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[Tonyc]

Im pretty happy after watching last nites game. We looked really good as a unit. Bria and Breanna looked like they did earlier this season. Tuck and MoJeff looked much improved and Kiah was a pleasant surprise. Tonite will tell us more about where we are. None the less I was very encouraged.

Just a note on Saniya from another thread. She's fearless and shes tuff.

 

[Woof 101]

Im pretty happy after watching last nites game. We looked really good as a unit. Bria and Breanna looked like they did earlier this season. Tuck and MoJeff looked much improved and Kiah was a pleasant surprise. Tonite will tell us more about where we are. None the less I was very encouraged.

Just a note on Saniya from another thread. She's fearless and shes tuff.

Not trying to be a wise but I think another meeting with ND will do much more to tell us about where we are.

 

[msf22b]

Tune in tomorrow.

 

[alexrgct]

DePaul is a great matchup for Uconn. Their defense is non-existent, and they play fast. Very little should be read into the results of that game.

 

[Icebear]

Mojo, please, mojo.

 

[CONNFAN23]

Tune in tomorrow.

Lets beat Syracuse first.

 

[msf22b]

Agree, was thinking the same thing.

 

[tomcat]

Reading this post AFTER the Syracuse game, those who say DePaul proved nothing are spot on. Syracuse is not a world-beating team, but they did pretty well against UConn tonight.

 

[vtcwbuff]

Tony - How happy are you after watching tonight's game? What started out as a typical orange butt whipping ended up just butt ugly.

 

[Icebear]

Tony keeps putting the jinx on this team with all the proclamations.

 

[tomcat]

Ice, mojo is a real problem here. We should expect less and be happy with more.

 

[VAMike23]

Ice, mojo is a real problem here. We should expect less and be happy with more.

This team is very hard to predict game to game, so I'm really not all that stressed about tonight. We're sloppy at times and that's not going to go away. Bria looks a little more confident and in hoping that carries over.

Tomorrow will be another battle and it will likely come down to a big play or two at crunch time. As usual. I think if our players have taken a step forward mentally since the last game, we can win it. If not, we will likely lose another nail biter. Either way we're a #1 seed camped in the state of CT for a fair spell.

 

[EricLA]

Syracuse is a solid team. 3rd in the big east is no fluke. And in fairness, the first half was really solid. The only thing that kept Syracuse in the game was their deep 3-point shooting. If UCONN played 2 halves of similar play, they'd have won by 20-25. However, the 2nd half tonight was a disaster. Seeing it in person was a total surprise. Our guard play was bad, the indecisiveness by the entire starting team was surprising, and this is the same team we beat by 25 earlier in the year.

I agree the Depaul game showed us nothing. They are a great matchup for UCONN because they play soft defense. Not pressing, not in your face, not intense. Syracuse, on the other hand, had athletic guards and our upper classmen looked lost out there for most of the 2nd half. The biggest surprise was the sloppy play, passing up open shots, coupled with the bad decisions - and this was mostly coming from Hartley and Faris...

To me it was a rather large step backwards. Geno was livid several times in the 2nd half and he really laid into the team. I don't know what got into them, but it was impossible for Geno to reach them at all for the entire 2nd half.

Side note, UCONN had ZERO trouble breaking press. I think Syracuse got 1 turnover in the 2nd half based on their full court press. That was about the lone bright spot in half 2...

If UCONN plays the way they did in the 2nd half, ND wins by 15-20.

 

[vtcwbuff]

With the exception of Stewart the entire team seemed to be in a funk for most of the second half. Syracuse outscored UConn 27-25 and also had more fast break and points in the paint.

Any idea why Jefferson and especially Tuck got such limited PT?

 

[alexrgct]

I was one who said not to read too much into the DePaul result, but I wouldn't read too much into last night's result either. That was just one of those games where no one played especially well, they were in no real danger of losing despite this, and the team just slogged through one of those survive and advance kinds of games you see on tournament play. Certainly, Geno was out of his mind, and he spoke for all of us at times, but sometimes a team gets infected with a case of the stupids. Even the 2002 team had such a game.

One of the biggest problems was KML's completely uninspired play. She just wasn't in a good place, wasn't getting the ball, wasn't hitting shots she usually makes with her eyes closed, and wasn't making good decisions out there. I expect her to play much more like her usual self tonight.

 

[meyers7]

Geno was livid several times in the 2nd half and he really laid into the team. I don't know what got into them, but it was impossible for Geno to reach them at all for the entire 2nd half.

I felt for Geno. If I had any hair I would have been pulling it out too. And I could not reach the team either by yelling at the TV. Very frustrating night.

 

[doggydaddy]

If ND plays like they did in the first half against Louisville, UConn beats them by 15-20.

 

[msf22b]

I partially agree with Doggy...ND's first half equaled our 2nd.
Wonder...does the team drive back to Storrs after the game or stay in town?
The advantage in sleeping in your own bed might be overridden by the time on the road.
3 hours late last night and this afternoon might be an advantage to the opponent.

 

[Kibitzer]

I partially agree with Doggy...ND's first half equaled our 2nd.
Wonder...does the team drive back to Storrs after the game or stay in town?
The advantage in sleeping in your own bed might be overridden by the time on the road.
3 hours late last night and this afternoon might be an advantage to the opponent.

They stay in the Hilton. While there, they dine by room service. They have study hall. They use meeting rooms like a classroom. By staying at the hotel, it makes it easy to go to the shoot-around early the day of the game. It is all meticulously scheduled. All part of Geno's "master plan."

 

[vtcwbuff]

If ND plays like they did in the first half against Louisville, UConn beats them by 15-20.

Had you asked me yesterday, I would have confidently bet on a UConn win over ND. UConn just doesn't lose 3 in a row to anyone. However, now I'm not so sure. UConn lost the 2nd half against Syracuse last night and they looked awful doing it.

If they play like that against ND they will not only lose, they will take a beating.

 

[alexrgct]

Had you asked me yesterday, I would have confidently bet on a UConn win over ND. UConn just doesn't lose 3 in a row to anyone. However, now I'm not so sure. UConn lost the 2nd half against Syracuse last night and they looked awful doing it.

If they play like that against ND they will not only lose, they will take a beating.

I agree, but if ND plays like they did against USF, the same thing will be true in reverse.

Both teams will be up for this game. Should be fun and good for WBB. Hopefully UConn can pull such a game out.

 

[doggydaddy]

Had you asked me yesterday, I would have confidently bet on a UConn win over ND. UConn just doesn't lose 3 in a row to anyone. However, now I'm not so sure. UConn lost the 2nd half against Syracuse last night and they looked awful doing it.

If they play like that against ND they will not only lose, they will take a beating.

And I'll add that if ND plays like they did against South Florida, they will lose to UConn and look terrible doing it.

I just don't see why either will happen.

** on edit - Sorry Alex, I didn't see your post when I posted the exact same thing.

 

[UConnChapette]

Good thing they actually play the games instead of deciding who will win based on prior performance against each other and other teams.

 

[bpear1600]

ND will win unless UConn shoots well from the outside.
Of course, they will have to be willing to take the shot when open. During one possession last night I counted 8 passes around the perimeter without anyone looking at the basket. Then they turned it over.