UConn - Notre Dame post game

[EricLA]

What a humbling game. Time for the team to go back to the film room, lick their wounds, and see where they go from here. And how unfortunate to have a performance like that in front of so many UConn "dignitaries"...

Congrats to ND to beating the heck out of us and Hidalgo - wow. Sensational.

BTW this should put to rest the hoopla over "just how good is this UConn team". We ARE a good team. But not an elite one.

 

[and one]

A total stone cold bummer.

 

[maple]

I don't know what to say.

But I knew that a different ND team should show up today compared to Thursday and look what happened. Sigh.

Missed bunnies and some absolutely devasting mental errors that just killed us every time we started to get momentum. You just can't have that, especially from the upperclassmen. There was one time when Paige tried to get cutesy with an extra pass when the easy bucket was right there ... why? Just why? Please just shoot the ball. Please just make the easy layups.

I love Nika but fouling out early into the 4th quarter is just plain terrible.

I don't understand how Syracuse was able beat ND twice and yet UConn just looked absolutely lost at time. The fact that they killed us on rebounding and points in the paint is just so hugely frustrating. How does that even happen?

Felt so positive about how much progression the team made this year and now I just feel like it's gonna be another out at the S16 again. Yes we're back to killing everyone in the BE but we haven't really been able to win the big games this year and it's worrying.

I know it's a young team and all that, but Hidalgo is also a freshmen. She put up 34 points! She practically single-handedly beat us, when we weren't beating ourselves with dumb fouls and/or TOs. And ND has also suffered from injuries as well, so it's not just us.

Not good. I don't know what they need to do but the SCar game is going to be a nightmare if they don't figure some stuff out before then.

I am trying really hard not to be a doomer but it's another bad big game. We are not where we need to be.

 

[Bone Dog]

Nika fouled out with a lot of time to go and the game was effectively over. If anyone doubts Nika's importance to the team, this team ought to show otherwise.

 

[Husky fanatic]

You picked a fine time to leave me Lucille

 

[ucbart]

Nika fouled out with a lot of time to go and the game was effectively over. If anyone doubts Nika's importance to the team, this team ought to show otherwise.

It's amazing to me, that as a senior, she still makes that many mental errors. That was the worst game she's ever played.

 

[victor64]

Tip your hat to ND. They were well prepared and played great.

Citron caused Paige to have one of her worst shooting nights probably ever.

First time I have felt the team really missed Aubrey.

I wish Geno would use those Big East scrimmages to let Q and Ines to log some serious minutes. The team was gassed in the fourth quarter.

 

[TCC Kid]

What a humbling game. Time for the team to go back to the film room, lick their wounds, and see where they go from here.

Congrats to ND to beating the heck out of us and Hidalgo - wow. Sensational.

BTW this should put to rest the hoopla over "just how good is this UConn team". We ARE a good team. But not an elite one.

iF YOU ARE A BASKETBALL FAN GREAT GAME. IF YOU ARE A UCONN FAN-------

 

[Happydad745]

Hard fought game, but in the end our shortages and lack of experience told the tale. Paige was double/triple teamed at times, and Nika fouling out really hurts us. Edwards was great, and it makes me look forward to playing them next year.

 

[BrianUC]

We can play great. We just don't have a lot to fall back on when things aren't going well. What to do when Paige is less than her usual stellar self and Nika's on the bench with fouls? Blame the injuries, there just aren't any options. That train left town when Aubrey went down.

 

[HuskieDawg]

HH is the real deal, best player on the court tonight. We were out scored 46-26 in the paint. I lost count of all the times HH beat all our defenders for a clear path for a layup or Westbeld a wide open 3. ND was just the much better team tonight. It is what it is.

Paige had a tough game and in games like this it is tougher to overcome. Nika, Nika, Nika….wow.

AE was a baller for us and I though Shade and KK held their own.

Lets go back to beating up the big east and see what we can do against the Gamecocks in a few weeks.

 

[ABCDFE]

Man crazy score line. I guess we were too optimistic as fans with our prediction of a blowout win for UConn.

 

[oldude]

All I can say is that ND had a great game plan and they executed it. Hidalgo is a phenomenal young talent. I’m not going to assign blame to any Husky players. ND deserves all the credit. They simply outplayed UConn tonight.

 

[hayman522]

I don't know what to say.

But I knew that a different ND team should show up today compared to Thursday and look what happened. Sigh.

Missed bunnies and some absolutely devasting mental errors that just killed us every time we started to get momentum. You just can't have that, especially from the upperclassmen. There was one time when Paige tried to get cutesy with an extra pass when the easy bucket was right there ... why? Just why? Please just shoot the ball. Please just make the easy layups.

I love Nika but fouling out early into the 4th quarter is just plain terrible.

I don't understand how Syracuse was able beat ND twice and yet UConn just looked absolutely lost at time. The fact that they killed us on rebounding and points in the paint is just so hugely frustrating. How does that even happen?

Felt so positive about how much progression the team made this year and now I just feel like it's gonna be another out at the S16 again. Yes we're back to killing everyone in the BE but we haven't really been able to win the big games this year and it's worrying.

I know it's a young team and all that, but Hidalgo is also a freshmen. And ND has also suffered from injuries as well, so it's not just us.

Not good. I don't know what they need to do but the SCar game is going to be a nightmare if they don't figure some stuff out before then.

I am trying really hard not to be a doomer but it's another bad big game. We are not where we need to be.

Defense was horrible. Worst I have ever seen.

 

[luminosity]

You could tell the entire game that ND was going to win this game. They just had a certain edge that UCONN simply couldn't match. However, there are three reasons why UCONN lost.

1. Nika Muhl. The worst game of Nika's collegiate career. 0 points. Fouled out early in the 4th quarter. An embarrassing display of no game sense and being overly aggressive and she was ineffective in stopping Hildago even when she was in the game.

2. Paige Bueckers. Arguably the worst game of her collegiate career but was also triple teamed all night. She simply didn't show up and got outclassed by two different opponents (Hildago and Westbeld)

3. Geno. I know Geno is a coaching god and a legend but he simply refused to adjust to the Hildago pick and roll all night and the team continuously got burned by it. UCONN is very very prone to a quick guard torching them and it's happened time and time again over the past couple years and happened yet again.

The last big game of the year is South Carolina and they are gonna get torched by 30 if they play like they did tonight.

 

[msf22b]

I thought the 4-guard approach might have done better when Nika fouled out and Ines was the one,

 

[jaydee602]

The UCONN freshmen played like freshmen & the seniors except for Alliyah did not play like seniors.
That's OK. It's a learning experience.
Also, having Ice Brady first off the bench instead of Aubrey is a big factor.

 

[WLT1717]

The word “overrated” seems to fit.

 

[uconnfan68]

How do you let a 5’6” kid drive the lane over and over?

 

[maple]

You could tell the entire game that ND was going to win this game. They just had a certain edge that UCONN simply couldn't match. However, there are three reasons why UCONN lost.

1. Nika Muhl. The worst game of Nika's collegiate career. 0 points. Fouled out early in the 4th quarter. An embarrassing display of no game sense and being overly aggressive and she was ineffective in stopping Hildago even when she was in the game.

2. Paige Bueckers. Arguably the worst game of her collegiate career but was also triple teamed all night. She simply didn't show up and got outclassed by two different opponents (Hildago and Westbeld)

3. Geno. I know Geno is a coaching god and a legend but he simply refused to adjust to the Hildago pick and roll all night and the team continuously got burned by it. UCONN is very very prone to a quick guard torching them and it's happened time and time again over the past couple years and happened yet again.

The last big game of the year is South Carolina and they are gonna get torched by 30 if they play like they did tonight.

Agreed with everything, but especially RE: the Hidalgo pick and roll. It was amazing to me that they could not stop her at all. Got the ball into the paint again and again, sometimes completely untouched. Did we watch any tape and game plan at all for this?

 

[topogigio]

Great game by ND, however, I believe the loss is directly related to the extended interview with Diana in the 2nd quarter. It took the UConn's Ju-Ju right out of the game! I know there are others out there who are as sick as me, and believe the same!

 

[CTtoSanDiego]

Why don't we let Hildago drive unopposed to the right one more time? Geesh, that was ugly. If Paige isn't on, we are toast. Nika, what the heck were you doing? KK, do you have to keep driving into traffic and throwing up forced shots? Ice, wow, pretty much useless. AE was good, but then we stopped going to her. Biggest thing was atrocious defense. Some props to ND for hitting a bunch of 3's, but other than that, we gave them too many easy shots....
Back to the drawing board...

 

[SLY63]

Where to start. For me, the low-lights

• Nika plays like a freshman and barely played due to fouls
• Honestly, I put a lot of this on Geno. ND ran the same high screen all night with Hidalgo and Westbeld and we had no answer. Against us Westbeld looks like a 1st team AA
• Ice was really disappointing. I don't see her being a contributor against top teams this year
• I hate to see how bad the SC game might be.
• Other teams will use this as a blueprint for playing us. Collapse everyone on Paige.
• I also think unless somehow we can beat SC in Columbia, we will be a 3 seed at best in the tourney.

Not a very positive post, but really disapproving performance at home in a big (statement) game against a team beaten by Syracuse 2 days ago. Now back to beating up on Big East cupcakes.

 

[hayman522]

How do you let a 5’6” kid drive the lane over and over?

Yes that was a mystery to me. They just kept letting her drive never made any adjustments.