Where did GENO get this BENCH, were they hidden??

[BroadwayVa]

This isnt the bench play we have come to expect. They played as a unit, they played mixed and matched, they scored, they played defense---Where did Geno find this group???
I think Kayla and ONO are a tandem on defense work and play well together. All --that excluded none--all played well and had fun, fun fun. The most fun I had watching any Uconn game this year.

 

[Centerstream]

I agree, they all decided to play offense and defense at the same time and looked good doing it.

 

[cohenzone]

They also played a bad team, but fun anyway as I’m sure it was for them.

 

[eebmg]

I think the bench's passing and in rhythm shooting was what stood out to me. Hope to see some carryover into the temple game.

 

[Oldbones]

Someone has finally discovered a deep bench.

 

[donalddoowop]

They also played a bad team, but fun anyway as I’m sure it was for them.

They have played bad teams before and did not look as good as they did tonight. It is good to see them get compliments for a change.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Are you familiar with the lore of The Awoken @BroadwayVa ? Actually, Geno has said , in essence, this team is like a box of chocolates, so on to the next game. Might be bitter dark chocolate with a hard center - I hate those.

 

[Big Mick]

Really? we have a good bench and tonight proved it?

What we learned tonight is that, we have ONO from the bench and that's it.

No one else can play at the level necessary in big games. All really nice women and all that; but, that other 4 bench players don't offer much. And, I wouldn't expect any great improvement going forward. In contested games who among them are going to get points?

Geno is going to have to play ONO more minutes regardless of his "earn minutes in practice" creed. She is big, has great post footwork and moves and an excellent rebounder. She and Walker are the only ones that effectively block out properly.

No disrespect to anyone; but, that's just the way it is.

 

[RSHERMVIKES]

IMHO the whole team looked REFRESHED! Like someone took a heavy weight off their collective necks!
Played spirited, but relaxed and just let the game come to them! The last several games you could cut the pregame tension with a knife!
I really think the substitutes played better because when they came into the game they too were more relaxed, like, Oh what the h--l just play ball!
If the team can bring this mojo to the rest of the season they can surprise some people!

 

[BroadwayVa]

Really? we have a good bench and tonight proved it?

What we learned tonight is that, we have ONO from the bench and that's it.

No one else can play at the level necessary in big games. All really nice women and all that; but, that other 4 bench players don't offer much. And, I wouldn't expect any great improvement going forward. In contested games who among them are going to get points?

Geno is going to have to play ONO more minutes regardless of his "earn minutes in practice" creed. She is big, has great post footwork and moves and an excellent rebounder. She and Walker are the only ones that effectively block out properly.

No disrespect to anyone; but, that's just the way it is.

I won't disagree about SOME of what you say about ONO. She gets better the more time she has. My visual was that ONO and Irwin worked great together, especially on the trap along the baseline.
No one--certainly not me--has said this proves anything except this group had one great night of basketball and played smoothly and effectively on offense--defense wasn't perfect but they did increase the 50 point margin they were given which is a plus. Thay have played against lesser teams, with less talent and did not play as well as they did this night. It is a big step. Let us not take away from the moment--they earned
I moan and groan about them when they are not good--I think it is only fair to cheer when they do well.

 

[BroadwayVa]

Are you familiar with the lore of The Awoken @BroadwayVa ? Actually, Geno has said, in essence, this team is like a box of chocolates, so on to the next game. Might be bitter dark chocolate with a hard center - I hate those.

Son of a gun--I didn't know Geno made that picture---I don't like boxed chocolates--I never know what I'm getting. (I don't read the inside of the box either)
I don't know why you chose BroadwayVa to be called out for The Awoken (Awakened)---I awoke early this morning my spouse awakened me then, yet to this moment I am not awake. Awake, awoke, awakened.
Yea--I walk around between games in a stupor!
Whether this is an Awakening for this team--I know not. I am certain only that I liked what I saw.

 

[Big Mick]

Aw, Jeez! ECU is a team that gets rocked every time out and sooo, everyone looks good by comparison.

Not to worry though, with our best six we are going to reach the Final four. Most likely beating South Carolina and Mississippi in Albany to get there.

 

[BroadwayVa]

Aw, Jeez! ECU is a team that gets rocked every time out and sooo, everyone looks good by comparison.

Not to worry though, with our best six we are going to reach the Final four. Most likely beating South Carolina and Mississippi in Albany to get there.

From your fingers to the Basketball Gods brains---FF guaranteed. If only that were true.

 

[Carnac]

Really? we have a good bench and tonight proved it?

What we learned tonight is that, we have ONO from the bench and that's it.

No one else can play at the level necessary in big games. All really nice women and all that; but, that other 4 bench players don't offer much. And, I wouldn't expect any great improvement going forward. In contested games who among them are going to get points?

Geno is going to have to play ONO more minutes regardless of his "earn minutes in practice" creed. She is big, has great post footwork and moves and an excellent rebounder. She and Walker are the only ones that effectively block out properly.

No disrespect to anyone; but, that's just the way it is.

I think it’s fair to assess a player or a unit’s level of ability or effectiveness against the upper echelon teams.
It’s easy to look good and play well against less talented teams. It’s how you play against the Notre Dame’s, the Baylor‘s and the Louisville’s that will determine how you finish. Those are the teams you'll see in the later stages of the tournament.

I was very happy with the play of the reserves against ECU, and I'd like to see more. Throughout their time on the floor, I kept wishing they would play like that against the elite teams. All of UConn's roster with the exception of Bent and Irwin were top 50 recruits coming out of high school. How many players on ECU's roster were top 100? The answer = None, ergo the disparity in the level of talent.

During the last 4 years, ECU dd not recruit a single top 100 player from high school. Most of the top 40 rated players go to MAJOR programs. There are a few exceptions. Usually (there have been exceptions) only UConn, USF and UCF sign players ranked in the top 100.

Look at the links below, and notice that only 9 players in the last 5 years committed to an AAC school other than UConn. UConn does not compete for the same recruits as the rest of the programs in the AAC.
#33 Aubrey Griffin (2019) is the lowest rated player UConn has signed in the last 5 years. She'll probably be one of the best.

[Hoopgurlz 2015 top 100] = 1 Kitija Laksa - USF
[Hoopgurlz 2016 top 100] = 4 #32 Dorothy Nagy (USF), #81 Kornelia "Kay Kay" Wright (UCF),
#85 Natasha Mack (Houston), #95 Enna Pehadzic (USF)

[Hoopgurlz 2017 top 100] = 2 #77 Alba Prieto & # 93 Sylvia Serrat - USF
[Hoopgurlz 2018 top 100] = 1 #95 Diamond Battles - UCF
[Hoopgurlz 2019 top 100] = 1 #86 Lanetta Williams - Memphis

 

[EricLA]

They also played a bad team, but fun anyway as I’m sure it was for them.

The 4 worst teams in the league are USF, SMU, Wichita State and ECU, and there's not much that separates those 4 teams. UCONN beat USF by 17 but pounded SMU almost as badly as ECU.

But if you want to take USF out of the mix, against SMU the team scored 8 points in the 4th quarter, the bench scored 5 points going 2-10 and ONO/Irwin had 0 points and 3 boards combined in 25 total minutes. I'd say the bench was MUCH better against ECU.

We don't play WSU until 2/26...

Last thing to add, and I feel this is important - the UCONN bench has NEVER played significant minutes in a big game going back 25 years. For those who lament that, go back and look at the PT in big games for Hansmeyer, Rigby, Ash Valley,Tahira Williams, Kerns, Fernandez, Dixon, Buck, Engeln, Ekmark, and now Irwin and Bent.

 

[donalddoowop]

Really? we have a good bench and tonight proved it?

What we learned tonight is that, we have ONO from the bench and that's it.

No one else can play at the level necessary in big games. All really nice women and all that; but, that other 4 bench players don't offer much. And, I wouldn't expect any great improvement going forward. In contested games who among them are going to get points?

Geno is going to have to play ONO more minutes regardless of his "earn minutes in practice" creed. She is big, has great post footwork and moves and an excellent rebounder. She and Walker are the only ones that effectively block out properly.

No disrespect to anyone; but, that's just the way it is.

You must not have been watching Irwin. She is also good at blocking out on rebounds.