UCONN-Texas post game thread

[UConnCat]

 

[ABCDFE]

As a team, even though we shot well tonight, I sense that everyone not named Azzi will struggle to score against top competition. We still need Caroline to take it to another level.

Lou scored double digits in her limited minutes. She is a work in progress in D so let’s give her some time

 

[UConnCat]

 

[Conndog]

We did shoot well and it was a great win but it took a career night from Azzi to beat Texas without Rori Harmon. Notice that Harmon’s replacement had a horrible game. With Harmon, this game would be tied. We should score well overall but to optimize our chance of winning the NC I still think we need Lou, Azzi and Caroline in the primary minutes lineup. Caroline has shown that she can score against any team.
We did shoot well, but a couple of the Texas players had great nights too, maybe above their expectations. You say without Azzi’s career night it would be a tie game, what if these Texas players had average nights too, would it still have been a tie game?
Azzi, Lou and Caroline are hugely important- Azzi starred today, Lou got some points early but foul trouble limited her, and Caroline is getting her feet wet again. We’ll see a lot more of her which will help.
Great games by Aaliyah, Dorka, Nika and especially Aubrey. Aubrey really shone tonight too

 

[jaydee602]

No, I think he is right. Edwards is soft and slow, Dorka is soft and weak. Didn’t matter tonight, but it will. I want to be wrong, but am predicting points from the bigs will be hard to come by in March. And they both give baseline easily.

Edwards had 11 points & 8 rebounds.
"Soft" Dorka had 6 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, & 4 steals.
Aubrey (14 points) & Ayanna added 8 total rebounds.
They will only get better as the season progresses.

 

[slug25]

Let’s thank Vic for parking Morris and Jones on the bench as we pulled away. Morris had done a great job on Azzi defensively and was Texas’ best scoring threat. Jones could have fouled out our bigs.

 

[darrell]

 

[mbr33ct]

Now we know for sure what kind of team we have. Everyone showed up to play!! Nobody disappeared. Azzi stepping up to lead her team with a new career high of 32 points. No doubt who the BADDASS was tonight. I wonder if the Texas players still think this was "just another game?" A sellout game tonight per Bob Joyce.

You would think there would not be any doubt for the Badass award but you're forgetting this is the Boneyard.

 

[BBallF]

Super victory. Sorry to be critical but I can't unsee what I saw. Yes it was a great win but there were two glaring weaknesses I saw. First is Lou. She is not a good defensive player at all and that is why her minutes were so limited. She got beat on simple strong hand drives. She gave up what she got on offense and my vote is for Aubrey to go in the game for her early. She is a delight to watch.

The other weakness is Liyah. I thought she had turned the corner and that the costly floor mistakes were a thing of the past. They weren't. There was a reversion to last year in many respects. You won't necessarily see it in the box score but it was things like a back in offensive foul to give the ball back when we were poised to break it open, not grabbing the ball, going for a rebound with Dorka and not knowing she was there and losing the ball and also judgment plays. She seemed tight and nervous to me and I hope this game will restore her to the heady player we saw the first game. It was also the first game this year against size and power underneath and that may have affected her at times by making her tentative. All she has to do is play within herself.

They shut down Azzi in the beginning but she started to drive, get some breakaways, and then started bringing the ball up and got open. She figured it out or Geno figured it out for her. Her release is Curryesque and her performance was stellar.

Nika had a workmanlike game. Gritty with some big steals and assists. 9 assists and three steals is impactful.

As for the refs, if you are going to call taiky tacky freedom of movement calls, please also call ticky tacky fouls on the shot and layups. They blew the whistle on every possession it seemed like. I was at the Seton Hall men's game on Saturday and it was the same thing. I guess they are stressing that in referee camp this year. The problem is that come March you see beat downs and a different game being called. I will also make a prediction. You will never see a tacky tacky freedom of movement foul called on the returning POY. Just saying.

I'm not ready to give us the trophy yet. We need a defensive stopper at the guard level and more movement on offense and a healthy with good timing Caroline. Should be there in two more games at the most. All in all, a W and that's all we really needed.

 

[HuskyNan]

We did shoot well and it was a great win but it took a career night from Azzi to beat Texas without Rori Harmon. Notice that Harmon’s replacement had a horrible game. With Harmon, this game would be tied. We should score well overall but to optimize our chance of winning the NC I still think we need Lou, Azzi and Caroline in the primary minutes lineup. Caroline has shown that she can score against any team.

You make it sound like the Huskies wouldn’t have scored if Azzi hadn’t. Geno would have run something else for whoever had the hot hand if that were the case. The team shot 55% (51%without Azzi) and 50% from three. it’s not like there was only one person that could score

 

[Iluvacc2]

The Longhorns had some uncharacteristically bad defensive lapses against Azzi, I don't care how many shots she's missed, you don't leave her open

A healthy Paige and Azzi will be amazing to see next year! Good luck covering them.

I've been critical of Muhl in the past, but I thought tonight was probably her best game I've seen her play.

Aaliyah is looking like her freshman year self. I thought her two missed free throws at the beginning of the game was a bad sign of things to come, but fortunately she shrugged that off her shoulders.

Dorka battled hard, but Taylor Jones was giving her the business all night. Not sure why Vic left her on the bench so long in the 4th quarter, that was a real headscratcher?

Aubrey!!! You would never believe she was recovering from back surgery. She looks better than ever.

Random note, the broadcasters at the beginning of the telecast misidentified someone else as Swin Cash From what I could see, I'm thinking it was Ashley Battle? Whoever it was, she was sitting next to Asjha Jones.

 

[Geew1992]

The Longhorns had some uncharacteristically bad defensive lapses against Azzi, I don't care how many shots she's missed, you don't leave her open

A healthy Paige and Azzi will be amazing to see next year! Good luck covering them.

I've been critical of Muhl in the past, but I thought tonight was probably her best game I've seen her play.

Aaliyah is looking like her freshman year self. I thought her two missed free throws at the beginning of the game was a bad sign of things to come, but fortunately she shrugged that off her shoulders.

Dorka battled hard, but Taylor Jones was giving her the business all night. Not sure why Vic left her on the bench so long in the 4th quarter, that was a real headscratcher?

Aubrey!!! You would never believe she was recovering from back surgery. She looks better than ever.

Random note, the broadcasters at the beginning of the telecast misidentified someone else as Swin Cash From what I could see, I'm thinking it was Ashley Battle? Whoever it was, she was sitting next to Asjha Jones.

Yup…it was Ashley battle

 

[CTtoSanDiego]

My small two cents.... Nika was able to play awesome, disruptive defense, without getting into foul trouble... everything else has been said... Azzi scoring, Aubrey being amazing, especially early, Dorka and Edwards battling underneath

 

[HuskyNan]

UConn's lack of interior defense kept Texas in the game too long and could be a major problem against good teams with size.

Didn’t you just describe Texas?

 

[jaydee602]

You make it sound like the Huskies wouldn’t have scored if Azzi hadn’t. Geno would have run something else for whoever had the hot hand if that were the case. The team shot 55% (51%without Azzi) and 50% from three. it’s not like there was only one person that could score

You nailed it. Who knows? We might have seen more of Lou and/or Caroline if Geno needed scoring. Every game will have its own personality.

 

[UConnCat]

I worked so missed the game. I read some posts here and thought UConn had lost. Phew.

Second game of the season, players in new roles and there's a lot to work on. Oh, and a win. Expecting more seems a bit unrealistic.

 

[Geew1992]

 

[TeamFirst!]

I’d be very happy if Azzi tops those numbers but we ca’t count on it. Some of us have been saying all year to put the ball in Azzi’s hands and look what happened when she was the primary point guard in the 2nd half. We should keep putting the ball in Azzi’s hands. She’s out Olivia Miles only better.

Nika got 9 and 1/2 times as much playing time tonight compared to Caroline. It’s pretty inappropriate to draw any conclusions from that at this time.

Same with Ayanna. Her rebounds per minute played were roughly twice Doarka and AE if I remember correctly.

It’s early. Aubrey looks very encouraging now 2 games in a row.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

About what I expected in a slugfest with a Vic Shaeffer team. And then Geno countering with a steady diet of mostly composed upperclassmen. Everyone seems to be advancing in confidence. Good win.

 

[Cuango]

No, I think he is right. Edwards is soft and slow, Dorka is soft and weak. Didn’t matter tonight, but it will. I want to be wrong, but am predicting points from the bigs will be hard to come by in March. And they both give baseline easily.

You lost me on Edwards! Admittedly, she doesn’t have blazing speed but I certainly don’t think she’s slow. As for being soft, I’m not sure if we watched the same game! Dorka, I concede, is not as strong as I had hoped (nor as fluid) but she was going against a bigger stronger opponent in just her second game since her injury. I felt like she settled in and played better in the second half though. As for the baseline, that can be fixed (to the extent it is a problem). This is where the loss of Ice really hurts us! She could have made a big difference by March!

 

[UConnCat]

 

[HuskyNan]

I worked so missed the game. I read some posts here and thought UConn had lost. Phew.

Second game of the season, players in new roles and there's a lot to work on. Oh, and a win.

…against the #3 team in the country.

 

[Plebe]

I just gotta take a moment to say how great it is to be back in season, reading these postgame gems headlined by @EricLA and @oldude ! Y'all's write-ups are the best.

 

[UConnCat]

…against the #3 team in the country.

Yes, that too.

Lots of work to do as we should expect.