UConn vs St John’s postgame | Page 2 | The Boneyard

UConn vs St John’s postgame

Congrats to UConn for an undefeated regular season. As others have noted, a very nice game by Serah, Kaleigh and Allie, among others.

One observation about St. John's. They lost by 30+ and at times got rattled by UConn's defense. But they played tough. They schemed to get three point shooters open on numerous occasions and, frequently, when they broke the press, they had a numerical advantage on the other end. They didn't always convert, but you could see the makings of an improving team.
 
MSG...nice venue Geno found for the Serah Williams homecoming game.

Caroline Ducharme quite the special player during her freshmen Caro-linsanity streak.
Tonight like the old days she made the difficult look easy, as she scooped up an awkward pass and smoothly converted the transition layup!

That play represents her last 2 regular season points for UConn.🥰
 
I was at the game though a bit down with long C
A few points:
-Serah’s strong game did not exactly start at the beginning…She was pulled early after some less than stalwart D but when she came back…if not exactly a terror, a very aggressive, competent post…Either some one gave her notes on the bench or she realized herself what sort of effort was required.

-It wasn’t only that they didn’t get any offensive rebounds; no one even tried…They shot a better than decent 57% but that still left 27 opportunities when their shot didn’t fall…I really had a fleeting thought that they were instructed to not go for the ball after missed shots.
A pretty pathetic effort in that regard.

-In person, better than on the TV, it is so apparent that stifling, D is the hallmark of this team, both half court and pressing..The Johnie’s were really discouraged at times in their inability to get their offense going; it was
continuously disrupted and especially in the first half, coach Tarantella was apoplectic at his team’s inability to settle into a flow. But that’s what UConn does to you.

In the most valuable player competition…I’m afraid to say that Ms Blakes probably has it won…she and her magical, diminutive freshman guard prevail without the supporting cast Sarah enjoy, carrying the load night after night…We’ll be seeing these two go at each other for the next decade…a rerun of Bird and Magic
 
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msf22b said:
I was at the game though a bid down with long C
A few points:
-Serah’s strong game did not exactly start at the beginning…She was pulled early after some less than stalwart D but when she came back…if not exactly a terror, a very aggressive, competent post…Either some one gave her notes on the bench or she realized herself what sort of effort was required.

-It wasn’t only that they didn’t get any offensive rebounds; no one even tried…They shot a better than decent 57% but that still left 27 opportunities when their shot didn’t fall…I really had a fleeting thought that they were instructed to not go for the ball after missed shots.
A pretty pathetic effort in that regard.

-In person, better than on the TV, it is so apparent that stifling, D is the hallmark of this team, both half court and pressing..The Johnie’s were really discouraged at times in their inability to get their offense going; it was
continuously disrupted and especially in the first half, coach Tarantella was apoplectic at his team’s inability to settle into a flow. But that’s what UConn does to you.

In the most valuable player competition…I’m afraid to say that Ms Blakes probably has it won…she and her magical, diminutive freshman guard prevail without the supporting cast Sarah enjoy, carrying the load night after night…We’ll be seeing these two go at each other for the next decade…a rerun of Bird and Magic
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I disagree.. article last week said Blake's had closed the gap but Sara was so far ahead it would be difficult for anyone to beat her out
 
I disagree with the recurring notion that no one even tried to get o-boards. We outrebounded them by 10, and got 9 o-boards to their 6. Ash was hunting them all game long. We took a lot of perimeter shots which made it difficult to predict where the rebound would go. But you can see Ash on almost every missed shot slashing into the lane trying to get a board.

It’s also worth noting that we took 63 shots and made 36 of them. SJU only took 48 shots — reflect on that for a moment — and only made 17 of them. That stat screams off the page much more than the number of o-boards.
 
RockyMTblue2 said:
Well this is disorienting Nan. I'll endeavor to persevere. I thought we played too fast throughout the first quarter and it reduced our efficiency. To me the whole game had a sort of helter skelter quality. Kept thinking Geno would try to settle them down, but no. The high spots Serah and Allie, emphasis Allie. We need to get that girl a nick name, maybe Pistol Pete (just kidding).
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Allie’s three point shooting is so impressive but the other thing about her is her adeptness around the basket. She hardly ever misses a layup. When she drives or gets a pass going to the basket it’s money! Kudos to Serah too! If she can build on this for the postseason, we’re in good shape.
 
msf22b said:
I was at the game though a bit down with long C
A few points:
-Serah’s strong game did not exactly start at the beginning…She was pulled early after some less than stalwart D but when she came back…if not exactly a terror, a very aggressive, competent post…Either some one gave her notes on the bench or she realized herself what sort of effort was required.

-It wasn’t only that they didn’t get any offensive rebounds; no one even tried…They shot a better than decent 57% but that still left 27 opportunities when their shot didn’t fall…I really had a fleeting thought that they were instructed to not go for the ball after missed shots.
A pretty pathetic effort in that regard.

-In person, better than on the TV, it is so apparent that stifling, D is the hallmark of this team, both half court and pressing..The Johnie’s were really discouraged at times in their inability to get their offense going; it was
continuously disrupted and especially in the first half, coach Tarantella was apoplectic at his team’s inability to settle into a flow. But that’s what UConn does to you.

In the most valuable player competition…I’m afraid to say that Ms Blakes probably has it won…she and her magical, diminutive freshman guard prevail without the supporting cast Sarah enjoy, carrying the load night after night…We’ll be seeing these two go at each other for the next decade…a rerun of Bird and Magic
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For those of you who were at the game (I'm jealous), you missed a great halftime interview with Geno. His biggest complaint about the first half was that his team was tied with a dead man for most offensive rebounds -- zero! (That rivals Casey Stengel's "Most people my age are dead.")
 
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SCNCHuskie said:
Scrimmages are over, tournament time.

Serah Williams looking like she’s starting to get ready for tougher opponents, and looked good tonight. I am always impressed how hard Kayleigh Heckel drives the lane. Her pass from her knees was classic.


Side Note: I was driving this week and saw a billboard for a restaurant. It made me realize Azzi missed a sponsorship deal by going to the wrong school. Had she gone to that New Jersey school she would’ve been - FuddRutgers!
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Send this suggestion to her agent. Great idea.
 
It was great being there. Before the game they announced that it was the first stand alone game ever at the Garden so perhaps that earlier Villanova- St. John's game in 2023 was a doubleheader. Either way it was very special. Almost 10,000 there. Insane. Heckel played great as did Allie and Serah. Azzi missed her first three 3 point shots otherwise the opening score would have been 20-2. Blanca and Sarah are still not 100% and I trust this 6 day rest will do wonders. Great night at the Mecca.
 
RockyMTblue2 said:
Well this is disorienting Nan. I'll endeavor to persevere. I thought we played too fast throughout the first quarter and it reduced our efficiency. To me the whole game had a sort of helter skelter quality. Kept thinking Geno would try to settle them down, but no. The high spots Serah and Allie, emphasis Allie. We need to get that girl a nick name, maybe Pistol Pete (just kidding).
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Rocky, I'm going to assume that this was sarcasm, which generally doesn't play well here on the BY. If this was a serious post, please explain.
 
All season long I have been waiting for Serah to exhibit some semblance of the player she was at Wisconsin, and quite frankly I have not seen it... until last night. Continue on!
 
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Cuango said:
Allie’s three point shooting is so impressive but the other thing about her is her adeptness around the basket. She hardly ever misses a layup. When she drives or gets a pass going to the basket it’s money! Kudos to Serah too! If she can build on this for the postseason, we’re in good shape.
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She's got great hands.
 
Got exactly what I wanted going into the game.
Clean game/low TO’s - 12 (not bad but would like <10)
Blanca, Allie, and Kayleigh 25-30 points total (got 27)
Serah a good start - best all-around game of the season?
 
I am happy that this team got to play at MSG and it was an honor for them to participate in the first “standalone” women’s game there. That will be a lasting memory for them.

The game played out about as expected. Kudos to the “complementary” players, especially New Yorkers Serah and K9 who really showed up. That is the Serah we want to see from here on out.

Didn’t feel like a 57% shooting night, maybe because Azzi was cold from three early, but the numbers don’t lie. Boosted by 27 for 40 inside the three point line. Outshot Saint John’s 63-48 and eight players each had 5 shots or more.

Serah, KK, K9, Jana and Allie were a combined 18-23, wow. Shade cooled off but was a big factor early.

Nice bounce back game for Serah, KK and Allie while K9 continued her fine play and good shooting, 11 for 14 over the last three games.
 
Most of all I'm really happy with Serah's performance. UConn will need games like that from her in the Dance. Also glad she and Kayleigh shone bright at MSG. It hadn't occurred to me until the announcers mentioned it that this is Serah's first opportunity to play meaningful postseason games. So however disappointed the fans are in her performance during the regular season, the time coming up may be the primary reason she's at UConn.

This is the second game in a row in which Shade shot a lot, and poorly, in the fourth quarter. I'm wondering if she has instructions that maybe she's not entirely comfortable with. She shot plenty and well in the first.

The first four off the bench look ready for the postseason. I'm glad Caroline scored a basket.
 
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It seems that the subs continue to contribute a lot of scoring due to them being less fatigued, and that could also include Serah who often plays very limited minutes.
This year's additional burden on defense may also make it more desirable for Geno to employ more subs during the NCAAT than in the past.
Our fresher legs and bench depth seems to help stimulate our offense against the opponents that become more tired.
Both teams can lose their edge when subbing is limited.
Perhaps this year is the year that Geno will keep his bench expanded in March rather to limit it as much as he's done in the past.
The bench may not play as much but I suspect that they'll still get some PT in the big games. Maybe it will depend on how productive the starters are and whether the offense begins to slack off against the higher scoring opponents.
Our bench seems to be so much more competent than in recent years that there's not a great need for all of our starters to keep playing while they grow more & more fatigued.
In the end, the circunstances of each game may dictate & influence the sub patterns.
 
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RockyMTblue2 said:
The last game of the regular season. I hope she just looks on the bright side of that.
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If you recall, just a year ago we all had our doubts about Jana, which persisted into the conference tournament as well as the Big Dance. Then came the national semifinal game against Lauren Betts and UCLA when Jana finally got to match up
with someone her own size. Her ability to make Betts work for everything she got, particularly in the 1st half, was critical to UConn’s beat down of UCLA.

I have the same feeling about Sera as well as Jana this year. UConn will almost assuredly run into either TX, UCLA or SC and their BIGS. Having a couple BIGS of our own gives Geno the option of matching up or going small.
 
Gusaford said:
Congrats to UConn for an undefeated regular season. As others have noted, a very nice game by Serah, Kaleigh and Allie, among others.

One observation about St. John's. They lost by 30+ and at times got rattled by UConn's defense. But they played tough. They schemed to get three point shooters open on numerous occasions and, frequently, when they broke the press, they had a numerical advantage on the other end. They didn't always convert, but you could see the makings of an improving team.
Expand ...
St. Johns used a basic "break the press" strategy that I have been surprised more teams don't use. I.e. keep the ball as much as possible in the middle of the court so sidelines don't act as another defender. Overall, St. John's was one of the best this year but unfortunately its guards, while quick, were not great ball handlers.
 
sun said:
Perhaps this year is the year that Geno will keep his bench expanded in March rather to limit it as much as he's done in the past.
The bench may not play as much but I suspect that they'll still get some PT in the big games. Maybe it will depend on how productive the starters are and whether the offense begins to slack off against the higher scoring opponents.
Our bench seems to be so much more competent than in recent years that there's not a great need for all of our starters to keep playing while they grow more & more fatigued.
In the end, the circunstances of each game may dictate & influence the sub patterns.
Expand ...

oldude said:
If you recall, just a year ago we all had our doubts about Jana, which persisted into the conference tournament as well as the Big Dance. Then came the national semifinal game against Lauren Betts and UCLA when Jana finally got to match up
with someone her own size. Her ability to make Betts work for everything she got, particularly in the 1st half, was critical to UConn’s beat down of UCLA.

I have the same feeling about Sera as well as Jana this year. UConn will almost assuredly run into either TX, UCLA or SC and their BIGS. Having a couple BIGS of our own gives Geno the option of matching up or going small.
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I think the rotation will continue to be nine players. Blanca, Kayleigh, and Allie are givens, and as has been pointed out, Serah tends to play only around 20 minutes, so Jana ought to be getting ten or more, especially against the bigger teams. Strong can't put the necessary energy into keeping bigs off the block and have legs left to be effective on the offensive end. Jana may not play much against some smaller, quicker teams, but Geno might put her in those games to keep her sharp for the bigger games.
 
HopJim said:
St. Johns used a basic "break the press" strategy that I have been surprised more teams don't use. I.e. keep the ball as much as possible in the middle of the court so sidelines don't act as another defender. Overall, St. John's was one of the best this year but unfortunately its guards, while quick, were not great ball handlers.
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One thing UConn did in the first half is cover all the guards and wings on the press, while leaving St Johns center uncovered by dropping either Sera or Jana all the way back on defense. St Johns took the bait a couple times by making the inbound pass to their wide open center, who started dribbling up the court.

At that point UConn’s quicker defenders descended on her like “piranhas on a roast” stealing the ball 2 or 3 times. St Johns eventually responded by taking their center out of the press break and just had her run down court with Sera or Jana.
 
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