We're looking pretty dog gone good

[Zonepress]

It’s premature to say “We’re looking pretty dog gone good”. UConn hasn’t done anything yet, we don’t even know who willl be healthy enough to play. I will take a wait and see approach, I remember when there was talk of 5 straight National Championships after Paige and Azzi signed with UConn. On paper UConn looks good, unfortunately, the games are played on the court. Hopefully things work out for UConn. We just need to take things 1 day at a time.

Well
Said

 

[hoophuskee]

My thoughts as well. But if Geno and the players decide on another post, knowing what they know now and for the program’s future — it’s their team after all — I’ll be comfortable with it as well.

Now to address the Big angst on the board — Bigs. As in, South Carolina’s Bigs#. And really those Bigs for all the marbles in April, as I think most would agree that UConn’s team will be enough, G*d-willing, for any team with the exception of SC because of those Bigs.

Things to consider:

• None of those Bigs are named Boston or Cardoso;
• Only 5 players can play at the same time for a team and playing more than 3 6’3+ players at a time is mostly non-sensical;
• Our injured players’ one-year surgery anniversary is January 2025, so perhaps Aubrey and Yanna will be available and fully contributing by April; and
• Geno knows how to win a national championship against athletic tall line-ups, i.e. Tennessee’s 1999 team that boasted Catchings (6’2), Jackson (6’2), Snow (6’5), Pillow (6’3), Stephens (6’4), with the 1999 team (TASSK second year) which is similar to the 2024 team.

# Kitts (6’2), Edwards (6’3), Watkins (6’3), Feagin (6’3), Tac (6’5), Walker (6’4). As a group, only 3 have D1 experience.

IMO way too much is made of height. It's so unfortunate these last 3 years UCONN has been decimated by injury. Because of those injuries, UCONN hasn't been able to battle with a team like South Carolina in a fair fight. On the General Board a post was made a while back mentioning how South Caolina was so close to winning the last 4 titles- as if "unlucky" "not to win." While true to a degree, but -- South Carolina was also very lucky that their #1 rival (UCONN) was basically torn apart by injury.


South Carolina only got a small glimpse of great perimeter play with Iowa while UCONN has basically had their two #1 recruits hurt mostly the last three years / or limited playing along with their #4 recruit (CD) also struggling with injury. S.C. never had to face the full force of this perimeter play. That's why "bigs" / "rebounding" has won titles the last few years so impressively.

Look how much South Carolina has struggled with Clark. Note how Paige beat South Carolina practically single-handedly her frosh year. And who would seriously think a healthy Paige and Azzi (and add in Caroline) wouldn't have been much more of a formidable opponent than Iowa when going against South Carolina?

Not only have they been hurt-- but - we can’t make it up-- our Bigs get hurt too!! Therefore of course we got crushed on the boards - and our perimeter struggled. And even this year we are so young all over - more so in the frontcourt.

IMO the keys for this year are health (they need Azzi to be near the level of the 6-game sophomore Azzi) and they are going to have to overcome lack of experience in the frontcourt. I think experience is so important. Also, if I were to look at a team for comparison it would mostly be the 99-00 team as a comparison. UCONN was led by 3 scorers (Bird, Sveta, Ralph) on the perimeter- and their frontcourt just had to hold on. This year I'm thinking Paige, Azzi, and Sarah as comparable if healthy. I believe Sarah is being vastly underrated (and I understand Sarah is much more inside than the 99-00 3). **Plus I have high expectation for her rebounding because I believe height is overrated vs strength and positioning.

And just to sum things up- if UCONN were healthy with Azzi and having signficant team heallth fromJnauary on-- we're probably better than SC.

 

[NycUcWbbFan]

IMO way too much is made of height. It's so unfortunate these last 3 years UCONN has been decimated by injury. Because of those injuries, UCONN hasn't been able to battle with a team like South Carolina in a fair fight. On the General Board a post was made a while back mentioning how South Caolina was so close to winning the last 4 titles- as if "unlucky" "not to win." While true to a degree, but -- South Carolina was also very lucky that their #1 rival (UCONN) was basically torn apart by injury.


South Carolina only got a small glimpse of great perimeter play with Iowa while UCONN has basically had their two #1 recruits hurt mostly the last three years / or limited playing along with their #4 recruit (CD) also struggling with injury. S.C. never had to face the full force of this perimeter play. That's why "bigs" / "rebounding" has won titles the last few years so impressively.

Look how much South Carolina has struggled with Clark. Note how Paige beat South Carolina practically single-handedly her frosh year. And who would seriously think a healthy Paige and Azzi (and add in Caroline) wouldn't have been much more of a formidable opponent than Iowa when going against South Carolina?

Not only have they been hurt-- but - we can’t make it up-- our Bigs get hurt too!! Therefore of course we got crushed on the boards - and our perimeter struggled. And even this year we are so young all over - more so in the frontcourt.

IMO the keys for this year are health (they need Azzi to be near the level of the 6-game sophomore Azzi) and they are going to have to overcome lack of experience in the frontcourt. I think experience is so important. Also, if I were to look at a team for comparison it would mostly be the 99-00 team as a comparison. UCONN was led by 3 scorers (Bird, Sveta, Ralph) on the perimeter- and their frontcourt just had to hold on. This year I'm thinking Paige, Azzi, and Sarah as comparable if healthy. I believe Sarah is being vastly underrated (and I understand Sarah is much more inside than the 99-00 3). **Plus I have high expectation for her rebounding because I believe height is overrated vs strength and positioning.

And just to sum things up- if UCONN were healthy with Azzi and having signficant team heallth fromJnauary on-- we're probably better than SC.

Dawn, back in the day when UConn was fully healthy, described UConn’s play as the “machine”. With practice-perfected play, now with Kaitlyn enabling 10-player practices, Geno might have the machine of old roaring back again.

To amplify your points:

Just for fun, here’s UConn’s players who can play in the post # (compare to SC’s bigs ##):

# Morgan (6’2), Sarah (6’2), Jana (6’5), Ice (6’3), [Yanna (6’2)], [Aubrey (6’1)]. As a group, only 3 have D1 experience.

## Kitts (6’2), Edwards (6’3), Watkins (6’3), Feagin (6’3), Tac (6’5), Walker (6’4). As a group, only 3 have D1 experience.

and here’s UConn 2024 team @ compared to the 1999 team @@:

@ Kaitlyn / KK, [Azzi], Paige, Sarah, Ice, Jana, Ash, [Aubrey], [Yanna], Q | Morgan, Allie, [[Caroline]]

@@ Sue / KJ, Shea, Svet, Asjha, Swin, Tamika, Amy Duran, Kelly Schumacher, Paige Sauer, Stacey Hansmayer

where [] denotes recovering injured, and [[]] denotes indeterminately recovering injured.

 

[Conndog]

UConn has lacked an intimidating shot blocker since ONO graduated..........her ability to shut down drives to the lane and interior shots was of major importance to the UConn defense...........South Carolina's frontcourt is extremely athletic, and they are all hungry for the ball at both ends of the court............you're simply not outrebounding them consistently with less athletic six foot forwards.........with her great physical abilities (if healthy) Ayanna Patterson's play next season on the defensive end and on the boards may be more important than most people realize...........

Aubrey being out last year really hurt too - especially her rebounding and defense- and I'm super excited to have her return

 

[GoUconn7961]

Some of you are glass half empty people, right?
Yup - have been injury plagued. But, got to the FF. How quickly we forget.
No faith in Jana commenters? No faith in Sarah? No faith in Geno to develop a young squad to be March ready?
For shame.
The only player I'm hesitant to discuss is Caroline. Noggins are tricky things.

 

[Charliebball]

Aubrey being out last year really hurt too - especially her rebounding and defense- and I'm super excited to have her return

Yes, Aubrey's absence due to injury has hurt the team in two different seasons...........not sure when she will be ready to play next season but she is crucial to the team's success........

 

[oldude]

As a number of BY’ers have alluded, Jana is next year’s “X-Factor.” Assuming a healthy roster (fingers crossed) and that UConn does not bring in another Big through the portal, Jana’s development as a multi-talented center will be critical as to whether or not this Husky team can bring home #12.

Jana has a remarkable skill set and she will be surrounded by experienced and talented players. If she becomes the player we all hope she becomes, UConn will have one of the very best teams in the nation, capable of beating anyone, anywhere.

 

[BBallF]

Yes, Aubrey's absence due to injury has hurt the team in two different seasons...........not sure when she will be ready to play next season but she is crucial to the team's success........

Aubrey does so many important things out there and has shown that she can singlehandedly turn a game around. I just don't know if I agree with the term "crucial". That implies to me that we can't win it if she does not come back perfectly. I think that most of us would agree that if we had Aubrey (whom we all love) we get to the Finals last year but would we have won? So, while I think she is very important and brings things that no one else on the team can ( pure floor player), I still agree with the above poster who emphasized scoring and shooting as the keys to winning together with great defense of course.

We have an armada of great 3 point shooters, if healthy, in Paige, Azzi, Ash, Allie, Kaitlyn, and CD. You have to expect that Ash will be even stronger and will work on her moves ending in pull ups and drives even more over the summer. Paige can create, so can Azzi, and Kaitlyn as well and if Allie gets her confidence, she can break a game open. CD has a cluster of terrific offensive moves but we have to see about her. Jana is the X factor. We know about Sarah who also can hit the 3 with regularity and board and is a strong(sorry) inside force. But Geno's comments on Jana are really extraordinary, and the significance of them was not well understood I don't think. He has seen a lot of players in 40 years, some of the greatest ever by any measure but to single her out for her persona as the best is stunning. She appears to be so generous, warm, team oriented, and supportive that you just know that she is going to have the Nika mentality of "just tell me which brick wall you want me to run through Coach and consider it done". Will it be fits and starts? Probably. But look what we eventually got from Nika. I think it's the same heart and I also think that she will be an instant fan favorite because she will never stop trying and never stop giving.

 

[BBallF]

As a number of BY’ers have alluded, Jana is next year’s “X-Factor.” Assuming a healthy roster (fingers crossed) and that UConn does not bring in another Big through the portal, Jana’s development as a multi-talented center will be critical as to whether or not this Husky team can bring home #12.

Jana has a remarkable skill set and she will be surrounded by experienced and talented players. If she becomes the player we all hope she becomes, UConn will have one of the very best teams in the nation, capable of beating anyone, anywhere.

Just to be clear, I had not seen your post before I wrote mine and also called Jana the "X factor". She truly is. She does have excellent skills as you stated but with her I think the attribute that will make her that key player is the persona and the sheer drive to help the team at all costs. She is also a talented passer who has great sense of the game and an inside -out attack with our shooters will be lethal.

 

[NycUcWbbFan]

Aubrey does so many important things out there and has shown that she can singlehandedly turn a game around. I just don't know if I agree with the term "crucial". That implies to me that we can't win it if she does not come back perfectly. I think that most of us would agree that if we had Aubrey (whom we all love) we get to the Finals last year but would we have won? So, while I think she is very important and brings things that no one else on the team can ( pure floor player), I still agree with the above poster who emphasized scoring and shooting as the keys to winning together with great defense of course.

We have an armada of great 3 point shooters, if healthy, in Paige, Azzi, Ash, Allie, Kaitlyn, and CD. You have to expect that Ash will be even stronger and will work on her moves ending in pull ups and drives even more over the summer. Paige can create, so can Azzi, and Kaitlyn as well and if Allie gets her confidence, she can break a game open. CD has a cluster of terrific offensive moves but we have to see about her. Jana is the X factor. We know about Sarah who also can hit the 3 with regularity and board and is a strong(sorry) inside force. But Geno's comments on Jana are really extraordinary, and the significance of them was not well understood I don't think. He has seen a lot of players in 40 years, some of the greatest ever by any measure but to single her out for her persona as the best is stunning. She appears to be so generous, warm, team oriented, and supportive that you just know that she is going to have the Nika mentality of "just tell me which brick wall you want me to run through Coach and consider it done". Will it be fits and starts? Probably. But look what we eventually got from Nika. I think it's the same heart and I also think that she will be an instant fan favorite because she will never stop trying and never stop giving.

What you said about Jana is what I remember Geno saying. Hyperbole or not, Geno also said this about Jana:

“To put it another way: UConn is adding the No. 1 player in the class of 2024 with Sarah Strong, a 6-2 forward. Auriemma believes El Alfy would’ve been the top prospect in the class of 2023 had she hailed from North America instead of Egypt. He pointed to the FIBA U19 World Cup in which she led the entire tournament in scoring at 21.4 points per game — despite not even turning 18 yet — as proof.”

“”She was the best player out there — by far. By far,” he said. “These are the best [19] and under players in the world — including the US — and every coach that came back said she was the best player there.””

Post 39: Post in thread 'Video of Jana'

 

[Bone Dog]

I can hardly wait to see Jana play. I’ve loved what I’ve seen in glimpses so far. Her skills are intriguing though not yet perfect, but what she brings in heart and ferocity is striking. Maybe we’ll end up referring to her as “Big Nika” before long. Wouldn’t that be something?

 

[Charliebball]

Aubrey does so many important things out there and has shown that she can singlehandedly turn a game around. I just don't know if I agree with the term "crucial". That implies to me that we can't win it if she does not come back perfectly. I think that most of us would agree that if we had Aubrey (whom we all love) we get to the Finals last year but would we have won? So, while I think she is very important and brings things that no one else on the team can ( pure floor player), I still agree with the above poster who emphasized scoring and shooting as the keys to winning together with great defense of course.

We have an armada of great 3 point shooters, if healthy, in Paige, Azzi, Ash, Allie, Kaitlyn, and CD. You have to expect that Ash will be even stronger and will work on her moves ending in pull ups and drives even more over the summer. Paige can create, so can Azzi, and Kaitlyn as well and if Allie gets her confidence, she can break a game open. CD has a cluster of terrific offensive moves but we have to see about her. Jana is the X factor. We know about Sarah who also can hit the 3 with regularity and board and is a strong(sorry) inside force. But Geno's comments on Jana are really extraordinary, and the significance of them was not well understood I don't think. He has seen a lot of players in 40 years, some of the greatest ever by any measure but to single her out for her persona as the best is stunning. She appears to be so generous, warm, team oriented, and supportive that you just know that she is going to have the Nika mentality of "just tell me which brick wall you want me to run through Coach and consider it done". Will it be fits and starts? Probably. But look what we eventually got from Nika. I think it's the same heart and I also think that she will be an instant fan favorite because she will never stop trying and never stop giving.

A lot of scorers but not a lot of disruptive end-to-end players who can quickly change the tenor of a game by themselves offensively and defensively......how many times have we seen Aubrey enter a game and make big play after big play to help UConn pull away in what were tight games? Her importance to the team's success shouldn't be underestimated........

 

[oldude]

A lot of scorers but not a lot of disruptive end-to-end players who can quickly change the tenor of a game by themselves offensively and defensively......how many times have we seen Aubrey enter a game and make big play after big play to help UConn pull away in what were tight games? Her importance to the team's success shouldn't be underestimated........

I respectfully disagree. Paige & KK were both extremely disruptive defensively and they could both turn defense into offense before opponents had a chance to catch their breath. You can also add Chen to that group. She may not be quite as physical as Nika, but she is quick and relentless on defense and she’s very capable of pushing tempo in transition.

 

[yhun89]

Not too concerned. So many people freaking out we lack a big, yet we literally landed Strong who can play the SF, and Jana as a center who is highly regarded by Geno. Arguably we have the best backcourt with Ziebell, Azzi, Paige, and Ash all being lights out shooters. We have forwards in Aubrey, Ice who showed great development towards the end, and Morgan has stated she can play a forward position with her height. Questions on Caroline and Ayanna however.

 

[yhun89]

I respectfully disagree. Paige & KK were both extremely disruptive defensively and they could both turn defense into offense before opponents had a chance to catch their breath. You can also add Chen to that group. She may not be quite as physical as Nika, but she is quick and relentless on defense and she’s very capable of pushing tempo in transition.

Chen is super underrated on defense. In the Ivy League, she was all over the top scorers, notably 5 star Harmoni Turner from Harvard, who probably has the speed to be Hidalgo-esque. Ivy may be easier, but Harmoni was not easy to guard, just ask the Baylor WBB team.

 

[yhun89]

What you said about Jana is what I remember Geno saying. Hyperbole or not, Geno also said this about Jana:

“To put it another way: UConn is adding the No. 1 player in the class of 2024 with Sarah Strong, a 6-2 forward. Auriemma believes El Alfy would’ve been the top prospect in the class of 2023 had she hailed from North America instead of Egypt. He pointed to the FIBA U19 World Cup in which she led the entire tournament in scoring at 21.4 points per game — despite not even turning 18 yet — as proof.”

“”She was the best player out there — by far. By far,” he said. “These are the best [19] and under players in the world — including the US — and every coach that came back said she was the best player there.””

Post 39: Post in thread 'Video of Jana'

Did Jana play a game against the US to see how she stacks against college level competition before the injury? I don't remember, but if she got those numbers against the US then we are set.

 

[yhun89]

Dawn, back in the day when UConn was fully healthy, described UConn’s play as the “machine”. With practice-perfected play, now with Kaitlyn enabling 10-player practices, Geno might have the machine of old roaring back again.

To amplify your points:

Just for fun, here’s UConn’s players who can play in the post # (compare to SC’s bigs ##):

# Morgan (6’2), Sarah (6’2), Jana (6’5), Ice (6’3), [Yanna (6’2)], [Aubrey (6’1)]. As a group, only 3 have D1 experience.

## Kitts (6’2), Edwards (6’3), Watkins (6’3), Feagin (6’3), Tac (6’5), Walker (6’4). As a group, only 3 have D1 experience.

and here’s UConn 2024 team @ compared to the 1999 team @@:

@ Kaitlyn / KK, [Azzi], Paige, Sarah, Ice, Jana, Ash, [Aubrey], [Yanna], Q | Morgan, Allie, [[Caroline]]

@@ Sue / KJ, Shea, Svet, Asjha, Swin, Tamika, Amy Duran, Kelly Schumacher, Paige Sauer, Stacey Hansmayer

where [] denotes recovering injured, and [[]] denotes indeterminately recovering injured.

Edwards looks tough though, I have no doubt she'll acclimate to college immediately like Watkins and Hidalgo. But I am thrilled to watch the SC UConn matchup if we're healthy. Edwards vs Strong, Jana vs Tac will be cinema. If Ice becomes less foul prone, her defense will be a huge addition; honestly I feel her D was underrated during the BE tourney, because when she didn't foul, nobody made their shots over her.

 

[yhun89]

We're gonna be lethal on defense. KK, Paige, Chen, Aubrey, Ash, Azzi (if I remember correctly, she was a decent defender) Ice's post defense without fouls, and I believe Morgan offers a decent amount of defense down low and at the perimeter. Imagine if Nika stayed. No 3 pointers allowed.

 

[Conndog]

Aubrey on the fast break is another thing that has been in short supply since her injury. She has great speed and also is a great finisher at the rim. She doesn't miss very many bunnies!

 

[my2cents]

With a healthy Paige we are a FF4 team. That said, losing AE on the frontline is a major loss.
At this point, our front line is unknown, returning from injury or needs improvement. With no more additions, I think winning #12 will be a challenge.

 

[CL82]

We thought there was an embarrassment of riches last year and look what happened At least Kaitlyn has no history of injuries and the now-sophomores seem durable (knock on wood)

 

[NycUcWbbFan]

Did Jana play a game against the US to see how she stacks against college level competition before the injury? I don't remember, but if she got those numbers against the US then we are set.

Jana El-Alfy (no head to head with USA (see last bullet)):

• Top-Scorer: Jana Elalfy finishes first in race for #FIBAU19WWC top scorer
• Fan Vote (1. Toby Fournier, 2. Jana El Alfy, 3. Awa Fam, 4. Juste Jocyte, 5. Hannah Hidalgo, 6. Elena Buenavida, 7. Cassandra Prosper, 8. Maimuna Haidara, 9. Isabel Borlase, 10. Joyce Edwards, 11. Leila Lacan, 12. Dominica Paurova, 13. Chloe Kitts, 14. Iyana Martin Carrion, 15. Haru Owaki, 16. Nyadiew Pouch): Fan Vote: Which U19 WWC players will have the best pro-career?
• Second Team: FIBA U19 Women's World Cup 2023; All-Second Team, Best Coach and Defensive Player Awards
• Egypt > 12th Place Team: https://www.fiba.basketball/world/u19women/2023/team/Egypt#|tab=games_and_results

 

[BBallF]

A lot of scorers but not a lot of disruptive end-to-end players who can quickly change the tenor of a game by themselves offensively and defensively......how many times have we seen Aubrey enter a game and make big play after big play to help UConn pull away in what were tight games? Her importance to the team's success shouldn't be underestimated........

Totally agree. I didn't mean to imply otherwise. I have always been a huge Aubrey fan, having had season tickets to Seton Hall when her father played there with the same M.O., great floor game. I also was at her first great game at Walsh as a freshman. She is everywhere at times when she plays and can turn a game around in a few possessions.That's why we would have beaten Iowa last year and been in the Finals. She is a unique player and her absence was glaring. Geno did what he could with what he had, starting 2 freshmen and having another 2 as 6th and 7th men and the rewards of same will be reaped this year and beyond. I just hope Aubrey is fully healthy and that she stays that way for the year.

 

[BBallF]

I respectfully disagree. Paige & KK were both extremely disruptive defensively and they could both turn defense into offense before opponents had a chance to catch their breath. You can also add Chen to that group. She may not be quite as physical as Nika, but she is quick and relentless on defense and she’s very capable of pushing tempo in transition.

That is also completely accurate. Suffice it to say that Aubrey's defense and floor game when added to KK, Paige, and Chen creates a very disruptive defensive scheme, each bringing their own special qualities. Paige's anticipation on defense may be the best I have ever seen, KK's hands and quickness can be lethal, and Aubtrey's length, verticality and floor smarts are all in the mix. Chen is apparently a superb all around player who excels in man to man defense so we may be able to turn several games around simply in transition.