UConn vs. Syracuse post game - on to the sweet 16!

[FormerCTrez]

The past three years Coach Geno has displayed perhaps the best coaching of his entire career. Complete mastery of the coaching arts. Absolutely incredible that Connecticut could lose seven of their fourteen players, including the expected starting post player, a can't-miss All-American guard, the starting wing, and several other critically important players, yet play their way into the Sweet Sixteen!!

Utter brilliance by Coach Geno. He's getting better by the year!!! He is the Coach of the Year, even if he doesn't get the award!!!

Yes, yes, yes, yes!!

 

[RedStickHusky]

So we don't get a time for Saturday until tonight's games are done?

 

[Padutch5]

Gutsy win. When Nika fouled out I was like here we go again. Putting Paige in Fair was a great call. KK with the clutch 3. Ash with the sharp shooting. Paige being extra Paige!

It was UConn against Syracuse and the officials all night. Good guys won.

Ice not great tonight, but it was a big game. She will learn.

What’s that smell? Pew!!! It smells like Dukie! Time to clean it up!

No that smell was the refs.

As bad as the refs Are in the men’s game….and they are bad. The refs
In the women’s game are much much worse.

they heard there are opening for women’s refs next year so they were just trying to show they would fit right in in the Big East

 

[jeff30189]

Just a word or two about Syracuse. Coach Jack brought that program back from the abyss of mediocrity in 2 years, and those kids can play. The freshman Burrows went 5-7 I think from three, and they've got a bunch of underclassmen sticking around who buy into the culture. It was about what a 3-6 matchup should be. They beat ND twice this year, and UConn lost handily to them (Nika fouling out and 4th quarter collapse flashbacks).

Fair can flat out play. I lived in Rochester, NY where she's from. The section of town where she grew up is rough, and you learn to fight for everything you have in life. I hope she gets a shot to really succeed at the next level because that girl earned it to do what she did knowing where she started from.

 

[jaydee602]

Geno is correct when he complains about Paige not getting calls compared to the other stars.
Tonight, Iowa has 24 foul shots; West Virginia has FIVE!
Yesterday, LSU shot 37 free throws: Miss Valley shot NINE!
Meanwhile, UCONN only had eight foul shots tonight. Paige only had four FTs.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

If repeat, sorry. Geno locker room with the horde:

 

[PacoSwede]

Everything was fine and near the end we must have the guards handling the ball. The bigs turned it over to many times. It was a great great game

liya was getting knocked all around so some of her t.o. ya gotta expect. still, the (2?) travels were not good. it was a rough game compared to her typical performance, but uconn would've lost without her..

ice, OTOH, had me tearing my hair out. terrible mishandling of the ball. unforced for the most part. she's got to settle down. she's recently shown she's cam rein in that flaw. nerves? like kk, it's at times like she has 'freshman-itis'. kk, of course, has been a major contributor (but when she learns all the ropes, she will be outstanding).

 

[cometjo]

Let's review:

Led the team in points, rebounds , and assists.

 

[Forego]

Just an advance warning: Joe Vaszily was one of the referees the NCAA selected last year to officiate at the final four. Most of the referees selected for the final four are repeat offenders.

 

[RoadMaster]

 

[RoadMaster]

 

[Zonepress]

Survive and advance. KK with that CLUTCH, BIG TIME 3 had me like:

UConn did not always play pretty offensively, but they made their shots when it counted. And our defense was as good as you could possibly be against a team like Syracuse (who beat many teams with their insane rebounding and fantastic perimeter shooting). We made them work for practically every shot.

The officiating was, in my opinion, great in the first half. I didn't mind the refs swallowing their whistles on both ends and just letting the players play. Of course that couldn't last though and in the second half, particularly Q4, the refs decided to take over the game. Some bad calls on both sides and the constant stops and starts threw both teams off their rhythm. But how wonderful it was to see the team hold fast even after Nika fouled out. They were not about to be beat.

Also, it was incredible when Paige grabbed the loose ball and immediately called a TO. That's peak basketball IQ right there!!

I followed Syracuse all season long and I knew that no matter what the score was, no matter how big the lead seemed, they were going to come charging back in Q4 and make it a game. Tonight was no exception. Of course I am happy that UConn won, but it's with all the sincerity in the world that I tip my hat to Coach HLJ, Fair, and the rest of the team. Absolutely no quit, dominated the rebound game, scored the big 3s when they needed them ... they play a tough, physical (but not dirty) game. This was a game I was insanely nervous about as a Husky fan because I knew how good Syracuse can be when it's clutch time.

Although Syracuse lost, Fair cemented her place in history amongst one of the highest scorers ever in WBB. And she did it was almost no flair, no showboating or complaining, and without almost any media attention. Just showed up every game and balled out. Nothing but respect.

All the respect to Coach HLJ as well. I hope I get the chance to meet her next season. Her squad was fired up and ready to go. Nearly gave me a stress induced aneurysm down the stretch for the last 4 minutes. Damn.

SWEET SIXTEEN HERE WE COME!!!

Well said!!!

 

[DefenseBB]

In a way, 30 straight trips to the Sweet Sixteen in the 64-team era is even a more ridiculous stat than 14 straight Final Fours. That's 7-1/2 four-year cycles of players without a letdown. And tonight showed how tough it can be to avoid that letdown.

What? No, it isn’t and it’s not even a close comparison. 30 Straight Sweet 16s is remarkable but 14 straight final fours to survive the gauntlet of the top 8 and 16 teams is infinitely harder than beating the top 32 and 64/68 teams. Go and ask any coach who is proud just to make 1, 2, 3 or 4 final fours in a CAREER never mind 14 in a row. Sheesh….SMH

 

[OldSchooler]

As bad as the refs Are in the men’s game….and they are bad. The refs
In the women’s game are much much worse.

What the heck was that travel call on Aaliyah? For a prone player to travel, she has to roll over. Aaliyah never moved.

 

[CTrefugee]

You can't argue with a strategy that won, but I was sure Q would get some minutes. She is a good rebounder and has good hands. I think there might be more to the story than we know.

 

[WLT1717]

Paige Ash Aaliyah and KK were totally clutch in a rock fight of a game. I like Coach Jack and she has changed the culture of Syracuse. But there was a good deal of cheesy play and that is taught behavior. But Paige & Co rose above it.

I would love to see Cuse square off against WV.

 

[WLT1717]

Ashlynn is such a tough cookie. That young lady is built for these types of games. We were so lucky to recruit her and get her.

Indiana HS ball prepares them well for pressure situations.

 

[WLT1717]

I may get sworn at, but it looked to me that a lot of time Ice didn't seem comfortable with the ball in her hands. But she was working her behind off!

Ice was extremely tentative. We need Ice to play with the confidence she displayed during AE’s absence.

 

[Wbbfan1]

Read the first three pages and didn't see any mention of Nika not scoring. Why when we need Nika to score she doesn't take open shots. I was on an airplane and didn't watch the game I will Tuesday Night. I"m sure I will see Nika not looking for her shot as Box Score showed didn't score any points. She's a Senior she should be able to get 8-10 points a game.

 

[DEpup]

Read the first three pages and didn't see any mention of Nika not scoring. Why when we need Nika to score she doesn't take open shots. I was on an airplane and didn't watch the game I will Tuesday Night. I"m sure I will see Nika not looking for her shot as Box Score showed didn't score any points. She's a Senior she should be able to get 8-10 points a game.

Preach. The game was close because Nika and Ice couldn't keep their defender honest by scoring. Allowed them to double Paige.... you are so right. 8-10 is not too much to ask for from a senior.

MoJeff comes to mind since we are praising Nika's assists. MoJeff did that, took on the opponents top scoring guard, and put up double digit points most of the time....

 

[Blueballer]

Preach. The game was close because Nika and Ice couldn't keep their defender honest by scoring. Allowed them to double Paige.... you are so right. 8-10 is not too much to ask for from a senior.

MoJeff comes to mind since we are praising Nika's assists. MoJeff did that, took on the opponents top scoring guard, and put up double digit points most of the time....

The game was close because Cuse is a quality team that shot well. They beat Notre Dame TWICE this year and tonight hit 13 threes which is far above their average. Burrows alone was 6-12 tonight when she shot 23% for the season from deep.

 

[JellyBean]

woooo the chat room tonight was ... extra

LOL. I tapped out of the chat room at halftime.

 

[MSGRET]

Nika had most of the defense assignment on Fair in the first half, Fair only scored 2 points in the first half. Maybe she was exhausted from that assignment, but I believe that at least two of the fouls that were called against Nika should have been called charges on Fair.

Many people have also stated the both Nika and Aaliyah had subpar games. Maybe they were a little anxious/nervous with it being their last game ever at Gampel.

 

[JellyBean]

What a game!! Paige and Aaliyah always get their accolades and rightly so. They deserve the shoutouts and admiration of the fans, media, and coaching staff. Tonight, well yesterday, it is all about Ashlynn and KK. Big time moment and these two young ladies stepped up and played great out there. From heady defensive plays to knocking down shot after shot. Well done. Plus, like someone stated, for Ash and KK, especially KK with that 3 ball to put us ahead, to have the confidence to take those shots in key moments or just to shoot, speaks volumes about them and their focus and confidence. They played very well out there. I am proud of this squad and coaching staff. Great win!!