UConn women

[jibsey]

Their ball movement is ridiculously good. They have an idea on every possession, work the ball to the best advantage. Geno is a master, supposedly he and KO talk, i wonder what about?

 

[uconnfan68]

In order to de-throne Uconn It'll probably take a group of two or three top girls getting together and saying " let's go to
South Carolina or Syracuse or another school so we can beat Uconn".

They tried that at UNC a few years ago. I think they all transferred.

 

[uconnfan68]

Their ball movement is ridiculously good. They have an idea on every possession, work the ball to the best advantage. Geno is a master, supposedly he and KO talk, i wonder what about?

Golf.

 

[Dove]

Can't Geno get Diaco whacked?

You new here?

Of course he can.

 

[Scoe]

They tried that at UNC a few years ago. I think they all transferred.

They also dont have Geno, he just gets the best out of his players, his teams are just so well conditioned and athletic, its possible Geno has gotten better as a coach as he's gotten older coaching the olympic team and he's gotten some coaching notes from Popovich.

 

[TheChamps990411]

First time I've watched them this season and really impressed. For the first time in forever it seems like nobody was picking them this year and they are clearly still the best. Really good coaching job by Geno after losing an all-time great in Stewart and some other great players. Awesome ball movement and decision making by everyone. Gabby Williams does everything for them and I really like the little freshman guard, Dangerfield. To win that way on the road, never even really letting ND and their crowd get into it is impressive. They may never lose again.

I rarely watch the the chicks but ive watched them twice this year and i am absolutely impressed by Geno. That guy can flat out coach and he is clearly head and shoulders above anyone other coach in the womens game. I usually prefer my women in the kitchen and the bedroom but man these girls are really changing my chauvinistic way of thinking.

 

[Tenspro2002]

Geno had to have his kids ready to play right away this year, and he did. Incredible preparation of a young team facing an absolute gauntlet in November and December.

Next toughest tests are @Maryland and vs. South Carolina.

Speaking of tough, Gabby Williams was an absolute monster. Our bigs should watch tape of her.

 

[Danzz]

They are more fun to watch this year. Last year Geno would simply run a play for Stewart if they ran into a scoreless streak and they had the best PG in the country to do it. End of scoreless streak.
This years team will have to work much harder for wins against good teams and that makes for more competitive games. It was impressive how hard they played last night.

 

[BugsyCT]

They have been & still are ridiculously good. Wish there was a way to harness the level of dominance the women's hoops program has had and channel it towards our football & MBB teams. Especially football. Even a sprinkling.

 

[David 76]

Williams is a great athlete. Didn't Geno switch her to play forward from guard?
I am impressed at how Katy Lou has become a pretty gritty, multi-faceted player.
Great coach.

 

[8893]

I also watched them last night for the first time this season. I watched with my youngest daughter, who, like her older sisters, has heard me preaching the gospel according to Geno and Jim in various respects over the years as it pertains to sports, especially Geno's approach to practice. I had reminded her of Geno's practice tactics just last week when we accidentally showed up late for her soccer clinic (Mrs. 8893 had the time wrong, but that's a whole 'nother story...). She had missed her clinic but the coach offered for her to stay for the next clinic. She is ten years old and the next clinic was for 12-14 year olds. She knew I wanted her to stay so she did, and it turned out to be just her and seven 12-14 year-old boys. It was really tough for her. She worked her ass off, got beat a bunch, but held her own and by the end of the session when they played 20 minutes of 4 vs. 4 she was right there with them, especially her defense, and I could not have been more proud. I emphasized that the most important thing was that she never got beat psychologically, and I reminded her of how Geno runs his practices.

Fast forward to last night, and she was rapt in attention as she watched with me. She was so excited with the way they pulled ahead in the second half that she ran over to give me a hug, and when they interviewed Geno and he stressed how important their mental toughness was and how it reinforced what he does in practice, she gave me the biggest knowing smile...and she admitted that she had felt like crying at the beginning of that advanced clinic last weekend and was so happy that she gutted it out.

Geno's ability to push himself and his players is truly unequaled. I don't know how he keeps his drive after all he has accomplished. The most impressive part to me last night was when we grew the lead to 7 points down the stretch, and he told them in the huddle to remember the good old days when they would take a 7-point lead and push it to 17 instead of trying to just hold on, and then he laid into them for not making enough hard cuts. These are young kids and they grew tremendously last night, showing both him and themselves more than they knew they had.

I don't care whether it's women's basketball or tiddlywinks, this guy is just flat out one of the best coaches ever, at any level, of anything. We are very lucky to have him.

 

[sdhusky]

At lot of me would as well, I'm just really curious.

Coach the football team...

 

[Ricker]

goshdarn. She apparently put up 19 and 9 and at Duke and will have this year to get even better.

I hope one day Geno tries the men's game. The guy is truly a legendary coach. Casual fans assume he gets the top 5 players every year but there are a handful of teams that recruit on the same level. He is just that special sauce.

Keep in mind he coached his son's AAU team and in their age group he went I think to the national semi finals. Husky Nan or other source of Geno memory might have a better recollection of the details. This was without a star studded group. His son was a walk-on or end of the bench player for Martinelli at St Joe's and yet was Geno's star point guard, Aaron Hernandez was a key player, and there was a 3rd player that as I recall also had a football reputation, not basketball, yet the team won on a national level. His quips from the experience relate to the fact that guys don't listen or allow themselves to be coached like the women, so it was exasperating. In truth I think it did somewhat affirm staying on the women's side. So you don't have to wonder, he has successfully coached guys.

 

[elmcityboy]

UConn Women's Notes: Dailey Gets Samuelson To Emulate Rip Hamilton, And It Works

cool article -- apparently chris dailey wants katie lou to model her game on rip hamilton.

 

[elmcityboy]

i also watched the team for the first time last night. i have a hard time believing that any one will beat them in the regular season...

 

[FartMan69]

It's not like other women's program don't reel in their fair share of top 100 recruits, this is all Geno's coaching. Dude plays Chess while the others play Candy Land. Don't really enjoy watching women's ball but can't deny this dominance is pretty decent TV.

 

[Pudge]

This is a gutty performance.

On the women's side, I call this the AAC advantage. You play the big early season games like you're in the BET because you know you'll hardly be challenged in the conference. The players are locked in. You can see how intense they are. They outgutted ND.

This is a good blueprint for the men as long as we're in the AAC, if the men can ever get there. Play the early season like it's the only thing that matters, and then take care of business inside the conference. That is the path to a 2 seed.

You seem to forget that the Women's game is almost exclusively 4 year players. They don't leave to transfer that often; no early NBA. Therefore the early season isn't an equivalency. Men constantly need to bring together 2-4 new faces. And then the depth of the Men's game includes playing schools 230-360 that have guys that HAVE PLAYED together. You are right in principle ... but it's hard to carry out.

 

[upstater]

You seem to forget that the Women's game is almost exclusively 4 year players. They don't leave to transfer that often; no early NBA. Therefore the early season isn't an equivalency. Men constantly need to bring together 2-4 new faces. And then the depth of the Men's game includes playing schools 230-360 that have guys that HAVE PLAYED together. You are right in principle ... but it's hard to carry out.

I think you're right--but of course this women's team is very young outside Nurse.

 

[8893]

Speaking of tough, Gabby Williams was an absolute monster. Our bigs should watch tape of her.

Sinking those two foul shots and gutting it out down the stretch, literally choking back tears from the shot she took to the throat, was remarkable. Topped only by her incredulous response afterwards when asked how she managed to stay in the game after taking such a shot: "This is why I came to UConn...how could I come out of the game then?!?!"

 

[Dove]

Must avoid injuries to Collier and Williams. Last night Chong took an elbow to the cheek. Looked pretty bad.

 

[mauconnfan]

He's amazing simply the best ever in the womens game, no brainer, not close. Pat S didn't make her players better as Geno does, that's why these girls come here, they get it. Other teams get as good and better recruits and none advance as the UConn girls he and his staff teach and work with. I believe Azura Stevens pretty much said that in her reason to transfer to UConn, and after the Olympics the ex-LSU stud said something along the same line, the expectation is perfection or as close as you can get. Katie Lou was the smartest of the Samuelson sisters and we are already seeing the transformation from shooter to all around player, she's excellent. Gabby, well she plays like a guy, tremendous athlete that word so hard to become a good shooter and now is excellent from 12-15 feet which makes her a really tough guard for the defense. Collier's improvement is unreal, the confidence in which she displays is crazy.

Now as far as men's coaching I have no doubt he would be successful somewhere, just not sure how high but he could certainly impact the game. The NBA maybe talk is ridiculous no shot of that ever, they don't listen they don't like teachers and they would look down for sure to a "women's" coach. So many questions in recruiting, 2 year players, different game by far but he's a great coach and it would be really interesting if he took the shot.

They won't lose this year!

 

[dogpause]

More fun to watch this year because the outcome hasn't seemed assured. But after beating both Baylor and ND, I am just so impressed with this team. I also think Geno and his staff have really done a great job getting them to believe in themselves.

 

[pnow15]

Didn't there used to be a board around here dedicated to the woman's team?

 

[storrsroars]

Didn't there used to be a board around here dedicated to the woman's team?

There's a board for professional sports too. Let us know when you protest against those threads so we'll know you're not just complaining because you're sexist

You better hope BY's mods aren't involved in hiring Trump's border security, cause anything might get by.

 

[8893]

Didn't there used to be a board around here dedicated to the woman's team?

And also an ignore thread feature?

 

[HuskyHawk]

Yeah, I used to assume (wrongly), oh, he always gets the best players. Hey, sometimes he does. But sometime he doesn't, but the girls he recruits turn out to be the best. When that happens over and over, there's a pattern. With one constant.

He's got some special sauce. I don't know what it is, but he's got it. He makes the good great, and the great legendary.

I'd be very interested in seeing him try his hand at something else. but I don't have a problem with him putting up more banners in Storrs. We need all we can get.

Selfless basketball. That's the secret sauce I see. The players truly buy in to that. It's a little like what Belichick does...nobody plays if they play for themselves. The result is that when other team's top players start doing a solo thing in frustration, UConn goes on a run and puts the game away. Four girls have lead the team in scoring so far.

 

[alexd]

In order to de-throne Uconn It'll probably take a group of two or three top girls getting together and saying " let's go to
South Carolina or Syracuse or another school so we can beat Uconn".

Took a quick look online....other schools ARE getting their share:

2015 McD's Game:
Lville 3
UConn 3
TX 2
UNC 2
MD 2
Baylor 2

2016 McD's game:
MD 3
Stanford 3
ND 2
Lville 2
UCONN 1

 

[CL82]

Williams is a great athlete.

She's got some hops...

Yes, you are correct she came to UConn planning to be guard.

 

[ctchamps]

Muffet McGraw is probably the second best coach currently in women's bb and on paper Notre Dame has a better overall team. They are more experienced, deeper, equally athletic (although Williams is in another universe), with equally great outside shooting. During the previous transition period for UConn ND managed to beat UConn several times.

I'm not sure UConn can beat them again this season especially if Turner progresses over the season. She missed games because of injuries and it showed with her early missed shots. UConn has an answer for her but that answer can't play this season.

Also Chong (the only player graduating btw) played a great game but she's not at the level of Allen and neither is Dangerfield at this stage. So winning another NC is still a big question mark imo.

With that stated, it makes this game all that more remarkable. Second half ND made adjustments to stop Collier and Williams, and Geno countered by positioning the team to isolate Samuelson. As others have stated his in game adjustments are terrific.

His post game comments and reaction told it all. There have been very few times in his long career that Geno has felt better after a victory than what the team and the coaches accomplished in this game.

 

[8893]

She's got some hops...

Yes, you are correct she came to UConn planning to be guard.

Never realized until seeing that close-up of the game ball that each school must have their own personalized balls?