UConn - Minnesota post game thread

[HuskyNan]

 

[LwrcasefaN]

Letting teams be physical can be said for just about every WCBB game these days! UConn may prefer finesse ,but has a long history of very physical players that have been mentioned on the BY numerous times. UConn games are no different than any other games these days whether it be physical play or officiating. I am not sure why some fans continue to insist otherwise.

This game was VERY physical. They allowed a lot on both ends.

 

[my2cents]

Game is worth only a couple of words, WE WON!..

 

[JellyBean]

What a day and what a game. Like a few pointed out, really was not expecting a 62-44 type game. I really thought UConn would put 80 on the board, if not more. Like a lot of people have stated, this was not a pretty win but a win, nonetheless. We will take it.

 

[HuskyNan]

 

[Redux]

the game isn’t without merit

A win. No injuries. ...
...
...

Did I say no injuries?

 

[HuskyNan]

What a day and what a game. Like a few pointed out, really was not expecting a 62-44 type game. I really thought UConn would put 80 on the board, if not more. Like a lot of people have stated, this was not a pretty win but a win, nonetheless. We will take it.

Well, Iowa won but gave up 90 points, 113-90. Offense sells tickets but defense wins games

 

[kidfrom360]

I’ve resorted to twitter intel for Azzi updates at this point, but I’ll take what I can get…

 

[SEbluebood]

Well, Iowa won but gave up 90 points, 113-90. Offense sells tickets but defense wins games

They won by 23 points, so I would say offense also wins games. Hawkeyes offense beat the Gamecock defense last year! The “defense” wins games saying has some merit, but not nearly as much as given credit for, imo. The truth is that balanced teams do best.

 

[HuskyNan]

Just a reminder they play these games, and Geno schedule as many different types of teams as possible, to prepare for the post-season. The team has a lot of new parts and are learning who they are and who they need in certain situations. Regular season games aren’t must-wins, they are learning experiences.

I hope folks don’t live and die with every game. Sounds very stressful

 

[kidfrom360]

 

[kidfrom360]

 

[cabbie191]

1). Like others, l was disappointed in the offense. It wasn’t just that 3-pt shots weren’t going in: most of the misses were way off. And too many missed lay-ups that really felt disjointed.

2). Unlike others, l was a bit disappointed at times in the defensive intensity. There were times l thought for sure there would be a double team trap by the mid-court line or along the sideline, but each time the Minnie slipped through.

3) l was puzzled by the Gophers substitution pattern with Hart (#52). I was at the game and will watch the Fox broadcast - maybe the announcers spoke to this.

4) Likewise, l was surprised they only played their guard Sanders (#30) a few minutes. She seemed to be a very good ball handler.

5) l don’t think I’ve ever seem a game before when we’ve had a double digit lead in the second half and took a shot with less than 25 seconds remaining instead of dribbling it out.

 

[HuskyNan]

They won by 23 points, so I would say offense also wins games. Hawkeyes offense beat the Gamecock defense last year! The “defense” wins games saying has some merit, but not nearly as much as given credit for, imo. The truth is that balanced teams do best.

I’ll rephrase - Iowa gave up 90 points to Drake. Not Duke, Drake.

 

[maple]

I’ll rephrase - Iowa gave up 90 points to Drake. Not Duke, Drake.

Iowa feels like the type of team who says “we’ll just score a lot and it’ll make up for any other deficiencies”.

 

[Goodgood]

"5) l don’t think I’ve ever seem a game before when we’ve had a double digit lead in the second half and took a shot with less than 25 seconds remaining instead of dribbling it out."

Pulido's shot in the championship game against Syracuse (2016)

 

[and one]

On the plus side we won. A grind it out game as most have noted. The offense never got into any flow creating easy points and points were hard to come by. Minnesota's bigs are big, not so much as in tall but more as being stout. Not very fast or quick or good leapers, but able to hold their position and get rebounds. Lots of rebounds. I'm beginning to think this is something we'll have to get used to.

Ines doesn't seem happy, something I noticed last game. After KKs pull up 3 at the end of the 3rd Q the shot of the bench showed lots of smiles except for Ines. I feel for the kid; she showed flashes of good play last year and now is stuck on the farthest end of the bench.

I thought we'd be a pretty good 3 point shooting team this year. So far in this young season I'm wrong about that.

 

[RedStickHusky]

-If Dawn Plitzuweit can recruit, she will turn Minnesota around. They are solid defensively.

Her kids played hard and seemed to know what they wanted to be doing.

 

[wingsfan055]

Could be fluid buildup or bone spurs in her knee, not significant ligament damage, thats causing the current swelling. Won't be sure until the MRI. Even if a minor scope or fluid drain procedure, she's still going to miss some time. But, much better than torn ligaments obviously.

 

[RedStickHusky]

I’ll rephrase - Iowa gave up 90 points to Drake. Not Duke, Drake.

Drake took them to overtime last year; they're a good squad.

 

[JoePgh]

Armed with the box score, I observed a few things that have not yet been commented on:

• In real time, the first quarter looked like an absolutely horrible UConn performance, and the box score confirmed that. In those 10 minutes, UConn turned the ball over 5 times and yielded 7 offensive rebounds by Minnesota. Along with a few missed layups, that is why UConn only scored 11 points in the quarter. BUT ... for the last 30 minutes of the game, UConn committed only 8 more turnovers and gave up only 7 more offensive rebounds -- not bad at all. So the improved play really began in the second quarter before getting really good in the 3rd quarter.
• UConn has given up more offensive rebounds that it grabbed in each of the last three games. However, a common and somewhat puzzling pattern is that the difference in second-chance points is not nearly as great as the rebounding difference would suggest. In today's game, Minnesota led in offensive rebounds by 14-9, but UConn had a slight edge in second-chance points of 10-8.
• I thought this was a better game for Caroline than any of the previous three. Her stat line was decent: 3 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist and only 1 dead-ball turnover in 13 minutes. But she was her usual self in her positioning, and it paid off when she grabbed and scored on the "touchdown pass" late in the first half. I think she is slowly working her way toward performing in games as she apparently does in practice, but it will probably be a while before we see the Caroline of old.
• In the past two games, Ice has looked really solid, and today she demonstrated that she is a capable jump shooter. She got just 2 rebounds in 17 minutes, but seemed like more of an inside presence than that would suggest. I think we will see a lot of her being paired with Aaliyah in the UCLA game, and I expect her to do well.
• I think KK's 22 minutes today, not to mention her amazing 3rd-quarter-ending shot, show that she is working her way to playing as many minutes as anyone on the team other than Paige and Aaliyah.

Overall, although the first quarter was truly terrible, I think that there are a lot of positives from today's game.

 

[hoophuskee]

On the plus side we won. A grind it out game as most have noted. The offense never got into any flow creating easy points and points were hard to come by. Minnesota's bigs are big, not so much as in tall but more as being stout. Not very fast or quick or good leapers, but able to hold their position and get rebounds. Lots of rebounds. I'm beginning to think this is something we'll have to get used to.

Ines doesn't seem happy, something I noticed last game. After KKs pull up 3 at the end of the 3rd Q the shot of the bench showed lots of smiles except for Ines. I feel for the kid; she showed flashes of good play last year and now is stuck on the farthest end of the bench.

I thought we'd be a pretty good 3 point shooting team this year. So far in this young season I'm wrong about that.

We would only be good consistently from 3 if Azzi could play and if to even add to that if Caroline would have been much better than expected. I believe it's the concussion. Too weird how Geno is handling her. Start her then only give her 11 - 13 minutes and then seeing ice packs on her forehead? Whether it's that or not such as "still not ready to shake off the past," -- she was anticipated to be a big big part and yet she can't even hit layups or free throws consistently - never mind outside shooting.

But losing Azzi changes the consistency of shooting outside for this team.

 

[MilfordHusky]

An ugly win is--a win. The defense was exceptional again, and the offense was very sluggish.

Our rebounding was terrible early, and our turnovers were dumb and numerous. I though Liya was careless and sloppy for the first 15 minutes, but much more effective after that. Paige had a mediocre game for her, under tough conditions. We miss the impact of having Azzi on the floor. Nika scored 11 and worked her butt off on defense. Ice looks to be getting more comfortable gradually. I love KK's energy on both offense and defense. Her buzzer beater reminded me of Lou's shot against S.C. last year. It will be one of the best plays this season. I love Ash's energy.

We need to be better against UCLA. Let's see how that goes. Best wishes to Azzi and Ayanna!

 

[Redux]

I hope folks don’t live and die with every game. Sounds very stressful

It is. It is. My houseful of holiday visitors noticed and commented on that.

BTW I ruined my status with them as a supposed expert (undeserved anyway) by proclaiming confidently & pedantically at the end "final score; they won't shoot."