UConn-Xavier postgame thread | Page 4 | The Boneyard
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UConn-Xavier postgame thread

The game went about as I expected - getting our secondary options more shots and I was glad to see the team stepped up.

-Great to see Allie and Ash feeling comfortable with 3s
-Glad to see KK and K9 taking more threes
-Serah looked confident in the 2nd half, though passing into the post from our guards still needs work
-Loved the minutes from Kelis, and her post passing inside was excellent!
-It's easy not to mention Sarah and Azzi because they are so steady for this team, but as always they were excellent, especially their defense

If I had one criticism it would be that I would like to see more hustle on the offensive rebounding
 
1974yankees said:
Fisher looks like she is gonna be a star eventually. Ziebell looks really good too.

We have some really good underclassmen. Fisher, Blanca, Ziebel, Heckel just for starters.

This is the first year in probably about ten years where we can say we have a deep bench and actually mean it. Geno has at least 4 bench players who can come in and really light it up. Production wont be down with these 4...

I am still trying to figure out who Blanca reminds me of. She is still only a freshman but she has the explosiveness of Gaby. She has a nice 3 point shot too.

On the downside:

I have zero confidence in Jana.
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1974, you correctly list 4 players who make up a deep bench and I would like all of us to remember that, in addition to those 4, you can add Jana, ICE and Morgan, all of whom have multiple years of eligibility left. Add to that, two top level incoming recruits, one of whom might very well take over the starting post position for the next 4 years.

Poor Geno, he's never going to be able to walk away from that talent!
 
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Bills Fan said:
1974, you correctly list 4 players who make up a deep bench and I would like all of us to remember that, in addition to those 4, you can add Jana, ICE and Morgan, all of whom have multiple years of eligibility left. Add to that, two top level incoming recruits, one of whom might very well take over the starting post position for the next 4 years.

Poor Geno, he's never going to be able to walk away from that talent!
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We agree about the 4 players I listed. Fisher, Ziebel, Heckel and definitely Blanca. (That's the excellent bench) All four will be starters eventually.

Re: Jana

I will be honest. I really couldn't stand Dolson her freshman year. For me that year was very frustrating watching her play. I was screaming about why Geno would recruit her...I kept screaming for Geno to get her off the court because she was killing us everytime she came near the ball. (He usually did remove her too)

Then something happened the next year. She got in great shape, learned the game of basketball and became a National Champion and ALL American by the time she was done. Then I loved her because she dominated everyone.

That is where I am with Jana.
 
I hate to pour cold water on you, but I didn't think the team looked very good on either side of the ball. Yes, they can turn over weak guards, and the wide open threes looked pretty but they were wide open shots against a very weak defense. They're going to feast on poor competition. But, the things I'm looking to see, helpside defense in the paint, post play that's on the same page as the rest of the offense. Williams plays under the basket but they don't have a system to get her the ball where and when she can score. Jana came in and spent some time above the free-throw line, also out of sync, but at least it's some of the offense we loved in the tournament last year. I guess that's not William's game. I do agree that some of the individual play was good. However, Blanca has not found a role. Strong and Fudd weren't needed, but we didn't see the whole process move forward. The top teams have great players, a lot of size, and experience. This still doesn't look like a Geno team. There is time, but I wouldn't celebrate a game like this.
 
Bedford fan said:
I hate to pour cold water on you, but I didn't think the team looked very good on either side of the ball. Yes, they can turn over weak guards, and the wide open threes looked pretty but they were wide open shots against a very weak defense. They're going to feast on poor competition. But, the things I'm looking to see, helpside defense in the paint, post play that's on the same page as the rest of the offense. Williams plays under the basket but they don't have a system to get her the ball where and when she can score. Jana came in and spent some time above the free-throw line, also out of sync, but at least it's some of the offense we loved in the tournament last year. I guess that's not William's game. I do agree that some of the individual play was good. However, Blanca has not found a role. Strong and Fudd weren't needed, but we didn't see the whole process move forward. The top teams have great players, a lot of size, and experience. This still doesn't look like a Geno team. There is time, but I wouldn't celebrate a game like this.
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You may the only person on here with that assessment, but you're entitled to your opinion! 😉
 
uconnfan68 said:
Quality of league opponents?
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Hopefully that's a joke because that (quality of league opponent) has been known, so it had nothing to do with today's game. We certainly didn't expect Xavier to be the second coming of South Carolina!
 
I was at the game. About 2 hours from where I live. $25 for a ticket that got me a seat at half court. Fifteen rows up. Free parking.

Things I noticed that I would have never noticed on TV.

About half the crowd were UConn fans. Azzi’s parents made the trip.

They had a decent shooting percentage and put up 104 but they got an open look or two on nearly every possession. 120 was certainly within reason. Their ball movement and passing is way more advanced than 99% of women’s teams. It is obvious live.

Xavier may have been missing some key players but they struggled to even get a shot off. They could not handle the pressure or the switching that are staples of the defense.

Blanca did not have a good first half. Xavier beat the press three times in a row because she was no where near where she was supposed to be. She forced some shots and had some dumb fouls. It has been said before but up close I was still surprised how tall she is.

I remember Ayanna as a freshman as being strong and thick. She probably is as strong but now she is lean almost thin. She is player many teams would love to have (she would never leave the floor for Xavier) but with this team she has to wait for her chance.

CD needs to knock down the open looks she is getting. I think she is moving well defensively and is still a good passer but she won’t get Geno’s attention until those shots start to fall. I still think the complete miracle comeback can occur. I am pulling for her.

Xavier pressing the second team down by 50 is not a unique tactic against UConn. Heckel and Kelis handled it well. Maybe X knew they could not press the first team.

Kelis must struggle with something in practice. I have no guesses. However, she gets my attention every time she is on the floor. It seems the staff doesn’t do much with shot mechanics once they arrive on campus but watching her warmup, her release is so low that it is easy to contest.

It is about the fourth time I have seen them live. The aura, precision and discipline remind me why I am such a huge fan.
 
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I’m in Mexico and the translation for Ducharme’s statline made me chuckle
IMG_9036.jpeg
 
I didn't think it was one of UConn's best games. They were not as together as they've been in some others.I'm not sure that we will get to really see what Ayanna can do this year. She would need more time in the games, and she's not likely to get that. Gandy seems to know a couple of set plays and looks kinda lost otherwise. She is a very long-term project. I agree with the previous poster who said that Croline won't get meaningful time until/unless she starts hitting her shots. I am a bit maazed at the way Allie is shooting. I know everyone said she was a great shooter, but she is really starting to show it. I still think she is a bit slow for games against top opponents, but she sure looked good out there today.

Sarah and Azzi were very good, as usual. Serah is starting to fit in, which is important. Jana seems to have again contracted a case of hands-of-stone disease. Her positioning looks fine, and she knows what to do, but sometimes those hands just don't want to cooperate.

And may I say something about the announcing team? The play-by-play guy was ok, though he rambled sometimes and did not seem to be in firm contact with the show director (as in the time he called for a replay and the game camera continued to be on the play, which was going on just then). The color announcer is dreadful. She never met a nanosecond of dead air that she did not try to fill with varying degrees of blather, some of it untrue. The lowlight came when she claimed that Sarah's mom was a UConn player during her college days.
 
1974yankees said:
We agree about the 4 players I listed. Fisher, Ziebel, Heckel and definitely Blanca. (That's the excellent bench) All four will be starters eventually.

Re: Jana

I will be honest. I really couldn't stand Dolson her freshman year. For me that year was very frustrating watching her play. I was screaming about why Geno would recruit her...I kept screaming for Geno to get her off the court because she was killing us everytime she came near the ball. (He usually did remove her too)

Then something happened the next year. She got in great shape, learned the game of basketball and became a National Champion and ALL American by the time she was done. Then I loved her because she dominated everyone.

That is where I am with Jana.
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I have never seen a player overcome "bad hands."
 
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The thing that catches my eye about Allie -- I mean apart from the shooting and her improved defense -- is that she is a sure-handed dribbler. It's not what you expect from someone her size, but she seems to know when to pull the string and pivot away from pressure or a blindside defender. I have a feeling this instinct comes from being the go-to player on her high school teams for a few years. Ash has this, too, though she is not a good enough passer to be a PG. When it comes to Allie, I suspect she could handle the PG spot if needed. We've already seen her used as a press-breaker, and she knows how to get to the rim
 
Few Thoughts:
*Real nice game against a totally outmatched opponent
*The 3rd quarter for Allie was magical. it was quick, precise, beautiful.
*I was really impressed by Kellis. Her passes to the bigs for easy shots were on point and it was clear to see her potential as a top-notch PG.
*Azzi and Sarah are so steady in their greatness.
*Was good to see Shade and K9 finding their 3-point shot.
*it was one of the better games of Serah so far. Hopefully she becomes more and more comfortable in the UConn system.
* A rare game in which practically everyone on the 13 players, played well even if i wish Jana would have a better showing.
*it does seem that in big games Geno will go only 8 deep (the starting 5 + Allie, Blanca and K9).
On to South Florida
 
This was a real “nail biter” early on…

Well, the first two possessions when neither team scored it was at least a good game. After that… it was a track meet; a total one sided track meet!
 
mudcat said:
She was the starting center on our national champion team and, if I recall correctly, played some pretty good ball (esp. defensively) in the Final Four
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Didn't I just say that? Re-read my post.

I said her freshman year was a disaster basically and I questioned why "Geno recruited Dolson"...

Then I said the "next year everything changed and she became an all American and National champion eventually" And I "loved Dolson at the end"

That is exactly what I said..

Sorry but I am not gonna sugar coat Jana. Especially after Geno told everyone "she reminded him of Stewart" and everyone got excited about that prospect.

Well I have seen every game that Stewart ever played in and every game that Jana has played in and I don't see one similarity at all. But maybe it's just me lol.

But it is what it is. We are in year 2 with Jana.

I guess I am hoping that Jana becomes another Dolson... But there is only one Stewart...
 
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Bone Dog said:
The thing that catches my eye about Allie -- I mean apart from the shooting and her improved defense -- is that she is a sure-handed dribbler. It's not what you expect from someone her size, but she seems to know when to pull the string and pivot away from pressure or a blindside defender. I have a feeling this instinct comes from being the go-to player on her high school teams for a few years. Ash has this, too, though she is not a good enough passer to be a PG. When it comes to Allie, I suspect she could handle the PG spot if needed. We've already seen her used as a press-breaker, and she knows how to get to the rim
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At the very beginning of the season, Ash was bringing up the ball more along with KK in transition. Now, it has shifted to Azzi and KK (or K9). I do agree that Allie can handle the ball well, and she is also a more confident passer, which makes her a better replacement for Azzi next year. We might even see a KK/Allie/Ash/Blanca/Sarah line up next year, and push Sarah back to the 5. But anyway, that's next year's problem! 😄
 
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