UConn has too much fire power | Page 2 | The Boneyard

UConn has too much fire power

if this UConn team plays to it's potential and stays injury free I think they will be very hard to beat.......obviously it only takes one hot shooting opponent on a cold shooting night to loose but UConn has way too much firepower to stay cold for very long........waiting to see how long it will take for PB and to combine for 50 points in a game......
 
Tonyc and I are and have been on the same page with regards to this years version of the Huskies. The fire power is off the charts...three point shooters like Paige Bueckers, Azzi Fudd, Christyn Williams, Evina Westbrook, Nika Muhl, Saylor Poffenbarger and Carolyn Ducharme all playing for the same team is unprecedented for a UConn team. Our front court...is deep Oliva Ododa, Aaliyah Edwards, Dorka Juhasz, Aubrey Griffin, Amari DeBerry and Paith Gabriele...is as deep as it gets for UConn. This team already had great ball movement...this years version, given the time needed will make other teams envious with how the ball will move around the perimeter, in and out; out and in..it will be a thing of beauty. Defensively by the end of January - early February this team will shut down other teams, they will be disruptive, they will block shots and get steals. Am I excited about this year's team? Huge understatement! Someone mentioned as I have in the past I just don't see how you keep this team under 100 unless Geno takes his foot off the gas (which he will do in order to spare teams from being blown-out in embarrassing losses). I expect record points off turnovers, record threes, possibly a record points per game, record low scores per game for their opponents. There is just no way to downplay how good this team will be come February...Geno knows it, Paige knows it, Tonyc knows it and so do we.
 
Charliebball said:
if this UConn team plays to it's potential and stays injury free I think they will be very hard to beat.......obviously it only takes one hot shooting opponent on a cold shooting night to loose but UConn has way too much firepower to stay cold for very long........waiting to see how long it will take for PB and to combine for 50 points in a game......
Expand ...
I'm guessing before the holiday break. Remember that Crystal Dangerfield tallied 19 points and five assists vs. Baylor (11/17), and Christyn Williams broke out for 28 points with 11 field goals at Notre Dame (12/2), both had their "breakout" games early (within the first 7 games) in their freshman year? If Azzi can find HER stroke and confidence early on, I'm guessing it can happen sometime in December. :cool:
 
Last year UConn's MOV was 29pts/gm. The top MOV in the last 12 years was the 2015 UConn team @ 41/gm. So there is a target. In fact in the last 12 years UConn led the country 9 times. Which takes me to my point which is that UConn has always dominated other teams with their defense. Last year they depended on 3 freshmen to make significant contributions. Defense is all about communications and I expect a huge improvement on defense. In addition to the expected freshman to sophomore jump they are adding a high quality and experienced post in Juhasz. Her presence will allow Geno to keep 2 bigs on the court (ONO, Juhasz, Edwards) at all times. Last year there were a lot of games when one of the two posts sat due to fouls and UConn got beat (Ark & Ariz are two examples).

I read a comment that SC's guards/wings are somehow better than UConn's. I guess that poster missed the UConn-SCar game where Bueckers used both Cooke and Henderson repeatedly. They are certainly quick but they are tiny and are not very good outside shooters. They score a lot on transition but UConn took that away. I haven't seen Stanford play much so I can't say much but UConn won't face them until April. I expect that Tara will invent some variation of a triangle plus 2 but even her genius won't help.
 
.-.
Jingo said:
I think there are too many selfish players on this team and that will be our downfall .. our BIGS will NEVER see the ball unless they get an offensive rebound .. thus, our guards [with their delusions of grandeur] will be our Achilles heel, eh?
Expand ...
No attack but your logic is suspect in my opinion on this one and others in the past. Sense the day Geno arrived the team has been a virtual example of how to share the ball. Season after season including last year they are one of the top teams in assists.
NCAA College Women's Basketball DI current team Stats | NCAA.com

Geno has begged players to shoot when open or penetrate and get fouled. I think a little research will show one that any player on UConn not performing as a team player will not be on the floor for but a few minutes. The word selfish has never been associated with UConn women's basketball and I doubt it will be this year.
 
Charliebball said:
if this UConn team plays to it's potential and stays injury free I think they will be very hard to beat.......obviously it only takes one hot shooting opponent on a cold shooting night to loose but UConn has way too much firepower to stay cold for very long........waiting to see how long it will take for PB and to combine for 50 points in a game......
Expand ...
So, when will Paige assisted Azzi break Lou's 10/10 from 3? Freshman year? Game 1? ;);)
 
.-.
Regarding posts about playtime with all the talent on this seasons team. Playtime has always been earned in practice. The underclassman will need playtime to be ready to step into the shoes of this years graduating class. The seniors will need playtime because theyve earned it and need to be ready for the pros. So I dont see playtime being an issue. In the big games early on we will depend on our experienced players and those underclassman who have proven they can play on the big stage. Hey some will not see alot of playtime however with blow outs and I think this season there will be many and many early in the first half...playtime should not be an issue.

Last season Paige amazed us on how she could take over a game and how she could get everybody involved. We saw her telling Saylor to shoot the ball to get her going. Thats leadership. Azzi is a generational player much like Paige. This duo is going to be off the charts and there isnt anything our opponents can do about it. They remind me of Stewie at her level to be able to do what she did when UConn needed somebody to step up. Now we've got 2 in Paige and Azzi. Some of you may doubt it. Some of you may not see it yet. But you will.
 
I apologize in advance if this has already been discussed. I have a slight concern for a certain amount of unselfishness. That is, some players may give up open shots in the name of "sharing" the ball. Personally, I believe the mindset should be, get the ball to whoever is "hot" that night. As great as these girls might be, not everyone will be hot every night. This is what came to my mind after reading the Topic header.
 
Selfish?!? This team is too unselfish, especially in big games. I'd rather see a 3-person combo like Paige/Azzi/Dorku dominate the scoring & possession (80 points total among them) come Tourney time, rather than playing timid & seeing who is "hot" that game - that is a recipe for disaster. Let the other coach try to stop our big scorers if they can.
 
Tonyc said:
Regarding posts about playtime with all the talent on this seasons team. Playtime has always been earned in practice. The underclassman will need playtime to be ready to step into the shoes of this years graduating class. The seniors will need playtime because theyve earned it and need to be ready for the pros. So I dont see playtime being an issue. In the big games early on we will depend on our experienced players and those underclassman who have proven they can play on the big stage. Hey some will not see alot of playtime however with blow outs and I think this season there will be many and many early in the first half...playtime should not be an issue.

Last season Paige amazed us on how she could take over a game and how she could get everybody involved. We saw her telling Saylor to shoot the ball to get her going. Thats leadership. Azzi is a generational player much like Paige. This duo is going to be off the charts and there isnt anything our opponents can do about it. They remind me of Stewie at her level to be able to do what she did when UConn needed somebody to step up. Now we've got 2 in Paige and Azzi. Some of you may doubt it. Some of you may not see it yet. But you will.
Expand ...
It's a bit premature to call Azzi a "generational player" after watching her play in the FIBA U19 games this past summer. I saw all the games. She was the 6th guard behind Paopao, Clark, Citron, Verlquist, & Johnson in that order. Lauren Betts was MVP, altho they gave that award to Clark.
"Bring your game, not your name" is the motto of the iS8 tournament in Queens. Sage advice!
 
CocoHusky said:
:eek:Shocking that @Tonyc can manage to pack so much optimism into one post. :D. 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.
Expand ...
I agree with you; remember how dominant Maryland "seemed" to be on offense last season? Until they played a good defense.
 
.-.
Every year I have one desire or hope for the Huskies, to stay away from major injuries and/or sickness!
If UCONN can do that then let the chips fall where they may.
They certainly have the talent for great things but they need to be ON the court to get those results!
I don't predict any special results just please stay healthy!
 
This year's team has all the parts. We all expect great things from them. We have 3 point shooters!! We have more quality bigs than I can remember. We have experienced seniors. We also have pretty good coaching. Let the games begin!!!!
 
Jingo said:
It's a bit premature to call Azzi a "generational player" after watching her play in the FIBA U19 games this past summer. I saw all the games. She was the 6th guard behind Paopao, Clark, Citron, Verlquist, & Johnson in that order. Lauren Betts was MVP, altho they gave that award to Clark.
"Bring your game, not your name" is the motto of the iS8 tournament in Queens. Sage advice!
Expand ...
I agree. I watched all the FIBA U19 games also. Lauren Betts was a force!
 
Jingo said:
I think there are too many selfish players on this team and that will be our downfall .. our BIGS will NEVER see the ball unless they get an offensive rebound .. thus, our guards [with their delusions of grandeur] will be our Achilles heel, eh?
Expand ...
You win the thumbs down award. Congratulations.
 
LoboDays said:
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.”
Expand ...
Well heck, I can probably do that.
 
Jingo said:
It's a bit premature to call Azzi a "generational player" after watching her play in the FIBA U19 games this past summer. I saw all the games. She was the 6th guard behind Paopao, Clark, Citron, Verlquist, & Johnson in that order. Lauren Betts was MVP, altho they gave that award to Clark.
"Bring your game, not your name" is the motto of the iS8 tournament in Queens. Sage advice!
Expand ...
I think you're cherry picking a bit. If you are only using pts as a measure than yes but I was most interested in Azzi's defense after the injury and she was the 1st guard in that category. The guards you listed were just happy to trade baskets in my opinion. Without Azzi guarding the opponent's best scorer, they don't win that tournament.
 
.-.
DEpup said:
I think you're cherry picking a bit. If you are only using pts as a measure than yes but I was most interested in Azzi's defense after the injury and she was the 1st guard in that category. The guards you listed were just happy to trade baskets in my opinion. Without Azzi guarding the opponent's best scorer, they don't win that tournament.
Expand ...
I think they made it a point for Azzi to guard Australia's best guard in the gold medal game. She wasn't guarding the best scorers the whole tournament. They are winning that tournament without her defense. The player with the most impact on the tournament was Lauren Betts.

Melbourne is a good player, but she isn't the caliber of player that the US team had. I agree that Clark, Johnson, and Pao-Pao would be happy to trade basics. I don't think Verhulst or Citron would fall under that, and I think they both have higher ceilings on the defensive end.
 
I was a little dissapointed in Azzi's offensive output in that tournament, as she appeared to defer a little too much to others IMO. On the other hand her shooting ability, and scoring ability for that matter, are both considered givens for which there is little doubt. So watching her play for me was more a question of the rest of her game, and from that perspective I was pretty impressed that she will be a well rounded player, not just a shooter scorer.

In particular the ball handling passing was very good, and she looked strong defensively as well. I didn't see much on rebounding but overall the rest of her game impressed me, and also made me feel she could more easily blend in and find a role quickly on this team.
 
Jingo said:
It's a bit premature to call Azzi a "generational player" after watching her play in the FIBA U19 games this past summer. I saw all the games. She was the 6th guard behind Paopao, Clark, Citron, Verlquist, & Johnson in that order. Lauren Betts was MVP, altho they gave that award to Clark.
"Bring your game, not your name" is the motto of the iS8 tournament in Queens. Sage advice!
Expand ...
No Way Commando GIF by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment

Your bias for bigs as well as your complete lack of BB knowledge is showing again. There is no way Azzi was the 6th best guard on that team. What are you smoking and where can the rest of us get some? Azzi shot 52% from deep and defended the other team's best guard. Can we safely assume that Azzi is to be the new target of your vitriol now that Christyn Williams is about to graduate?
 
A couple of thoughts. UConn is an unselfish team and Paige will make her team mates better. Azzi from what I am told is much the same type player. Both Paige and Azzi are assassins'. We need to wait for the season to start and for Azzi to gain experience at UConn and it will not happen in the first couple of games. It will take some time. Understand both Paige and Azzi will get alot of attention because they do they will find and help get their team mates open. I have learned over the years that there are players who see alot more before they reach half court then others see. Paige and Azzi are that type player.
 
Tonyc said:
A couple of thoughts. UConn is an unselfish team and Paige will make her team mates better. Azzi from what I am told is much the same type player. Both Paige and Azzi are assassins'. We need to wait for the season to start and for Azzi to gain experience at UConn and it will not happen in the first couple of games. It will take some time. Understand both Paige and Azzi will get alot of attention because they do they will find and help get their team mates open. I have learned over the years that there are players who see alot more before they reach half court then others see. Paige and Azzi are that type player.
Expand ...
Your post reminded me of CD’s comment about Paige after the Syracuse game, in an almost supernatural complement, “She sees things.”
 
Seems like you folks spend the off season laying around spinning pipe dreams of imagined glory. If you played in a Power 5 conference you might be ready for a Final Four win at long last. As it is, you beat up on a bunch of Seaton Halls and enter the Tournament thinking you're as potent as your pumped up stats make you appear. When you play the Gamecocks reality will dawn - and if you had the guts to go to Palo Alto your pipe dreams would evaporate. You're actually pretty good for a mid-major.
 
.-.
You must log in or register to reply here.

Forum statistics

Threads
168,524
Messages
4,580,518
Members
10,490
Latest member
7774Forever


Top Bottom