USC Postgame Thread | Page 4 | The Boneyard

USC Postgame Thread

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I also want to say Marshall impressed me. That is the best I have seen an opposing big look with Sarah Strong guarding them. And it really impresses me because we had Morgan Cheli on Marshall quite a bit in the first meeting. So big improvement from her in the second meeting.
 
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Fore! said:
She did have one, but was called for an offensive foul which wiped it off the board.
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I guess that's a reverse charge, or giving a charge for the team.:rolleyes: Who said she doesn't drive hard to the basket?:)
 
pvdoggy said:
Technically, they are not under .500 in Final Fours. Before today, 23 trips to FF4, with 11 NC means they must have won 22 games out of the 34 games they played in the FF4?
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Not sure if someone has corrected this already later in this thread, but prior to this year they have 23 semi-final games and won 12, and have played 12 finals and won 11, so the correct numbers are:

23 wins and have 12 loses in FF games .657 percentage.

And are 12-11 in the semi-final games .522 percentage.
 
Idle thoughts: Huskies favored over UCLA by 8.5? Pretty high imo. Betts will be a problem...interesting
to see how Geno solves it. Plus: UCLA beat LSU due to their trey shooting not Betts. Think they had 10 with
a good shooting percentage...hope that is a one-off.

We've been watching Azzie and commenting on her release for a while. When she spots up for
a trey attempt my thought is her release [from the moment she touches the ball to the moment it is out of
her hands] is the quickest I have ever...ever... seen...men or women. Shooting a trey off a dribble is a bit
rare but the release itself is the same.

Biggest single bucket of the game? Lead down to 5...super comeback from USC...Azzi enters...immediately hits
a trey for a bit more breathing room.
 
jaydee602 said:
Unfortunately, veteran refs have an unfair habit of calling fouls to help teams that are getting blown out. Some analysts feel that they do this to avoid being blamed for a team's loss.
It's amazing how refs officiate a great half, allowing physical contact & letting the teams play. But in the second half, they call every touch foul and become whistle happy.
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The later in the game you get, the more frantic both the players and the refs get.
 
UConnCat said:
Gutsy call by Geno and Azzi delivered the clutch shot.

Great coaches call plays like that. He was telling Azzi he had confidence in her to make a big shot in a big moment despite not making a shot the entire game. Hopefully she builds on those last few minutes.
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"During the timeout, I took a hunch and I ran with it." --Geno
 
Jonathan14 said:
I was so happy for Kaitlin (and for us!) having the game she did on that huge stage. For as much as the media has fixated on this being Paige's last chance for a national championship, I was reminded that there is another player in her final season who isn't going down without a fight. Kaitlin showed tremendous poise and delivered leadership, assists, scoring, and relentless defense. One of her best games as a Husky—if not the best. (Did everyone catch her parents beaming in the audience?) Way to go, Kaitlin!
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Kaitlin was co-player of the game. She was everywhere all at once and vital to breaking the press. This game is not all about points. She was the glue. Geno got a heady player from another heady coach.
 
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Skeets said:
The later in the game you get, the more frantic both the players and the refs get.
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USC loaded the offensive boards in the second half. It almost worked with many trips to the foul line. We went sort of small. The battle inside was for ages. Sarah has a presence there that is amazing.

Geno's doubling of USC's inside players made that strategy effective. We only gave up 10 points to their remaining top player. This perhaps resulted in so many fouls being called against us. USC had to earn points at the foul line and they did to keep them in the game until Azzi hit several 3 pointers. We went from a five point lead to double figures. Putting Griffin in the game gave us a second rebounder/size and that helped a lot. Our coaching was topflight last night.
 
Centerstream said:
I'll give some sour grapes...every USBWA voter that didn't vote Sarah #1 for NFOY needs to reevaluate their voting criteria. Period.
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USBWA isn't the NFOY that really matters. The announcers even said Strong is likely the NFOY when it gets announced soon.

I don't know why everyone is so upset about this. Blakes had a great season as well and her stats confirm it.
 
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Not sure i ever saw UConn use the elevator door screen(s) to get Azzi open at the top of the arc for that needed 3 pt shot. Pretty cool.

Ladders, ladders, ladders ... I know they have to put them out there (ad$) however read in an article that sounded like the writer had no idea that UConn doesn't cut nets until the natty.

Lastly, I don't know who it was that scheduled a 9 am tennis match for me, right after staying up late to watch the game. Oh wait. That was me. :p
 
BRS24 said:
Not sure i ever saw UConn use the elevator door screen(s) to get Azzi open at the top of the arc for that needed 3 pt shot. Pretty cool.

Ladders, ladders, ladders ... I know they have to put them out there (ad$) however read in an article that sounded like the writer had no idea that UConn doesn't cut nets until the natty.

Lastly, I don't know who it was that scheduled a 9 am tennis match for me, right after staying up late to watch the game. Oh wait. That was me. :p
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That was probably the toughest shot Azzi took all game. When she made it, I came out of my chair screaming. It took the lid off for Azzi, leading to a critical 8-pts in the 4th qtr.
 
cancontent said:
USBWA isn't the NFOY that really matters. The announcers even said Strong is likely the NFOY when it gets announced soon.

I don't know why everyone is so upset about this. Blakes had a great season as well and her stats confirm it.
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First day on the Boneyard? :). No one can take offense like a UConn fan - refs, Charlie Creme, ESPN, USBWA, the selection committee, other coaches, social media, they’re all against the Huskies.
 
HuskyNan said:
First day on the Boneyard? :). No one can take offense like a UConn fan - refs, Charlie Creme, ESPN, USBWA, other coaches, social media, they’re all against the Huskies.
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I do think there is a tendency by some voters, in this case the writers in the USBWA, to focus on scoring. Blakes put up 2 x 50 pt games and she is a great young player. But Sarah is a complete player who fills up a stat sheet. Rebounds, steals and blocks aren’t as sexy as scoring, but they sure do win you games.

I expect the coaches committee who select the NFOY for the WBCA to reverse the USBWA selection and choose Sarah, especially since they consider play from the Regionals in their selections this week.

For the same reason, I now consider Paige to be the favorite for the Wade Trophy over JuJu, Hidalgo and Betts.
 
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HuskyNan said:
First day on the Boneyard? :). No one can take offense like a UConn fan - refs, Charlie Creme, ESPN, USBWA, other coaches, social media, they’re all against the Huskies.
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Far from it, but it still perplexes me sometimes when you look at the overall picture. Especially as it seems Huskies come out on top regardless where it counts. ;)
 
It surely won’t put this to rest, but I have to say the reffing wasn’t unfair, even if it was a bit inconsistent. USC was bigger in the post and crashed the boards effectively. Of course they’re going to get a lot of fouls and FTs from a smaller team.

The refs mainly let both teams play rough for 3 quarters which allowed USC to lean on UConn - and replays showed a lot of unwhistled grabs and shoves, especially against Paige. But Sarah avoided foul trouble, and it would have been game over for UConn if she’d been whistled closely.

A microcosm of the game was the incidental contact on one play when Paige blocks Kennedy Smith’s shot. She inadvertently slapped Kennedy in the face, and as they both fell she got poked in the eye, also inadvertently. Refs might have called a half dozen fouls on that one play (I jest) but only called one. They got it right.

People say Kennedy played great defense on Paige — as great as you can against someone who’s in the process of scoring 30+ points against your team. But the fact is she plays very ‘heavy’ defense, very handsy. This is what the game is today. In another era, Smith might have fouled out in the first half. She is a great defender in today’s game.

And speaking of Smith, she took several hard hits and was slow to get up from a few of them. And none were whistled. One in particular, a hard screen from Ice, left her flattened on the floor for a moment. It took her completely out of the next play. I hope she doesn’t have any lingering effects from all those hits.

And speaking of Ice, she is a terrific screener. And a very hard one. A number of players have been flattened by running into her. Smith in this game, Molly Mogenson in the last Creighton game. These aren’t dirty plays. Ice is just really strong. And this is an under-appreciated side of her game.
 
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Bone Dog said:
It surely won’t put this to rest, but I have to say the reffing wasn’t unfair, even if it was a bit inconsistent. USC was bigger in the post and crashed the boards effectively. Of course they’re going to get a lot of fouls and FTs from a smaller team.

The refs mainly let both teams play rough for 3 quarters which allowed USC to lean on UConn - and replays showed a lot of unwhistled grabs and shoves, especially against Paige. But Sarah avoided foul trouble, and it would have been game over for UConn if she’d been whistled closely.

A microcosm of the game was the incidental contact on one play when Paige blocks Kennedy Smith’s shot. She inadvertently slapped Kennedy in the face, and as they both fell she got poked in the eye, also inadvertently. Refs might have called a half dozen fouls on that one play (I jest) but only called one. They got it right.

People say Kennedy played great defense on Paige — as great as you can against someone who’s in the process of scoring 30+ points against your team. But the fact is she plays very ‘heavy’ defense, very handsy. This is what the game is today. In another era, Smith might have fouled out in the first half. She is a great defender in today’s game.

And speaking of Smith, she took several hard hits and was slow to get up from a few of them. And none were whistled. One in particular, a hard screen from Ice, left her flattened on the floor for a moment. It took her completely out of the next play. I hope she doesn’t have any lingering effects from all those hits.

And speaking of Ice, she is a terrific screener. And a very hard one. A number of players have been flattened by running into her. Smith in this game, Molly Mogenson in the last Creighton game. These aren’t dirty plays. Ice is just really strong. And this is an under-appreciated side of her game.
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Thought I heard she picked up her first foul in the fourth quarter. Considering who she was defending throughout the game, that was really well done. Another reason why I was enjoying how she was playing against Iriafen and Marshall. Alone, not an easy task. Having to defend both of them off and in during the game and only 1 foul?!?! Can't ask for anything better than that in a game.
 
I think that fall that Shade took in the last game is still a consideration. She wasn't sharp, she wasn't quick and she wasn't playing fundamental defense all of which are what usually makes her difficult. She will have a some rest this week to recover and I do think she and Azzi will be keys to bringing home number 12.
 
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