UCONN-Texas Post Game Thread

[nwhoopfan]

Okay, lots of shade being thrown at Gonzaga. Did any of you watch the game? They played extremely well. They would've beaten many teams today. And as far as being unranked, that's probably gonna change in the next poll. Kind of like after NC State beat UConn.

 

[Blond D.]

Sorry, I don’t agree. When left completely alone, then Nika can shoot. But anyone who is left completely alone could shoot it. She’s left completely alone because usually she is a nothing on offense & teams ignore her to put extra pressure on UConn’s true threats. Her shooting teammates have to work harder to get an open shot in return. I’d rather have KK in there- KK is faster and quicker than Nika, and I think KK being quicker is actually the better defender. I’d trade KK’s freshman mistakes (such as occasional charge) for the aggressive play she brings. Is Nika going to attack the basket which opens things up for others? No, but KK will and does. I like Aubrey off the bench too unless we need her height. Aubrey really is a fantastic defender, but there just are games when they instead need real offense. If UConn was rebounding well, then Aubrey shines on the fast break. When both Nika and Aubrey start in games against a strong team, then 40% of the team really doesn’t pose an offensive threat, and the team often falls behind. Change it up, Geno!

I think you are wrong about Nika. Nika played a pretty good game. She shoots when shes open but she's also supposed to look for the better shot and get the ball to Paige or another shooter. No one was open most of the time. No one was using the screens and picks when they did get one. She was usually in the face of whoever she was defending. No one seemed to have any speed or a burning desire to get open. When they took Paige out and had Nika, Aaliyah, and a couple of freshmen they seemed to do better. They got within 5 points then Geno took out what was working.

 

[Boreifs]

If UConn had played as tight a defense against Texas as they did against Maryland, it would have been a different game. I was astonished to see the starters, in the first few minutes, and senior players leave gaps of five feet in front of them effectively giving Texas wide open shots. Add to that the turnovers and Texas offensive rebounds and you get a self made hole they could not climb out of. Could be worse.

It’s easier to play tight defense against a team with inferior talent. Also, Texas has a reputation of being a poor shooting team from the arc; that calls for a different game plan.

 

[jabstep]

I noticed the look on her face too, it wasn't the happy expression she normally has. I thought it was eery

I saw it 2 and she was not a happy camper . Maybe it will help to light the fire.

 

[Gus Mahler]

Where have you gone, Moriah Jefferson? UConn Nation turns its lonely eyes to you.

Woo woo woo.

 

[RoadMaster]

Swipe Left

 

[real141]

I felt this way a long time ago. Nika really should sit and let the frosh take over and learn.

Me too . She's too easy to defend. 90% east and west. And she's not able to keep up with athletic guards that have handles.

 

[RSHERMVIKES]

IMHO I saw the TX game this way:
1. Both players and coaches have not gotten over the shock that once again UCONN is robbed of it's best players!
2. Paige has missed approximately 2 years of playing time she needs more time to restart her engines to play like she played her freshman year!
3. TX is one of the top 5 teams in Div.I! But with a healthy team we would have beat them!
4. Aubrey has to play to her top level of play every game! Her not scoring 1 point is not acceptable! She wasn't even close to what UCONN needs game in and game out!
5. I think the way our roster is at this time Ines and Amari should be getting minutes! We're playing with one hand tied behind our back now how can they hurt the team more?
6. Some of you expect the same style of game even though UCONN is missing 2 to 3 of their important pieces to their style of play! A healthy Azzi and Caroline open up everything for the rest of the team!
7. With Jana, Ayanna and Caroline out our team can't rebound with the top teams! With the 3 of them able to play it would make all the difference in our rebounding and interior defense!
8. I'm 76 years old and I have never seen any team in any sport struck down with injuries for 3 years now! It is unbelievable that one of the premier teams is handicapped year after year like UCONN WBB has been!
Some of you doom and gloom people make me sick!
I hope you don't have any kids of your own to drag them down mentally!
You ought to be ashamed of yourselves!

 

[Cuango]

The camera sweeps to the bench gave me encouragement for the future as Patterson had some serious fire in her eyes. I think she will be ready to grab some serious rebounds in the very near future. I'm thinking mid-December [Louisville-ish] & praying for same!

Now it's time to "right the ship" vs. Ball State, and then defeat the UNC team that gave South Carolina a strong showing for 3 qtrs.

Go Huskies!

We need some serious improvement if we’re going to have any chance to beat NC! Banghart has got that team playing very well. I’m somewhat encouraged after today’s game, even though we lost, as Aaliyah finally showed up and three of the freshmen played substantially better than last time. Paige will hopefully be able to get a few more open shots than she did against Texas and I don’t think we’ll see another ofer from Aubrey! Still not sure we win that game, but we’ve got a shot, I think. Hoping
Yanna will be cleared by then.

 

[Cuango]

I think you are wrong about Nika. Nika played a pretty good game. She shoots when shes open but she's also supposed to look for the better shot and get the ball to Paige or another shooter. No one was open most of the time. No one was using the screens and picks when they did get one. She was usually in the face of whoever she was defending. No one seemed to have any speed or a burning desire to get open. When they took Paige out and had Nika, Aaliyah, and a couple of freshmen they seemed to do better. They got within 5 points then Geno took out what was working.

I didn’t have any problem with Nika’s play today. I think she’s making an effort on the scoring front. As for her defense, I think many have been lulled into the idea that she’s some super lock down defender and that is simply not true. She is a good, solid defender in most circumstances but she has always struggled with certain kinds of players. Still, I agree she did a yeoman-like job today.

 

[hoophuskee]

Maybe the question worth asking
Is given the injuries to 2 key shooters
Should the coach adjust his strategy

Didn't he do that in this game and it didn't work?

 

[hoophuskee]

Game was in Spokane. Doesn't change the score, but it was on the road.

I know UConn fans don't want to hear about missing players, but it was a 4 point game at the half and Brink sat on the bench after halftime with an illness.

What's your point about UCONN fans? What does that have to do with Stanford losing?

 

[willtalk]

With as much parity as exists in WCBB, how well a team shoots makes a big difference in wins and loses. I always look to see how a team won or lost before making a judgement as to how good or bad a team is. With parity teams face more opponants that are able to beat them when they have lesser than normal shooting days. This is when in the past not having to play teams that could threaten you played a major part in a teams record.. That meant that you could play more games at substandard and still win.

Common sense tells you that injuries often play a major role in how well a team does. They are part of basketball. It isn't just about how many injuries hit a team but how those injuries affect the over all strength of the team. Most teams are not really aware of other teams injuries or how they have effected their ability to win. They also do not really know if the individual players are having sub par or if they are exceeding their usual nom percentage wise. This sort of negates the " if certain players had played better" we would have won easily. Why because that applies to both teams. Players are not machines and lack consistency and thats part of basketball. While some are more consistant than others, every player has days when they can not miss or conversely even hit the ocean. Thats why the best free throw shooters have days when they miss were no own guards them. You are never as good as your best day or as bad as your worst. The same applies to teams.

UConn has recently been affected by a couple of bad injury years. That is a given. However, there have been other teams who have had their potential season effected with multiple key major injuries that have gone unnoticed by other fan base's. Why? Because fans tend to be miopic in respect to their own teams. I could name quite a few teams that due to injuries have had seasons derailed, just off the top of my head. But things are what they are and circumstances just need to be dealt with.

 

[hoophuskee]

With as much parity as exists in WCBB, how well a team shoots makes a big difference in wins and loses. I always look to see how a team won or lost before making a judgement as to how good or bad a team is. With parity teams face more opponants that are able to beat them when they have lesser than normal shooting days. This is when in the past not having to play teams that could threaten you played a major part in a teams record.. That meant that you could play more games at substandard and still win.

Common sense tells you that injuries often play a major role in how well a team does. They are part of basketball. It isn't just about how many injuries hit a team but how those injuries affect the over all strength of the team. Most teams are not really aware of other teams injuries or how they have effected their ability to win. They also do not really know if the individual players are having sub par or if they are exceeding their usual nom percentage wise. This sort of negates the " if certain players had played better" we would have won easily. Why because that applies to both teams. Players are not machines and lack consistency and thats part of basketball. While some are more consistant than others, every player has days when they can not miss or conversely even hit the ocean. Thats why the best free throw shooters have days when they miss were no own guards them. You are never as good as your best day or as bad as your worst. The same applies to teams.

UConn has recently been affected by a couple of bad injury years. That is a given. However, there have been other teams who have had their potential season effected with multiple key major injuries that have gone unnoticed by other fan base's. Why? Because fans tend to be miopic in respect to their own teams. I could name quite a few teams that due to injuries have had seasons derailed, just off the top of my head. But things are what they are and circumstances just need to be dealt with.

But none have had the combination of quality/quanyity of injury UCONN has had.

This Texas game again shows UCONN to be small. Offensive rebounding form the other team a problem among others. Yet they built their team that to play small they have to shoot very well. Two players recruited were elite shooters- Azzi and Caroline. They are gone. As is what the staff thought of Patterson giving them a bigger athetic body to rebound has yet to materialize due to injury as well which surley woudl have helped today. As is the help they expected from their frosh center; hurt during the summer.

Tha's why if we;re being fair without any bias we all have an understanding that UCONN would have bene a beast these last three years without the number of injuires that hit them that far exceeds overall other teams in terms of talent and quntity as a sum during this length of 3 years.

 

[Skeets]

I've read a lot of weeping and wailing about how poorly UConn played. I disagree. At the 7:19 mark of the first quarter it was 15-3 and timeout was called. From there to the end of the game the difference in the final score did not change. Texas shot lights out. UConn made too many unforced turnovers yet from there to the end of the game they were even. They need to become at least one point better during that first 7 minutes to win. It is obvious there were many chances for that to happen. The slow starts need to get fixed. Everything else gets exponentially easier if it gets fixed. Small steps everyone. This hard early schedule was made to help the team they thought they would have not to get 4 rookies what they would need Tyler Phommachanh learn to start by the 8th game.

All the early development was prioritizing what the experienced players would need. The rookies got to watch what AE and Paige could do. They still revert to that too much. They actually showed they could succeed when Paige was not on the floor. All they need is a little time, patience, and a bit of better luck.

Go Huskies. I still have faith!

You make a good point. After that horrendous start UConn played Texas more or less even despite incredibly stupid turnovers, rebounds, etc.

 

[HuskyNan]

Except on the offensive boards - we got crushed 16 - 5. I don't know what the 2nd chance points were, but I gotta believe they had a lot more than we did.

The Huskies shot 60%, missing only 16 shots all night. They got the offensive board on 5 of the 16.

 

[HuskyNan]

I hope this isn’t seen as a positive for the UConn women’s bball team.

I was responding to someone’s statement

 

[Greg]

Texas was more talented, aggressive and deeper than UConn but UConn’s relentless fight made it a game. The fourth quarter no call when Aaliyah was mugged probably prevented a fabulous comeback.

-Nika could not handle Rori Harmon but I am not sure there are many guards who can.

-Still waiting for Ice Brady to show the ranking she had coming out of high school. Just too many mistakes on both ends of the floor.

-Aubrey is still disappearing for long stretches. As a senior in Geno’s program, she should be way more consistent than she has shown.

-Paige’s minutes may not be a concern to many but it does me. These games don’t mean much. I wish Geno would limit her minutes more. Especially since teams are just beating her up physically.

-He doesn’t like to, but this team should probably play more zone. I think they could rebound better out of zone.

-Q must be practicing poorly but with this group Geno can afford the same patience with Q as he does with Ice.

-I think Geno needs a pep talk of his own. He seems to be understandably frustrated with the injuries but these kids need him. This means doing something he has had not had to do much over the years. Bite the bullet and let the pups go through game time growing pains.

-Still love this program because the kids never strop playing hard. Their body language even when things are going poorly, is good. Turnovers, giving up second chance baskets and scoring from others besides Edwards and Paige will improve as the year goes on.

-Encouraged by the fourth quarter run with the three freshmen on the floor and Paige on the bench.

Historically, the zone gives up a lot of rebounds.

 

[SLY63]

Listening to the press conference it sounds like Geno is going to play for March and give the freshman more time. I hope he sticks to his words as by the end of year I think the top minutes should be PB, AE, KK, Ice, Shade, Q, with Nika and AG as sparks and defensive sparks.

 

[SJF]

Ok so let’s look at all the teams that will be ranked in the top 10 after today. Almost all are playing athletic skilled freshman. Counting Ice we have 4 really good freshman so they need to play. And of those top teams if a starter logged 38 minutes pulled down 0 boards and had 2 assists no threat to get to the bucket and just got abused on D would that player still be on the floor for any of those coaches?

 

[cancontent]

Okay, lots of shade being thrown at Gonzaga. Did any of you watch the game? They played extremely well. They would've beaten many teams today. And as far as being unranked, that's probably gonna change in the next poll. Kind of like after NC State beat UConn.

Agreed. They were leading even while Brink was on the court. Stanford is supposed to have some depth with players like Jump, Demetre and Lepolo to go along with Iriafen. Gonzaga has a great roster of players who can compete with anyone.

 

[Gordo]

Any game in which Paige does not score at least 25 points we are most likely going to lose.

 

[npignatjr]

Don't want to pick on Nika but if this is correct 0 rebounds in 36 minutes is not a good look. On this team when a 6-3 player is our tallest player guards have to rebound.

I'm not sure about the zero, seems to me she came away with at least 1. She is the shortest UConn player.

 

[Rowdy831]

I didn't like the loss. Fans shall come and with loses fans shall go. True Fan lick they wounds and move on. How can any fan blame Geno --he sits on the bench. Turnovers by inexperienced in College basketball --are learning. I've been more often than not when I say this: It is not where you are in early December it is where you are in March that matters. Wait and see. I don't expect an NC--there are some very good team this year. Elite 8, FF--that's fine with me--heck 20 wins is fine with me.

He decides who plays in the game. When you sit over there biting your nails while you are getting pounded on the offensive glass and you don't even try putting the only size in you have then you get some of the blame.

 

[Rowdy831]

If you watch UConn right now they are playing very soft half court defense and that allows teams with good penetrators to have their way with them. By contrast watch Texas play defense, they are playing tight man all over the court and suffocating the offense. Both these teams play a similar offense but notice where Texas was playing their rotations and compare that to where UConn is starting theirs. UConn right now is not doing the basics very good and until that changes they are going to struggle to score and keep the opponent from scoring.

If Geno can't figure out a way to get Amari into the game and contribute this team will have a long year. AE is playing tough but the have zero low post defense other than her and half of Texas's rebounds yesterday were offensive. That coupled with 20 turnovers makes it an impossible game to win.

It is fixable but will take some courage and patience.

 

[Jmsdawg]

My take, Texas is really good, Booker is the piece Vic needed and she is producing. I still consider UConn a really good team but they do not seem to have a core 5 to rely on and team chemistry just not there yet. Paige is back but she needs the other players to do their job. The team appears, at least to me, to rely too much on Paige to carry the load. Geno has not been able to get the team to play up to their potential, I realize injuries have slowed the team chemistry but we need a core 5 made up of the available players, finding that core 5 must come from Geno.

 

[Zonepress]

The “only size” has 0 rebounds in 9 minutes against Ucla and 0 rebounds in 5 minutes bs kansas

 

[Husky fanatic]

Actually, 38 minutes, and just two assists, no steals and 5 TOs... good thing she can shoot!

In order to have assists people need to score, not turn it over

 

[Fairfield Fan]

Texas was more talented, aggressive and deeper than UConn but UConn’s relentless fight made it a game. The fourth quarter no call when Aaliyah was mugged probably prevented a fabulous comeback.

-Nika could not handle Rori Harmon but I am not sure there are many guards who can.

-Still waiting for Ice Brady to show the ranking she had coming out of high school. Just too many mistakes on both ends of the floor.

-Aubrey is still disappearing for long stretches. As a senior in Geno’s program, she should be way more consistent than she has shown.

-Paige’s minutes may not be a concern to many but it does me. These games don’t mean much. I wish Geno would limit her minutes more. Especially since teams are just beating her up physically.

-He doesn’t like to, but this team should probably play more zone. I think they could rebound better out of zone.

-Q must be practicing poorly but with this group Geno can afford the same patience with Q as he does with Ice.

-I think Geno needs a pep talk of his own. He seems to be understandably frustrated with the injuries but these kids need him. This means doing something he has had not had to do much over the years. Bite the bullet and let the pups go through game time growing pains.

-Still love this program because the kids never strop playing hard. Their body language even when things are going poorly, is good. Turnovers, giving up second chance baskets and scoring from others besides Edwards and Paige will improve as the year goes on.

-Encouraged by the fourth quarter run with the three freshmen on the floor and Paige on the bench.

Wonder if Ice is hobbled, literally, by her serious knee injury. There is no reason whatsoever for her to be such a meager contributor to team performance- except if she's physically unable to perform. And it could be that Aubrey is once again suffering from her injured spine. Agree that Paige might be playing on borrowed time.

 

[RadfordRam]

It could be worse. UConn lost on the road to a top 10 team by 12, 8 really because they gave up 4 points on freebie free throws by fouling to stop the clock. #3 Stanford lost to unranked Gonzaga at home, 78-96.

Stanford is the 12th top 10 team to suffer a loss this season

Stanford was the road team.