UConn stats... Are there enough minutes for everyone to play?

[NycUcWbbFan]

if there's enough minutes for SC, there's enough for us. Guards can all take a break every 3 minutes if they wanted tbh. Poor Jana has no one to sub in, except for Ice for solely height advantage. No clue as to how skilled she will become next year. BE is a poverty conference. Geno can test the waters all he wants there and throw mixed lineups in.

But his young super team needs to go through the gauntlet of the tougher ooc first to build a great resume for the NCAA tournament.

He solved this in the 1998-1999 season by unleashing a running game while his young team learns his offensive and especially defensive schemes. He’s great at hiding weaknesses, but his Achilles heel has always been teams that negate his preferred pace.

Geno might already be comfortable with his rotations by the real start of Big East play (the 13th game LY: Polls, Schedule & Results).

The ‘Soft’ Big East play is great on the reintegration of his injured players to his rotations by then.

 

[yhun89]

But his young super team needs to go through the gauntlet of the tougher ooc first to build a great resume for the NCAA tournament.

He solved this in the 1998-1999 season by unleashing a running game while his young team learns his offensive and especially defensive schemes. He’s great at hiding weaknesses, but his Achilles heel has always been teams that negate his preferred pace.

Geno might already be comfortable with his rotations by the real start of Big East play (the 13th game LY: Polls, Schedule & Results).

The ‘Soft’ Big East play is great on the reintegration of his injured players to his rotations by then.

Oh yeah, absolutely. We just don’t know who’s in the OOC yet. I’d assume NC State and Texas. Maybe even USC? The main thing he needs to do is get Jana and Sarah comfortable in the rotation since they’ll be playing a lot most likely.

His pace changer this year was stuck on the bench with an ACL. Aubrey is the ultimate pace changer.

 

[ERWUC65]

UCONN has won 11 championshiops and been to many more Final Fours. Why emulate South Carolina? WHy should UCONN emualte a program that has not been as successful as UCONN?

In addition, UCONN's strength has been been getting superstar guards/wings South CArolina's top player's the past few years has been posts. Posts - big posts - tend to need more rest. Guards don't.

11 championships over the last 29 years is a unparalleled, unique accomplishment, but one could say done in an era of women's college basketball that we will never see again. An era dominated by a handful of great programs, built thru great coaching and great recruiting in a relatively controlled and structured environment where athletics and academics were in balance. Now we have entered a new era, one where NIL, the portal and conference realignments have totally restructured the environment. Now the emphasis is on building super teams, select schools collecting the best players ad nauseum, to the detriment of the sport and destroying the last remnants of competition and parity. South Carolina started this trend two to three years ago, resulting in a depth of 10-12 players all of whom were stars at their prior schools, and the results are obvious. Now, just to keep up, we have ND, USC, Texas, UCLA, LSU, etc. employing the same strategy and one might say they are emulating South Carolina. Should UConn do the same? I hope not, but it may be necessary just to stay the course and keep the program relevant.

 

[Bone Dog]

I


As an example he says in one sentence he wants a deep bench but then he apologizes to Q for not playing her the next. But I agree - 8 players. Maybe 9. But that 9 is a stretch in tight games. I guess it comes down to health and separation between 5 to 7 to 9 etc.

As far as "press" - that's a double-edged sword. When you and I played-- I can recall in my situation (wondering if it was the same as yours?) when teams we knew were pressers- - we practiced the hell against it before. In some cases in which we weren't better than them - we practiced so much we did a good/great job beating the pressure and wound up winning even though we were inferior. When you press- you open a door to get exposed that would not otherwise exist. SO, if your team is just "better" anyway due to your fundamentals and skills, why turn the game into more of an "endurance" test? OFC other times we got blown out, or other times we were just better anyway. I have no doubt vs many inferior teams UCONN will press but it will be just for a half in most of these.

But the point is-- the door opens up when you press to allow other teams easy baskets that they would not have otherwise gotten. The whole idea behind a press is to gamble beucase you double team (I guess you cna od man-to-man press but that's not the same imo). And these are 18-22 year old players on other teams. The top tier teams aren't going to wear down more than likely. And possibly some teams are better in the full court teams vs halfcourt. SO it would be almsot a favor you'd be giving to them.

And you nailed it last year - you were stating that the Big East was not going to be good. What are your thoughts this year? If they aren’t going to be good again - then UCONN is only going to press half the game. And is UCONN going to want to press teams like South Carolina and Notre Dame if those two teams are healthy? And if these or other teams are the type of teams you are targeting as roadblocks - then maybe would it make more sense to continually work on your halfcourt offense and not full-blown pressure all the time? The teams that you would probably comfortably press would be the teams you would probably beat anyway.

Excellent post. I think you’re absolutely right that the press is a gambler’s defense. But even young folks in peak physical condition get mentally tired — that’s the point, to trade the stamina of a deep bench for the mental stamina of the opposing teams guards. And I think you’re right that he wouldn’t do it for entire games even if he has the bench for it. It makes more sense to use it in spots to disrupt a game plan. We’ve seen him do this in the first few minutes of the third quarter as a way to upend whatever new plan the other coach gave his team at halftime. Nika was especially good at this, and having Aubrey next to her was almost cruel.

But it is worth noting that Ash and Morgan routinely spearheaded a press for entire games in high school. Those two have the stamina for it just by themselves.

The model I’m imagining can be seen in the Texas game two seasons ago. Nika Aubrey and Azzi mounted a press for the first few minutes and it disrupted Texas really well. But they didn’t use it for long. By contrast, opponents have oftener used a press in the closing minutes of a game hoping to come from behind. This is often a failed strategy insofar as the guards being pressed are by that time in their game mode. Presses work best at the beginning of halves.

 

[Bone Dog]

Now the emphasis is on building super teams, select schools collecting the best players ad nauseum, to the detriment of the sport and destroying the last remnants of competition and parity. South Carolina started this trend two to three years ago, resulting in a depth of 10-12 players all of whom were stars at their prior schools, and the results are obvious. Now, just to keep up, we have ND, USC, Texas, UCLA, LSU, etc. employing the same strategy and one might say they are emulating South Carolina. Should UConn do the same?

One could argue that UConn and Tennessee and ND and Stanford always did exactly this, collecting the best players, etc. I’m sure that’s how opposing coaches and fan bases thought about over the past 30!years.

 

[hoophuskee]

11 championships over the last 29 years is a unparalleled, unique accomplishment, but one could say done in an era of women's college basketball that we will never see again. An era dominated by a handful of great programs, built thru great coaching and great recruiting in a relatively controlled and structured environment where athletics and academics were in balance. Now we have entered a new era, one where NIL, the portal and conference realignments have totally restructured the environment. Now the emphasis is on building super teams, select schools collecting the best players ad nauseum, to the detriment of the sport and destroying the last remnants of competition and parity. South Carolina started this trend two to three years ago, resulting in a depth of 10-12 players all of whom were stars at their prior schools, and the results are obvious. Now, just to keep up, we have ND, USC, Texas, UCLA, LSU, etc. employing the same strategy and one might say they are emulating South Carolina. Should UConn do the same? I hope not, but it may be necessary just to stay the course and keep the program relevant.

South Carolina has been very lucky that their number 1 rival -- UCCONN-- has been hurt. Not saying UCONN would have been better over the past 4 years just that South Carolia was lucky that their top rival was unable to go at them with the same injury-free team that SCar enjoyed. This has little to do with how SCar plays and coaches but rather UCONN being injured.


In page's frosh year - UCONN beat SCar. And it was 1 player that beat them- similar to 2 years later 1 player beat SCar. And frankly, UCONN lost Walker - but it had nothing to with minutes - it had to do with her as a prior 1st team A/a wanting to go pro before NIL.

The next 3 years UCONN's strength was their perimeter play. Scar’s strength was their frontcourt. Our strength was never able to be forced upon them in healthy manner yet SoCar did show when they went against Paige as a frosh and a Clark as a jr- that was a a chink in their armor.

We all saw SCarl go down vs Iowa 2 years ago. Thei guards didn't play well. That was their weakness. And our team early in the year beat Iowa (beat Texas, Beat NC State, beat Duke) without Paige and the last 2/3 minutes the game was already decided. So if Iowa gave SCar fits 2 years ago, and then did very well for a half or so. If we are to be fair, do we really think a healthy combo of Paige/Azzi/Carolien playing several years wouldn't have been better than Iowa?

Not saying UCONN would have won - but no reason to believe that if UCONN played big minutes to their stars - there is no reason if we're being fair that we wouldn't have been right there with SoCarl. If we were healthy that year who would have expected to let a team like Iowa beat us that year? I just want to say - I’m not saying Scar wouldn't have won. Just that they caught a break that while they had the super low posts- UCONN's super great guards never really played together when healthy going against SoCarl. Even Azzi's frosh year in Nov vs SCarl- she was put on injured list immediately after and Dorka was playing with a massive bandage on her right hand and was just getting integrated.

 

[hoophuskee]

Excellent post. I think you’re absolutely right that the press is a gambler’s defense. But even young folks in peak physical condition get mentally tired — that’s the point, to trade the stamina of a deep bench for the mental stamina of the opposing teams guards. And I think you’re right that he wouldn’t do it for entire games even if he has the bench for it. It makes more sense to use it in spots to disrupt a game plan. We’ve seen him do this in the first few minutes of the third quarter as a way to upend whatever new plan the other coach gave his team at halftime. Nika was especially good at this, and having Aubrey next to her was almost cruel.

But it is worth noting that Ash and Morgan routinely spearheaded a press for entire games in high school. Those two have the stamina for it just by themselves.

The model I’m imagining can be seen in the Texas game two seasons ago. Nika Aubrey and Azzi mounted a press for the first few minutes and it disrupted Texas really well. But they didn’t use it for long. By contrast, opponents have oftener used a press in the closing minutes of a game hoping to come from behind. This is often a failed strategy insofar as the guards being pressed are by that time in their game mode. Presses work best at the beginning of halves.

Yes - some games - some teams for sure!!!

 

[Bone Dog]

South Carolina has been very lucky that their number 1 rival -- UCCONN-- has been hurt. Not saying UCONN would have been better over the past 4 years just that South Carolia was lucky that their top rival was unable to go at them with the same injury-free team that SCar enjoyed. This has little to do with how SCar plays and coaches but rather UCONN being injured.

Totally agree. WCBB has been cheated of one of the great rivalries because of this.

 

[itsasport]

No one has mentioned Chen, who will deservedly get minutes.

This is a repeat of an earlier post of mine but, aren't good things worth repeating?

What Geno has complained about in the past is that there were periods during the season when there were lumped together travel games that were tiring. I can see Geno giving some players fewer minutes or sitting out some players for a game here and there.

This could alleviate the problem at the end of the regular season where Geno has said that all the players were tired and had nagging injuries that had not been given time to heal.

And there is nothing wrong with giving the returning injured players and the Freshmen time to work their way comfortably into the lineup.

And, as mentioned, there will be a lot, a lot of blowouts.

There will be times when the opposing teams will wish that they were playing the starters instead of the "bench."

 

[oldhusky]

At the risk of being tarred and feathered I will point out that Dawn Staley had 9 players who averaged double-digit minutes during this past season’s undefeated, national championship season. Raven Johnson topped the list at 27.9. Sania Fegen was 9th with 15.2.

While SC had lots of blowout games when Dawn could empty the bench, there were a number of competitive games where Dawn still found PT for many players, sometimes even at the risk of making the final score too close for comfort. The benefit for SC was a healthy, rested and deep team in March, with lots of talented players who Dawn had confidence in to get the job done.

Obviously, this past season UConn’s injuries prevented Geno from developing a deep roster. Hopefully, with everyone healthy this coming season, UConn can finally roll out a deep and relentless lineup of talented players that can match up with SC and the other top teams in WBB.

I think the two coaches clearly have a different philosophy on how much they use the bench. Of course Dawn could use the 4 off the bench and against most teams still be expanding the lead because they are so good, and last year was the same. They lose their starters and still are the top team in the country.

Geno has always been exceptionally conservative IMO as to when he thinks it is time to play the third string or non rotation players. If you are ahead by 35-40 with 5 minutes left, OK bring them in. The game has usually been decided easily 10-15 minutes before that. He could play the tail end of the bench to start the fourth quarter in many games, but sticks to his norm. Even if the bench starts to lose part of a big lead you could bring the starters back in if needed. My point is he doesn't bring in the bench when the game is decided, he waits until way way after that.

I suspect his rationale could be he wants to continue to develop chemistry among the core rotation, and is not that concerned with developing the tail end of the bench in games, but considers practice more important for that. Whether resting your top players more has them fresher for year end tournaments I don't know. Clearly it is an advantage in conference tournaments where you could have games three days in a row, and securing the win early and resting your stars improves your odds in the next game substantially. Uconn has been shorthanded for the last three years, but hopefully this year Geno will at least be able to expand the rotation and even playing time for those outside the rotation, at least if he wants to.

 

[visitingcock]

11 championships over the last 29 years is a unparalleled, unique accomplishment, but one could say done in an era of women's college basketball that we will never see again. An era dominated by a handful of great programs, built thru great coaching and great recruiting in a relatively controlled and structured environment where athletics and academics were in balance. Now we have entered a new era, one where NIL, the portal and conference realignments have totally restructured the environment. Now the emphasis is on building super teams, select schools collecting the best players ad nauseum, to the detriment of the sport and destroying the last remnants of competition and parity. South Carolina started this trend two to three years ago, resulting in a depth of 10-12 players all of whom were stars at their prior schools, and the results are obvious. Now, just to keep up, we have ND, USC, Texas, UCLA, LSU, etc. employing the same strategy and one might say they are emulating South Carolina. Should UConn do the same? I hope not, but it may be necessary just to stay the course and keep the program relevant.

This is the most contradictory post I have ever read. The halycon era of a handful of great teams that dominated wbb like 11 championships for UConn has been destroyed by South Carolina and it’s progeny are collecting 10-12 of the best players.

No irony there UConn absolutely dominated getting the best players and totally dominated the sport in Camelot. Now, SCar has dragged the world into purgatory by - doing the same thing and not being nearly as dominant.

 

[Cuango]

South Carolina has been very lucky that their number 1 rival -- UCCONN-- has been hurt. Not saying UCONN would have been better over the past 4 years just that South Carolia was lucky that their top rival was unable to go at them with the same injury-free team that SCar enjoyed. This has little to do with how SCar plays and coaches but rather UCONN being injured.


In page's frosh year - UCONN beat SCar. And it was 1 player that beat them- similar to 2 years later 1 player beat SCar. And frankly, UCONN lost Walker - but it had nothing to with minutes - it had to do with her as a prior 1st team A/a wanting to go pro before NIL.

The next 3 years UCONN's strength was their perimeter play. Scar’s strength was their frontcourt. Our strength was never able to be forced upon them in healthy manner yet SoCar did show when they went against Paige as a frosh and a Clark as a jr- that was a a chink in their armor.

We all saw SCarl go down vs Iowa 2 years ago. Thei guards didn't play well. That was their weakness. And our team early in the year beat Iowa (beat Texas, Beat NC State, beat Duke) without Paige and the last 2/3 minutes the game was already decided. So if Iowa gave SCar fits 2 years ago, and then did very well for a half or so. If we are to be fair, do we really think a healthy combo of Paige/Azzi/Carolien playing several years wouldn't have been better than Iowa?

Not saying UCONN would have won - but no reason to believe that if UCONN played big minutes to their stars - there is no reason if we're being fair that we wouldn't have been right there with SoCarl. If we were healthy that year who would have expected to let a team like Iowa beat us that year? I just want to say - I’m not saying Scar wouldn't have won. Just that they caught a break that while they had the super low posts- UCONN's super great guards never really played together when healthy going against SoCarl. Even Azzi's frosh year in Nov vs SCarl- she was put on injured list immediately after and Dorka was playing with a massive bandage on her right hand and was just getting integrated.

Well said! I’ve been frustrated for three years with people who blithely overlook (or flat out ignore) the fact that UConn has essentially gone three years now without ever playing at full strength.

 

[BobbyJ]

11 championships over the last 29 years is a unparalleled, unique accomplishment, but one could say done in an era of women's college basketball that we will never see again. An era dominated by a handful of great programs, built thru great coaching and great recruiting in a relatively controlled and structured environment where athletics and academics were in balance. Now we have entered a new era, one where NIL, the portal and conference realignments have totally restructured the environment. Now the emphasis is on building super teams, select schools collecting the best players ad nauseum, to the detriment of the sport and destroying the last remnants of competition and parity. South Carolina started this trend two to three years ago, resulting in a depth of 10-12 players all of whom were stars at their prior schools, and the results are obvious. Now, just to keep up, we have ND, USC, Texas, UCLA, LSU, etc. employing the same strategy and one might say they are emulating South Carolina. Should UConn do the same? I hope not, but it may be necessary just to stay the course and keep the program relevant.

Yes, it's a huge change over 30 years. It's gone from a handful of great programs, super teams collecting the best players ad nauseum to the same thing now. A handful of great teams getting the best players. Yes, UConn should do the same thing. Keep getting their share of the best players and remain a great program.

 

[ERWUC65]

This is the most contradictory post I have ever read. The halycon era of a handful of great teams that dominated wbb like 11 championships for UConn has been destroyed by South Carolina and it’s progeny are collecting 10-12 of the best players.

No irony there UConn absolutely dominated getting the best players and totally dominated the sport in Camelot. Now, SCar has dragged the world into purgatory by - doing the same thing and not being nearly as dominant.

Perhaps you might try again to thoroughly read and understand the post - which bases the current situation on NIL, The Portal and Conference realignment. It only mentions your beloved South Carolina in the light that it was one of the first to understand and take advantage of it, necessitating others to follow.

 

[Cuango]

11 championships over the last 29 years is a unparalleled, unique accomplishment, but one could say done in an era of women's college basketball that we will never see again. An era dominated by a handful of great programs, built thru great coaching and great recruiting in a relatively controlled and structured environment where athletics and academics were in balance. Now we have entered a new era, one where NIL, the portal and conference realignments have totally restructured the environment. Now the emphasis is on building super teams, select schools collecting the best players ad nauseum, to the detriment of the sport and destroying the last remnants of competition and parity. South Carolina started this trend two to three years ago, resulting in a depth of 10-12 players all of whom were stars at their prior schools, and the results are obvious. Now, just to keep up, we have ND, USC, Texas, UCLA, LSU, etc. employing the same strategy and one might say they are emulating South Carolina. Should UConn do the same? I hope not, but it may be necessary just to stay the course and keep the program relevant.

? I’m not sure what to say to this. UConn, as we speak, has the most talented roster I’ve ever seen in terms of 1-14 players. Sure, if you qualify it to just starters, then some of the previous UConn teams may have had more but in terms of the entire roster, I challenge anyone to come up with a 14 player roster better than this one! (On paper) I’m not sure how Geno could recruit a better roster! If he has to outdo this current roster to “keep the program relevant“, we’re in big trouble!

 

[visitingcock]

I think the two coaches clearly have a different philosophy on how much they use the bench. Of course Dawn could use the 4 off the bench and against most teams still be expanding the lead because they are so good, and last year was the same. They lose their starters and still are the top team in the country.

Geno has always been exceptionally conservative IMO as to when he thinks it is time to play the third string or non rotation players. If you are ahead by 35-40 with 5 minutes left, OK bring them in. The game has usually been decided easily 10-15 minutes before that. He could play the tail end of the bench to start the fourth quarter in many games, but sticks to his norm. Even if the bench starts to lose part of a big lead you could bring the starters back in if needed. My point is he doesn't bring in the bench when the game is decided, he waits until way way after that.

I suspect his rationale could be he wants to continue to develop chemistry among the core rotation, and is not that concerned with developing the tail end of the bench in games, but considers practice more important for that. Whether resting your top players more has them fresher for year end tournaments I don't know. Clearly it is an advantage in conference tournaments where you could have games three days in a row, and securing the win early and resting your stars improves your odds in the next game substantially. Uconn has been shorthanded for the last three years, but hopefully this year Geno will at least be able to expand the rotation and even playing time for those outside the rotation, at least if he wants to.

Here is what Dawn does differently. She doesn't wait that long. She works in subs in the first half - or even first quarter to get them experience. during the heat of battle against the other team's starters. Last year, she brought freshman Watkins in against Brink. This year MiLaysia played a number of minutes from the first game against Notre Dame Dame on. Tessa got fewer but some first quarter minutes in the early season but plenty down the stretch and the tournament. Our deep bench player Sakima Walkerm was the only player who didn't see many first half minutes. She saw mostly the traditional last four minutes.

A number of teams hang with us, or came back on us through the year, but our players were never tired in the 4th .

Was the 9 player rotation a brilliant strategic plan that Dawn worked up in the off-season? Doubtful. More than likely it was dictated by circumstance.

 

[CL82]

Paige can definitely play pg. But is it her best position in Geno’s offense?

Possibly, because it would maximize the number of shooters on the floor. Particularly if you're going to play four out, that's a good thing.

 

[CL82]

No irony there UConn absolutely dominated getting the best players and totally dominated the sport in Camelot. Now, SCar has dragged the world into purgatory by - doing the same thing and not being nearly as dominant.

(For what it's worth, we actually had television commentators asking whether Connecticut was "bad for women's basketball." That is the price of success my friend.)

 

[uconnfan68]

At the risk of being tarred and feathered I will point out that Dawn Staley had 9 players who averaged double-digit minutes during this past season’s undefeated, national championship season. Raven Johnson topped the list at 27.9. Sania Fegen was 9th with 15.2.

While SC had lots of blowout games when Dawn could empty the bench, there were a number of competitive games where Dawn still found PT for many players, sometimes even at the risk of making the final score too close for comfort. The benefit for SC was a healthy, rested and deep team in March, with lots of talented players who Dawn had confidence in to get the job done.

Obviously, this past season UConn’s injuries prevented Geno from developing a deep roster. Hopefully, with everyone healthy this coming season, UConn can finally roll out a deep and relentless lineup of talented players that can match up with SC and the other top teams in WBB.

The key is no drop off in play. If it works, he’ll go 13 deep.

 

[Bone Dog]

This year MiLaysia played a number of minutes from the first game against Notre Dame Dame on. Tessa got fewer but some first quarter minutes in the early season but plenty down the stretch and the tournament.

Huge mistake by Dawn not to play Tessa more minutes sooner. She got fooled by HS ratings. Milaysia is talented, sure, but Tessa is the pillar she can build the team around. Guess Dawn isn't used to thinking about building a team around not-bigs.

Ok, enough poking fun at Dawn, the 2nd best coach in WCBB. It's only what you deserve, @visitingcock, for not crediting me with voicing the same groan as you in post #30 in this very thread. What the heck!

And please observe my astute use of emojis here.

Possibly, because it would maximize the number of shooters on the floor. Particularly if you're going to play four out, that's a good thing.

Absolutely. Though I'm not sure if even in most lineups Paige would always be tasked with the one traditional PG role, bringing the ball up the floor. I mean, that's not all or even most of what a pg does, but it's how most people think of the role. Mainly a PG initiates the offense, and Paige does that a lot no matter what position she nominally occupies.

But now for the fun implication of your observation: let's imagine what 4 in a 4-out on this roster wouldn't also include KK or Kaitlyn, the obvious point guards? Allie Azzi Morgan Caroline Sarah Ash [and Paige]. I think that's all the shooters. Damn, there's a lot of 'em. And yeah, any three of these plus Paige would do very nicely in a 4-out and Paige would initiate the offense in most cases. Maybe Morgan would play the point in some of them.

I'm kinda partial to the 3 As, Azzi Allie and Ash teamed up with Paige and Jana. That could be a fun group.

Or the big group, Morgan Caroline and Sarah with Paige and Ice

I can hardly wait for all the new kids to get up to speed in Geno's system so we can see them all shine!

 

[CL82]

I can hardly wait for all the new kids to get up to speed in Geno's system so we can see them all shine!

Agree. It is always fascinating to see how Geno makes the pieces fit.

In any event or hypothetical was discussing the pros of a lineup with Paige at the 1, but you also have to think what we give up. KK may not be our best outside threat, but, particularly next year, she may be our best on the ball defender. That is what earned Nika her starting slot.

We shall see!

 

[Bone Dog]

... but you also have to think what we give up. KK may not be our best outside threat, but, particularly next year, she may be our best on the ball defender. That is what earned Nika her starting slot.

So true! And it's also bound to be situational. I mean, against ND, I don't think Paige is tasked with defending against Hannah. She's more likely to guard Soni or Olivia most of the time. Maybe Azzi could guard Hannah, but it would mainly be KK or Kaitlyn, and they would need help with her, but that's what team defense is all about.

But your larger point is so often overlooked. An on-ball defender on the opposing pg is a role KK is really built for. Kaitlyn and Aubrey could do this a bit, too. It's not just about plugging a hole either. It's about disrupting the opposing coach's entire offensive game plan. Nika took the fight to her opponent. We will miss Nika until KK fully inhabits this role, and I think she's on the way there.

 

[HuskyNan]

Here is what Dawn does differently. She doesn't wait that long. She works in subs in the first half - or even first quarter to get them experience. during the heat of battle against the other team's starters. Last year, she brought freshman Watkins in against Brink. This year MiLaysia played a number of minutes from the first game against Notre Dame Dame on. Tessa got fewer but some first quarter minutes in the early season but plenty down the stretch and the tournament. Our deep bench player Sakima Walkerm was the only player who didn't see many first half minutes. She saw mostly the traditional last four minutes.

A number of teams hang with us, or came back on us through the year, but our players were never tired in the 4th .

Was the 9 player rotation a brilliant strategic plan that Dawn worked up in the off-season? Doubtful. More than likely it was dictated by circumstance.

Not a South Carolina thread. The General board was set up because visiting fans kept drifting conversations into non-UConn topics

“UConn stats... Are there enough minutes for everyone to play?”​

 

[visitingcock]

Not a South Carolina thread. The General board was set up because visiting fans kept drifting conversations into non-UConn topics

“UConn stats... Are there enough minutes for everyone to play?”​

Well, Tar and feather @oldude ( see post 16) He dragged me in!

Bye

 

[oldhusky]

Possibly, because it would maximize the number of shooters on the floor. Particularly if you're going to play four out, that's a good thing.

Maybe, but I think there are two very different ways of looking at where Paige should be used. One is what is her best position, but regardless of if that is the 1 or the 2, I think the more relevant question is where is she most needed.

Paige can be a great player at 1-4. Personally if you asked me her best positions I would rank them 2,1,3 and then 4. The second most talented candidate for 1-3 with the greatest upside is Azzi, who is clearly a 2, and far less effective at the 1 or the 3. It makes sense to keep her at the 2.

So then the likely question comes down to would you rather have Paige start at the point, with the best of Caroline, Ashlyn, Morgan, Q or Aubrey when she returns starting at the 3, or Paige start at the 3, with Kaitlin or KK starting at the 1. I think the two alternatives at the point are probably better than the other 3 options besides Paige, so even though it might be her third best position, I think Paige is more likely to start at the 3, play occasionally at the 1 and also a little at the 4 like last year, but rarely at the 2, mostly because that is the best position for Azzi, Ash, and Allie.