Virginia Tech?

[Bone Dog]

Taylor Soule lands awkwardly in the 4th q against Cattanooga. If she can't return, it's bad news for VT's chances.

 

[Cuango]

I don't want to count Amari out by any means. She's still got two more years left, and I'm hoping she'll make that leap to become part of the regular rotation. Between Amari, Ice, and Jana, I really think they should have the post covered next season to Geno's satisfaction. We'll see. Two 6'5" players and a 6'3". Plenty of playing time over the course of the season for all.

Wait! Two 6’5” players? Amari is the only 6’5” player on the roster for next year. Jana & Ice are, at best, 6’4”. Actually, I believe Jana is a legitimate 6’4” while Ice (based on what I’ve read) is possibly 6’4” but probably closer to 6’3 1/2”. Unless there is some new info?

 

[Carnac]

Wait! Two 6’5” players? Amari is the only 6’5” player on the roster for next year. Jana & Ice are, at best, 6’4”. Actually, I believe Jana is a legitimate 6’4” while Ice (based on what I’ve read) is possibly 6’4” but probably closer to 6’3 1/2”. Unless there is some new info?

No. I had Jana at 6'5". My error. The current UConn roster lists Jana at 6'4".

 

[Bone Dog]

No. I had Jana at 6'5". My error. The current UConn roster lists Jana at 6'4".

But she has very long arms, rather like Stewie and Brink. That may make up for that extra inch.

 

[Longtime fan]

I rewatched the Va Tech-Louisville game and Kitley looked really good. Her game has definitely advanced in the past season. She’s more mobile and active on O and D. And she has a very reliable short fadeaway that looks undefendable. This looks like the rare case where the center gets the guards open. Aamoore and Traylor had big seasons because teams sagged off them to double Kitley.

Louisville’s posts were not good enough to play Kitley straight up. The only game where they faced a comparable post player was against Tennessee, when Key was still playing. They squeaked out a win 59-56 but Kitley was 3-13 and 6 points. If I were a betting man, I’d wager Dorka can give Kitley all she can handle and Traylor and Amoore will have all they can handle from our guard corps. Still, I like the way they play and they will definitely be a challenge.

Virginia Tech is outstanding. And they have some great individual players. The same can be said for Stanford and Iowa. I think ( as a dark horse ) Mississippi state is in that class as well. And we all know about South Carolina. And there are other really tough outs scattered about. We shall see them in round two. I am hoping that the UCONN team that arrives tomorrow ( and beyond) is a team we have not really seen. A team that there is no " book" on. A team that can play at a level no one has seen all season. If they do, we are going to enjoy this tournament a lot.

 

[Gus Mahler]

Maybe she'll have a late growth spurt.

 

[JellyBean]

Having watched Ice in HS, she has Edwards like skills and has had a year to get stronger and analyze how her game needs to grow. Smart player-predict she will start with Jana the first big off the bench. Jana appears to have a strong basketball IQ with both offensive and defensive upside over UConn's other bigs.

I hope so. We shall see in the Fall. We all see what develops. On paper, everything looks great. It is on the hardwood where everything matters.

 

[JellyBean]

Virginia Tech is outstanding. And they have some great individual players. The same can be said for Stanford and Iowa. I think ( as a dark horse ) Mississippi state is in that class as well. And we all know about South Carolina. And there are other really tough outs scattered about. We shall see them in round two. I am hoping that the UCONN team that arrives tomorrow ( and beyond) is a team we have not really seen. A team that there is no " book" on. A team that can play at a level no one has seen all season. If they do, we are going to enjoy this tournament a lot.

I totally agree. Virginia Tech has looked good all season. Not sure why folks doubted their #1 Seeding. They look worthy of that spot and Coach Brooks is very underrated and doing a great job at V-Tech.

 

[Littlemin]

Va Tech is too far down the road to even be concerned about. Vermont Vermont Vermont….. just ask Purdue‘s or Arizona men’s teams what not being ready for the game in front of you can do.

 

[Bone Dog]

I am hoping that the UCONN team that arrives tomorrow ( and beyond) is a team we have not really seen. A team that there is no " book" on.

The proverbial dark horse!

 

[oldude]

Virginia Tech is outstanding. And they have some great individual players. The same can be said for Stanford and Iowa. I think ( as a dark horse ) Mississippi state is in that class as well. And we all know about South Carolina. And there are other really tough outs scattered about. We shall see them in round two. I am hoping that the UCONN team that arrives tomorrow ( and beyond) is a team we have not really seen. A team that there is no " book" on. A team that can play at a level no one has seen all season. If they do, we are going to enjoy this tournament a lot.

Your comment made me think back to my favorite UConn team of all time. In 2013 UConn entered the Big Dance with 4 losses, including losing for the 3rd straight time to ND in the conference tournament championship game, the last time the Huskies lost the conference tournament.

But once the Big Dance began, for the first time, we all witnessed freshman Stewie head to the nearest phone booth and emerge as Supergirl. UConn carved up 6 opponents, including ND in the national semifinal, on their way to the first of 4 championships.

Perhaps this year, Azzi finds that phone booth. More likely it will be a team effort, with everyone doing their part. I can’t wait to see what this UConn team accomplishes in the Big Dance starting today.

 

[Bone Dog]

Perhaps this year, Azzi finds that phone booth.

I’m hoping Caroline finds her phone booth too!

These girls who were used to carrying their hs teams don’t always learn to readjust to the weight such a burden can be in D1. But Paige did it immediately, and Azzi and Caroline are just as strong!

 

[Rowdy831]

37.79% is not most.

Is 37.79% those who don't expect them to win? If so that would be most, if not that would be many.

 

[Biff]

Perhaps this year, Azzi finds that phone booth.

Azzi "What's a phone booth?"

 

[JBK]

UConn can only control what it can control which means they need to be able to take care of their own business.
UConn needs to show that they can play 4 full quarters without wilting due to fatigue, and that they're able to stay as focused as possible.
They haven't proven that they can sub players to provide rest while maintaining the quality of play.
They may be refreshed because of the layoff & practices.
But that doesn't leave much room for error or injuries at all without using some of the bench players.
At some point in time it would seem that would become necessary.

Of course the core 7 can play the whole game if there's no problems or incidents.
But what are the realistic chances of that and that every game will go smoothly?
I hope that fans realize how sometimes bench depth is critical, and the coaching staff also needs to have enough faith in the bench to know when to use them even if only for a few minutes.
There may be moments when our bench needs to play their bench for the sake of providing a few minutes of rest.
And the bench & the staff needs to plan to be ready in advance to make the adjustments.

The season has shown that UConn can't play their best game if the players are over-worked.
They can get away with it sometimes, but I don't know if they can away with it for the whole NCAAT.
If other teams have more depth and fresher players, then it may seem as if UConn can't keep up for 4 full quarters.
That's my concern which could very well characterized UConn's greatest challenge for this NCAAT.
Give the bench some PT or risk suffering the consequences of fatigue & a lack of focus at times.
The staff needs to know which sub to use, when & for how long to avoid let downs in performance.
Quite frankly I think the best sub for Dorka is Amari.

8 to 9 players can give everyone their needed rest and longer breaks in the tourney as well.
I was rooting for Amari Deberry all year and she still has work to do.
I hope that she has a great off season and takes Dorka position like it is hers to Lose.
It is set up for her, now she has to go get it