When Ice and Morgan Return To The Court ...?

[JoePgh]

The last we heard from Geno (maybe two weeks ago) is that Ice and Morgan are not going to return until "at least" the new year. Since there are only two games left in 2025, what are the implications if one or both of them returns in the first game of January, which is at home against Seton Hall on January 3?

Of course, we all know that Geno did not remotely guarantee that would happen. One or both of them may be further delayed. But his comments suggest that sometime in the first few weeks of January, they should be physically able to return, and would by then have had time for some amount of regular practice.

There has been a lot of discussion recently, both by Geno himself and on the Boneyard, about how many players can be in the "regular rotation", I.e., getting minutes before garbage time and/or in competitive games. He suggested that 10 "regular rotation" players might be the max, or might be too many.

Recently, the regular rotation has included the 5 starters plus Blanca, K9, and Allie, with Jana "on the borderline". That is either 8 or 9 regular rotation players, near Geno's self-declared maximum.

His problem in the new year will be that both Ice and Morgan were solidly in last year's regular rotation, and they earned their place there. Ice was the first front court player off the bench (behind Jana and Sarah). She had developed a fairly reliable midrange jump shot that proved critical in a few games, something that Serah Williams has yet to show. And she rebounded at least as well as Serah has done this year. But she never showed the kind of close-in post moves that Serah has demonstrated, and Geno noted that she preferred to take jump shots than to really mix it up in the paint.

Before her injury (in February, as I recall), Morgan was often the first player off the bench, and had somewhat the same role that Blanca now has as a 6-2, aggressive, do-it-all player. Morgan was very good at that, although perhaps not as good as Blanca has been this year. And it's important to note that Morgan was coming off a high school injury last year, and surprised the coaches with how quickly she picked up the system despite missing all the preseason practices. So it seems likely that she will need minimal ramp-up time this year to get back to her last year's level of play once she is physically healthy.

What do you think Geno will do when these two players become available? Will he add them both to the regular rotation, bringing the rotation to 10 or 11 players depending on how he views Jana? Or will they both "wait their turn" behind Serah and Blanca respectively? Or maybe one of them will bull her way into the rotation? I can easily imagine that Geno may come to see Morgan as a more reliable backup PG and ball handler than Kayleigh. Or he may find that Blanca gets in foul trouble often enough (just as Morgan did last year) that it becomes reasonable for them to split minutes in that "hybrid" guard/forward role. It's harder for me to see how Ice can break in to the regular rotation, especially if Geno continues to give heavy minutes to the "small lineup" option with Sarah as the 5.

I suppose it will be a "good problem" to have, but that doesn't make it any less vexing for Geno.

 

[BobbyJ]

The last we heard from Geno (maybe two weeks ago) is that Ice and Morgan are not going to return until "at least" the new year. Since there are only two games left in 2025, what are the implications if one or both of them returns in the first game of January, which is at home against Seton Hall on January 3?

Of course, we all know that Geno did not remotely guarantee that would happen. One or both of them may be further delayed. But his comments suggest that sometime in the first few weeks of January, they should be physically able to return, and would by then have had time for some amount of regular practice.

There has been a lot of discussion recently, both by Geno himself and on the Boneyard, about how many players can be in the "regular rotation", I.e., getting minutes before garbage time and/or in competitive games. He suggested that 10 "regular rotation" players might be the max, or might be too many.

Recently, the regular rotation has included the 5 starters plus Blanca, K9, and Allie, with Jana "on the borderline". That is either 8 or 9 regular rotation players, near Geno's self-declared maximum.

His problem in the new year will be that both Ice and Morgan were solidly in last year's regular rotation, and they earned their place there. Ice was the first front court player off the bench (behind Jana and Sarah). She had developed a fairly reliable midrange jump shot that proved critical in a few games, something that Serah Williams has yet to show. And she rebounded at least as well as Serah has done this year. But she never showed the kind of close-in post moves that Serah has demonstrated, and Geno noted that she preferred to take jump shots than to really mix it up in the paint.

Before her injury (in February, as I recall), Morgan was often the first player off the bench, and had somewhat the same role that Blanca now has as a 6-2, aggressive, do-it-all player. Morgan was very good at that, although perhaps not as good as Blanca has been this year. And it's important to note that Morgan was coming off a high school injury last year, and surprised the coaches with how quickly she picked up the system despite missing all the preseason practices. So it seems likely that she will need minimal ramp-up time this year to get back to her last year's level of play once she is physically healthy.

What do you think Geno will do when these two players become available? Will he add them both to the regular rotation, bringing the rotation to 10 or 11 players depending on how he views Jana? Or will they both "wait their turn" behind Serah and Blanca respectively? Or maybe one of them will bull her way into the rotation? I can easily imagine that Geno may come to see Morgan as a more reliable backup PG and ball handler than Kayleigh. Or he may find that Blanca gets in foul trouble often enough (just as Morgan did last year) that it becomes reasonable for them to split minutes in that "hybrid" guard/forward role. It's harder for me to see how Ice can break in to the regular rotation, especially if Geno continues to give heavy minutes to the "small lineup" option with Sarah as the 5.

I suppose it will be a "good problem" to have, but that doesn't make it any less vexing for Geno.

I don't think it's vexing for him at all. I believe those two will sit with the rest of the players outside the 8 man rotation and wait for something to happen within that group that creates a need for one of them. Auriemma rarely experiments or gambles and he knows that things tend to get shaky when he goes beyond that trusted rotation. By this point of the season no one is making any noticeable improvements in their games (other than BQ who is rapidly learning what she can and can't do within the flow) and GA knows exactly what they all can do and isn't going to change much of anything unless he's forced to. He's not developing players for next year now. Plus I also don't believe he spends any time thinking about any of these types of speculations and scenarios that the BY comes up with, he just does what he needs to when he needs to. He knows the 8 or 9 who are going to make or break the season barring any injuries. That's why he continually mentions the limited amount of minutes available.

 

[donalddoowop]

When was the last game Blanca was in foul trouble?

 

[Bone Dog]

My guess -- and that's all it is -- Morgan gets minutes before Ice. If that's right, then she'll sub in for Ash, and Blanca will sub in for Serah more often.

If the first 5 is:
Azzi Sarah Serah Ash KK

the second 5 will be:
Blanca Kayleigh Allie Morgan Jana.

Of course, Geno won't use 'hockey line' substitutions, which means he'll filter the second 5 into the first 5 gradually allowing a bunch of different combinations.

 

[Hayven]

Personally I would like Morgan to redshirt. Had this been a few years ago, when we could barely get 7 ppl suited up for a game, then I would see why they would bring her back. But we have “depth” this year. Geno showed his cards during the Iowa game, by primarily playing the staters. So, I expect the same when it gets closer to the championship game.

Morgan will be need more next year, and the years after. I don’t see the point of burning a red-shirt year, for playing half a season

 

[Blond D.]

I suspect if Morgan gets back up to speed, she will take Allies minutes. At least quite a few of them.

I kind of agree about her red-shirting this year especially if she isnt ready by the end of January.

 

[Bone Dog]

Before her injury (in February, as I recall), Morgan was often the first player off the bench, and had somewhat the same role that Blanca now has as a 6-2, aggressive, do-it-all player. Morgan was very good at that, although perhaps not as good as Blanca has been this year.

I really don’t see Morgan as at all similar to Blanca. She is big and capable of operating freely at various positions. But she doesn’t have that raw physicality Blanca has, the sort of athleticism that simply overwhelms opponents. Blanca is more like what Aubrey was at her peak multiplied by a factor of 10. By contrast, Morgan is like a bigger version of Evina, someone who plays with alertness and is under control. She could be a floor general while Blanca is an explosive X-factor.

I hope Morgan can get into shape to play in the second half of this season. But I doubt very much she’s going to take any minutes from Allie. I don’t think anyone is going to take minutes from Allie over the next two and half seasons. This season, as her defense improves, she will solidify her place in the rotation next to Kayleigh. And next season, when Azzi has moved on, her role as perimeter shooter will keep her on the floor, and this will be even more pronounced in her senior season. That’s just a nebulous prediction. Feel free to disagree.

 

[Geew1992]

Personally I would like Morgan to redshirt. Had this been a few years ago, when we could barely get 7 ppl suited up for a game, then I would see why they would bring her back. But we have “depth” this year. Geno showed his cards during the Iowa game, by primarily playing the staters. So, I expect the same when it gets closer to the championship game.

Morgan will be need more next year, and the years after. I don’t see the point of burning a red-shirt year, for playing half a season

Pretty sure there was an interview where Geno said Morgan should be back after the first of the year. And there has been no discussion of her redshirting

 

[bayern7]

I don't think it's vexing for him at all. I believe those two will sit with the rest of the players outside the 8 man rotation and wait for something to happen within that group that creates a need for one of them. Auriemma rarely experiments or gambles and he knows that things tend to get shaky when he goes beyond that trusted rotation. By this point of the season no one is making any noticeable improvements in their games (other than BQ who is rapidly learning what she can and can't do within the flow) and GA knows exactly what they all can do and isn't going to change much of anything unless he's forced to. He's not developing players for next year now. Plus I also don't believe he spends any time thinking about any of these types of speculations and scenarios that the BY comes up with, he just does what he needs to when he needs to. He knows the 8 or 9 who are going to make or break the season barring any injuries. That's why he continually mentions the limited amount of minutes available.

This comment is all anyone needs to read to know about new players being added into the fold at this point in the season. The only way this wouldn’t apply is if it was a player of Paige/Sarah caliber. That would change things. But he has the players he needs to win. As you said, his focus now is on getting his 8-9 player rotation honed for the big dance.

People asking about Gandy or Morgan or Ice, it’s like we all love these players and have hopes for their futures. But for all intents and purposes, the way the team stands right now. They are tertiary to the on the floor output at this point in the season.

It would take extraordinary circumstances to change that now. And I think there’s a lot of wishful thinking, especially in Morgan’s case. She’s been off basketball duty for what, almost a year by the time she MIGHT be ready to play again. It’s a bit unfair to her and fantastical on our part to expect she’s going to be back and contributing at the level needed to crack the rotation at this point in the season. Let’s get real here people.

 

[oldhusky]

I hope both get healthy soon, but don't expect either to be part of the rotation anytime soon. First there is no problem with the current rotation, no big holes or needs to fill. Second, neither brings a big upgrade to what we have now, and to play they need to beat out specific players who currently seem to be ahead of them.

Of the two, I think Morgan has the best chance as being the backup 4 to Sarah. That is closest to being a weak spot on the team now. We started the season with two natural 4's to fill that role, both highly rated out of HS, but neither having produced at a high level here, at least by Uconn's very high norms. Maybe if Ice or Ayanna had stood out, one of them might have secured a limited minutes role as just Sarah's backup in a 10 player rotation.

Their problem was the competition was not just who is the best backup 4, but whoever could be used there in a small or big lineup. both Blanca and potentially Morgan were threats to their role, in addition to potentially Serah if she ever played in combination with Jana. So far Jana has not warranted more than backup minutes, so Serah has not been used at the 4 in a big lineup, but the competition from small ball and Blanca specifically is very real and apparently well established.

Blanca is going to get more minutes than being just the backup 3 behind Ash, not a little bit more, a lot more if not start herself. She gets many of those now as a 4 in the small ball lineup, and a rotation of 9 is working with no natural backup 4, with Blanca getting those minutes in addition to her time at the 3.

Even if Blanca wound up starting at the 3, when Sarah was sitting, the option of replacing her with Ash or Allie and moving Blanca over to the 4 would seem to be a much better option than using Ice. The path to playing time for Ice might be easier by being the best backup at the 5. While I consider Ice more 4 than 5, Jana's failure thus far to make a significant leap in her second year opens the door a little bit there.

Morgan's versatility gives her more ways to get playing time, but most likely due to an injury, not by cracking the current rotation. At what position she can play is she the second best option? At the 1 I think she is clearly behind KK and Kayleigh, at the 2 Azzi, Ash and Allie are in her way, Ash and Blanca at the 3, and Sarah and Blanca at the 4. Now things change a great deal with an injury, where Morgan might be the most likely to join the rotation. Morgan might even be favored over Ice as the option at the 4 if heaven forbid, Sarah was injured. In that scenario I wouldn't be surprised if Geno went full small ball using Ash and Allie at the 3, and Blanca and Morgan at the 4.

So I don't see either cracking the rotation, but both could be in the on deck position should injuries occur, particularly Morgan. Don't know if she should red-shirt or not. If she is ready relatively late in the season and we are still healthy, I suspect she might. If she is ready sooner and we do have a significant injury I would think she would be used this year, particularly as we have a good chance at the championship.

 

[oldude]

Assuming that Ice & Morgan are in fact cleared to play, the good news is that with UConn moving into their predominantly conference schedule, both will have an opportunity to play, even if it’s only mop up minutes. But that still makes crashing the regular rotation difficult, which I see as 9 players: the starting 5 plus Blanca, Kayleigh, Allie & Jana.

Of course there is always the chance that one or both force Geno to play them by virtue of their performance in practice and during mop up time. But honestly, I think that Kelis has earned more PT by virtue of her performance in games and unfortunately for her, she has 5 guards ahead of her in the rotation.

 

[Tonyc]

If and when Ice and Morgan come back it is going to take time in practice to get up to speed. Then they have to translate that into a game and be effective. That takes time. How much time? As long as it takes. Right now, we are in great shape with our team. Players are coming along. Its a process that cannot be rushed. We saw how long it took other injured players to get back on track. It takes time.

Blanca Kayleigh Jana and Allie have worked their way into their positions. They are part of the chemistry. What have they done to lose their positions in Genos eyes? I dont think much. Those positions are theirs to lose. I feel theyve earned their spots. The focus is now getting better prepared for the rest of the season and for our NC run.

For the course of the season UConn is going to blow out most of the teams they face. You saw that against Iowa a very good team. Azzi got off to a slow start shooting and we had a healthy lead. Thats how good we are. There are no "what ifs" with this team so long as our key players remain healthy. Everybody else will get playtime when Geno sees fit. This is one of the best teams Geno has had. Their defense is so good it fails comparison. Azzi Sarah and Blanca are virtually unstoppable, and no other team has 3 like them or a defense close to what UConn has. This is a special group.

 

[HopJim]

The last we heard from Geno (maybe two weeks ago) is that Ice and Morgan are not going to return until "at least" the new year. Since there are only two games left in 2025, what are the implications if one or both of them returns in the first game of January, which is at home against Seton Hall on January 3?

Of course, we all know that Geno did not remotely guarantee that would happen. One or both of them may be further delayed. But his comments suggest that sometime in the first few weeks of January, they should be physically able to return, and would by then have had time for some amount of regular practice.

There has been a lot of discussion recently, both by Geno himself and on the Boneyard, about how many players can be in the "regular rotation", I.e., getting minutes before garbage time and/or in competitive games. He suggested that 10 "regular rotation" players might be the max, or might be too many.

Recently, the regular rotation has included the 5 starters plus Blanca, K9, and Allie, with Jana "on the borderline". That is either 8 or 9 regular rotation players, near Geno's self-declared maximum.

His problem in the new year will be that both Ice and Morgan were solidly in last year's regular rotation, and they earned their place there. Ice was the first front court player off the bench (behind Jana and Sarah). She had developed a fairly reliable midrange jump shot that proved critical in a few games, something that Serah Williams has yet to show. And she rebounded at least as well as Serah has done this year. But she never showed the kind of close-in post moves that Serah has demonstrated, and Geno noted that she preferred to take jump shots than to really mix it up in the paint.

Before her injury (in February, as I recall), Morgan was often the first player off the bench, and had somewhat the same role that Blanca now has as a 6-2, aggressive, do-it-all player. Morgan was very good at that, although perhaps not as good as Blanca has been this year. And it's important to note that Morgan was coming off a high school injury last year, and surprised the coaches with how quickly she picked up the system despite missing all the preseason practices. So it seems likely that she will need minimal ramp-up time this year to get back to her last year's level of play once she is physically healthy.

What do you think Geno will do when these two players become available? Will he add them both to the regular rotation, bringing the rotation to 10 or 11 players depending on how he views Jana? Or will they both "wait their turn" behind Serah and Blanca respectively? Or maybe one of them will bull her way into the rotation? I can easily imagine that Geno may come to see Morgan as a more reliable backup PG and ball handler than Kayleigh. Or he may find that Blanca gets in foul trouble often enough (just as Morgan did last year) that it becomes reasonable for them to split minutes in that "hybrid" guard/forward role. It's harder for me to see how Ice can break in to the regular rotation, especially if Geno continues to give heavy minutes to the "small lineup" option with Sarah as the 5.

I suppose it will be a "good problem" to have, but that doesn't make it any less vexing for Geno.

Morgan=Red Shirt. Ice to take Jana's minutes.

 

[oldude]

Morgan=Red Shirt. Ice to take Jana's minutes.

Maybe on Morgan. But no on Ice. Geno needs to keep playing Jana for potential matchups against UCLA, TX or SC in the FF, all of whom have Bigs who could give Serah trouble and would dominate Ice.

 

[Skeets]

Assuming that Ice & Morgan are in fact cleared to play, the good news is that with UConn moving into their predominantly conference schedule, both will have an opportunity to play, even if it’s only mop up minutes. But that still makes crashing the regular rotation difficult, which I see as 9 players: the starting 5 plus Blanca, Kayleigh, Allie & Jana.

Of course there is always the chance that one or both force Geno to play them by virtue of their performance in practice and during mop up time. But honestly, I think that Kelis has earned more PT by virtue of her performance in games and unfortunately for her, she has 5 guards ahead of her in the rotation.

OD, in the BE it might be mop up quarters.

 

[Charliebball]

I know it's always a contentious idea, but I would really like Geno to continue with his starting five and three or four rotational players and then have a set second five to play in the later stages of these conference games........I'd even have them practice together as a second team.....I say this because Geno has always complained about the fourth quarters being ragged as he tries to find the right combinations........this would eliminate that problem.....

 

[Bigboote]

Pretty sure there was an interview where Geno said Morgan should be back after the first of the year. And there has been no discussion of her redshirting

My recollection issn't that Geno said she "should be" back around the first of the year but that she "wouldn't be back before" the first of the year. We have the same recollection about no discussion of redshirting.

I'm with several posters that if Morgan isn't up to speed in the first game or two, she should redshirt. If she comes back in February, that would be two years of eligibility spent on one year of playing, both halves of which she's spent getting back her game legs after an injury.

 

[sun]

I could see some situations where the match ups would give Morgan some minutes over Ash or Allie, and perhaps even some of Blanca's minutes.
It's obvious at times that Ash is going up against post players on defense time and time again. Her height may be a disadvantage in some match ups, enough to allow Morgan into a game to show what she can do.
That doesn't mean that Ash wouldn't start or Allie wouldn't play. It's only a matter of taking a few minutes away from other players here and there as the opportunity arises.
Morgan needs to show that her game has grown since last year, just like Ash, Allie and everyone else (K9).

Ice will be included in the pecking order and will need to show some growth too and not regression.
These players returning from injury are in a similar situation to Ayanna & Carol who are on the bubble of getting PT.
I think that the staff will find a way to insert as many players as possible into each game so that they'll be ready for when another player gets injured, sick or has foul trouble.
Even Sarah can give up a few minutes to Ice when the blowout doesn't justify the risk of injury by remaining in a game just to be able to pad her stats and to increase the MOV. For Sarah to play over 30 minutes in a BE blowout doesn't make much sense which could give Ice more of an opportunity for PT.
It's all dependent on the circumstances.

 

[Geew1992]

I could see some situations where the match ups would give Morgan some minutes over Ash or Allie, and perhaps even some of Blanca's minutes.
It's obvious at times that Ash is going up against post players on defense time and time again. Her height may be a disadvantage in some match ups, enough to allow Morgan into a game to show what she can do.
That doesn't mean that Ash wouldn't start or Allie wouldn't play. It's only a matter of taking a few minutes away from other players here and there as the opportunity arises.
Morgan needs to show that her game has grown since last year, just like Ash, Allie and everyone else (K9).

Ice will be included in the pecking order and will need to show some growth too and not regression.
These players returning from injury are in a similar situation to Ayanna & Carol who are on the bubble of getting PT.
I think that the staff will find a way to insert as many players as possible into each game so that they'll be ready for when another player gets injured, sick or has foul trouble.
Even Sarah can give up a few minutes to Ice when the blowout doesn't justify the risk of injury if staying a game just to be able to pad her stats and to increase the MOV. For Sarah to play over 30 minutes in a BE blowout doesn't make much sense which could give Ice more of an opportunity for PT.
It's all dependent on the circumstances.

Morgan hasn't played in a game in over a year. I don't think she would take minutes from players, esp Ash, that have been on the court all season.

 

[oldude]

I could see some situations where the match ups would give Morgan some minutes over Ash or Allie, and perhaps even some of Blanca's minutes.
It's obvious at times that Ash is going up against post players on defense time and time again. Her height may be a disadvantage in some match ups, enough to allow Morgan into a game to show what she can do.
That doesn't mean that Ash wouldn't start or Allie wouldn't play. It's only a matter of taking a few minutes away from other players here and there as the opportunity arises.
Morgan needs to show that her game has grown since last year, just like Ash, Allie and everyone else (K9).

Ice will be included in the pecking order and will need to show some growth too and not regression.
These players returning from injury are in a similar situation to Ayanna & Carol who are on the bubble of getting PT.
I think that the staff will find a way to insert as many players as possible into each game so that they'll be ready for when another player gets injured, sick or has foul trouble.
Even Sarah can give up a few minutes to Ice when the blowout doesn't justify the risk of injury by remaining in a game just to be able to pad her stats and to increase the MOV. For Sarah to play over 30 minutes in a BE blowout doesn't make much sense which could give Ice more of an opportunity for PT.
It's all dependent on the circumstances.

The longer Ice & Morgan are out, the harder the road back will be to become effective again. We’ve seen that with both Caroline, who’s injured again, as well as Ayana. It’s not like riding a bicycle. Getting back into playing shape, finding your timing, resurrecting your ability to play within UConn’s system all take time. While I am hopeful that both Ice & Morgan can get there, I am not optimistic that it can be done quickly.

 

[Skeets]

I know it's always a contentious idea, but I would really like Geno to continue with his starting five and three or four rotational players and then have a set second five to play in the later stages of these conference games........I'd even have them practice together as a second team.....I say this because Geno has always complained about the fourth quarters being ragged as he tries to find the right combinations........this would eliminate that problem.....

There's something to be said for the "second 5" to always practice together and develop the best chemistry possible. When you consider the talent available there's no reason why they couldn't be a good D1 team themselves. However, a "second 5" approach, like that team that wears orange, isn't Geno style.

 

[BobbyJ]

My recollection issn't that Geno said she "should be" back around the first of the year but that she "wouldn't be back before" the first of the year. We have the same recollection about no discussion of redshirting.

I'm with several posters that if Morgan isn't up to speed in the first game or two, she should redshirt. If she comes back in February, that would be two years of eligibility spent on one year of playing, both halves of which she's spent getting back her game legs after an injury.

If she isn’t up to speed in the first game or two then it won’t matter. She won’t be able to redshirt on a medical waiver because the injury would have been deemed to have been season ending too late in the season after she has played. Remember that with Bueckers’ first knee injury that if that had been season ending, she could not have claimed that on a medical waiver either because it was too late in the season. The only way for Cheli to test it would be in practice without losing the year.

 

[Stagnant]

Geno mentioned Morgan was out until January. And he specifically mentioned he hasn’t talked to her about redshirting. Wait until we are about a week deep into January before pushing on her guys.

And go watch the Michigan and Iowa games. That’s my suggestion. Because I kind of get it. I think we might need Morgan. The rotation really shrinked in both of those games. Geno immediately pulled Heckel against Iowa. We really didn’t see Allie until the end of the second quarter. Even Blanca; he barely used her against Michigan. I don’t think Geno is completely sold on the depth even though he talks glowingly about it. Morgan may be viewed as a possible need for the run in March.

 

[PacoSwede]

OD, in the BE it might be mop up quarters.

or 2 or 3 quarters

 

[Bigboote]

If she isn’t up to speed in the first game or two then it won’t matter. She won’t be able to redshirt on a medical waiver because the injury would have been deemed to have been season ending too late in the season after she has played. Remember that with Bueckers’ first knee injury that if that had been season ending, she could not have claimed that on a medical waiver either because it was too late in the season. The only way for Cheli to test it would be in practice without losing the year.

I should have said up to speed FOR the first game or two. (To quote Yogi Berra, I knew what I meant.) 😜