UConn-Creighton postgame

[The deacon]

First of all it's Nika and second 2 of her 4 t/o's the player stopped and she was passing the ball to the area that she thought that the player was going to.

And yet, MSGRET, if Nika would look before throwing the pass, there'd have been no TO in those cases.

 

[The deacon]

Jensen is a pretty good player - she has some length and at times was able to shoot over her defender in the lane. Ronsiek was a non-factor.

Good post, Huskee11, but I'd give Lauren Jensen a much better assessment than 'a pretty good player.' As for Ronsiek, Creighton really needed her to come up big to stay in the game, and she didn't... however, to be fair, much like Aaliyah for the Huskies, Emma was getting hacked and grabbed pretty much throughout.

 

[JellyBean]

Like everyone has said, that first half was tough. Shots weren't falling, Aaliyah was getting double, and triple teamed in the post, and offensive flow was iffy. But that 2nd half, the squad cranked things up. Well done. Great win.

 

[FormerCTrez]

And I think she played the entire game!

I liked Geno’s statement that Ashlyn is similar to Azzi, in that ”practice speed is always done at game speed”. I love this kiddo because she’s fearless, skilled, and talented, and wants to do well. I have no doubt that she’ll be a ”bruiser” by the time she’s a senior.

 

[JoePgh]

I liked Geno’s statement that Ashlyn is similar to Azzi, in that ”practice speed is always done at game speed”. I love this kiddo because she’s fearless, skilled, and talented, and wants to do well. I have no doubt that she’ll be a ”bruiser” by the time she’s a senior.

You mean like Nika?

 

[fomalhaut]

If you are going to ask KK, then you need to ask the senior, Muhl to be more of a threat as well.

11 points (with 3-7 from three) is a lot better than 2 points for 1-9. I'll take 11 points and 7 assists from Muhl any day.

 

[cferraro04]

Like I have been saying...anyone who watches Shade play cannot help but like her as a player. Consistent, persistent, smart, and talented. You know what you are going to get from her every game. Her work ethic reminds me of Mel Thomas. She won't be the best player on the floor but you can't keep her on the bench. I hope everyone noticed the nine rebounds she pulled down today....most on our team. She is beginning to round out to a complete stat-stuffing player. I can't wait to see her meshing with a full complement of players, which will populate next year's roster.

 

[OldSchooler]

A hard-fought game, but when you look at the comparative team stats, UConn dominated in every single category. Makes sense in a 20-point win. But those comparative team stats at halftime, when the game was still tied, also had UConn leading in virtually every category, with the one exception of blocked shots, where Creighton led by one. Conclusion: a dominating performance throughout, against the best the BE can throw at us.

Once again, no change in UConn's #15 AP ranking this morning, but Indiana's loss to unranked Illinois should guarantee us an upward move of at least one slot by next week, for what it's worth.

Dare I predict, we could be 31-5 heading into the Sweet 16?

 

[cferraro04]

A hard-fought game, but when you look at the comparative team stats, UConn dominated in every single category. Makes sense in a 20-point win. But those comparative team stats at halftime, when the game was still tied, also had UConn leading in virtually every category, with the one exception of blocked shots, where Creighton led by one. Conclusion: a dominating performance throughout, against the best the BE can throw at us.

Once again, no change in UConn's #15 AP ranking this morning, but Indiana's loss to unranked Illinois should guarantee us an upward move of at least one slot by next week, for what it's worth.

Dare I predict, we could be 31-5 heading into the Sweet 16?

It was odd...at one point I felt like Creighton was getting all the rebounds...so I looked up the box score on espn.com and wa la UConn was leading in rebounds by ten...sometimes, "all is not what it seems".

 

[Old Geezer]

Brady and Samuel’s are playing like freshmen, which technically they both are (Ice playing for her first year). Neither one is impressive. Brady is still tentative and Samuel’s makes as many fouls as baskets. They’re not bad, they’re just over their heads right now. Arnold and Shade are playing great. way better than could have been expected. Thank god for them. As uncomfortable as these games have been to watch, I think this team is playing as well as could be expected. They could catch fire I. The tournament and they could fall flat. Who knows?

 

[#12in21]

And yet, MSGRET, if Nika would look before throwing the pass, there'd have been no TO in those cases.

Too bad Nika doesn't offset her turnovers with some great assists - oh, wait she leads the team those and is second to Paige in a/to percentage this season. Sorry couldn't resist matching snarky with snarky.

 

[cferraro04]

A hard-fought game, but when you look at the comparative team stats, UConn dominated in every single category. Makes sense in a 20-point win. But those comparative team stats at halftime, when the game was still tied, also had UConn leading in virtually every category, with the one exception of blocked shots, where Creighton led by one. Conclusion: a dominating performance throughout, against the best the BE can throw at us.

Once again, no change in UConn's #15 AP ranking this morning, but Indiana's loss to unranked Illinois should guarantee us an upward move of at least one slot by next week, for what it's worth.

Dare I predict, we could be 31-5 heading into the Sweet 16?

If UConn wins out for the regular season and wins the Big East Tournament, of which, I see no reason to think otherwise then I believe that UConn will be a number 2 seed in the NCAA tournament. Now if we get help from some of the other top teams who knows maybe we can sneak in as a number one...not likely, but, again stranger things have happened.

 

[cferraro04]

Brady and Samuel’s are playing like freshmen, which technically they both are (Ice playing for her first year). Neither one is impressive. Brady is still tentative and Samuel’s makes as many fouls as baskets. They’re not bad, they’re just over their heads right now. Arnold and Shade are playing great. way better than could have been expected. Thank god for them. As uncomfortable as these games have been to watch, I think this team is playing as well as could be expected. They could catch fire I. The tournament and they could fall flat. Who knows?

The notion that freshmen are expected to play at the level of a seasoned college player is just unreasonable. I think Shade and KK have over-achieved expectations and OMG has that been a blessing? Let's just think where would we be without Shade and KK playing the way they are? We would be competing with Xavier for the bottom space in the BE ratings.

 

[Ironman23]

They could have t'd up Nika for cursing...not that it wasn't justified.

At the time, I said I hope she's cursing in Croatian.

 

[Longtime fan]

Close game in the first half....Paige and Aaliyah delivered as usual. I would like to see Samuels go in for KK more often, KK is really fast and good on Defense, but her outside shot is not as refined as Samuels, especially 3 pointers..... Congrats on Big East Championship..Shade did really well with 9 rebs and 15 pts.

It was an interesting and close game for longer than I expected. Creighton had a poor shooting day, as they missed scads of relatively open threes, which they usually convert. UCONN defense deserves some credit, of course, but Creighton was shooting bricks all day from the arc.

It is clear that Geno plans to play no more than six players in any game that remains close, and where foul trouble does not dictate otherwise. Accordingly, it seems impossible for Q to get the court time she needs to really improve. She can do some good things ( and she does ), but she has not yet been called upon to do so when the, " chips are down." Maybe she will get a lot more time on the court once we wrap up the Big East and move into the early rounds of that tournament.

This will put a lot of strain on Paige, Williams, Shade, Muhl and KK. The team can count, more and more, on a productive game from Shade ( 15 today, and she missed some shots she can make ), but Paige and Edwards will always be the main scoring focus. However, we need more productivity from KK. Her drives are too often not being finished with buckets and, today, her outside shooting was off. She can do better ( we have seen it ) and she must do better. Her hustle, defense and passing remain first rate. If she can become a dependable 12 point scorer, it will make a world of difference. And Nika Muhl can always get red hot with her shooting.

Brady gets fouls called on her which I never see. And I am not referring to "bang on body" plays. I am referring to quiet moments where nothing seems to be happening. All of a sudden, the whistle blows and a foul is called on Brady, way away from the ball. I guess it is a freshman adjustment thing.

One point from a short bench ( which was today's total), by the way, is not going to be enough when we move to the Big Dance.

So we still await the game where "everything clicks." And hopefully we are moving in that direction. We have seen moments of that. And it will be wonderful if it occurs against a quality team in the Big dance.

A very nice win today in a hard fought game against a pretty decent team.

 

[MSGRET]

And yet, MSGRET, if Nika would look before throwing the pass, there'd have been no TO in those cases.

She had already started to throw the pass, if she stopped the throw then she would have been called for traveling. A good PG always tries anticipate the player's action, sometimes the player that is receiving the ball is the one that messed up.

 

[Geew1992]

11 points (with 3-7 from three) is a lot better than 2 points for 1-9. I'll take 11 points and 7 assists from Muhl any day.

But nika is scoring 11 points every day. Like I said , if you’re gonna ask KK to score more, ya gotta ask nika too.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Ash gave me one of my 3 things I wanted to see. It's going to be interesting to see where her game takes her.

She may have locked up BE FOY!

 

[Rowdy831]

Man that first half was butt ugly. Officiating left much to be desired. And I'm being kind. You know it was bad when Geno went off and got a T.

Second half, reality set in for Creighton. Outscored 42 - 20 in the second half. That 3rd quarter was pure UConn. UConn took the passing lanes away, forced turnovers, controled the boards and sped Creighton. Any 20 point win is a very good win.

Ash is amazing. Constant motion. Knows when to shoot. Plays better defense every game.

Paige did Paige things as did Aaliyah and Nika. It amazes me the phyical pounding Aaliyah takes each game. Yet she is relentless.

Ice, even though she picked up four fouls for breathing near a Creighton player held her own. That was huge while Aaliyah had to sit.

We take the win and move on.

AE needs the game to be called loosely. Where she is challenged is adjusting her physicality to a team that flops and draws fouls. If she is in the game UConn has a chance inside, if she isn't they are in big trouble.

 

[Ralph]

thank you to MJL243 for posting the replay. When I watched the game in person it looked like Edwards got pulled/pushed to the ground right before halftime, a blatant foul. But when I looked at itagain, especially in slow motion, it looked like Edwards got pulled/pushed to the ground and you see her looking at the ref saying "how is that not a foul?" I would have said much worse. Oh wait, I did. and at the top of my lungs. Fans were booing like mad, and when Geno got the T, the place went nuts. A few times it looked like Nika got clobbered, but again, when I looked at it again, especially in slow motion, it looked like got really clobbered. I think that may have had something to do with our ladies not looking great in the first half. It is hard to show up for a basketball game and end up in a rugby game. Sadly, it seems to be the way the game is moving, grabbing at cutting players, shoving, physical versus finesse. I think the days of the motion offense are over if players can't be in motion.

 

[MilfordHusky]

They could have t'd up Nika for cursing...not that it wasn't justified.

Was it in Croatian?

 

[Rowdy831]

I’m starting to get bullish on Ice. I think she’s going to have a big moment before the season is over. Looking forward to what she does next year.

Geno has an issue showing that he has confidence in some players and some players need that before they will play with confidence. He only put Ice in the game after AE got into foul trouble late in the second quarter. The rotations today were something.

 

[MilfordHusky]

South Carolina was down by 7 to unranked Georgia at halftime yesterday but ended up winning by 14, thanks to a 22-8 run in the third quarter. Are they going to lose early in the tournament too?

One can hope!

 

[Rowdy831]

UConn isn't going to play good BB in every quarter with 5 players. A typical team would put players in at that point to change the chemistry but UConn is to short on players to do that so they play good defense until the offense comes around.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

Was it in Croatian?

lol...no. I could read her lips and it was definitely English.

 

[Skeets]

Question for those who watched on TV. I was at the game and didn't have the benefit of an instant replay. The play when Geno got T'ed up, it looked to me from where I was sitting that Edwards was put in a headlock from behind and thrown to the court. Did it look that way on TV? Maybe I'll watch a replay tomorrow.

After the "T" Geno really went after the Creighton coach. I thought he was going to get a second T. Did this make the broadcast? I don't think he was very happy with the way Edwards was getting mugged in the paint.

When was the last time Geno got a T? I think he's mellowing...

 

[LwrcasefaN]

Are Nika and Paige PO'd at each other. They seemed to be arguing at the beginning of the presser.

I'm guessing they made up some type of competition right there at the podium.

 

[HuskyNan]

The notion that freshmen are expected to play at the level of a seasoned college player is just unreasonable. I think Shade and KK have over-achieved expectations and OMG has that been a blessing? Let's just think where would we be without Shade and KK playing the way they are? We would be competing with Xavier for the bottom space in the BE ratings.

 

[cferraro04]

But nika is scoring 11 points every day. Like I said , if you’re gonna ask KK to score more, ya gotta ask nika too.

I believe Geno has asked Nika to be more offensively minded. It is obvious from watching this version of the Huskies...that no one player can do it by themselves. There are too many teams that have developed effective defensive schemes to counteract a team that has a dominant post player or a dominant perimeter player. Some of the top teams have the manpower to stop a team that has a dominant post and a dominant perimeter player. If UConn is going to be successful in the post-season they are going to need contributions from all five positions.

1. Nika while she is doing a herculean job with assists, rebounds, and steals... will need to be more offensively minded so defenses don't sag off of her and make it hard for Aaliyah down low.

2. KK same as Nika...KK is also doing a great job in rebounds, assists, and steals but, her lack of offensive productivity is more obvious than Nika's. Nika will hit the three if open and Nika finishes her lay-ups. KK is incredibly inconsistent from three, her pull-up when she does it, is also inconsistent but the most frustrating thing is her frequent drives into traffic where the bigs are waiting to crush her shot. So, if by chance both Nika and KK are having a bad shooting day the pressure on the rest of the team increases exponentially and even more so on Aaliyah in the paint.

3. Shade just needs to keep doing what she is doing...if she can be counted on to give us 12-15 points, 4-5 rebounds, and contribute in steals and assists that is all we can ask of her this season.

4. Aaliyah is playing like an All-American in my view. She is practically an automatic double-double every game. I pray that she doesn't have a bad game the rest of the way. By the way, we will miss her big-time next season.

5. Paige needs to shoot more, hopefully, we will see more days like we saw today from Paige. She was 9-18 (50%) for 24 points. Her three-point shooting was a little off...2-6. We are going to need Paige to hoist up 20-24 shots per game. Of course, it will be easier for Paige to get into a shooting groove if everyone else is doing their job and Paige is being guarded on one or is facing a zone defense. Additionally, Paige needs to be in constant motion...no standing around. If they are going to put a player on her all night long to try and deny her touches then she should do her best to wear that player down so they will be ineffective on the offensive end. Other than Paige shooting more shots...what can you say about a player who is also playing like an All-American and is doing the things on the court that only she can do?

6. Ice...we need her to be able to give us 10-12 quality minutes, no senseless fouls, defend the paint, block some shots, and make shots in the paint when the guards pass her the ball. We don't need to see a double-double from her though it would be nice but, 6 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks would add a dimension to UConn that will be very helpful in the post-season.

7. Samuels...is another player who needs to be counted upon to give us 8-10 productive minutes. She is doing very well with the minutes she has been getting. She has been consistently rebounding, her defense is pretty good and she can and does knock down some threes. If Samuels gives us 4-6 points, 2-3 rebounds, and doesn't turn the ball over too much she will also give UConn what they need in reserve.

8. Bettencourt isn't being called upon to provide much off the bench...but, if you remember from last year there were some occasions where Bettencourt was needed and she did just fine, she rose to the occasion and did much more right than wrong. I think she is still that kind of player if we need her to be.

9. Amari needs to understand that she is 6'5". She was recruited by one of the best programs in the country. She has been playing in practice against one of the best post players in the country (Aaliyah). She is being asked to play big for 5-7 minutes per game...I refuse to believe that she doesn't have that in her. It is time to realize that she can contribute to the Husky's post-season run even if it is for limited minutes.

If we get contributions from everyone, get a little help from our competition, stay out of foul trouble, and not incur any more injuries we have a chance to be the echo of Khalid El-Amin's words during their championship run in 1999..."We are going to shock the world".

 

[PAHuskeyFan]

I believe Geno has asked Nika to be more offensively minded. It is obvious from watching this version of the Huskies...that no one player can do it by themselves. There are too many teams that have developed effective defensive schemes to counteract a team that has a dominant post player or a dominant perimeter player. Some of the top teams have the manpower to stop a team that has a dominant post and a dominant perimeter player. If UConn is going to be successful in the post-season they are going to need contributions from all five positions.

1. Nika while she is doing a herculean job with assists, rebounds, and steals... will need to be more offensively minded so defenses don't sag off of her and make it hard for Aaliyah down low.

2. KK same as Nika...KK is also doing a great job in rebounds, assists, and steals but, her lack of offensive productivity is more obvious than Nika's. Nika will hit the three if open and Nika finishes her lay-ups. KK is incredibly inconsistent from three, her pull-up when she does it, is also inconsistent but the most frustrating thing is her frequent drives into traffic where the bigs are waiting to crush her shot. So, if by chance both Nika and KK are having a bad shooting day the pressure on the rest of the team increases exponentially and even more so on Aaliyah in the paint.

3. Shade just needs to keep doing what she is doing...if she can be counted on to give us 12-15 points, 4-5 rebounds, and contribute in steals and assists that is all we can ask of her this season.

4. Aaliyah is playing like an All-American in my view. She is practically an automatic double-double every game. I pray that she doesn't have a bad game the rest of the way. By the way, we will miss her big-time next season.

5. Paige needs to shoot more, hopefully, we will see more days like we saw today from Paige. She was 9-18 (50%) for 24 points. Her three-point shooting was a little off...2-6. We are going to need Paige to hoist up 20-24 shots per game. Of course, it will be easier for Paige to get into a shooting groove if everyone else is doing their job and Paige is being guarded on one or is facing a zone defense. Additionally, Paige needs to be in constant motion...no standing around. If they are going to put a player on her all night long to try and deny her touches then she should do her best to wear that player down so they will be ineffective on the offensive end. Other than Paige shooting more shots...what can you say about a player who is also playing like an All-American and is doing the things on the court that only she can do?

6. Ice...we need her to be able to give us 10-12 quality minutes, no senseless fouls, defend the paint, block some shots, and make shots in the paint when the guards pass her the ball. We don't need to see a double-double from her though it would be nice but, 6 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks would add a dimension to UConn that will be very helpful in the post-season.

7. Samuels...is another player who needs to be counted upon to give us 8-10 productive minutes. She is doing very well with the minutes she has been getting. She has been consistently rebounding, her defense is pretty good and she can and does knock down some threes. If Samuels gives us 4-6 points, 2-3 rebounds, and doesn't turn the ball over too much she will also give UConn what they need in reserve.

8. Bettencourt isn't being called upon to provide much off the bench...but, if you remember from last year there were some occasions where Bettencourt was needed and she did just fine, she rose to the occasion and did much more right than wrong. I think she is still that kind of player if we need her to be.

9. Amari needs to understand that she is 6'5". She was recruited by one of the best programs in the country. She has been playing in practice against one of the best post players in the country (Aaliyah). She is being asked to play big for 5-7 minutes per game...I refuse to believe that she doesn't have that in her. It is time to realize that she can contribute to the Husky's post-season run even if it is for limited minutes.

If we get contributions from everyone, get a little help from our competition, stay out of foul trouble, and not incur any more injuries we have a chance to be the echo of Khalid El-Amin's words during their championship run in 1999..."We are going to shock the world".

I think KK needs to STOP shooting 3s for a while. Sh is very inconsistent and we rarely get the rebound. I noticed that most of her 3s are very flat...no arc...and routinely hit the front rim. She needs to keep using her speed for drives to the basket or her passing to find other players in position for better shots.