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Villanova Postgame Thread

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oldude

oldude

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Some thoughts on the Villanova game:
  • OK, everyone can stop hyperventilating. UConn won.
  • Today UConn passed SC for the 7th longest winning streak in history at 44 games in a row. The 6 winning streaks ahead of this UConn team are LaTech, 44 years ago, TN, 28 years ago, and 4 other UConn streaks, all in the 21st century, including the top 3 winning streaks at 70, 90 and 111 games……UConn fans are truly blessed. 😇
  • Villanova is talented, well-coached, currently sitting in 2nd place in the BE, with a likely invitation to the Big Dance. Surprisingly, UConn struggled defending Nova’s 5-out offense. The Wildcats are an upset waiting to happen to somebody, once they get to the Tournament.
  • Having Blanca back in the lineup felt like it should be a BIG thing. She was a little rusty in the 1st half. But she played some big minutes in the 2nd half.
  • UConn is getting healthier. KK ditched her superhero mask and no longer has her right index finger taped. In addition, Caroline is now available to play.
  • At this point in the season, you would expect UConn to take better care of the basketball. I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s noticed…..☹️
  • Ash looking for her shot, is a good thing.
  • Trailing at the half is something that UConn had not faced all season. 😕
  • Playing with Sarah on the bench with 4 fouls is also something that UConn had not faced all season. 🙁
  • Azzi is like a security blanket for UConn whenever the Huskies need a big shot.
  • Despite spending some time on the bench in foul trouble, Sarah had a quiet 21 pt, 12 rebound double-double......
  • Someone had mentioned that UConn has not been getting to the FT line. How about 13/20 tonight.
  • While UConn’s ultimate goal is #13, we should all celebrate accomplishments achieved along the way. Congratulations to the Huskies for winning UConn’s 13th straight regular season conference championship today and 32nd all time, covering both the BE & AAC.
 
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Villanova played the Huskies tough on their home court. And we played poorly in the first half. After that, it was all UConn thanks to Azzi and Sarah... and Ash.

The one worrisome thing for me wasn't the sloppy first half play. It was the narrowing of the scoring. Azzi had 25, Sarah scored 21, and Ash scored 13. No one else scored in double figures though 5 others did score.

Azzi had the right assessment after the game -- "we needed to settle." They were very unsettled at the beginning. "We didn't match their energy" in the first half.
 
A solid 2nd half - the team woke up, but again, another lackluster game overall. Poor first half against Tennessee, played sleepy for about 30 minutes vs. Marquette, and down at halftime vs. Villanova. I've said it many times now. This team is NOT head and shoulders better than every other team out there. They struggle for stretches far too long against teams they should beat handily.

But let me say this - I rarely complain about the refs, but that was as poorly reffed game as I've seen in quite some time.

Great games by Sarah, Azzi, and Ash. Serah had a strong 2nd half. Both our PG's were below average, altho KK had some highlight moments in the 2nd half. And some nice moments from Allie.

Per Azzi, Geno told the team to settle in the 2nd half. They came out not ready to start the game. Not playing at UConn's pace. The team got nervous and Azzi worked to help calm them down. She said the offense just wasn't flowing. Nova was super aggressive and "we didn't match their energy".

Something is off with the team and fortunately it's not March Madness yet. They have time to figure it out. Nova is going to be GOOD - they have a young team and are on the right trajectory.
 
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Great team defense for the first 18 minutes of the second half. Made the difference, especially for the long stretches that Strong was on the bench.

Kudos to Nova for playing the Huskies tough. Their defense exposed our offensive sets with the Huskies center at the top of the key.

Didn't love the commentating or the broadcast. Very few replays. Would like to see again the third and fourth fouls on Strong, which went by in a flash and seemed a little iffy, at least to me and certainly to Sarah.
 
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If the players are fighting the same ick that’s going around down here in FL, a lot makes sense. The MS girls soccer team I coach has not been all together for over two weeks. If it’s not one, it’s another missing. And some had relapses.

I’m not making excuses, however it’s been bad here. I’ve been bobbing and weaving and thankful we’re outside.
 
Congrats to the Huskies for overcoming a lot of poor play and ball handling and getting the win.

I am even more impressed with our last two conference foes for giving us a run for the money. It's good when we are tested like this within our own conference. The Huskies really need to work on the half-court offense. When you're so used to teams turning the ball over and getting most of your points off fast breaks because of it, the question that needs to be answered is how will you respond when the opponent is not turning it over and slowing the game down where you now have to execute in the half-court?

In each game there are lessons to be learned, and if the Huskies are going to get that 13th Chip, then they need to learn these lessons well.
 
oldude said:
Some thoughts on the Villanova game:
  • OK, everyone can stop hyperventilating. UConn won.
  • Today UConn passed SC for the 7th longest winning streak in history at 44 games in a row. The 6 winning streaks ahead of this UConn team are LaTech, 44 years ago, TN, 28 years ago, and 4 other UConn streaks, all in the 21st century, including the top 3 winning streaks at 70, 90 and 111 games……UConn fans are truly blessed. 😇
  • Villanova is talented, well-coached, currently sitting in 2nd place in the BE, with a likely invitation to the Big Dance. Surprisingly, UConn struggled defending Nova’s 5-out offense. The Wildcats are an upset waiting to happen to somebody, once they get to the Tournament.
  • Having Blanca back in the lineup felt like it should be a BIG thing. She was a little rusty in the 1st half. But she played some big minutes in the 2nd half.
  • UConn is getting healthier. KK ditched her superhero mask and no longer has her right index finger taped. In addition, Caroline is now available to play.
  • At this point in the season, you would expect UConn to take better care of the basketball. I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s noticed…..☹️
  • Ash looking for her shot, is a good thing.
  • Trailing at the half is something that UConn had not faced all season. 😕
  • Playing with Sarah on the bench with 4 fouls is also something that UConn had not faced all season. 🙁
  • Azzi is like a security blanket for UConn whenever the Huskies need a big shot.
  • Despite spending some time on the bench in foul trouble, Sarah had a quiet 21 pt, 12 rebound double-double......
  • Someone had mentioned that UConn has not been getting to the FT line. How about 13/20 tonight.
  • While UConn’s ultimate goal is #13, we should all celebrate accomplishments achieved along the way. Congratulations to the Huskies for winning UConn’s 13th straight regular season conference championship today and 32nd all time, covering both the BE & AAC.
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HuskyNan said:
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I wouldn’t have believed it if someone had told me that the lead would be built when Sarah was on the bench.
 
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Nova controlled the tempo of the 1st half and had the crowd behind them. They brought their A+ game and UConn did not look good to start things out. But credit to Villanova, they hit some tough shots, made some great plays, and took advantage of UConn's mistakes. Contrary to public belief, the BE isn't always a cakewalk. These teams aren't scared of UConn (nor should they be).

I was pleased that when Sarah went out after a (IMO BS) 4th foul, the team kept fighting hard and not only maintained, but increased the lead. And then Sarah was able to come off the bench and put the game away for good. Azzi also had some great plays and shots, but some uncharacteristically poor passing choices at times. Felt like maybe she was trying to force things at times.

Ashlynn, Blanca, and Allie made some great buckets. Serah is still really good at times and then a bit frustrating at others. Jana grabbed 5 rebounds and went 3-4 from the line.

A win is a win is a win. These past few games haven't been as crisp as I'd like to see for UConn, but every team goes through lulls and with the last three games on the schedule coming up quick, I think we'll see UConn in peak March form again very soon.
 
Sarah sitting with 4 fouls Blanca back still rusty first game back. Our stats are still pretty good. We won We need rest and will get it after the season. The one thing we've been able to do is win with key players sitting and win by double digits. Thats good. It makes us stronger mentally. We need to get everyone healthy and rest will do that. Before the BE tourney and before the NCAAs we will get some rest
 
EricSD said:
A solid 2nd half - the team woke up, but again, another lackluster game overall. Poor first half against Tennessee, played sleepy for about 30 minutes vs. Marquette, and down at halftime vs. Villanova. I've said it many times now. This team is NOT head and shoulders better than every other team out there. They struggle for stretches far too long against teams they should beat handily.

But let me say this - I rarely complain about the refs, but that was as poorly reffed game as I've seen in quite some time.

Great games by Sarah, Azzi, and Ash. Serah had a strong 2nd half. Both our PG's were below average, altho KK had some highlight moments in the 2nd half. And some nice moments from Allie.

Per Azzi, Geno told the team to settle in the 2nd half. They came out not ready to start the game. Not playing at UConn's pace. The team got nervous and Azzi worked to help calm them down. She said the offense just wasn't flowing. Nova was super aggressive and "we didn't match their energy".

Something is off with the team and fortunately it's not March Madness yet. They have time to figure it out. Nova is going to be GOOD - they have a young team and are on the right trajectory.
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And well coached as several coaches in the Big East
 
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