UConn Women: Geno Auriemma Gathers Team, And The 2018-19 Project Has Begun

[Orangutan]

Yes, UConn didn’t lose players for the entire season, as Notre Dame did. I don’t know what other teams were dealing with, but UConn had 3 or 4 players who played through real injuries for much of the season. Sure, it’s normal for players to be fatigued or dinged up at the end of the year, but I’d put the UConn injuries in a category beyond “dinged up.” Crystal couldn’t practice and played through pain. Gabby grimaced on and off through the season. Lou limped occasionally, including in the second half of the championship game. I disagree with the statement that injuries didn’t cost them the game. Geno doesn’t make excuses, and he thought the kids could overdone the injuries, but it was too much.

It's not as if the 6 that won the title for ND were perfectly healthy. Kat Westbeld (both ankles), Jackie Young (nose), and Marina Mabrey (shooting hand) were all various degrees of injured.

Katie Lou played 39 minutes against South Carolina. UConn led by 21 after 2 and by 29 after 3. Stevens (soon to be a WNBA-lottery pick) played 14 minutes. Megan Walker played 12. I can only conclude that Katie Lou was considered to be good to go. Either that or Geno is guilty of coaching malpractice.

Same goes for Gabby (32 minutes) and Dangerfield (30).

 

[MilfordHusky]

It's not as if the 6 that won the title for ND were perfectly healthy. Kat Westbeld (both ankles), Jackie Young (nose), and Marina Mabrey (shooting hand) were all various degrees of injured.

Katie Lou played 39 minutes against South Carolina. UConn led by 21 after 2 and by 29 after 3. Stevens (soon to be a WNBA-lottery pick) played 14 minutes. Megan Walker played 12. I can only conclude that Katie Lou was considered to be good to go. Either that or Geno is guilty of coaching malpractice.

Same goes for Gabby (32 minutes) and Dangerfield (30).

Ok, I wasn’t familiar with the ND (or other) injuries, as I said. As you know, Lou needed surgery.

 

[Florida Fan]

Yeah any time you have 3 players playing with injuries they are soft

I have to agree that this year's walking wounded is a good example of UCONN's toughness, playing hurt, playing out of position, not able to go 100 % at critical times, all examples of grit under pressure. Certainly, Lou's ankle surgery explains why she had troubles in the final four and who knows who of the other players were fighting nagging physical issues.
ND had a bunch of season-postponing and season-ending injuries, but the remaining high-school All American starters seemed to be operating on all cylinders. (Last time) Our 6' 6" non- injured center got more rest than she needed.

 

[Florida Fan]

Gabby and KLS!

And Crystal. Other than those three starters, we were in the pink.

 

[Husky40]

Although the injuries themselves weren't season-ending, they limited practice time, especially for Crystal and Lou during the second half of the season and during the tournament. This is what I think was so concerning -- they were unable to practice with the team. FYI, I was at the open practice in late February and Crystal shot while the others scrimmaged and did drills; Lou also was limited. I can see where this would affect the rhythm and timing ...

 

[Buzzyboy]

Lou, Gabby, Crystal, and maybe Pheesa.

Thank you. The presumption that all was well with UConn's team is false. Just the fact that KLS was operated on right after the season should say something. Does anyone have any experience with how painful shin splints are? In order to rest them, you find yourself being a little out of rhythm and shape so it's difficult and it probably gets in your head a bit, as well and keeps you from pushing yourself the way you'd like to.

 

[Buzzyboy]

Although the injuries themselves weren't season-ending, they limited practice time, especially for Crystal and Lou during the second half of the season and during the tournament. This is what I think was so concerning -- they were unable to practice with the team. FYI, I was at the open practice in late February and Crystal shot while the others scrimmaged and did drills; Lou also was limited. I can see where this would affect the rhythm and timing ...

Actually I just added something related to how Crystal's shin splints affected her rhythm and game readiness. I guess great minds think alike.

 

[Buzzyboy]

No one doubts the pain, but that doesn't mean other teams aren't dealing with the same or worse. When you're an athlete you get dinged up during the course of a season. The players were about as healthy as athletes that endure the high demands of a long season were going to be. UConn has been very lucky on the injury front the last several years relative to our competitors. I stand by my assertion that UConn's season didn't end because of injuries since it was beaten by a team so bitten by the injury bug that they had to have walk-ons fill in for all the ACL victims.

It's very obvious that you stand by your assertion because you've replied numerous times to say that all things are equal and that there is no distinction from team to team. I think that remark is ludicrous and I'm not saying that there was no team that wasn't affected worse but the teams that were affected worse weren't playing in the national championship semi-finals. Notre Dame lost players early this season to season ending injuries but they had a big talented roster and they were able to get talented replacements in their rotation early to develop team chemistry and there's nothing to suggest that the team was affected by any substantive nagging injuries, particularly late in the year. That wasn't the case with the Huskies and since their rotation wasn't nearly as deep, players weren't able to get rest but had to try and play through injuries that affected their performance. How effective was Lou? 85%, 75%, 92%, 60% at the end of the season? There's no telling but can you speak for Notre Dame's starters playing at much less than 100% in that semi-final. I don't think there was a hint that they were handicapped in any way in the Final Four. The game went into overtime and UConn had actually an 8 point lead midway through the fourth quarter when the impact of injuries would probably be felt the most. Beyond that, having a few key players in foul trouble didn't help things either. I'm inclined to think when you're playing injured and trying to defend, you might be more likely to commit tick tack fouls when you're trying to start or stop or cut quickly on bad legs. or ankles.

 

[HuskylnSC]

Did you watch the semi-final game? On that night Notre Dame was the best team on the floor. Excellent team defense, excellent job of finding the shooters on offense, a lights out performance by Jackie Young, and an ice-water performance by Arike Ogunbowale. The notion that UCONN "gave away" the game is beyond insulting to both teams.

Please explain to me how a team plays "Excellent team defense" when they give up more 3 point field goals and more 2 point field goals than they score. I still feel we have to look elsewhere to find the defense played against UConn.

 

[Crossover]

Please explain to me how a team plays "Excellent team defense" when they give up more 3 point field goals and more 2 point field goals than they score. I still feel we have to look elsewhere to find the defense played against UConn.

Lots of possibilities. For example, if a team is not very good on offense, it could play excellent defense against another team and still not outscore it from the field (or overall, for that matter). Alternatively, a team might be quite good on offense, play excellent defense, and still score fewer buckets from the field than a team that is even better on offense, or even better on defense.

 

[mbr33ct]

No one doubts the pain, but that doesn't mean other teams aren't dealing with the same or worse. When you're an athlete you get dinged up during the course of a season. The players were about as healthy as athletes that endure the high demands of a long season were going to be. UConn has been very lucky on the injury front the last several years relative to our competitors. I stand by my assertion that UConn's season didn't end because of injuries since it was beaten by a team so bitten by the injury bug that they had to have walk-ons fill in for all the ACL victims.

If I didn't know better about this past season, I would think ND had "walk-ons" in the game that beat UConn.

 

[Reypl21]

It's very obvious that you stand by your assertion because you've replied numerous times to say that all things are equal and that there is no distinction from team to team. I think that remark is ludicrous and I'm not saying that there was no team that wasn't affected worse but the teams that were affected worse weren't playing in the national championship semi-finals. Notre Dame lost players early this season to season ending injuries but they had a big talented roster and they were able to get talented replacements in their rotation early to develop team chemistry and there's nothing to suggest that the team was affected by any substantive nagging injuries, particularly late in the year. That wasn't the case with the Huskies and since their rotation wasn't nearly as deep, players weren't able to get rest but had to try and play through injuries that affected their performance. How effective was Lou? 85%, 75%, 92%, 60% at the end of the season? There's no telling but can you speak for Notre Dame's starters playing at much less than 100% in that semi-final. I don't think there was a hint that they were handicapped in any way in the Final Four. The game went into overtime and UConn had actually an 8 point lead midway through the fourth quarter when the impact of injuries would probably be felt the most. Beyond that, having a few key players in foul trouble didn't help things either. I'm inclined to think when you're playing injured and trying to defend, you might be more likely to commit tick tack fouls when you're trying to start or stop or cut quickly on bad legs. or ankles.

What is the point of your post? Really. To me, it sounds like you're trying to make excuses for UConn for why they lost. Directly comparing their injuries to the champions injuries. Why? Those issues were hardly worried about or covered by the majority of posters here before the game. If UConn won it all, (it could have happened cuz the games were so close) would these problems come up? I know that KLS had surgery, so that's why this came up. But it wasn't bad enough to the point where she couldn't play. ND played with injured players too, Mabrey, Westbeld, and kind of Young because of her broken nose. If ND lost the game, if they brought up the current injuries it would be them making excuses. Just let the horse die. They won. Injuries are a part of the game unfortunately.