UConn women

[CL82]

The women's team is showing they have no clue how to play in a close game. I guess when you always win by 40 you forget how to execute in a close game. The last minute UConn just let the Stanford guards go in for uncontested layups and then they give up the wide open three for the tie. Hope they find a way to pull it out in OT but this is dreadful to watch.

Losing two All-Americans is tough to recover from by the second game of the season, playing away, on the West coast, against the #6 ranked team, with a Hall of Fame coach. Two of the players to step up were a little used (at least by the end of the season) sophomore and a freshman playing in her second collegiate game. They got valuable experience.

I agree with you John that, at least at game two, this team isn't the typical UConn defensive juggernaut. It could easily be a three or more loss team but the time the NCAA's roll around with another tough away game at #3 Notre Dame coming up and another tough game against #2 South Carolina.

 

[chapwilvaug72]

seems like j man had off nite too & speaks of cleaning up on court but vocab needs cleaning up when he speaks in foreign tongue the term "lick"

 

[ASweet3781]

Losing two All-Americans is tough to recover from by the second game of the season, playing away, on the West coast, against the #6 ranked team, with a Hall of Fame coach. Two of the players to step up were a little used (at least by the end of the season) sophomore and a freshman playing in her second collegiate game. They got valuable experience.

I agree with you John that, at least at game two, this team isn't the typical UConn defensive juggernaut. It could easily be a three or more loss team but the time the NCAA's roll around with another tough away game at #3 Notre Dame coming up and another tough game against #2 South Carolina.

Stanford lost their best player who was virtually their entire team last year in Ogwumike.

The difference is many of Stanford's players put in work and improved. Some on UConn, namely the 2 seniors, did not.

UConn has 2 All Americans. That should have been enough to win that game tonight. They could have learned some lessons without losing. Every time a team really punches back and it comes down to the wire (happens maybe once every 2 years) they usually look frazzled and confused both coaches and players. They needed one defense stop that last minute and never came close to getting in topped off with matador defense on Stanford's best guard up 3 in final seconds.

 

[UCweCONN]

While I watch the women and root hard for them, I will never understand the posters on the women's board: Congratulating Stanford after a heart breaking, streak ending defeat??? Let's all join hands and sing 'Kumbaya' with the Stanford fans while we're at it. Would you see that here?? That would be a hanging worthy offense.

 

[UCweCONN]

They will get better, but have to find a way to hide KML on defense. She's a huge liability.

Pun intended?

 

[superjohn]

Interesting. I'm disappointed I missed that game, especially if Diggins played.

Haha, kicked. Diggins is bad as hell.

 

[DogMania]

Settling for just a 2 down 3 w/ less than 5 seconds on the clock when going for that layup was flat out horrible. That guard should have kicked it back out to a 3 pt shooter. Just dreadful.

On a side note, I can't stand when one of the bench players high-5s the rest of the bench players when UConn scores. I don't know why but it just irritates me to no end.

I only catch (recorded) the 2nd half and OT and only skimmed it, but based on the little I saw, I think they have a lot of talent, but need to work a bunch of new and inexperienced players into the rotation. Their defense at the end of that game looked very un-Husky like. Geno will get them playing they way he wants by March. One this is for sure, teams that can handle the ball should spread it out against UConn and will be able to carve them up till they figure things out. Weak-side rotation was just horrible late in that game.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

UConn managed the clock so poorly it looked like Pasqualoni was coaching the team.

 

[aceboon]

What is the name of this assistant?

 

[Gurleyman]

Losing two All-Americans is tough to recover from by the second game of the season, playing away, on the West coast, against the #6 ranked team, with a Hall of Fame coach. Two of the players to step up were a little used (at least by the end of the season) sophomore and a freshman playing in her second collegiate game. They got valuable experience. I agree with you John that, at least at game two, this team isn't the typical UConn defensive juggernaut. It could easily be a three or more loss team but the time the NCAA's roll around with another tough away game at #3 Notre Dame coming up and another tough game against #2 South Carolina.

They look like they don't have anyone who can play defense at the 2 or 3. Maybe the kid Nurse will develop as a defensive stopper - didn't see enough of her today. But KML is just painfully slow laterally and Chong has no clue how to play defense. Between the two of them, it was a red carpet to the rim.

There's supposedly a "not ready" freshman who is a great athlete - Geno may just decide he needs to make her ready and throw her out there to guard people.

 

[uconnfan68]

It's just so nonsensical, anytime I watch a women's game I'm blown away at the lack of fundamentals. The only games I watch are when the UConn women play another top 10 team, I can't imagine what the fundamentals are like for the non-elite teams.

Even I would have to say that this game wasn't the smoothest exhibition of basketball, but for you to ignore literally years of great basketball over 1 game is a little overboard too. That's what happens in the 2nd game of the year with 2 AAs gone.

 

[ASweet3781]

The only new player that was worked in is Kia Nurse who has fit in. Every other player has been here and played.

When an All American allows herself to be taken out of the game both offensively and defensively for basically 35 minutes your going to struggle. Even than they it took a ton of brain farts to still blow it. Which they were happy to oblige.

 

[Jluc]

I'd be shocked if they don't lose most of their tough OOC games. Worst looking UConn team I can remember.

How do you not get a shot off to end the game. At least fling it towards the rim.

What? I would bet they don't lose another game this year..

 

[uconnfan68]

Stanford lost their best player who was virtually their entire team last year in Ogwumike.

The difference is many of Stanford's players put in work and improved. Some on UConn, namely the 2 seniors, did not.

UConn has 2 All Americans. That should have been enough to win that game tonight. They could have learned some lessons without losing. Every time a team really punches back and it comes down to the wire (happens maybe once every 2 years) they usually look frazzled and confused both coaches and players. They needed one defense stop that last minute and never came close to getting in topped off with matador defense on Stanford's best guard up 3 in final seconds.

they were being called for area code fouls... and you wanted them to get closer?

 

[superjohn]

KML is an incredible shooter but she comes back bigger every season and it absolutely kills her on the defensive end. She needs a nutritionist badly, if she has blown up that much playing basketball 3 hours a day 365 days a year then there is a problem.

 

[amory]

While I watch the women and root hard for them, I will never understand the posters on the women's board: Congratulating Stanford after a heart breaking, streak ending defeat??? Let's all join hands and sing 'Kumbaya' with the Stanford fans while we're at it. Would you see that here?? That would be a hanging worthy offense.

I'll always "root" for the women, but the idea of being an avid fan of UConn women's basketball seems kind of ridiculous to me. It'd be like being an avid fan of the Harlem Globetrotters.

Part of what makes it great to be a fan of a team is the down times so that when you're up it feels incredible. With the UConn women they win 40 or 50 or 90 times before they lose once, and their wins are by at least 30 points.

 

[TRest]

Pun intended?

Yeah, her weight is the third rail of the women's board. She was in much better shape last year before getting injured, she came back and was clearly out of shape. I can't believe she's in shape now, based on how she wasn't even giving effort on defense.

 

[stick]

Geno would be ripped as a men's coach for some of his late game "coaching". The refs gave UConn a free timeout to check the clock, and yet when the clock was set, nobody knew who was supposed to take the ball out of bounds - and you end up passing the ball to your center 80 feet from the basket, who passes it back to the inbounder. It would have taken a miracle (2.6 isn't enough time in the women's game usually), but that wasn't the way to get it.

UConn shot 18 foot jumpers with 20 seconds on the shot clock on both possessions between 1:00-2:00 left - one from Stewart up by five (I expect much better judgment from a POY) and one from Stokes up by three (who under no circumstances should be shooting jumpers in the last two minutes). Idiotic. And they had no clue how to defend the three on the last possession. Jefferson didn't guard anyone - she just left her man to bring help where it wasn't needed and stopped half way and gave up a wide open look. This is mostly a veteran team, so I would expect them to look like they've been coached in late game situations. Stanford needed a three to tie and executed something and got a good look. We needed a three to tie and dribbled around for 17 seconds and went for two.

Geno is outstanding at game planning, but put him in a close game late and he's often out of his element. The weak side alley oop with 17 seconds left in a tie Big East championship game was one of the worst coaching calls I've ever seen.

Yeah, that's really it. If JC or Ollie coached team had taken the questionable shots as well as the poor overall execution on both ends, we'd be killing them and rightfully so. Geno's the greatest women's basketball coach in the history of the game, but his in-game coaching at times can be so mediocre.

 

[DogMania]

Just watching some of the OT again, and my gosh, the Stanford guard carried the ball at least twice and the officials completely let it go. She pretty much held the ball and then put it back on the floor and no call.

 

[superjohn]

Just watching some of the OT again, and my gosh, the Stanford guard carried the ball at least twice and the officials completely let it go. She pretty much held the ball and then put it back on the floor and no call.

Saw that, the refs in the women's game are so much worse than the men's.

 

[DogMania]

Just watching some of the OT again, and my gosh, the Stanford guard carried the ball at least twice and the officials completely let it go. She pretty much held the ball and then put it back on the floor and no call.

Shortly after that play, they called some phantom foul on UConn. Women's officiating can be flat our horrible at times...most of the time.

 

[Huskyforlife]

KML is fat

 

[amory]

you guys are being pretty harsh. the girl has always been built on the bigger side plus she's had to deal with some injuries. she's also an all-american talent.

 

[zyron]

you guys are being pretty harsh. the girl has always been built on the bigger side plus she's had to deal with some injuries. she's also an all-american talent.

Honestly, if any of this was said about a men's player in any sport, would anyone come to their defense? Especially if true.

 

[Chuck]

What? I would bet they don't lose another game this year..

First, a disclaimer. I only watched OT. But if you feel that confident about them going undefeated the rest of the way it says something about the women's game. I'm not a regular follower of the women's game, but I watch a handful of UConn games (I'm out of Connecticut so they have to be national games). This team would get destroyed by former UConn teams. They looked slow and I didn't see anyone with that killer basketball IQ that UConn always seems to have.

I hope you're right though.