UConn - Georgetown Post Game

[Rowdy831]

Geno has made a decision to be the best undersized team in the country and I think they are that. The thing I like about UConn though is they are not slight and easily pushed around even though they are not tall. They play really good defense and they are becoming a very efficient offense which makes them a serious contender.

I do agree that teams like South Carolina will be more than they can handle but really to win a NC you always needs someone to take out a team you don't match up with. This years team is way better at this point than last years was in my opinion and last years team was a win against Ohio State away from playing in the big games.

 

[LarryLegend]

whats up with Nikas hand

 

[PacoSwede]

The biggest asset for the freshmen besides scoring ability is confidence to play their game without reservations. I believe they have that, so the sky is the limit for these unbelievable young ladies.

it's a huge factor for the huskies and, i think, a major flaw in the past.

two examples of very talented huskies who would've been better if they vanquished this confidence shortcoming: azzi and christyn. i don't got proof, but it's (merely) an opinion that i'm convinced is accurate.

if i had a better memory (and the motivation to spend the time to plumb it) i'm sure i could cite many others who dealt with this problem. OTOH, among those who whipped the confidence bug-a-boo and showed the benefits are, most obviously, maya and rizz.

 

[LarryLegend]

after some time watching MJL’s replay:
1) KK Arnold is really good
2) with about 4:00 left in second, Nika made a Paige-like pass to (ironically enough) Paige, at least half-court length through a window like a quarterback. Nice
3) as other posters have already said, Brady is definitely trending upward

 

[Ozimoto]

I will simply say that was vintage UConn defensive effort and transition offense.

 

[BBallF]

Coach Muhl, without the umlaut. Sounds like a coach, huh?

100%.

 

[BBallF]

Q was off in her 3 point shots today, but I think she is improving in 3 areas:
hustle, rebounding, and fast breaks.

Agree. Not worried about the shooting. Form is solid and she has very good range which shows strength. She also has a good pull up and a nose for the bucket. She needs to improve her defense. She is uncertain on switches and turns her head away to watch the ball at times, not in classic "Ball,You, Man" form. If she wants to stay on the court longer, the defense has to improve. Also, she got yanked briefly in the 4th quarter because of a bad shot. When she is set with her feet and gets a good pass she is deadly from the 3. It can't be rushed though like that heave was.

 

[BRS24]

Larry Bird-like

IMHO, it might be easier to teach a post player to take jump shots, than to teach a guard how to post up, unless the guard was the tallest person on their HS team. Ash, like Paige, has a plethora of skills and is not just a jump shooter.

 

[Majic Hands]

Watching Paige's blocks is "different" it seems to me to be mostly from the back, or side "reaching" out while maintaining a lot of space between their bodies and dislodging the ball. It's more of a timing thing. The official can't call a foul.

I think the Ash has been watching, learning. I'm hoping that Q is watching & thinking as well.

I think most people, players think of intimidating, making a Big splash with a block. They use way too much force and aggression and tend to get called for a foul because of body contact or they missed and whack the arms. And just as often it ends up putting the player at the line for an and 1.

I simply love to see a block that is basically a tip of the ball to themselves or a teammate or a player taking a shot and their defender can't stop but all of a sudden the ball isn't in their hands because the ball was tapped from a player behind them. Talk about causing insecurities in a shooter.

I'm hoping for more as the season goes.

 

[msf22b]

it's a huge factor for the huskies and, i think, a major flaw in the past.

two examples of very talented huskies who would've been better if they vanquished this confidence shortcoming: azzi and christyn. i don't got proof, but it's (merely) an opinion that i'm convinced is accurate.

if i had a better memory (and the motivation to spend the time to plumb it) i'm sure i could cite many others who dealt with this problem. OTOH, among those who whipped the confidence bug-a-boo and showed the benefits are, most obviously, maya and rizz.

I always felt, and articulated endlessly (to the ultimate frustration of my boneyard colleagues) that Moriah was kept on a much too short leash in her freshman year and that caused her unique moves that she had displayed in HS to be completely revealed only in her sophomore year.

I always thought that was a coaching error.

But people learn, especially when that's the only choice...and this season's talented trio are displaying their stuff early (for UConn)

 

[BBallF]

Indeed.

View attachment 94854

I really think this stat is critical and perhaps most important this year with our vertical gap. We can't give up possessions because with less offensive rebounding, losing Aubrey really hurts this stat, we have to capitalize on all our fast breaks and offensive sets. In other words, we will have less second shots and therefore less points. To offset that, holding turnovers under double digits ( turnovers include walks, offensive fouls, 3 second violations, errant passes, etc.) is key together with our very tight defense.

 

[RoadMaster]

Swipe

 

[Longtime fan]

What a strong performance against an overly physical team. I strongly dislike that kind of defense and play. Reminds me of UCF and others - when you are outmatched talent-wise, just try to beat the team up. I totally disagreed with Culmo's comment when they thought Ransom had 3 fouls in the 1st half - "You hate to see a great player get into foul trouble". Heck no. You hate to see a team try to beat up physically our UCONN players, so I was thrilled when Ransom got #4 at the end of Q3. Georgetown deserved way more fouls than they got, and Geno was right to be ballistic on the bench for most of the first half. Good for him.

Slow start as the team had to adjust to the physical play, got the lead up to 20 in the first half, gave 8 points of it back at halftime, then stormed out in Q3. Really the whole team was solid. But the rebounding - has to be a huge concern against teams who are big and/or fast and/or physical. Got slaughtered on the boards 44-27. On the flip side, TO's were crazy low so really solid on that. Had only 4 midway thru Q4. Ended up with 8.

• I know they didn't do a lot on the stats-sheet, in the first 3 quarters, but Q and Ice played solid IMHO in spelling the post players and guards. I think the thing that stood out was that they played hard with very few mistakes. Can't ask for more in a game like this as they continue to try to find their scoring grooves... BTW that great defensive stop and time violation of Ice and Ashlyn double teaming and stopping G-town without fouling won't show up in the stats sheet, but again, solid play. And their scoring prowess really picked up in Q4 especially for Qadence.
• Nika was just tremendous today. She's my POG. Yeah I know other scored more etc., but her poise and defense and dishes - that great pass to Paige when P was posting up - exemplified her play today.
• Paige and Aaliyah did what the upper classmen were expected to do - play really well and adjust to the overly physical play. True leaders. I will say Aaliyah missed several point blank bunnies that she just can't afford to miss but still, that's nit picking.
• The freshmen - both KK and Ash were tremendous yet again. KK's defense, and awesome drives to the basket really stood out, but Ash's scoring, especially in the first half, was great to watch. KK with rebounds and assists too - both of them are so good!

All the starters in double figures. I maintain the bench was solid. This was a great game to see the team fight - against a team who's play I do not like. BTW that 21-8 3rd quarter was awesome to see - Georgetown came out and drained a 3 right away and UCONN outscored them 21-5 the rest of the quarter. The odds-makers had UCONN by 27.5. Proved to be pretty accurate.

Also noteworthy; Coach gave Bettencourt 7 minutes. I think she can give 10-12 quality minutes in relief of various guards. She isn't going to be an offensive force, but she defends well, and distributes decently. She is smart and aggressive. And we need the relief. I think, by the way, that Q was trying a bit too hard. She had a big audience from nearby. Maryland. But her defense and rebounding are helping, and her shot will become more reliable. I agree with Geno that her ceiling is really high. Same for ICE. So we can do well with 7. We don't match up well , at the moment, with some of the powers ( eg South Carolina, LSU ) but we might later on if Q and ICE become stars like KK and Shade.

 

[JRRRJ]

I thought one of Paige’s best assist was when she assisted the assistant coaches calming Geno down. I believe she put her arm around him and led him to the huddle.

Coach P! The only one who could get his attention in the moment.

Had to replay that...

 

[MSGRET]

I meant to say this but it got lost somewhere between my brain and finger.

That's called a BRAIN FART!!

 

[MSGRET]

Larry Bird-like

Heck she's from Indiana what do you expect!

 

[jazz]

"Some people" include Geno given his most recent comments about Ice. This makes me more optimistic about her trajectory

Yes, I am aware of what GA said - I told always take what he says at face value however. Not sure he really said anything about her trajectory but I hope that it gets a lot steeper soon as I mentioned.

 

[MSGRET]

A lot of people are surprised about Nika and her 3-pt shooting, I'm not surprised at all. If you go back and watch her playing in Croatia you will see her shooting the 3's with good accuracy. She wasn't needed as a scorer before this year, she was needed for her defense and passing to players that were better shooters, she is finally being called on to shoot when she's open. Currently she is the second best 3 pt shooter on the team, behind Paige who is shooting at a 49.2% clip vs Nika's 46.9% clip.

 

[jazz]

A lot of people are surprised about Nika and her 3-pt shooting, I'm not surprised at all. If you go back and watch her playing in Croatia you will see her shooting the 3's with good accuracy. She wasn't needed as a scorer before this year, she was needed for her defense and passing to players that were better shooters, she is finally being called on to shoot when she's open. Currently she is the second best 3 pt shooter on the team, behind Paige who is shooting at a 49.2% clip vs Nika's 46.9% clip.

I think she shot roughly 35% for her first 3 yrs from 3, which isnt too shabby either. Anything over 40% is superb.

 

[jeff30189]

whats up with Nikas hand

This gets my vote for "best random and misplaced post". What IS up with her hand?

 

[MSGRET]

whats up with Nikas hand

Must have sprained it from shooting too many 3's during practice.

 

[DrummerDee]

I always felt, and articulated endlessly (to the ultimate frustration of my boneyard colleagues) that Moriah was kept on a much too short leash in her freshman year and that caused her unique moves that she had displayed in HS to be completely revealed only in her sophomore year.

I always thought that was a coaching error.

But people learn, especially when that's the only choice...and this season's talented trio are displaying their stuff early (for UConn)

I always thought this was an oversight on Geno's part regarding Stevens. Along with not starting her after the half in the NC game. Ahhh..the possibilities.

 

[Zarathustra]

And Ashlynn played pg in HS while Ines is also a pg off the bench. That’s a lot of assists just waiting to happen….

Ines also was one of (at least) two POINT guards on Portugal's National Team. Ines played both as
the Primary PG and the second guard during her playing this summer with Portugal. So, she is familiar with the
play of two "pgs" on the floor at any one time. Of course, she has spent more time now under
Geno's care then in training and playing with Portugal! If you need a reference or video, its
all there on the FIBA website!! GO INES, GO KK, GO NIKA, Go PAIGE, go... EVERYBODY EATS!!!

 

[RoadMaster]

 

[hoophuskee]

Anyone have the postgame Press Conference with Geno's comments?