Vermont Postgame Thread | Page 4 | The Boneyard

Vermont Postgame Thread

Longtime fan said:
I would like to talk about Azzi. She actually played a pretty decent game of basketball. Handled the point when Nikka needed a rest, and moved well on defense. She passed well and earned a few open looks. However, at this moment, there are. probably 100 Division I guards who are more reliably hitting their three point shots. I know you will all say, " well she has to work her way back into her game, having missed so much basketball this season due to injury." And that is all true. However, the clock is running. This UCONN team needs Azzi to be exceptional. We need her to be the most reliable and consistent three point shooter in the country and we need it now. Having the smoothest shot in America is what she is known for. If we don't get it ( if she can't find it given the time lost ) we may not beat Baylor. They will find a way to limit our inside game ( which Vermont could not do ), and we are going to need a lot more from the guards. If Lou is hobbled; if Aubrey can't play, it will all fall to Azzi. (And Caroline).
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I will bet on Azzi !!! She will be as clutch as Paige - built from the same mold.
When the going gets tough - Azzi will step up.
 
Longtime fan said:
" Lou and Azzi saved themselves?" You make it sound as if it was their plan. Lou was injured and that limited her ability to create and execute shots. Azzi has not found her stroke. Right now, there are 100 guards in the Division I tournament who are having more success shooting threes than Azzi Fudd. And she is the best there is. But that particular talent has not yet re-emerged. And the clock is ticking. If those two are not going to be at the top of their games, we are going down. Lou has carried us all year. And we need Azzi to carry us now. She is an exceptional talent. And that is what UCONN needs right now.
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Lou did not play injured today. Geno didn’t need her so he held her, and Aubrey, out
 
JBK said:
So funny.
More press on the BY for our 3 bench players today- more so then AE.
I am really happy for them, but it may be the only time they get in this tournament.
Ayanna may get a few minutes in some games, but Geno had no confidence in them throughout the entire season. I know we are all excited today - but we need a healthy AE and Azzi getting her shot back to get where we want to go.
Geno will probably keep the rotation to 8 going forward and maybe 9 - but that’s it ..
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If UConn is up by whatever number Geno wants to see, the reserves will play. Why run his starters into the ground or risk injury?
 
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Longtime fan said:
" Lou and Azzi saved themselves?" You make it sound as if it was their plan. Lou was injured and that limited her ability to create and execute shots. Azzi has not found her stroke. Right now, there are 100 guards in the Division I tournament who are having more success shooting threes than Azzi Fudd. And she is the best there is. But that particular talent has not yet re-emerged. And the clock is ticking. If those two are not going to be at the top of their games, we are going down. Lou has carried us all year. And we need Azzi to carry us now. She is an exceptional talent. And that is what UCONN needs right now.
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As Christy Thomaskutty explained, quite well, is that simply having Azzi on the court forces the opposing coach to dedicate a defender to her, opening up the court and preventing opponents from packing the lane. Having Azzi and Lou/Caroline is double trouble for opponents.

In addition, Azzi is a terrific defender and ball-handler that can relieve Nika at the point, as she did today. Azzi and Lou and Caroline - oh my! Who is the other team going to guard?

So, no, Azzi doesn’t need to hit a ton of baskets to be important to the team
 
Just got home from Storrs. From the game itself, I thought we were a little rusty at first, as to be expected, but that soon changed. I thought Caroline had a very solid game, perfect from the field, moved well without the ball (was open at least twice more on back doors) and had great wrap around assist on one of her drives. She is still 1/2 step slower but this kind of game off the bench can win a Championship. Azzi is still struggling on her shot. It's a timing issue. It is the usual bill of fare with a knee or ankle injury and I think it will be much better perhaps as early as Monday. Nika was in rare form, she is pure fun to watch live. Geno was furious at her when she picked up her third foul but it was as though she had ear plugs in. I knew she was going to pick her opponent's pocket at one point and said it out loud. Her defense is just relentless. The team's defense was the real story today. The press plus great half court pressure causing Vermont to shoot 3s from deep or off balance. I stayed around to watch some of the Baylor game. They are a very good offensive rebounding team and if they are on from the arc they can be problematic. One more point, we are not firing on all cylinders yet. Aubrey is still not herself as well. Azzi's shot is not fully back but the Azzi effect on the turnovers is apparent in reducing them to 12 today because she is an adept ball handler and passer and our bigs don't have to do it anymore. Our turnovers were mostly walks by Aaliyah or Caroline and forces by Nika which is fine because the bigs seemed open so much. Just another step forward. Anxious to see us Monday after we are more back in form.
 
oldude said:
  • So please explain to me why Aaliyah is only a 3rd team AA??? :confused:
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Look at who are the 1st and second team, is is simple to understand
For the same reasons , I understand why Dorka and Lou are not on third teams while I expected it
 
The deacon said:
Steph's humility is inspirational.
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The best shooter in the world, Steph Curry, said that Fudd is the third best (behind him and Klay).

This post is absolutely false. This is not what Steph said about Azzi--this is entirely a misquote: This is what Steph said" "She [Azzi] has more of a textbook jumper than anyone I've seen. Maybe Klay Thomson and Azzi Fudd. You go Ray Allen, Klay Thompson and Azzi Fudd, textbook. You would teach somebody how to shoot with their form." End of quote. Steph humbly does not even mention himself... So your attempt at Steph's humility totally misses the mark...
 
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fomalhaut said:
The best shooter in the world, Steph Curry, said that Fudd is the third best (behind him and Klay). I'm not all all worried about her shots starting to fall.
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I'm not worried about Azzi either, but this is not what Steph said about Azzi--this is entirely a misquote: This is what Steph said" "She [Azzi] has more of a textbook jumper than anyone I've seen. Maybe Klay Thomson and Azzi Fudd. You go Ray Allen, Klay Thompson and Azzi Fudd, textbook. You would teach somebody how to shoot with their form." End of quote.
 
Baylor game Monday night is at 9 p.m., on ESPN.

Not wild about that start time, to be honest.
 
Aaliyah played like the All-American she is. She looks like the best player on the floor everytime she is on the floor.
Dorka looked confident and I loved that
Nika causes havoc and created alot of offense
Not worried about Lopez-Senechal or Aubrey, we're very early on
Azzi shot the ball alot and that's all I care about. Let her miss because she can make 10 in a row. Defensively even with the brace she is the perimeter disruption that is needed.
Ines and the bench look like she hit a March switch as well

Baylor will be a tough test but UConn scored 95 without their generational shooter getting going. Yikes for everyone
 
MSGRET said:
There was a discussion in another thread about who is the fastest on the team. I believe that Ines would give some a run for their money. Twice in the last month she has chased down an opponent from behind and has gotten a steal and a block. She has really put in the effort this season and is improving every game.
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Geno has said that Ines is athletic and surprised her teammates with her speed.
 
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Carnac said:
I still think it's Aubrey......... until the end of May when KK Arnold arrives on campus, at which time she'll assume that distinction. ;)
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KK may be quicker. I think Aubrey is faster. Let's see how Qadence looks. I think Q glides.
 
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Just a few thoughts:

I liked pushing the pace. Some forced turnovers and a stampede to the other end. At times, it reminded me of the "piranhas on a roast game."

When Aaliyah is the best player on the floor, I like our chances. THIRD team?? Give me a break! I love our interior duo.

All of Azzi's misses were either short or long. They were essentially right on line. It may take a while for her shot to click, but it's a beautiful thing when it does. Even with poor shooting, she gives Nika a rest, defends, and spaces the floor. An excellent ball player.

We got 29 bench points. Everyone--including Ayanna, Amari, and Ines--made multiple good plays. Keep it up!
 
Carnac said:
Had they not been beset with injuries, you would have seen this all year. :cool: Hard for the bench to do anything when it's down to an
inexperienced freshman guard, and a sophomore post player. :confused:
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I was NOT putting a hit on the bench with my comment. I meant that we had 5 qualified and healthy players and they did their part and scored with gusto. GO HUSKIES!!!
 
RedStickHusky said:
Did you get a speeding ticket in Vermont? They played hard, made some shots, never got chippy. It's what you get in a 2/15 game. No reason for us to kick them while they're down.
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That's all just factual, accurate info. They were never in the game. They're not in UConn's class. That's just the truth
 
My two cents about Fudd, it is a fact she has shot poorly in the 4 games she has played since coming back, 29% overall, 23% from 3.
BUT, she has PLAYED very well; good, active defense, moving the ball on offense, but especially taking EVERY good shot that shows and not forcing ANY bad ones.
Defining her, IMO she is not a great shooter, she is a terrific basketball player who is capable of shooting great and if she does, quite obviously all the better, but the fact is getting hurt and sitting out the better part of two years takes its toll.
I disagree with posters who insist Uconn will not go deep in the tournament if she doesn’t start “lighting it up”, winning is always a crap shoot and never guaranteed, no matter what some fans on here feel they are entitled to, but I am pretty sure Uconn will not go deep if Fudd is unable to PLAY.
 
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HuskyBaggins said:
I like a lot about her game. Really think she is a diamond in the rough. She's only a freshman who came to the program like 10 minutes before the season started.
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I like Ines' work ethic and she seems very coachable as well. That's exceptional for someone so young -- maybe 18.5 years old now? She was still 17 when she arrived in September.
 
tchalla1 said:
The best shooter in the world, Steph Curry, said that Fudd is the third best (behind him and Klay).

This post is absolutely false. This is not what Steph said about Azzi--this is entirely a misquote: This is what Steph said" "She [Azzi] has more of a textbook jumper than anyone I've seen. Maybe Klay Thomson and Azzi Fudd. You go Ray Allen, Klay Thompson and Azzi Fudd, textbook. You would teach somebody how to shoot with their form." End of quote. Steph humbly does not even mention himself... So your attempt at Steph's humility totally misses the mark...
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Well, you almost got it correct. Here is the exact statement Curry made about Fudd. "She can be going full speed and stop on a dime and have, like, a feathery release," Curry told ESPN before her commitment to UConn. "I think she has more of a textbook jumper than anyone I've seen. Maybe Klay Thompson and Azzi Fudd. ... You go Ray Allen, Klay Thompson and Azzi Fudd, textbook. You would teach somebody how to shoot with their form."
 
We all are so happy when our bench plays well. We all loved the game but still see we can be better. Tha is what I love about the Boneyard. We seem to always seek perfection. The teams before this have left the memory of those games and we judge each new team in comparision to the past teams. This team if all play well to play with Anybody in the tournament. Ayanna hitting elbow jumpers and making moves around the hoop is major progress for her and Geno is gaining more confidence in Ines. If we play Ohio State and they press us which we know they will, Ines is our best and quickess ball handler. Go Huskies!!!!
 
RedStickHusky said:
Did you get a speeding ticket in Vermont? They played hard, made some shots, never got chippy. It's what you get in a 2/15 game. No reason for us to kick them while they're down.
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Not kicking them while they're down. Just stating the obvious. Look at the other 2 vs 15 results in the first two days.....blowouts as they were predicted to be by WCBB analysts. Agreed, the 15 seeds all played hard and competed to the best of their ability, but none of them were in the class of their opponents. Every game was a mismatch. ALL four #2 ranked teams are ranked in the top 10 nationally. All of the 15 ranked teams are mid-major schools, none of whom are ranked in the top 125. Gardner-Webb was the highest-ranked #2 seed at 136.

2 Iowa defeats vs 15 SE Louisiana St. 95-43 - 2 Maryland defeats 15 Holy Cross 93-61, and finally 2 Utah defeats 15 Gardner-Webb 103-77. There is a pattern here. 2 UConn's victory over their #15 ranked opponent is in line with the outcomes of other 2-15 matchups so far. Programs that were ranked 15 by the tournament selection committee were done so for a reason, similar to schools ranked number 2....for a reason.
 
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RedStickHusky said:
Sure, it's true. Not a truth worth crowing apart imo.
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The Vermont players knew they weren’t in the same league but, to their credit, they competed to the best of their ability. That’s all you can ask for. Now the players know what they need to do to get to the next level and so does the coach.

"Yeah, I would say playing against UConn where all the players are super talented and they're very athletic and they're big and strong," [player Catherine] Gilwee said. "Obviously we don't have that athleticism to our advantage, so we got to be super locked in on all of our rules, all of our fundamentals on defense."

UConn overwhelms Vermont women's basketball in NCAA Tournament

The No. 2 UConn Huskies led from start to finish in cruising past No. 15 Vermont 95-52 in Saturday's opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
www.burlingtonfreepress.com www.burlingtonfreepress.com
 
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