UConn has too much fire power

[Tonyc]

Theses been alot of posts over the years especially this season on height. There aren't alot of bigs that score alot of points. The presence of bigs intimidates players going to the middle. Depending on a big for points in most cases is not their purpose. Their purpose their purpose is for defense and rebounding. With that said against smaller post players bigs are able to get alot of points but having a good defensive big can negate that.

Uconn this season has alot of really good outside shooters. UConn should be able to put up alot of points in a very short time. We have shooters much like KML was for UConn. Other teams dont have the fire power and depth in fire power that UConn has this season. Defenses will have a problem defending UConn one on one. If one player draws two defenders that will leave somebody else open. If that player is having an off shooting night then we have players who can come off the bench and score. This team is loaded with really good shooters and scorers.

Against teams like SC and Stanford they like UConn have multiple bigs allowing them to play a high low. That could be a factor if defensively they are quick enough to keep up with our speedy guards. That could also put them in foul trouble. UConns ability to score alot of points will most likely result in the game being slowed down. That could work if opponents can keep up with UConns scoring. IMO the only teams that can threaten UConn are SC and Stanford and Stanford is not on UConns schedule. Stanford and UConn are on SC's schedule. Im looking forward to watching those games.

I look back a few years on how dominate UConn was with the 3 some of Stewie Tuck and MoJeff. Well this years team is similar. I expect AE's improvement to put her in position to become a better scorer and that along with are guards and wings will give us a dominate scoring attack that will not be matched by any other team.

Those fans concerned about what happened at the end of last season I believe have nothing to be concerned about this season. We have the depth and experience to handle any threats. We are for the most part a young team that will be dependent on some young players and those young players will be lead by upperclassmen who will complement them on the floor. I dont think many fans understand how good this team is and how much better they will be by the end of the season. In December we have UCLA and LVille then in January we have Oregon and SC. These tests will amplify our weaknesses as well as our ability to play in big games. These games will allow Geno to tweak his team.

Its been a while since Ive been this excited about the up coming season. As crazy as it sounds, I think we can begin to start another win streak much like we did in the past. This is a special group of players with alot of talent and we have more talent coming in next season. Dont be surprised with double digit wins against good teams. The fire power is there and the ability to go on runs and put up alot of points in a very short time is a reality that opponents will have to guard against. As good as SC and Stanford are and they are the cream of the crop this season I dont think they can contain UConns explosive Ariel attack. We're Going to the Top....the Very Top

 

[Carnac]

Theses been alot of posts over the years especially this season on height. There aren't alot of bigs that score alot of points. The presence of bigs intimidates players going to the middle. Depending on a big for points in most cases is not their purpose. Their purpose their purpose is for defense and rebounding. With that said against smaller post players bigs are able to get alot of points but having a good defensive big can negate that.

Uconn this season has alot of really good outside shooters. UConn should be able to put up alot of points in a very short time. We have shooters much like KML was for UConn. Other teams dont have the fire power and depth in fire power that UConn has this season. Defenses will have a problem defending UConn one on one. If one player draws two defenders that will leave somebody else open. If that player is having an off shooting night then we have players who can come off the bench and score. This team is loaded with really good shooters and scorers.

Against teams like SC and Stanford they like UConn have multiple bigs allowing them to play a high low. That could be a factor if defensively they are quick enough to keep up with our speedy guards. That could also put them in foul trouble. UConns ability to score alot of points will most likely result in the game being slowed down. That could work if opponents can keep up with UConns scoring. IMO the only teams that can threaten UConn are SC and Stanford and Stanford is not on UConns schedule. Stanford and UConn are on SC's schedule. Im looking forward to watching those games.

I look back a few years on how dominate UConn was with the 3 some of Stewie Tuck and MoJeff. Well this years team is similar. I expect AE's improvement to put her in position to become a better scorer and that along with are guards and wings will give us a dominate scoring attack that will not be matched by any other team.

Those fans concerned about what happened at the end of last season I believe have nothing to be concerned about this season. We have the depth and experience to handle any threats. We are for the most part a young team that will be dependent on some young players and those young players will be lead by upperclassmen who will complement them on the floor. I dont think many fans understand how good this team is and how much better they will be by the end of the season. In December we have UCLA and LVille then in January we have Oregon and SC. These tests will amplify our weaknesses as well as our ability to play in big games. These games will allow Geno to tweak his team.

Its been a while since Ive been this excited about the up coming season. As crazy as it sounds, I think we can begin to start another win streak much like we did in the past. This is a special group of players with alot of talent and we have more talent coming in next season. Dont be surprised with double digit wins against good teams. The fire power is there and the ability to go on runs and put up alot of points in a very short time is a reality that opponents will have to guard against. As good as SC and Stanford are and they are the cream of the crop this season I dont think they can contain UConns explosive Ariel attack. We're Going to the Top....the Very Top

Hi Tony, always nice to hear from you. Great post, thanks.

 

[Inthepaint]

Yeah, Tony, I'm champing at the bit myself. Mush, Huskies!!
You would have to have a real anti-UCONN bias not to acknowledge just how loaded with talent this year's contingent is.
The trick will be to have the right people on the court at the critical times.
I can't think of anyone better than Geno to figure that one out.
All we can do at this point is hope that the ladies stay healthy.

 

[Glenn]

While I think we will be undefeated this year. I do not have much confidence in that projection. Why? Because it relies on normal sophomore leaps and improvement by other returners and a strong performance from Azzi. All likely but not guaranteed. Last year's team had a poor record for Uconn, two "bad" losses to AZ and Ark, bad based on our history of beating teams seeded 3 and lower. And a lucky win over Baylor. So we need much better play this year to be UConn good.

 

[oldude]

Looking around the country, the only schools that may be able to “score” with UConn are Iowa, MD & Stanford. Of those 3 the only one that can match UConn’s size and depth is Stanford imo, so here’s my prediction for the championship final this year.

UConn 78 - Stanford 71

MSGRET, I know it’s a little premature to predict a game score for a game that hasn’t been scheduled, but please feel free to book that spread.

 

[Carnac]

Looking around the country, the only schools that may be able to “score” with UConn are Iowa, MD & Stanford. Of those 3 the only one that can match UConn’s size and depth is Stanford imo, so here’s my prediction for the championship final this year.

UConn 78 - Stanford 71

MSGRET, I know it’s a little premature to predict a game score for a game that hasn’t been scheduled, but please feel free to book that spread.

Don't forget, in the NCAA championship game earlier this year, Arizona held the mighty Cardinal to 54 points (23 pts in the 2nd half). Arizona actually outscored Stanford by 6 in the second half 29-23. Sometimes a big bad wolf's growl can be worst than its bite.....sometimes.

 

[veryolddog]

I certainly concur with your thinking that UConn has the players at all of the positions who have the potential to defend and score. I am pragmatic and would prefer to wait and actually see how this is orchestrated by Geno and how well this team performs in both directions. Yes, I am also excited and optimistic about this years prospects. I also was excited about last years prospects as well.

 

[Stymie]

If you can’t finish the ‘bunnies’, the “firepower” may not be enough.
Just sayin’...

 

[eebmg]

Looking around the country, the only schools that may be able to “score” with UConn are Iowa, MD & Stanford. Of those 3 the only one that can match UConn’s size and depth is Stanford imo, so here’s my prediction for the championship final this year.

UConn 78 - Stanford 71

MSGRET, I know it’s a little premature to predict a game score for a game that hasn’t been scheduled, but please feel free to book that spread.

and the Bad Ass award goes to Home grown MN's Paige Bueckers with a triple double.

 

[Mdoggie]

If you can’t finish the ‘bunnies’, the “firepower” may not be enough.
Just sayin’...

Oh don’t you worry about those bunnies. We will take care of them for sure!!

 

[visitingcock]

 

[EricLA]

Whilst I love Tony's optimism and enthusiasm, IMHO there is no way UCONN will be dominant against the best teams this season. Sure we will likely blow out anyone not in the top 10, but there is no team out there who will roll over for UCONN, and I'm betting fans of Stanford and SC like their teams' chances a lot too.

On paper, SC is stronger in the post. They have guards and wings who are simply more athletic than ours. Does this mean they win? UCONN certainly has strengths they don't. While they bring back top 10 PG Henderson, now a senior, they have no one like NPOY Bueckers. And very few teams will have the shooting prowess of UCONN. I'd stack up Williams and Westbrook against any pair of off guards in the country, and no one has the intensity or aggressiveness of Muhl.

I suspect they will start Henderson, Beal, Cook, Saxton and Boston, but given how Amihere has improved, she may supplant Saxton. Off the bench they will have Littleton, Amihere, Grissett, and Cardoso. Not to mention the quartet of freshmen.

I suspect UCONN will start Muhl, Bueckers, Williams, Westbrook and ONO. Griffin, Edwards and Juhusz off the bench with our quartet of outstanding freshmen. We have waves of post players we can throw at them. They have waves of athletic guards and wings they can throw at us.

UCONN will likely play them twice in the regular season, something i'm not keen on. We could face them a 3rd time in the NCAA's. Anyone remember ND and how hard it was to beat a team 3x in 1 season?

Anyway my point is - while of course I hope we win, will we? We won't know till the teams play. Both sets of fans will feel confident but nervous. SC is every bit as deep as UCONN. They are more athletic. We have better shooters. On paper. How will that translate? Geno will have to devise a way to stop their post players. They will need to stop our guards.

I do think Stanford is just a whisker below UCONN and SC, but any team that is coming off an NC and has 4 starters coming back (I think they lost Kiana Williams to graduation) but bring back 6th year guard Wilson as well as Hull, Brink, and Jones (final 4 MOP). Prechtel may be the 5th starter, but they are a bit thin after that - Belibi, Jump, the other Hull, and their quartet of freshmen led by Demetre and Iriafen.

Tara is a tremendous coach and has done more with less (on paper) than most other coaches. By that I mean she's made deep NCAA runs with teams on paper having little top 5 (or top 10) firepower.

Going to be an exciting season. Some of those seasons UCONN won with Stewie et. al. - the final 4 was super weak (the year we beat Syracuse), or another top team had a monumental upset (Baylor with Griner/Sims losing to L'ville). That won't be the case for the next several years. All IMHO of course...

 

[oldude]

Whilst I love Tony's optimism and enthusiasm, IMHO there is no way UCONN will be dominant against the best teams this season. Sure we will likely blow out anyone not in the top 10, but there is no team out there who will roll over for UCONN, and I'm betting fans of Stanford and SC like their teams' chances a lot too.

On paper, SC is stronger in the post. They have guards and wings who are simply more athletic than ours. Does this mean they win? UCONN certainly has strengths they don't. While they bring back top 10 PG Henderson, now a senior, they have no one like NPOY Bueckers. And very few teams will have the shooting prowess of UCONN. I'd stack up Williams and Westbrook against any pair of off guards in the country, and no one has the intensity or aggressiveness of Muhl.

I suspect they will start Henderson, Beal, Cook, Saxton and Boston, but given how Amihere has improved, she may supplant Saxton. Off the bench they will have Littleton, Amihere, Grissett, and Cardoso. Not to mention the quartet of freshmen.

I suspect UCONN will start Muhl, Bueckers, Williams, Westbrook and ONO. Griffin, Edwards and Juhusz off the bench with our quartet of outstanding freshmen. We have waves of post players we can throw at them. They have waves of athletic guards and wings they can throw at us.

UCONN will likely play them twice in the regular season, something i'm not keen on. We could face them a 3rd time in the NCAA's. Anyone remember ND and how hard it was to beat a team 3x in 1 season?

Anyway my point is - while of course I hope we win, will we? We won't know till the teams play. Both sets of fans will feel confident but nervous. SC is every bit as deep as UCONN. They are more athletic. We have better shooters. On paper. How will that translate? Geno will have to devise a way to stop their post players. They will need to stop our guards.

I do think Stanford is just a whisker below UCONN and SC, but any team that is coming off an NC and has 4 starters coming back (I think they lost Kiana Williams to graduation) but bring back 6th year guard Wilson as well as Hull, Brink, and Jones (final 4 MOP). Prechtel may be the 5th starter, but they are a bit thin after that - Belibi, Jump, the other Hull, and their quartet of freshmen led by Demetre and Iriafen.

Tara is a tremendous coach and has done more with less (on paper) than most other coaches. By that I mean she's made deep NCAA runs with teams on paper having little top 5 (or top 10) firepower.

Going to be an exciting season. Some of those seasons UCONN won with Stewie et. al. - the final 4 was super weak (the year we beat Syracuse), or another top team had a monumental upset (Baylor with Griner/Sims losing to L'ville). That won't be the case for the next several years. All IMHO of course...

Eric, overall I agree with your comments. But I’m not quite sure I would suggest that SC’s guards & wings are more athletic than ours. Paige, Evina & Christyn are exceptional athletes, and they have a size advantage over SC’s backcourt. SC does have some exceptionally athletic freshmen coming in, but they are just freshmen.

 

[Carnac]

Whilst I love Tony's optimism and enthusiasm, IMHO there is no way UCONN will be dominant against the best teams this season. Sure we will likely blow out anyone not in the top 10, but there is no team out there who will roll over for UCONN, and I'm betting fans of Stanford and SC like their teams' chances a lot too.

On paper, SC is stronger in the post. They have guards and wings who are simply more athletic than ours. Does this mean they win? UCONN certainly has strengths they don't. While they bring back top 10 PG Henderson, now a senior, they have no one like NPOY Bueckers. And very few teams will have the shooting prowess of UCONN. I'd stack up Williams and Westbrook against any pair of off guards in the country, and no one has the intensity or aggressiveness of Muhl.

I suspect they will start Henderson, Beal, Cook, Saxton and Boston, but given how Amihere has improved, she may supplant Saxton. Off the bench they will have Littleton, Amihere, Grissett, and Cardoso. Not to mention the quartet of freshmen.

I suspect UCONN will start Muhl, Bueckers, Williams, Westbrook and ONO. Griffin, Edwards and Juhusz off the bench with our quartet of outstanding freshmen. We have waves of post players we can throw at them. They have waves of athletic guards and wings they can throw at us.

UCONN will likely play them twice in the regular season, something i'm not keen on. We could face them a 3rd time in the NCAA's. Anyone remember ND and how hard it was to beat a team 3x in 1 season?

Anyway my point is - while of course I hope we win, will we? We won't know till the teams play. Both sets of fans will feel confident but nervous. SC is every bit as deep as UCONN. They are more athletic. We have better shooters. On paper. How will that translate? Geno will have to devise a way to stop their post players. They will need to stop our guards.

I do think Stanford is just a whisker below UCONN and SC, but any team that is coming off an NC and has 4 starters coming back (I think they lost Kiana Williams to graduation) but bring back 6th year guard Wilson as well as Hull, Brink, and Jones (final 4 MOP). Prechtel may be the 5th starter, but they are a bit thin after that - Belibi, Jump, the other Hull, and their quartet of freshmen led by Demetre and Iriafen.

Tara is a tremendous coach and has done more with less (on paper) than most other coaches. By that I mean she's made deep NCAA runs with teams on paper having little top 5 (or top 10) firepower.

Going to be an exciting season. Some of those seasons UCONN won with Stewie et. al. - the final 4 was super weak (the year we beat Syracuse), or another top team had a monumental upset (Baylor with Griner/Sims losing to L'ville). That won't be the case for the next several years. All IMHO of course...

Good post Eric. I suspect Cardoso will be a impactful player coming off the bench for Dawn. Staley has her for (potentially) 4 more years. I expect Cardoso to improve greatly over that period. She may become the most dominant post during her time in Division1, or maybe not. Too early to tell now. Let's see what she looks like come March. My first prediction of the season.....South Carolina makes the final four. They are going to be as tough an out as UConn. Stanford will also be in the area. We all expect UConn to be there, who rounds out the foursome? A dark horse perhaps?

 

[Huskee11]

I am very excited about the upcoming season - who wouldn`t be? The offensive firepower should be something to behold and I expect UConn to break the 100 point mark on numerous occasions. It will be fun.

But it isn`t always going to be like a DePaul game. In order to win a national title they will inevitably have to win one or more games that are ugly, walk it up, possession by possession, knock down, drag out, physical, poorly officiated brawls. (South Carolina, maybe?) UConn will simply need to be physical and able to defend, and to make contested shots and free throws. I think playing time will be dictated largely on ability to defend.

The good news is that we do have some very good defensive players on the roster. It will be interesting to see how well the offensively gifted newcomers play on the defensive end and adapt to the UConn defensive system - not to be taken for granted, an example being Azura Stevens who never really figured it out.

On the defensive end, a major plus this season is the additional depth which will allow UConn to press and to defend more aggressively, since foul trouble should not be the cause for panic that it has been in recent years.

 

[huskyd]

Without Joe Frazier, Muhammad Ali would have been a lesser star. A great athlete needs solid competition, and UConn will also need to have a few teams with quality to play against--and to beat.
Tony is correct in saying that this Husky team is underestimated by some BYers. I don't know why. Tony is also correct in saying that we are on the cusp of greatness--or perhaps a return to greatness. IMO, this is the best team we've ever had taken in its entirety. Fasten those seat belts.

 

[CocoHusky]

Shocking that @Tonyc can manage to pack so much optimism into one post. . I love it!
Even with the amount of potential firepower that UCONN can put on the floor this season, it is very premature to be talking about another UCONN winning streak or presuming a championship.
For starters UCONN potentially faces South Carolina three times this season. Once will be at their place and the other two will be at a neutral site. SC returns 4 players (Boston, Beal , Cooke and Henderson) for whom this will be the 3 year of starting together. Combine that with the number 1 recruiting class and the fact that the two teams played into OT @ UCONN last season, I just cannot envision a scenario where either team sweeps all three games.
Despite all this potential firepower UCONN is not going to start another winning streak by getting into shootouts. UCONN will eventually have to defend as Arizona did against them last year and as they failed to do at Arkansas. Stanford and SC have been mentioned as potential teams that can give UCONN trouble this year. I suggest another team would be NC State. NC added a pair of players (Diamond Johnson & Madison Hayes ) that were among the best freshman in the country last year to what is a terrific returning (top 5) team. It would also not be wise to look past Louisville. Although Louisville lost Dana Evans last year that team has been bolstered by the transfer of Emily Engstler and incoming freshman Payton Verhulst. UCONN is definitely one of the top 3 teams in the country which is pretty much where UCONN has been sitting since the 2016-17 season. None of those seasons resulted in an undefeated teams nor did any of those team start of a winning streak worthy of being talked about by UCONN WBB standards. I hope this team can but I would count on it.

 

[DEpup]

Don't forget, in the NCAA championship game earlier this year, Arizona held the mighty Cardinal to 54 points (23 pts in the 2nd half). Arizona actually outscored Stanford by 6 in the second half 29-23. Sometimes a big bad wolf's growl can be worst than its bite.....sometimes.

I'm going to have to see Arizona prove they can sustain their play without Ari McDonald before I worry about them....

 

[DEpup]

Shocking that @Tonyc can manage to pack so much optimism into one post. . I love it!
Even with the amount of potential firepower that UCONN can put on the floor this season, it is very premature to be talking about another UCONN winning streak or presuming a championship.
For starters UCONN potentially faces South Carolina three times this season. Once will be at their place and the other two will be at a neutral site. SC returns 4 players (Boston, Beal , Cooke and Henderson) for whom this will be the 3 year of starting together. Combine that with the number 1 recruiting class and the fact that the two teams played into OT @ UCONN last season, I just cannot envision a scenario where either team sweeps all three games.
Despite all this potential firepower UCONN is not going to start another winning streak by getting into shootouts. UCONN will eventually have to defend as Arizona did against them last year and as they failed to do at Arkansas. Stanford and SC have been mentioned as potential teams that can give UCONN trouble this year. I suggest another team would be NC State. NC added a pair of players (Diamond Johnson & Madison Hayes ) that were among the best freshman in the country last year to what is a terrific returning (top 5) team. It would also not be wise to look past Louisville. Although Louisville lost Dana Evans last year that team has been bolstered by the transfer of Emily Engstler and incoming freshman Payton Verhulst. UCONN is definitely one of the top 3 teams in the country which is pretty much where UCONN has been sitting since the 2016-17 season. None of those seasons resulted in an undefeated teams nor did any of those team start of a winning streak worthy of being talked about by UCONN WBB standards. I hope this team can but I would count on it.

I agree! UConn is going to have to prove they can defend and I think that starts with Paige actually followed by Liv and Edwards defending without fouling. Aside from team defense which Paige is pretty good, she's got to get better one on one along with the other guards. I actually was pleasantly surprised by Azzi's work at the U19 in that area. I am hoping E will be healthier and able to degend better and same for Nika to continue her defensive progression. They have got to get back to the old days where the guards could just shut down a team's best scoring guard.

 

[BostonBay]

TonyC is a Generational Poster. You dont get these insights every day. Every 20 years or so if we're lucky!

 

[CocoHusky]

TonyC is a Generational Poster. You dont get these insights every day. Every 20 years or so if we're lucky!

 

[da60]

I admire all the enthusiasm, especially from Tony. I am always excited to begin a season and this year it could be special.....But...please calm down from predicting greatness before it occurs. It's basketball, and anything can happen. I fear too many jinxes are bad for the kettle. All of us should be aware of what we have. Coach will have his hands full with on-floor rotations. Let's let the process happen Yes this COULD be a special season and I hope it will be! Practically guaranteeing a NC is a jinx.

 

[CL82]

You people sicken me....

 

[jchusky]

Aside the 2019-20 season, what season has Uconn not had the most talent and firepower? they had it in 2017, 2018, 2019 or are we saying that the teams of Gabby/Dangerfield/Nurse/KLS/Collier/Azura/Williams weren't firepower? The issue with Uconn has not been about talent, it has been about mental toughness and having players that can close games out in the last 10 minutes of game or OT. Who is the person in the last few minutes that will rise up to the challenge? Also I would keep note that if you're going to use Stanford "barely" beating an Arz team after playing the most physical team in America South Carolina 2 days earlier I'd be cautious.

 

[LoboDays]

Every year, we get basically the same post. It is correct that UCONN puts a great team on the floor but yet we are sent packing by teams with less talent. Maybe this coming season will be different. Maybe it won’t. If we win it all, it won’t be because our players are better. They always are. It will be because someone in the locker says…”this ain’t Butler we’re playing, so stop thinking you’re better and go out and prove that you are.”