have to be only bigs. But it's the "absolute/no doubt about it" type of post that UCONN must have a super-big that wears a little thin.

But after what we saw with Clark and as UCONN fans what we've seen our super-great players do super-amazing things in which some were not low posts, I don’t get the dismissals of non-low post players.

 

[Scrutineer]

You can win without comparable bigs but you better have dominant, aggressive, guards who can make big plays at key times and won't accept defeat.

Like Caitlin Clark, or Bird or Taurasi, players who make/made winning plays and can carry the team. We haven't had that type player in the last few years (injuries being one issue), nor have we had bigs able to compete against some of today's best teams.

And size isn't always measured in height. Look at what Shepherd did for Notre Dame at 6'2".

 

[hoophuskee]

You can win without comparable bigs but you better have dominant, aggressive, guards who can make big plays at key times and won't accept defeat.

Like Caitlin Clark, or Bird or Taurasi, players who make/made winning plays and can carry the team. We haven't had that type player in the last few years (injuries being one issue), nor have we had bigs able to compete against some of today's best teams.

And size isn't always measured in height. Look at what Shepherd did for Notre Dame at 6'2".

Yes, UCONN has had dominant aggressive guards as has other teams.

1--- Two years ago Paige helped her team beat Iowa and Baylor. Got UCONN to the Final Four. And in the Final Four another dominant guard beat us. That dominant guard, McDonald, was seconds away from winning a title vs Stanford. By the way. Stanford, when they won, were not led by a post player.

2-- Last year UCONN had Paige. How dominant did she have to be in the E8 game vs NC State? And she was the best player on the floor vs Stanford. And Clark did not beat SC by herself. Iowa was not beating SC without Czinano scoring 18. UCONN didn't have anything like that in the title game vs SC. Liv was playing hurt. Azzi couldn't play but for a few minutes. Dorka was out in the E8. And Christyn Williams didn't show up. How much more could you have expected from Paige vs what South Carolina had this year vs Iowa?

3-- As far as Shepherd she was a fine piece. But it was the combo of Arike and Young that wound up scoring 59 of 91 points that was more important. UCONN beat Notre dame in the paint between Collier, Gabby and Stevens in which they scored 55 of 89 points. UCONN outrebounded ND, and between UCONN's 3 they had 23 rebounds vs ND's total of 34.

4--- LSU beat Iowa not because they were just a power rebounding team. They also shot 11-17 from 3. Then take a look at last year, prior NCAA champ Stanford shot 4-23 from 3 vs UCONN. And they were 2-7 from 3 vs Ole Miss. In one game LSU nearly doubled Stanford's 3-point makes while taking 63% less overall 3's than Stanford.

Do we really believe that Stanford, one of the most successful programs and the coach in wcbb history, views the game in the same manner as some fans have stated on here in "absolutes" that the game has changed to predominant big posts? If Stanford's guards were to have shot just to a little below average, wouldn't it be likely that they would have advanced the past two years?

That's why the low post comments wear thin. It's not one or the other. LSU showed us why it is both. And Iowa showed that a perimeter team could knock off a mighty predominant inside team.


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[Waquoit]

I do remember Britney Griner and Baylor vaguely. The year I especially remember was the 2011-12 season when Louisville pulled off a big upset over Baylor in the sweet 16 Regionals. If I'm not mistaken the tallest player Louisville had, at time, was Sheronne Vails 6'-4"...it's not about size.

It's not about size... if you can go 16-25 from 3.

 

[southofnorth]

Brown was not the major force on that team it was Cox. The team was probably even better after Brown left, no tournament in 2020.

Brown averaged 15.8 points on 61.4% shooting, 8.2 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks the year (2018-19; her senior year) they won the national championship. Cox averaged 13 (52.2%), 8.3, and 2.6 that year. Baylor only lost 1 game that year compared to 2 games the next (Lauren Cox was injured in at least the first loss, iirc).