UConn stats… Is winning by 14 points enough? Or were the Huskies in a slump…?

[DavidinNaples]

In the last 5 games, UConn beat Marquette, Villanova, Providence, Georgetown and St John’s by 15, 14, 43, 32 and 36 points respectively. The Huskies finished the regular season 31-0. The victories over Marquette by 15 and Villanova by 14 caused a few of the Boneyard faithful to wonder if the Huskies were in a “slump” and declare the victories “lackluster” & “miserable.” Perhaps the last three wins and the Big East tournament will right the Huskies’ ship. (Candidly, in my opinion the ship was/is fine.)

While UConn was dismantling St John’s 85-49 at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, did those same critics see the South Carolina, Texas, Vanderbilt and LSU scores? How about Louisville and Duke? In case you missed them, consider:

• South Carolina, #3, escaped Kentucky (9 losses) with a 4 point win, 60-56. SC scored 6 points in the critical 4th period.
• Texas, #4, won by just 7 pts over Alabama (also 9 losses) giving up 45 points in the 3rd & 4th periods.
• Vanderbilt (#5) had to come from behind to beat 12 loss Tennessee by 10 points.
• LSU at #6, only won by 9 over 12 loss Miss. State.
• #10 Louisville and #12 Duke both lost to lousy teams.

If any of those games had been UConn, the Boneyard may have had a collective heart attack..!!

If the SEC tournament plays out as expected, SC will meet LSU and Vandy will play Texas. The winners play each other for the SEC tourney title. Three of those four teams will enter the NCAAs with yet another loss. Guaranteed.

Perhaps UConn will carve up the Big East tournament competition and cruise into the NCAA tournament firing on all cylinders. I hope so… In any case, we can be sure the #3, #4, #5 and #6 ranked teams will beat each other up and three of them will enter the NCAA tourney on a heart breaking loss. I like the Huskies’ path much better.

Thoughts?
Go Huskies..!!

Edit - yes, #2 UCLA won by 23 points over USC. However, USC has 12 loses this year.

 

[Centerstream]

UConn only needs to win by 1 point. Any points over 1 are gravy. Guaranteed.

 

[FanSince17]

Who cares? Does Geno care? Do the players care? Maybe we’ll get in a good region and get South Dakota State (no offense to them, I like them) in the Elite 8.
You know what many on this board forget, somehow, is that the team beat 3 #1 seeds last year in basically overwhelming fashion. I even think that performance should even be heralded this year. IMO there’s got to be carryover. Of course, that doesn’t actually happen. They crushed UCLA and SC. Neither team could score or even set something up to score. (Betts in no way had a good game)

 

[osceola48]

Yes, beating Big East teams by 30+ points was comforting, but UConn does need to tighten some things up before the last three or four rounds of the NCAA tournament, when they'll face better competition than they've seen in quite awhile. In the St John's game, UConn committed some really bad turnovers, allowed too many open 3's, and missed some easy layups and short jumpers.

 

[sun]

UCLA had a convincing 73 - 50 win over USC on March 1.

 

[Centerstream]

UCLA had a convincing 73 - 50 win over USC on March 1.

UConn had a convincing 79 - 51 win over USC in LA.

 

[Next 12]

The final score decides the winner of every game played.WHAT UCONN DOES THE BEST OF, is scoring more points than the opposition and allowing LESS points than the opposition.. This has produced an undefeated season which I believe will continue to the 13th NC. This team will be discussed by many as the best ever? GO HUSKIES!!!!!!

 

[Charliebball]

I'd say the team has not been as smooth offensively in the past six weeks as they were earlier in the season.......I'd blame it on illness, nagging injuries, the usual three-quarter of a season wall, etc.......hopefully things start anew on Saturday!

 

[KCD]

It's always tough playing on the road as the second game against a top conference opponent. I was at the Marquette game and Marquette was playing tough as they always do at home. UConn didn't have their best game, but the outcome was never in doubt to me. SS was on a minutes restriction and Blanca wasn't playing. Generally at Marquette, the refs allow more physical play I've noticed. I thought that the girls played through everything without getting frustrated and just kept playing. They stayed together, played as a team, pumped each other up, and stayed focused on themselves. In summary, they didn't have a great game, but they still played UConn bball. We were short of of people for both games (Villanova and Marquette) and both teams are better than the beginning of the year. I think that Villanova will be a tough out in the NCAA tournament.

 

[fomalhaut]

Even in games they've (comparatively) struggled, they still haven't let up 70 points or scored less than 70.

 

[BRS24]

In the last 5 games, UConn beat Marquette, Villanova, Providence, Georgetown and St John’s by 15, 14, 43, 32 and 36 points respectively. The Huskies finished the regular season 31-0. The victories over Marquette by 15 and Villanova by 14 caused a few of the Boneyard faithful to wonder if the Huskies were in a “slump” and declare the victories “lackluster” & “miserable.” Perhaps the last three wins and the Big East tournament will right the Huskies’ ship. (Candidly, in my opinion the ship was/is fine.)

While UConn was dismantling St John’s 85-49 at Madison Square Garden on Sunday, did those same critics see the South Carolina, Texas, Vanderbilt and LSU scores? How about Louisville and Duke? In case you missed them, consider:

• South Carolina, #3, escaped Kentucky (9 losses) with a 4 point win, 60-56. SC scored 6 points in the critical 4th period.
• Texas, #4, won by just 7 pts over Alabama (also 9 losses) giving up 45 points in the 3rd & 4th periods.
• Vanderbilt (#5) had to come from behind to beat 12 loss Tennessee by 10 points.
• LSU at #6, only won by 9 over 12 loss Miss. State.
• #10 Louisville and #12 Duke both lost to lousy teams.

If any of those games had been UConn, the Boneyard may have had a collective heart attack..!!

This is a great summary of what I've been trying to say over the last few weeks. Yes, the SEC's optics are - close games and "beat each other up", however I'm not one to argue that it's indicative of how strong the conference may be.

The bottom line is that Geno & staff know the challenges of playing in the BE and schedule OOC games accordingly. UConn plays with the hand they are dealt, and IMO, do it really well.

 

[visitingcock]

Meh, none of this matters til April

 

[sno-cat]

Remember that Geno is still fiddling with various lineups and getting some playing time for everyone. Also the leading scorers are not permitted to play the entire games. Just think what the scores could have been!

 

[Bald Husky]

When was the last time a UConn team was not ready for March? The BE tournament is the warm up for the Big Dance, and this is when the team really focusses on what they have been waiting for the entire year. We have seen all season that they get up and usually play their best against the best. This will happen again as their culture of how they play and their mindset are zeroed in on the ultimate prize. We will dominate again until the very last game of the WBB season. Enough said.