UConn - Louisville post game thread (merged) | Page 4 | The Boneyard

UConn - Louisville post game thread (merged)

Jeff's big girl was looking for gratuitous contact as the game progressed and the refs ignored it. Jeff's incessant whining is unproffesional. The chin hair harmonizes with his whining.

Haven't seen the stats, but I suspect the UConn defense and pace of play impacted their shooting averages.

Satisfying game.
 
I really loved what I saw out there today. The team boxed out. The defense was pretty good, especially in the 2nd half. The starting lineup is getting better and consistent.

KK-She is going to better. I love that she is not afraid to attack the basket. Those shots will start falling soon.

Ashlynn- Like KK, her shot will become consistent. I just love that she is looking confident out there. Her defense is going to get better. I figure by the middle of Big East play, Ashlynn & KK are going to be a force.

Aaliyah-Just a joy to watch. What an efficient game out there today. I loved that she is able to handle all of the physical play and still give the team her best, especially on the boards.

Paige- All Everything. What more can we say about her that hasn't been said before. The thing about Paige, and Coach hit on it during his press conference, Paige's basketball IQ allows her to take advantage of so many situations and help the team on both ends of the floor.

Nika- I still enjoy watching her play. Like Coach said in the presser, she is a nightmare but what a nightmare to have. Her 10 assists are what we love about her. She, like Paige, can put the ball in the right spot. We all know she hates making turnovers. But like, the great John Wooden said about turnovers, “A basketball team that won’t risk mistakes will not outscore opponents. The same is true for any organization. Fouls, errors and mistakes are part of the competitive process in sports, business and elsewhere. Don’t live in fear of making a mistake." Nika needs to play fearlessly out there.

Aubrey- What a game! She is a true slasher. Basketball is a game of angles and Paige and Aubrey play angles the best, KK is going to be next as she gets stronger. But Aubrey was awesome out there. I am hoping that she continues to build on this game. I loved that embrace when she came out of the game between her and Coach. That was powerful considering all that she has went through.

Ice-I think when we get into Big East play, she will get more minutes and more playing time. Like the other freshmen players, she will get better and by January, I think we will see a confident Ice Brady out there. She got the talent. She just has to believe that she can do it.

Q-She needs to share her confidence with Ice. Q is not afraid to shoot the rock. 5 minutes on the floor and she put up 7 shots. Love it!! Like KK, Ashlynn, and Ice, I am hoping that these players get more minutes during the Big East season.

10 games in and we are 7-3, with a tough schedule. The sky is not falling, guys. We got the talent. Just keep getting better. Great win, UConn!!
 
my2cents said:
Best part of the game was Aubrey's smile when Geno took her out.
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I've wondered from early on what's going on with Nika. Today was the worst she's handled the ball this season, but it's really been a head-scratcher watching her all year. Very strange for a 4th year player to do some of the things she's doing. She doesn't look to be playing with same intensity we're used to seeing from her. She even looks almost disinterested at times. KK is playing better basketball.
 
What's not to like about an empathetic win against a ranked team? A few things that have been well covered above. I'll not pile on and only say I agree with most of it. Overall I liked a lot more things than I disliked and enjoyed the game!

Am I the only one who thinks the Sue B era uniform is by far the best looking there has been? Bring it back!

The overall pace and intensity on both offense and defense was the best I've seen it this year. I'm sure that Geno has been hammering home the message that going small doesn't work if it is small and slow. Related is that we rebounded with passion and got control of a lot of balls that we wouldn't have earlier.

Paige played too many minutes. When she went out at about the 6 minute mark of the 4th Q, with UConn up 22, I thought her night was over. Although there was no indication the team was collapsing she was back in pretty quickly. Aside from giving her rest in a long season there is that not tempting fate thing.

It is getting to be an open question as to how much PT Ines and Amari will get even against lesser competition. Toward the end of the game when a starter came out and high-fived down the bench those two were noticably less enthusiastic than the others. Hopefully I'm wrong.
 
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I'm guessing that the loss of Azzi and absence of Caroline has Nika sharing the court, and the ball, with Paige and KK far more than originally envisioned. Tough adjustment for Nika because instead of a spread floor with shooters on both wings, she's looking at a packed in paint or a closely guarded Paige. Ideally, you'd want your pg to create for herself in that circumstance but it seems that being a "non-scorer" is how Nika sees herself. We've seen her score double figures, so I think she has it in her. She needs to do less hunting for the highlight reel trick-shot pass and more looking for her own offense. Figuring out new roles has been a challenge for everybody, maybe more so for Nika because her role has been so clearly defined for the last three years. Hopefully, the conference schedule will let her figure it out under less intense game pressure.
 
This game kinda reminded me of the NC State game last year, or the Tennessee game a couple years prior (Azzi's freshman year). Just a great performance. This is how Paige and Nika can look together at their best (minus the Nika turnovers and a couple more shots from Paige). Nika is great at pushing the ball, and finding people. Paige is Paige. 14 assist between them and like I said, Nika could've really had another 3 or 4. AE was great. Of course Aubrey was great as well. I don't love the 12 shots from Paige. I know its constantly brought up, and I get doing what the team needs but she's pretty consistently been low on fgas. The problem is when she's 5-12 instead of 7-12 and Aubrey doesn't have a big night. I also don't like slowing down so much in the 4th quarter. Maybe with like 5 minutes or fewer but similar to the unc game there was a stretch where they slowed down too much and didn't manage to get quality shots on offense.
 
TCC Kid said:
As always nice analysis--I'm happy with 7 and 3. The alternative of 10 and 0 is not nice. Except for the toughness and talent of the Freshmen--it could be a long season. Ashlynn is my Player of the Game--however 4 others deserve that award too. I've come to the point when Shades shoots to be disappointed it didn't go in. the kid can shoot, defends well, not great but WOW for a frosh. KK is wonderful and learning.
A.G. (Griffin) I keep calling a Pros --Pro. She'll fit into the W easily. What talent.
However, 3 others were her equal. Paige--ho-hum--doing what Paige does (to repeat a Geno comment on Kiah Stokes or Tamika)
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You have to be able to shoot to make it in the W. She's to small to play forward in that league and no way could she play guard there
 
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oldude said:
Really, really nice win today by the Huskies over a very good Louisville team. A couple thoughts:
  • After running out a bunch of different lineups this season, UConn started the same small lineup for the 3rd game in a row, and it showed as the Huskies offense had much better player and ball movement. How about a season high 24 assists?
  • Does Paige need a new nickname? How about THE HUMAN ERASER? :eek: I’m sure Marvin Webster would be OK with that…
  • After a so-so defensive effort in the 1st half, UConn dropped the hammer on Louisville in the second half, holding the Cardinals to just 20 points.
  • While no UConn fan is happy with 7-3, UConn has fought through injuries and a tough OOC schedule. With the BE schedule up next, there will be a lot of opportunities for UConn’s youngsters as well as the team to continue to improve.
  • I love Nika. But she must take better care of the ball. I would rather see her take a bad shot than make a bad pass. A shot has a chance of going in or someone getting an offensive rebound. Nothing good comes of a bad pass.
  • Really strong veteran efforts by Aubrey, Aaliyah and Paige. KK continues to impress. Need a little more consistency from the rest of the rookies and this team should have a very nice 8 player rotation by March.
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That's absolutely spot on about Nika's turnovers. Those 8 turnovers are 8 fewer shots for the team. At a FG clip of only 40%, that's 6-7 points less as a team in a given game. She is very loose with the ball at times and it can be lethal in a given game, such as Ohio State last year. Part of it is communication, part of it is the lack of being in sync with the freshmen and them not expecting the ball when they should, part of it is her confidence that she can make every pass, even the difficult ones, and part of it is just bad judgment. We become a better team overnight when her turnovers decrease. The great feature of having Paige is that you have a player that is not pass dependent to get a good shot and to score. She creates her own offense. Nika's passing, in other words, does not have to cause the offense to function, as it seemed to require last year, it only has to fit into it now, which it does beautifully without forcing it. She just has to understand that precision and safety with the ball is a far greater benefit to this team right now and we know that Nika is all about the team, 1000% all the way and that is why we love her.
 
Bone Dog said:
THIS! Exactly this is what I've been saying too. Paige doesn't beat you with her shooting. She beats you with her team. It's like the cudgel she beats you with. And to get that cudgel balanced just right, she needs to teach her team how it's done on defense as well as offense. It's an academy class on self-discipline and self-reliance.

And this is also why we haven't seen much of Ice and Qadence -- they haven't figured out the defense in practice yet. When they do, Coaches P and G will have them in the game.
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I agree completely. The key to Q and Ice and to a solid 8 man rotation is their defense. When it is a plus and no longer either questionable or a liability, we moved that much more forward as a team.
 
Urshurak said:
Great game overall and a lot of things happened we wanted to see. Still lots to fix. Nika with 8 turnovers all by herself. She has to take care of the ball better.

Freshman are the real deal. I am really enjoying watching them.

Aubrey can be the best player in the country and then lay an egg next game. Seems to be her MO. Hoping she breaks it and comes out firing against Butler. If she can be more consistent, it will help this team tremendously.
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I think she is much more comfortable coming off the bench. There is an element of surprise with her as well for the other team. She just has a dimension to her game no one else has.
 
browns said:
Aubrey was great today.if she could play like that every game they could be quite a team..the 24 assists out of 32 shots was terrific
Nika with the 8 to's looks really bad and it is but she had 10 assists and tied with AE with 7 boards
They outrebounded L'Ville and the only negative was the 10 offensive boards they gave up
Really nice defensive effort
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Nika is playing so many minutes to get only one or 2 shots. Need to try and be more like the guard from Amore from Virginia tech
 
Huskee11 said:
If I were Geno I would tell Nika to shoot every time she is open against Butler. Mindset gotta change.
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I know exactly what you mean. I had a similar sentiment watching this game. But something Walz said in his presser has me thinking.

He was talking about KK and how her impact in pushing the pace is not really reflected in her assist numbers. I think this also applies to Nika. Yes, she had way too many turnovers. But I suspect Geno really wants the two of them on the court simply to force everyone to push pace. Unless the ball moves fast, you can’t easily accomplish this.

Geno said something else that’s sort of relevant, that he liked the quick passing. He observed that when they pass like this the ball “feels light” and they have better movement. But when they don’t move well in the half court offense the ball starts to “feel heavy.”

I think he’s willing to tolerate “nightmare” turnover numbers from Nika for now, because he expects them to get it under control but retain the habit of moving without the ball. This may be better in his book then having a slow walk up the court and an overly deliberate half court offense. I doubt he’ll make any changes in his starting lineup before January, and maybe not even then.
 
dtbtbtb said:
Few Thoughts:
*The best UConn played in a long long time
*Loved the intensity UConn was playing with the whole game.
*Everyone on UConn was fighting for rebounds and the result was that we outrebounded a bigger team (Louisville)
*Walz is a great couch, but he is whining the whole game to the officials...
*Aubrey: absolutely amazing. Her athleticism in full display and she doesn't try to do anything which she can't do.
*AE: great with the mid-range shot and going to the basket. Cochran is very strong but she found her match in Edwards.
*Paige: The best player in the country (IMO). wow...5 blocks (are you kidding me)...and she does not force anything.
*KK: better every game. Clearly is not a 3-point shooter and should stop shooting from 3. but got a nice mid-range shot and good instincts as a PG. If UConn would have been in full strength, KK would have taken a lot of minutes from Nika. With the current roster, they play a lot next to one another.
*Shade: getting better on defense and love her confidence in shooting.
*Nika: one of her worst game s in UConn despite the 10 assists and 7 rebounds. Those 8 turnovers were ridiculous for a senior PG.
*Ice: got few rebounds but is not clear on what to do on offense. Hopefully continue to grow.
*Q: does not lack confidence but getting of the bench to fire away is probably not the best of ideas. Fights for rebounds and did ok on defense.
*Loved the switches on defense. They were communicating and moving their feet. Real good to see!
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I think Jeff W is a great coach (look at his record) ... I consider his "whining" as part of a head coach's attempt to " work the
refs". In the same vein, he probable knew that he was going to get that "T" foul and was trying
EVERYTHING to motivate his team and to right a sinking ship.... but there was nothing to salvage with
the way UCONN was playing!! GO HUSKIES!! On to Butler and Metropolitan (let ICE and the three
frosh run loose!)
 
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browns said:
You have to be able to shoot to make it in the W. She's to small to play forward in that league and no way could she play guard there
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Kiah Stokes didn’t shoot much in college and now she has 2 WNBA championship rings

www.reviewjournal.com

Aces lean on veteran center ahead of Game 2 against Sky

he top-seeded Aces had one of their best defensive performances of the season in Game 1 against the No. 8 Chicago Sky, with A’ja Wilson crediting center Kiah Stokes.
www.reviewjournal.com www.reviewjournal.com
 
In terms of team progression, love the way KK and Shade are progressing, but the end of the year they should be fine. I have concerns with Ice. IMO, to go far in the NCAAs, we need a solid 20 minutes from Ice. I hope Geno really works to develop her now that the Big East is starting.
 
I was among those wondering what Geno said to put that big grin on Aubrey's face. Loved David54's suggestion. Aubrey has such awesome talent. On the breakaways, she toys with her defender, either drawing her into an and-one foul, or going into overdrive to speed by her to the basket. I did hold my breath on one long-pass breakaway when she put in the layup without dribbling. On an away or neutral court, that could have been a travel call.

I was pleased with the improved foul shooting and layup finishing (with one or two glaring exceptions). And I loved the swarming team defense. It seemed like most of the steals came when the ball handler was double-teamed. AE was especially effective in coming out to double-team, and then hustle back to position if there was no takeaway.

Best-looking performance of the season. On to the BE!
 
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Enough with the bagging on Nika. She's pushing it as hard as she can go, every time. She sets the pace for our offensive flow, and is a force on D. She's doing this with a roster that is still a work in progress. She's a leader and that's why she gets the playing time.
 
In the last couple of games Paige almost seems to be 'hunting' for blocks.
You will occasionally hear coaches saying that they want to see their best
shooters 'hunt' for shots...i.e. be aggressive.

On her blocks Paige tends to leave her man and come after inside shooters [who have their
backs turned to her]. She gets the blocks [usually on taller players] due to her position and
their not knowing she is there and to her serious...serious...elevation.

Does not hurt the team intensity a bit when she does her scream-thing.
Darn entertaining...keep it up.
 
boontonbomber said:
I've wondered from early on what's going on with Nika. Today was the worst she's handled the ball this season, but it's really been a head-scratcher watching her all year. Very strange for a 4th year player to do some of the things she's doing. She doesn't look to be playing with same intensity we're used to seeing from her. She even looks almost disinterested at times. KK is playing better basketball.
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Have to agree with this. KK is playing great at point. KK handles pressure better. Geno loves when KK drives to the hoop. Automatically opens others to a fancy dish. Also, KK is scoring with many of those drives. I think it is natural for Nika to be a little sensitive about the changes. Nika is playing a different position for most of the game. KK is bringing up the ball and initiating the offense. NIka has to adjust for new angles and new people. As a senior, one thinks it shouldn't be this way. Geno always talks about Nika being difficult to handle. She is hard nosed in many ways--good and bad.
We all love Nika as a person and player. However, she is not the same lately. She does pick up her dribble too often. She has to stop and pop the mid-range jumper--ala Shade.
Nika is a very important part of the team. Like Aubrey, she has to be more consistent. UConn has 4 seniors with lots of experience and talent. That's the basis of a very good team. Can they do it every game?
 
browns said:
Aubrey was great today.if she could play like that every game they could be quite a team..the 24 assists out of 32 shots was terrific
Nika with the 8 to's looks really bad and it is but she had 10 assists and tied with AE with 7 boards
They outrebounded L'Ville and the only negative was the 10 offensive boards they gave up
Really nice defensive effort
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Look again. A team is awarded an ORB every time they miss the first of two free throws. To get the actual total, add up the individual columns.
 
bantamlaker said:
Some of Paige’s blocks have been pretty dramatic. They too energize the team and crowd. I wish someone would make a highlight video of them.
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Her physique does not suggest a shot blocker, but her anticipation, vision and timing is so extraordinary she pulls it off with great elan. And she still scares me every time she does it.
 
and one said:
Paige played too many minutes. When she went out at about the 6 minute mark of the 4th Q, with UConn up 22, I thought her night was over. Although there was no indication the team was collapsing she was back in pretty quickly. Aside from giving her rest in a long season there is that not tempting fate thing.

It is getting to be an open question as to how much PT Ines and Amari will get even against lesser competition. Toward the end of the game when a starter came out and high-fived down the bench those two were noticably less enthusiastic than the others. Hopefully I'm wrong.
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1--- I sort of liked that he put Paige back in. Louisville was pressing. It was a great opportunity to have the team work on beign pressed.

2--- At what point did you see them less enthusiastic?
 
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