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Villanova Postgame Thread

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One thing I noticed last night that I've seen before but not as often as last night: Many of the turnovers were trying to get the ball to the bigs. Some were ill-advised passes, but more often the problem was the big not catching the pass. And this was due to two different things. At least once each, Serah and Jana caught the ball over the head but brought it down to the waist, and either lost it or got tied up. But what I noticed happening more often is that they didn't meet the ball. Just stood there, didn't even stretch the arms out toward the ball. That's what allowed players 3-6 inches shorter to catch or deflect the passes. Meeting the ball is something so basic, I'm not sure how they haven't internalized it by now.

I agree with several others that KK should put the mask back on. IIRC after Aaliyah broke her nose, she tried going maskless for one game a few weeks later and put it back on for the rest of the season. And I really like the black Batman mask.
 
Centerstream said:
And you are echoing exactly what was posted last season.
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I think there is a difference this year in that SC, UCLA and Texas all got better. I will stop barking about Serah at this point in the season and I will hope that she and Jana start putting something together that resembles decent post play.
 
When did this thread go from talking about the Villanova game to being one that is specializing in backhanded comments about Jana and Sera? I would rather know who is bringing Jana breakfast for the next several weeks than reading all the negative comments.
 
As usual – the analysis on here overall is way too harsh.

I couldn’t watch the game live. So I taped it and read comments before I watched,. After watching, I’m just adding my take; I hate to sound like a downer on here (for those than enojoy being a downer.) but I enjoyed watching the game. Maybe in part I knew what to expect rather than watching it in the moment but I enjoyed watching.

I’m not a coach so for example Azzi with many turnovers, I’ll get over it. Nor am I a psychologist in which I can read which players are happy or not which some state. What I do know is – is that UCONN is who I thought they are.

They are led by 2 superstars. Their 3rd best player imo is Blanca and because she has been out, upon her return she will be rust for a few games being the freshman that she is. And why this team is so great is they have other players who can step up and have a very good impact in the game. Last game KK Arnold played well. This game Ashlynn. A past game it was K9 and Serah. Having 3 players that you can count on to score is a good thing. Tonight it was Ash. The point is that someone always steps up other than the big 2. That’s exactly what I thought they were.

And as far as the Defense, the way UCONN presses at times its to trap and further gamble in order to push pace. The very idea of doing this is that they acnowledge that they will give up open looks on the pressure in order to push pace. If you want a full court pressing defense, sometimes some games teams will do a decent enough or better job against it. It’s a risk to some degree. The other teams have scholarship players too. And in this game Nova’s turnovers were more dead ball, and they also ended up shooting over 46% from 3. That shooting is going to happen on occasion when you are a press press team. Think about it; you’re leaving someone open when you press while trapping.
 
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Not to panic. Villanova played over their heads in some respects. Looks as though Carter was 2 for 8 for her 4 year career shooting 3's. she went off 3 for 3. Basco was shooting 27.5% for 3's this year. She shot 4 for 7. and there may be something to the story about the flu hitting the team. Sarah we know about, with the bucket during the game earlier this month. Today K9 and Arnold both seemed a little off. K9 especially. Only 10 minutes, no points, a bunch of turnovers. If Geno keeps her to 10 minutes that seems to say he knows something is wrong. And yeah, KK misses her mask. Put it back on, you look ferocious with it, you scare people.
 
Puppy Love said:
I think I’m just spoiled. I’ve gotten so used to the easy wins that tougher games feel like a letdown. Just going to remind myself that UConn beat a pretty good team and that a win is a win. Go Huskies!
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This is a 100% correct perspective. We're pretty spoiled as UConn fans. I have to remind myself of it often (well, not TOO often!) Yeah, they're going through a rough patch, but all teams do. I have no doubt they will shake it off. Like you said, Villanova has a good team. Well coached and they were playing really well, and shooting really well. Good game plan. Credit to them. Credit to UConn for righting the ship in the second half.

Who is the person here that always says "We're Doomed!" ?

LOL
 
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Urshurak said:
This is a 100% correct perspective. We're pretty spoiled as UConn fans. I have to remind myself of it often (well, not TOO often!) Yeah, they're going through a rough patch, but all teams do. I have no doubt they will shake it off. Like you said, Villanova has a good team. Well coached and they were playing really well, and shooting really well. Good game plan. Credit to them. Credit to UConn for righting the ship in the second half.

Who is the person here that always says "We're Doomed!" ?

LOL
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👋 doooooooooomed
 
cleobel60 said:
Jana should be dominating at her position by now. She has size, height, and potential. However, she hasn't done the necessary work to overcome her weakness like fouling, defense, passing, and shooting. No improvement at all since last year; she was really beginning to look good during championship games 2025. My concern is that good teams will figure out how to reduce and SS offensive production. What then?
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Receipts and/or proof of this? Jana was injured in preseason, and depending on the severity of it, just maybe she's still working back to form. None of us know any details, and none of us are privy to what happens in practice. Nada. Dim byd. Dad. Rud ar bith.

It's also Ramadan, so imagine being a college athlete and not being able to eat until 5:40 pm yesterday, after fasting since 6:49 am. I know I'd be a wreck.
 
It's a long season and mental fatigue is real. Probably has something to do with those 17 or 18 turnovers. The first goal of the season (win the league championship) has been accomplished.

Remember the Tulane game when they only won by three in 2017? That was a February game as well. It's not like this hasn't happened before.
 
This game was really good for us.
1.Blanca got her feet wet. I laughed when she committed like 3 turnovers in short order. Got it out of the way. Then started to find her game.
2. Allie scored in a competitive game. She also did a decent job whenever she had to switch onto Brascoe, who is much quicker.
3. Jana is working her way back to a force that will help against the bigs we might face in the dance.
4. The mask is off and the fingers aren't taped. I thing the mask makes KK even more ferocious.
5. Ash was telling herself that she needs to help on occasion when she has a matchup that allows her to score.
6. Serah is being sent a message that it is the time of the year to show you belong on the court. We need her when teams play 5 out.
7. Azzi is a really great playerin all phases of the game. I think she could play the point in the WNBA.
8. K9 needs to learn if you arent doing it in a big game. Geno has options. She will recover because she is such a competitor.
 
Is anybody in Husky Nation watching the SEC slugfests??!! The way we are playing right now, we wouldn't have a chance against So Car, LSU or Vandy. Can't count TN; I watched them against Mississippi St and the Volunteers couldn't throw the ball in the ocean. Such a bad time for our team to be letting down. How many layups did we miss in the first half; even Strong missed a bunny?! And then Azzi says, "I guess we didn't come to play tonight. Not a good sign.
 
Guess it’s time to bring this back. Every year without fail, usually in January or February

IMG_2157.jpeg
 
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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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We did throw away a number of passes ( even AZZI did ). We missed a lot of free throws. We made some poor decisions on offense. And once in a while, got " backdoored" and left naked on defense. AZZI is the glue, no doubt. And I seriously worry about playing next year without that glue. I know we have talent and experience, but is Sarah that glue? I don't see anyone else showing that reliability in a pinch. Thoughts?
 
Cornell Lt said:
Underwhelming performance by UConn, but in the end they still had too much talent against a mediocre opponent. Play that way in the tournament and the season ends.
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I don't think Villanova is mediocre. They have 17 wins and are the only team to lead UCONN at the half. They have some superb young talent. and they are well coached. They could make the sweet 16.
 
Basingstoke said:
As usual, a lot of good takes from the Boneyard.

For me, it was a Dickens of a fame (A Tale of Two Halves). The first half was about as dreadful as I could've imagined, and the second was much more like a normal UCONN performance.
I thought that Villanova is talented, very well coached and has a star in Bascoe who can score off anyone. The real surprise was Carter playing the game of her life both on offense and defense.
I was stunned by so many of our turnovers. All too often they were on careless passes that didn't take into account a Villanova player being directly in the passing lane (unfortunately, Azzi seemed to be one of the main culprits).
It seemed like UCONN's bench in the first half didn't contribute at all (I had no idea that Allie was even on the court that half, K-9 was having a very rough time and Blana, understandably, was very rusty) with the exception of some good minutes by Jana.
Thank goodness that Ash really asserted herself on offense, to compliment Azzi and Sarah's brilliance.
Azzi shot really well on all levels tonight and Sarah had a remarkable line tonight, augmenting very efficient scoring with 12 rebounds, 4 assists, 5 steals and 3 blocks - only being stifled a bit by, what I feel to be, 2 very questionable foul calls in tge 3rd quarter (how in the world can you be judged to have committed an "undercutting" foul while clearly beating your opponent to a loose ball?).
The great news is that the team regrouped in the second half, remained unbeaten and has a lot to reflect and improve on in their last few games before the Big East playoff gauntlet.
One more note about their turnaround tonight: they wound up outrebounding Villanova on both the defensive and offensive boards.
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I agree with you about that " undercutting " foul. Just ridiculous.
 
donalddoowop said:
KK and Heckel could both be liabilities in close games because their free throw averages are not good. The point guard position has to have players who are accurate free throw shooters. As far as the team is concerned, at this time last season the team was on an upward projection. This season it seems, when they should be peaking, they may be on a downward spiral. Fudd, Strong, and Shade are still playing well but the others, who were playing well, need to start playing like they previously did.
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Point well taken, noted that in the last couple of tough BE games, Azzi took over running the team and in the TN game, she became the point guard, taking the ball up directly from the out-of-bounds, not just at half court. In spite of all the hoopla about KK (and Heckel) I am concerned about them when it comes to team direction, pace and confidence in the later rounds of the tournament.
 
romath said:
Same as Marquette: Team is stale and center play is not close to Final Four quality. Jana looked terrible tonight. Completely lost. Serah woke up in the second half, but she has trouble working under the basket. Strength, confidence, jumping ability, I'm not sure. In any case, if they meet up, Okot and Betts will push her around like a twiddly wink.

Stale: I think Geno (and many supporters) is wrong about the quality of their schedule this year (compare it to last year's). It's not just about meeting the challenge of playing top teams, but more important it's about his team having some challenging games during the season to look forward to and get up for. There's not much motivation or excitement in repeating blow after blow out. The tournament out there becomes abstract, not just a continuation of what they've been doing. If they don't watch out, they're going to get caught out.
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I think the post position is a true concern. Serah haas been average and Jana still doesn't move the ball well, or protect it correctly. She was all alone with the ball, then raised it up so defenders could tie her up. About 5 times, it seemed.. It would not surprise me, assuming Blanca is healthy and gets her game back on , to see a line-up with no post player . Sarah and Blanca as the bigs, Azzi as the steady all star, and two guards rotating. This being from sweet sixteen on.
 
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Fore! said:
Agreed, something is, and has been, off with this team for a number of weeks now. It’s one thing to wobble on the tightrope during the regular season, quite another to do so during the NCAA tournament when there is no safety net beneath you to catch your fall.
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II also think KK and Kaleigh are under the weather. Tempo is a step off.
 
skidroe said:
Is anybody in Husky Nation watching the SEC slugfests??!! The way we are playing right now, we wouldn't have a chance against So Car, LSU or Vandy. Can't count TN; I watched them against Mississippi St and the Volunteers couldn't throw the ball in the ocean. Such a bad time for our team to be letting down. How many layups did we miss in the first half; even Strong missed a bunny?! And then Azzi says, "I guess we didn't come to play tonight. Not a good sign.
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OK, maybe a rough patch right now, but the 3 teams you mentioned all are without a true big (inside post) and if you take away their hot player (Tessa at SC, Flau'jae at LSU and Mikayla at Vandy) you have a good chance.
 
skidroe said:
Is anybody in Husky Nation watching the SEC slugfests??!! The way we are playing right now, we wouldn't have a chance against So Car, LSU or Vandy. Can't count TN; I watched them against Mississippi St and the Volunteers couldn't throw the ball in the ocean. Such a bad time for our team to be letting down. How many layups did we miss in the first half; even Strong missed a bunny?! And then Azzi says, "I guess we didn't come to play tonight. Not a good sign.
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Wow! Talk about doom and gloom. Do you really think Geno and his staff would not have the team ready to face the top teams in the SEC, or anyone else for that matter? If your answer is yes, then you haven’t been watching UConn WBB for the last 30+ years.
 
Longtime fan said:
We did throw away a number of passes ( even AZZI did ). We missed a lot of free throws. We made some poor decisions on offense. And once in a while, got " backdoored" and left naked on defense. AZZI is the glue, no doubt. And I seriously worry about playing next year without that glue. I know we have talent and experience, but is Sarah that glue? I don't see anyone else showing that reliability in a pinch. Thoughts?
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I’ll keep it simple. I don’t share your concerns.
 
Watched game again and came away with less (mostly) concerns. Since Blanca's absense, the first set of subs were usually K9 and Allie. Typically this injected an uptick of energy, new offensive options and defense. Blanca went in and had her poorest performance of the year, not unexpected coming back from an injury. Played under control and overall much better second half. Not unusual for a team with returning player and new lineups to also be out of sync. If this happens 3 games from now I will be throwing pillows at TV but for now, taking normal breaths.
 
With a little more than a minute to play, UConn led by 20 points just as they did against Marquette. Villanova scored three meaningless baskets very late in the game to cut the lead to fourteen. I'll take a win playing poorly over a loss playing well any day.
 
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Longtime fan said:
I think the post position is a true concern. Serah haas been average and Jana still doesn't move the ball well, or protect it correctly. She was all alone with the ball, then raised it up so defenders could tie her up. About 5 times, it seemed.. It would not surprise me, assuming Blanca is healthy and gets her game back on , to see a line-up with no post player . Sarah and Blanca as the bigs, Azzi as the steady all star, and two guards rotating. This being from sweet sixteen on.
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Hoping our bigs coaches can greatly improve our two centers hand griping the ball with two hands, move quicker and finish at the hoop rather than make an easy shot harder by rotating outside when they had a layup. Help! These are 3 and four year centers!!!! Our guards must be gun shy after so many missed passes into our centers.
 
dtbtbtb said:
some thoughts:
*The refs were horrible.
*The announcers were very hard to listen to. Please talk about what is going on in the game instead of i don't know what...at a certain point I've muted the screen but that made for a strange viewing experience so i put the volume back up...arggg
*Vilanova was very good...they attacked UConn with no fear...Boscoe in the first half was absolutely amazing
*D. Dillon is an excellent coach and i just hope that no P4 team steals her from the BE. Next season this team will be much better with experience.
*Azzi was amazing most of the game but some of those turnovers she had...she did seem as well to rush her shots at time...still, we are so lucky to have her!
*Sarah, was unreal especially after getting back to the game with the 4 fouls.
Unstoppable!
*Shade was great. Hustle and timely shots.
*Both Serah and Jana are so frustrating...i find myself screaming at the screen.: hands hands... i have no idea why they can't catch some simple passes or be able to hold to the ball...
*KK and K9 had a poor game today...couldn't stop Boscoe and were not efficient on offense.
*Carter for Vilanova is a very interesting player who should be very very good in the next few seasons...those endless arms...wow
*The first half was so so disappointing....it seems UConn sent avatars to play in the game while they stayed in CT...it was good to see that the team figured it out in the 3rd quarter and started playing UConn basketball.
*Blanca was clearly rusty but I'm so happy she is back playing...she is needed!
*As the next game is Sunday, i hope Feno gives the team a day off to recharge.
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Sarah and Janna, hands? Drills for that but not certain the coaching staff works on those. Had similar issues with 5 Star players who came to us and we fixed it, each and every time. Sometimes marginally, often-times significantly.
 
ERWUC65 said:
Point well taken, noted that in the last couple of tough BE games, Azzi took over running the team and in the TN game, she became the point guard, taking the ball up directly from the out-of-bounds, not just at half court. In spite of all the hoopla about KK (and Heckel) I am concerned about them when it comes to team direction, pace and confidence in the later rounds of the tournament.
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KK & K9. Practice, practice, practice attempting and making as many free throws as possible. KK needs to slow down and take her time shooting free throws. K9 likewise. It takes practice. Every point will count during March Madness. They also need to make some baskets during the game to take some pressure off Azzi & Sarah.
 
BRS24 said:
It's also Ramadan, so imagine being a college athlete and not being able to eat until 5:40 pm yesterday, after fasting since 6:49 am. I know I'd be a wreck.
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I'm also interested in: is anyone taking the place of Paige and what she did for Jana during Ramadan last year (she would get up before dawn to fix breakfast for her)?
 
We have a somewhat ill Sarah and Bianca just getting in a game after sitting out a few, we were up 16 with 6 left in game. We had another off game and still won by 14. I think alot of the flow issues have to do with Sarah not at 100%. She just isnt moving as well.

I watch a ton of wbb and I only think there are 2 teams that can beat us, UCLA and Texas. SC is too inconsistent on offense.
I think UCLA is too slow to beat us but they have the offense to do it. Texas has the two headed monster in Harmon and Booker with a good supporting cast.

Still think we are heading to 13. If we play up to our potential, no one is beating us.
 
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