But can you imagine how this board would have reacted if Ice had taken and missed those shots, especially if UConn then went on to lose the game? Everyone would be saying that Ice needs to learn not to take dumb shots that she has never demonstrated that she can consistently make.
Basketball fans are never shy about taking advantage of 20-20 hindsight to praise a player's decision that worked out favorably, and criticize a decision that went wrong. During the regular season, Meg Culmo does this all the time -- if a 3-point attempt doesn't go in, she'll say that the player should have "run offense" instead of shooting, but if the shot goes in, she has no criticism to offer.
I don’t think Ice was concerned with the BY when she knocked down those shots against USC. But the process by which she developed the confidence to take and make those shots has been a season long effort.
One of the comments that Geno made is that he wasn’t sure he would even play Ice in the USC game, because she has a tendency to get down on herself if she makes a mistake and doesn’t perform well. Hence his decision to use the uber-confident Q as his first sub off the bench.
But all the effort by Geno, the coaching staff and her teammates to infuse confidence in Ice, a player with a beautiful shooting stroke, finally paid off when she was forced into action due to foul trouble with other players. Once Ice hit the first mid-range shot off of an assist from Paige, she was on her way….catch and shoot.
The 3 she nailed from the left corner was a thing of beauty. With Nika driving across the lane, Ice moved back into the corner and set her feet. Nika fired a chest-high pass that Ice caught and shot without hesitation.
Ice is going to be a heck of a player at UConn. The more experience she gets, the more confident she will get. It’s just a matter of time.