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UConn Recruiting

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tchalla1 said:
I consider Czinano a very formidable big.
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I think we're in agreement on this one. Czinano was an excellent post player, one of the best in D1. And yet Aaliyah totally contained her all by herself in head to head competition last season. What should we conclude from this? I think we are where we are for this season.

If I misread your comment, my apologies. I also think recruiting another big is essential. I’m also as sad as anyone about Jana and just as puzzled about Amari’s performance this week. I read your comment to be about this season. We are not going to find another big for this season.

If you merely mean we should make it a priority to recruit a big for next year, I’m right there with you. Even if we land Sarah, that won’t address our depth at the 5. Next season our front line will be Jana Ice Ayanna and maybe Sarah. That’s big enough, assuming Jana makes a full recovery, but there’s not much depth there or protection against foul trouble.

And I may be wrong about how Jana and Ice develop. I think Ice will play on a level with Aaliyah by next season and I expect Jana will be fierce in the low post and adept at the high post. If we recruit one more big, I don’t see anyone available who would crack that starting lineup. But I could have it all wrong.

So yes, let’s sing that song about next season together — we need another 5. But for this season, we will have to run the floor with what we have. I think Aaliyah Ice and Ayanna can do it. They’ll have to.
 
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visitingcock said:
I don't know why everybody has written NC State off as out of the competition for Strong. She has never eliminated them - has she? She will be there with her Dad Sunday. She grew up as an NC State fan. Looks like an OV, smells like an OV. Quacks like an OV. But even if it is NOT an OV, so what? She has visited the campus enough times with her alumnus dad through the years to know everything about the place.

Querry: Does it seem somewhat disrespectful to visit Dad's alma mater on the weekend of early signing period if his school is not being considered. Her visit will create a lot of fanfare around the game.
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No, it doesn’t, because there’s a basketball game playing, and anyone can go watch it. As a UConn fan, I’d be excited if she signs with the Huskies, but will also respect her decision if she went somewhere else. Although that would be a heartbreaker, it’s part of the process. You win some, and you lose some. Go Huskies! Go UConn!!
 
tchalla1 said:
I hope you are right, but two years ago when we lost the NC to SC, we never "figured" out their size...
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I'm waiting to see how the new restricted area will affect offensive foul calls & attacking the basket.
The attackers aren't going to be as protected against making turnovers by the much smaller restricted area.
That could make tall players with long arms who don't move their feet much or have quick feet like Amari more valuable as rim protectors.
At least against teams that have smaller guards that attack the basket with somewhat reckless abandon.
The taller players may need to pull up, step back or manuever to make their shots more difficult.
I'm not sure how the new restricted area will work out, but it could make a difference if players & coaches can figure out how to use it to their advanatage & how it will offensive affect fouls being called.
The defender will be more protected & empowered by this new smaller restricted area rule, they'll being given more protected territory on the floor, & the attackers are losing protected floor space.
The more space that a defender can occupy in the key closer to the basket while staying planted there the better.
And that could also mean that simply being taller is now better, better than it was before the rule change.
Now teams just need to learn how to adapt to the new rule.
Amari could become more useful there.
 
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hoopsnloops32 said:
While I’m also concerned about our size I think 4 guards set work better now than in the past. There simply aren’t a lot of elite teams with tons of size in their rotation. The only real national championship contenders that I can think of that will have size we can’t match up against are South Carolina and UCLA, fortunately we play both in the regular season so we can figure out how to work around it.
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My hope is that the Huskies will not have to "figure out how to work around it" (UCLA's and South Carolina's "height").
UCONN will get the needed points by going " over the top" from beyond the three-point line. Go Azzi!, Go Paige!,
Go Caroline!, with "assists" from the " everybody eats" crew! Go UCONN, on to # 12!
 
sun said:
I'm waiting to see how the new restricted area will affect offensive foul calls & attacking the basket.
The attackers aren't going to be as protected against making turnovers by the much smaller restricted area.
That could make tall players with long arms who don't move their feet much or have quick feet like Amari more valuable as rim protectors.
At least against teams that have smaller guards that attack the basket with somewhat reckless abandon.
The taller players may need to pull up, step back or manuever to make their shots more difficult.
I'm not sure how the new restricted area will work out, but it could make a difference if players & coaches can figure out how to use it to their advanatage & how it will offensive affect fouls being called.
The defender will be more protected & empowered by this new smaller restricted area rule, they'll being given more protected territory on the floor, & the attackers are losing protected floor space.
The more space that a defender can occupy in the key closer to the basket while staying planted there the better.
And that could also mean that simply being taller is now better, better than it was before the rule change.
Now teams just need to learn how to adapt to the new rule.
Amari could become more useful there.
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Interesting.... I never thought of that!
 
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What’s the longest a thread on the board has gone before straying off topic? Just curious for opinions
 
tchalla1 said:
I hope you are right, but two years ago when we lost the NC to SC, we never "figured" out their size...
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"Figure out?" Probably couldn't have used a more "unfair" comment.

What SC "did fiigure out" was that

1-- to start the year Aubrey Griffin was out.
2-- Dorka gets hurt duirng NCAA Touurney.
3-- Liv is hurt elading into NCAA title game.

When 3 of four of your top 4 post players are hurt or unable to play, it's an unfair comment to say "UCONN couldn't figure them out."
 
hoophuskee said:
"Figure out?" Probably couldn't have used a more "unfair" comment.

What SC "did fiigure out" was that

1-- to start the year Aubrey Griffin was out.
2-- Dorka gets hurt duirng NCAA Touurney.
3-- Liv is hurt elading into NCAA title game.

When 3 of four of your top 4 post players are hurt or unable to play, it's an unfair comment to say "UCONN couldn't figure them out."
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Add in that Azzi was sick & Evina was injured during the first half, and UConn was a shell of the team that SC could have faced.
 
UConn always had great balance of Bigs and Scoring Guards/Forwards on their Title teams. Right now this team is not balanced. Against a good team, if we lose AE, we are basically sunk unless we shoot 80% from the perimeter. It doesnt mean it can't be done, its just makes it a lot harder.
 
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hoophuskee said:
"Figure out?" Probably couldn't have used a more "unfair" comment.

What SC "did fiigure out" was that

1-- to start the year Aubrey Griffin was out.
2-- Dorka gets hurt duirng NCAA Touurney.
3-- Liv is hurt elading into NCAA title game.

When 3 of four of your top 4 post players are hurt or unable to play, it's an unfair comment to say "UCONN couldn't figure them out."
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Your statement is fair, but I was quoting another post and he/she used that term, "we couldn't figure them out", so these weren't my words. It's worth noting that SC easily beat us earlier in the year, so although the above situations that you mention were critical, they may or may not have affected the outcome of this game...
 
tchalla1 said:
Your statement is fair, but I was quoting another post and he/she used that term, "we couldn't figure them out", so these weren't my words. It's worth noting that SC easily beat us earlier in the year, so although the above situations that you mention were critical, they may or may not have affected the outcome of this game...
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I beg to differ. UConn hung with SC for 3 qtrs earlier in the year, and yes, the 4th qtr got away from the Huskies. SC was a great team. But we will never really know if a “healthy” UConn team could have pulled off the upset in the national championship game.
 
oldude said:
Add in that Azzi was sick & Evina was injured during the first half, and UConn was a shell of the team that SC could have faced.
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True, but SC beat us by 16 earlier in the year, with a full complement of players.... Certainly, having Azzi and Evina at full go would have helped our chances though, but the outcome might have been the same...
 
tchalla1 said:
True, but SC beat us by 16 earlier in the year, with a full complement of players.... Certainly, having Azzi and Evina at full go would have helped our chances though, but the outcome might have been the same...
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See my previous post.
 
hoopsnloops32 said:
I don’t think size was the issue in that game personally
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We got killed on the boards and their offensive rebounds fueled a rather mediocre shooting performance on their part. I thought size had a lot to do with it... What was Geno screaming about in his 1Q timeouts? Rebounds and interior defense...
 
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tchalla1 said:
We got killed on the boards and their offensive rebounds fueled a rather mediocre shooting performance on their part. I thought size had a lot to do with it... What was Geno screaming about in his 1Q timeouts? Rebounds and interior defense...
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Toughness is not the same thing as size imo
 
20231110_185702.jpg
 
Sienna looks like a great addition. Last I checked, she’s listed at 6’3” which means she isn’t the solution to the height problem others are so keen on.
 
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Rings R Us said:
I wouldn't hold my breath. She's never visited us for an official or non official visit right? Probably stays out west.
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I'm holding my breath. Lol. Went to see her sister play a couple years ago but she stole the show. I've been a fan ever since
 
sun said:
I'm waiting to see how the new restricted area will affect offensive foul calls & attacking the basket.
The attackers aren't going to be as protected against making turnovers by the much smaller restricted area.
That could make tall players with long arms who don't move their feet much or have quick feet like Amari more valuable as rim protectors.
At least against teams that have smaller guards that attack the basket with somewhat reckless abandon.
The taller players may need to pull up, step back or manuever to make their shots more difficult.
I'm not sure how the new restricted area will work out, but it could make a difference if players & coaches can figure out how to use it to their advanatage & how it will offensive affect fouls being called.
The defender will be more protected & empowered by this new smaller restricted area rule, they'll being given more protected territory on the floor, & the attackers are losing protected floor space.
The more space that a defender can occupy in the key closer to the basket while staying planted there the better.
And that could also mean that simply being taller is now better, better than it was before the rule change.
Now teams just need to learn how to adapt to the new rule.
Amari could become more useful there.
Expand ...

I'm sure this will affect offensive players attacking the basket. But the beneficiaries on defense are more likely to be guards and forwards more than centers. The "rim protectors" , as secondary defenders under the old rule already were allowed to station themselves inside the arc as long as they attempted to block the shot and didn't just stand there flatfooted to try to draw a charge. If they were right in the middle of the arc, they could still legally block a shot off of a drive by an offensive player. And if they jumped straight up, with arms straight up, they could still draw a charge - something I saw happen a number of times.
 
Most likely she will follow her sister at UCLA!! I would be shocked if she came to UConn. With no visits at all to the campus is unheard of when your considering a college. No point in even continuing this conversation. It’s not happening!!
 
GenoWept said:
My guess is she’ll commit to UCLA to play with her sister.
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Agreed. Seems really early for a ‘25 with more than 10 schools as finalists. I haven’t heard about any visits, so UCLA seems obvious. However, they’ve been stacking up players of her size and skill, so committing somewhere else also seems like a possibility.

Eager to see what she decides, she’ll be a force for years to come.
 
tchalla1 said:
Your statement is fair, but I was quoting another post and he/she used that term, "we couldn't figure them out", so these weren't my words. It's worth noting that SC easily beat us earlier in the year, so although the above situations that you mention were critical, they may or may not have affected the outcome of this game...
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Okay. Thank you- point taken. But we agree injuires were a major impact to UCONN in the Finals, correct? SC definitely deserved title. but we recognize UCONN's injuires didn't make the game a fair fight, right?

But back in November we also have to remember that Aubrey was "out.", She did play 22 minutes the year before in which UCONN won.
That we can see Dorka play with one hand heavily bandaged, and we can see that Azzi went on injured list immediately after the game. It's reasonable to assume she was hurt before/during the game imo.

SO in the November game, UCONN lost one of their defensive post players in Aubrey thus the team had to learn to play without her. Their newcomer (Dorka) other low post player wasn't entirely healthy, and UCONN's best 3point shooter that year in Azzi was hurt.
 
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