UConn - Louisville post game thread (merged)

[JellyBean]

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.

We all are hoping that Ice (and Q) can get some minutes during Big East play in order to get that confidence. I also agree that going far in the NCAA, we need a confident Ice out there on the floor. That goes for everyone on the team as well. Guard play is huge in the tournaments, but you also need some post players doing work as well. But I like what is developing so far with the team and it is only going to get better.

 

[Bone Dog]

As many have observed elsewhere, it often takes bigs a little longer to get acclimated to the rigors of D1 play. Ice is going through this now. She’ll pick it up soon enough and recover the confidence she played with in HS and USABB. I imagine conference play will be a boon to her and the team.

 

[Inthepaint]

This is what's frustrating: A very legitimate critique of Nika is raised, and here comes her apologists to her defense. You can say what you will, but 8 TOs is quite unacceptable and represents poor decision making and misreads. Her teammates are not causing her TOs, Nika is...

Several times Nika without much pressure, made poor passes and dribbled the ball in between several defenders when she really didn't need to. I am at a lost as to why Nika is doing this especially since the Louisville defense was not especially stiff. I am hoping that Geno has a talk with her about her decision-making because her TOs have really become glaring...

Hate the sin….Love the sinner
I dig Nika’s moxie & energy
At the same time, she has me scratching my head and, just like Geno, saying “What the h—l was that?!”

 

[Zarathustra]

As many have observed elsewhere, it often takes bigs a little longer to get acclimated to the rigors of D1 play. Ice is going through this now. She’ll pick it up soon enough and recover the confidence she played with in HS and USABB. I imagine conference play will be a boon to her and the team.

Agreed! Go ICE! go Frosh!

 

[Rowdy831]

I don't feel sorry for Louisville. They're better without Hailey, and as Jefferson comes into her own no one will miss her. And Cochran looks to be peaking this year.

I said at the top of this thread that we outran them because they didn't have the stamina to play the type of game they're built for across an entire game. They've blown out a few opponents so far by outrunning them in the first half. But this may be the first game where an opponent forced them to run the whole game. Paige & Co made them run longer than they were really prepared for. But all this only means they'll be a lot better in February once they have developed their stamina. I expect them to be a tough out in the tournament.

So is LSU.

 

[Rowdy831]

This team will get to the point where they dominate teams that are similar in size. Their first real test comes against ND when they play a team that will be quite a bit bigger that them but progress is certainly being made. It does seem that Aubrey is the wildcard on this team and if she can find a consistency in her game it makes UConn very difficult to beat.

Turnovers were an issue but to me it seems like they got most of them when they were focused on running clock and not running their offense. Several passes from one side of the court to the other, several passes at the receivers knees and several passes to the post where even if the catch the pass they are not in position to do anything with it. Since Nika has the ball most often she did have the lion's share of the TOs but it is an area the whole team could improve.

I do think against several of the top teams UConn can compete but they will have to win the TO battle to offset the rebounding which will favor the likes of SC. In the end though I think they will be a team that has a shot and that will play up to it's competition.

 

[RedStickHusky]

I do think against several of the top teams UConn can compete but they will have to win the TO battle to offset the rebounding which will favor the likes of SC. In the end though I think they will be a team that has a shot and that will play up to it's competition.

We've been saying this a lot in recent years, but what a coaching job that will be...

 

[CardsWBBfan]

I learned to really like Jeff Walz in a presser after a tough loss a few years ago. He was such a subtle teacher in that moment, criticizing and praising at the same time. But what I really was struck by is that he has a pronounced stutter. I hadn't noticed it before. He's able to be a great motivator -- and his teams are motivated above all -- with a significant speech impediment. Kudos to you, Jeff!

He doesn’t stutter when he yells. It might be why he yells a lot.

He really is a great guy. I’m glad you learned to really like him. He’s a great teacher, and his press conferences are filled with the teachable moments in a game.

If you haven’t seen his post game from this game, you should check it out.

 

[CardsWBBfan]

Is it wrong of me to feel sorry for Louisville for not having Hailey Van Lith for her last year? Something about that just doesn't seem right to me.

As a Louisville fan I’m not sorry about it. Don’t lose any sleep over it.