UCONN - NC State post mortem thread

[Twolf]

I beg to differ on nearly every point, except Rivers is a terrific player. Great NC game plan well executed.
If you LEARNED something NEW--you weren't looking. The only thing NEW were the NEW kids on UConn. We knew last year with out Dorka and Lou this was a ---marginal team. Expecting Edwards to handle the post alone ---is not being in the real world.
Paige--cannot and should not have to CARRY this team--she has proven, she shall try, but with a decent team (Arizona) she cannot do it--alone. Azzi, is a streak shooter. When she is hitting she can't miss. With a good team defense--Takes Azzi or Paige out and you are home free. NOW--if Caroline's head is in the game--WE WIN. KK is going to be a life saver--but not today. The Bigs who should be winning games SIT--they did last year too.
Geno needs more Q's. Throw caution to the wind--just play the game you know. Good player PLAY to win.
The whys and wherefores belong with GENO and his Practice and Scouting coaches. I saw no GAME PREP. NC did what hey want more often than not---Uconn for 30 years has been noted for DEFENSE---where was it--YOU KNOW who is responsible for TEACHING this team---Pre game PREP at this level is mandatory.

CEO's run SMALL companies--and get $3,000,000 per year--the buck stops with them --not the floor sweepers. Ca

The starting lineup above--meets with my approval--shall Geno approve?
Every ill of this team would be fix with a STOKES kind of player--playing along side of Edwards.
Not one kid on this team OWNS this loss. It belongs to the Coaches, the leaders, then the team. My dad would be fired as a lead carpenter -had he said --my crew built a different house than I told them. Uconn's house is the GAME.

Just guessing Geno’s shoulders are broad enough to take the blame for the loss, but you win games by having players making plays & UConn simply didn’t have enough players making plays offensively, defensively, or on the boards. Scouting at this point in the season is a very iff proposition since there is a very small sample size. UConn lost because the opposition was the tougher, more aggressive, more confident team. Defensive communication was not good and cost several easy baskets which are confidence builders for the other team. Ask yourself how many points UConn players scored without the ball- cutting harder than the defense could guard, a 50-50 rebound & stick back, steal and layup, etc. I think you could count those kind of scores on 1 hand and have some fingers left. A coaching axiom that usually holds true is that you are never as good as you think you are when you win, and never as bad as you think you are when you lose. I’m confident Geno hopes that holds true because that game was definitely a stinker and left the staff with a whole lot more questions than answers.

 

[Rb335]

Something to consider if we continue to play Paige, Nika and Azzi at the same time. Nika is not an offensive threat. She was effective last year because the ball was in her hands, and she could facilitate. If Paige is going to be ball dominant, I don’t think Nika is the best off guard option. But if we put the ball in Nikas hands, Paige is a great off ball player. Could be worth trying that for stretches. You can’t convince me Paige isn’t a better 3 point shooter in games than Azzi. I doubt anyone compares to Azzi shooting in the gym. But in game situations, Paige has passed the eye test in that category time and again.

 

[UCONNRPh]

Not how I saw it. It matters where you get delivered the ball. And she didn't get dominated. She got caught helping on all the guard penetration that wasn't stopped.

Am not sure what the announcers are saying but NC State did dominate the inside. Would have liked to have seen him try Brady and Edwards together. Or maybe Shade could have played.

Regardless, I have faith that Geno and staff will straighten it out.

 

[NYCHUSKIES]

It's just game two guys. If you think losses like this one won't make us stronger down the season, think again. This is a great loss for our beloved Uconn team. The goal is a Big East and NCAA championship. This team will learn tremendously from this loss. With that being said, I don't see Uconn loosing for a long time.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

Officiating was not even close to being the reason they lost, even if I may agree it was sub-par.

I said we lost because the guard play of two of our starters was awful. Never said we lost because of the officiating, I only pointed out the disparity in fouls called on UConn vs NC State, 22 to 12. Which translated into 22 points vs 8 points.

 

[Boreifs]

Eight points combined for the upperclassmen - Nika, Caroline, Aubrey. No bueno. But the team gave up 92 points. 92! I don’t blame the freshmen but the juniors and seniors should have done better.

Qadence and KK are the only ones with positive +/-

View attachment 93001

Paige -19; Azzi -16. Absolutely horrible.

 

[VaConnFan11]

This team is too slow to guard what coaches are recruiting now. It's very difficult to get faster and quicker. Either you are or you aren't.

Paige needs to shoot more and more early. Can't wait until the 4th quarter when the game is getting out of hand. Clarke shot 31 times against VA Tech. Why? Because she realized she had to in order for her team to win. Paige needs to realize the same thing.

Does it appear to anyone else that this team is always begging for fouls?

 

[UConnCat]

I know times have changed but the thing I always associated with UConn's offense back in the old BE was a constant motion always moving toward generating an (often open) good shot; on the defensive side I always felt UConn excelled in cutting into the passing lanes and coming up with the steal.

In this game (and more-so than most UConn games I see) the offense didn't seem to be moving and the defense sort of the same, I guess. I was very surprised - I am sure Geno will right the ship pretty quick, though.

Geno said that in his post-game comments. Too much standing around, little ball movement or ball reversal, etc. I think a lot of that had to do with Paige returning to the lineup. Paige is really all about herself right now, trying to regain her confidence and her level of play. That is perfectly understandable and needs to happen before Paige can take ownership and leadership of this this team. The problem is that Paige’s teammates stood around watching to see if she is her old self yet instead of playing their game. That will sort itself out. The good news is that Paige showed flashes of her old self. It’s time for her teammates to stop watching her and start playing.

 

[maple]

Geno said that in his post-game comments. Too much standing around, little ball movement or ball reversal, etc. I think a lot of that had to do with Paige returning to the lineup. Paige is really all about herself right now, trying to regain her confidence and her level of play. That is perfectly understandable and needs to happen before Paige can take ownership and leadership of this this team. The problem is that Paige’s teammates stood around watching to see if she is her old self yet instead of playing their game. That will sort itself out. The good news is that Paige showed flashes of her old self. It’s time for her teammates to stop watching her and start playing.

Yes, once again the level of complacency on the floor has returned since Paige is now playing again. It’s disappointing to see, considering how many people stepped up last year with all the injuries. I don’t know what Geno needs to do or say to fix this. It’s just really disappointing. I hope they really do fix it.

 

[Shenandoah]

This one is on the coaches. They've had a 6'6" player, who was ranked #15 in her class, on the team for 3 years now, and they can't coach her up enough to play a few minutes to help an undersized, out of position power forward/post who was getting killed on the boards, and having her shot blocked more times in one game than she had all last year...

 

[freshler40]

This team is too slow to guard what coaches are recruiting now. It's very difficult to get faster and quicker. Either you are or you aren't.

Paige needs to shoot more and more early. Can't wait until the 4th quarter when the game is getting out of hand. Clarke shot 31 times against VA Tech. Why? Because she realized she had to in order for her team to win. Paige needs to realize the same thing.

Does it appear to anyone else that this team is always begging for fouls?

We did spend a lot of time on the floor looking for fouls. This has crept into our game by several players. Not a good look in my opinion.
We had the early foul advantage in this game but settled for threes. Hoping our coaching staff sees these early opportunities and make in game changes. We haven't seen that in several games during recent losses. Our offense is very predictable. Hoping the likes of KK and with Paige back playing well that changes. Why not give the players a longer leash to solve the on-court issues from time to time. Are we playing with a tight collar???

 

[JBK]

This one is on the coaches. They've had a 6'6" player, who was ranked #15 in her class, on the team for 3 years now, and they can't coach her up enough to play a few minutes to help an undersized, out of position power forward/post who was getting killed on the boards, and having her shot blocked more times in one game than she had all last year...

I agree - but her confidence seems to be shot. You almost want her to play against a weak opponent and leave her out there for 40 minutes to work things out mentally. Not really playing her against against Dayton when we are up 50 was a miss

 

[JBK]

This team is too slow to guard what coaches are recruiting now. It's very difficult to get faster and quicker. Either you are or you aren't.

Paige needs to shoot more and more early. Can't wait until the 4th quarter when the game is getting out of hand. Clarke shot 31 times against VA Tech. Why? Because she realized she had to in order for her team to win. Paige needs to realize the same thing.

Does it appear to anyone else that this team is always begging for fouls?

Agree. Even at the end of the game we did not even try to steal the inbound. We let them get it in and then we fouled them. Azzi must work harder on defense . She also needs to get herself better positioned to hit the shots she is taking in practice
For us to compete at a high level she must be a dominate offensive player consistently.

 

[Geesworld]

Geno said that in his post-game comments. Too much standing around, little ball movement or ball reversal, etc. I think a lot of that had to do with Paige returning to the lineup. Paige is really all about herself right now, trying to regain her confidence and her level of play. That is perfectly understandable and needs to happen before Paige can take ownership and leadership of this this team. The problem is that Paige’s teammates stood around watching to see if she is her old self yet instead of playing their game. That will sort itself out. The good news is that Paige showed flashes of her old self. It’s time for her teammates to stop watching her and start playing.

Crazy to say that a great player like Paige could be the problem. I tend to agree but I think it's more on defense where we aren't always on one string with Paige.

 

[Ralph]

Still learning or relearning how to post. they have coached up enough bigs over the years that everyone knows they can do it. Real issue was being slow on defense. We gave up 92 points. Last year the most gave up with all the injuries was 85. We only gave up more than 80 twice, in the losses to MD and SC. Yesterday they ran through us. Maybe Lou was a better defender than we realized, even with a bad knee. And Dorka was behind to block or alter shots.

 

[oldude]

This team is too slow to guard what coaches are recruiting now. It's very difficult to get faster and quicker. Either you are or you aren't.

Paige needs to shoot more and more early. Can't wait until the 4th quarter when the game is getting out of hand. Clarke shot 31 times against VA Tech. Why? Because she realized she had to in order for her team to win. Paige needs to realize the same thing.

Does it appear to anyone else that this team is always begging for fouls?

How did UConn become so slow and short, seemingly overnight? Well it’s actually been happening for some time. UConn lost Wilson & Boston to SC and a string of other athletic and talented players to various programs around the country. I fear that better NIL opportunities elsewhere will only hasten this process.

I am starting to consider the possibility of Geno abandoning his balanced motion offense and simply letting Paige take over in the same manner that Clark dominates Iowa’s offense. In the 80-76 win vs Va Tech, Clark had 44 pts and 6 assists, accounting for over 70% of Iowa’s points. Iowa is less athletic than UConn, and they aren’t particularly big either…..and yet, they will likely be #2 in the polls, right behind SC.

UConn will dominate the BE again this year, but beyond that, there is great uncertainty. Paige was very good yesterday. But UConn needs Paige to be great against bigger, more athletic teams….and that starts by handing her the ball and letting her take over the game from the opening tip.

 

[Surly1]

It's early in the season, and the kinks & weaknesses will be addressed. Whether they get resolved will determine the course of the season. The days of UConn automatically getting penciled in as a Final Four team are over. The women's game has seen a drastic infusion of talent. While the powerhouses grab the larger share, the plethora of so many talented players has elevated the play of many programs. This is a great thing for women's basketball.

In the Big 10, Iowa, Indiana, Ohio St, Mich have caught up with MD. As good as SC & LSU are, UT & Miss should not be counted out. The PAC-12 is loaded from top to bottom.

As others have mentioned, polls this early in the season are hit or miss. UConn's was probably a bit lofty. NC St was obviously overlooked, while out west, the obituaries had Stanford buried as an also-ran. Watching Stanford yesterday against Indiana had me wondering if the people who participate in the rankings actually know women's basketball. Before anointing Caitlin Clark the NPOY, Cameron Brink will have a lot to say about it. She was dominant in all phases last night.

There's going to be hiccups. All of us can see where UConn needs to improve. If this was poker tournament, I'd still feel confident holding a healthy Paige Bueckers card. Expect to see dramatic improvement for the game against Maryland

 

[veryolddog]

I have said it before and I will say it again. This team is too short. We need height and beef down under and that is what wins championships. That is why South Carolina is always a top contender.

 

[MSSportsGuy]

I didn't catch this game but have read the pages of comments and watched some clips on YouTube,

Just two weeks ago some fans, not all but enough, on this board were salivating over the possibilty of an undefeated season. Some fans were almost giddy when LSU lost, and some other fans (though it's possible some were in all the categories) were bemonaing Clark yet again shooting 31 times and discussing how bad it is for the game.

What should be visible now is this is how the basketball season could easily go. UConn may not lose another game and win the NC and no one will remember this. However, there is also the possiblity there will be more upsets during the year across the board from all the top teams and Clark will continue to get hers and her star will shine. I don't know if Iowa can pull off a NC but if there is one generational player who is going to do her darndest to win one and is going to keep shooting, and scoring, all year long.

This is the sport now for better or worse: more parity among teams, more star focused ones, and the top teams will continue to roll but filling in the FF or E8 won't be virtually automatic anymore. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised to see UConn win the NC but it will be a journey. The four peat spoiled many with the generational talent of Stewie as well as the other pieces all filling their roles to perfection. I don't think those teams exist anymore anywhere.

To my friends and other fans on this board, be disappointed in this loss and question why it happened, but keep rallying around your extremely good basketball team that is better than anyone saw yesterday and buckle up to enjoy the ride.

 

[hookshot]

I think there's a whole lot of magical thinking and wishcasting about what UCONN's WCBB team is now and will be in the future.

For one, talent is much more widely dispersed across the country as opposed to when the program was in its ascendancy. That's an indisputable fact and one that even GA would concede. He no longer has the hammerlock on elite recruits (and transfers) that he has had in previous years and this is going to affect game outcomes, play styles and championship odds.

For two, he has had a real recruiting blind spot the past say 5-6 seasons bringing in bigs, specifically athletically gifted bigs. These players are at a premium and so competition for their services is gonna be intense; therefore if you don't have enough NIL juice and don't play in a high enough profile conference you're not gonna get those kids......and Geno has manifestly failed this test. I for one do not think he's capable of adjusting at this point for reasons both within (stubborness and RINGZ) and outside (NIL, conference) his control.

For three-the team is not 'slow' in the athletic sense. The players are fine. Lacking size, but otherwise no reason they can't run with any other team in the country. Where they ARE slow is play pace-they were basically screaming lack of experience and chemistry today and got their asses collectively handed tot hem by a 'veteran' squad. I expect this will happen quite a few times before we hit the conference part of the schedule.

Can they improve? Who knows. We hope so. But it's clear to me that GA has a MASSIVE coaching job ahead of him, especially if he's committed to expanding his rotation which I absolutely believe he should in spite of his worst impulses to the contrary. You can't expect to keep bringing in elite recruits and expect them to sit on their hands for one or two years because you're afraid they'll screw up. Auriemma is in absolutely no danger of losing his job, basically has zero pressure on him and so should just lighten the hell up and let these kids play. If he has a double digit losing regular season well what can you do. It's part of the process.

Ground Control to Uncle Tom. Geno has no pressure on him ??? - try walking a mile in his shoes, you'd hate the pressure. Has had best luck with multi- positional players but has brought in his share of bigs with injuries and unforeseen lack of development an issue. The only thing I can agree with, is that premium recruits now see more options in warmer, richer climes

 

[hookshot]

One year (you might be able to find another 1-2) out of thirty years of coaching is certainly the exception and not the pattern. Personally, I don’t think Amari could have been any worse than Ice (and at 3 inches taller might have provided some rim protection our guards were constantly getting beat ) and Ashlynn couldn’t do worse than we saw from any guard not named PB. My real point is that all summer long people waxed poetic about a 10 man rotation when in reality it was always a longshot based on history. I’d love to see that turned around during the season and me proven wrong because that gives us our best chance to compete, especially against teams, like South Carolina, which have tremendous depth.

What about Amari would make you think that she could not do any worse than Ice