Where is the Old Bria?

[jsloanjr]

Where has Bria's game gone this season........She has lost the AA status and BE status all in 1 season. UCONN needs her and will not win in March without her at a very high level.......What are your thoughts?

 

[Sakibomb25]

Isn't she still recovering from her ankle injury? Playing through an injury during the season isn't the best recipe for All-American or All-Big East status...

 

[jsloanjr]

I agree with your statement, but I see her game differently. She is making too many unforced errors and get caught in too many bad traps with the ball and has become a turnover machine. IMO, most of her loss this season is mental and not physical. To his credit, Geno never throws his players under the bus directly. I was watching him last night and he was not happy with her game.......BH needs to pick up the pace and control the ball or not many good things will happen.....

 

[Sakibomb25]

I agree with your statement, but I see her game differently. She is making too many unforced errors and get caught in too many bad traps with the ball and has become a turnover machine. IMO, most of her loss this season is mental and not physical. To his credit, Geno never throws his players under the bus directly. I was watching him last night and he was not happy with her game.......BH needs to pick up the pace and control the ball or not many good things will happen.....

Well I think you underestimate the power that an injury has over a player's mental state. If she is still playing hurt or playing her way into shape, she may have reservations about going full-speed ahead, thus allowing herself to make more mistakes. If she's completely healed, then there isn't any excuse for her performance.

 

[Kibitzer]

Watching her vs. Pitt, the Bria I saw was tenacious on defense and aggressive on offense. She appeared to be moving with speed, quickness and confidence.

She made at one signature drive to the hoop and completed it with a spectacular scoop shot.

She did not have her old shooting touch. She was missing from both mid-range (pull-up jumpers) and from the perimeter, and this is most worrisome to me. Her shot selection was sound and her shooting form was good. The results were not, as she was missing badly (e.g., ball hitting the outside the rim).

Perhaps she is trying too hard or trying to do too much by herself. Geno may be trying to ease the pressure on her by playing Moriah more at PG or hoping that Caroline's production as PG enables Bria to focus on shooting, penetrating, etc.

I see no indication that Geno is either displeased or has lost confidence in her, but he surely would like to see her ppg numbers go up. FWIW, me too.

 

[Forty_four]

Take a look at picture number 13, I think, in the pictures topic taken by Danny, from last nights game on her shooting form. Her guide hand or her left hand seems to have too much of the ball. I just wonder if that affects her shooting touch. Her shot is still flat, like she is trying to hit the front of the rim. Any shooting experts have any comments?

 

[pap49cba]

I wonder if they have had her eyes checked. I believe she wears contacts. The slightest change in depth perception could cause problems. Don't flame.... just thinking out loud.

 

[blackbird]

Bria has always been turnover prone.

I don't think she's healthy, mentally or physically. She's aggressive. And she plays much better defense than ever given credit for. But I think her ankle (and the consequences of that injury) are bothering her. I'm hoping she'll be like Diana, and get herself together for the tournament.

 

[Bobanozz]

I think (IMHO) Bria is trying too hard, she seems to be taking shots too early in a possession, driving to the basket when there's defenders there. trying to 'thread the needle' with some passes. in order to beat Notre Dame and Baylor, etc, we need A games from everyone, especially Bria and Breanna. If her shots don't start falling, and Breanna plays well against a quality opponent, (She looked completely lost against Baylor) Uconn's chances of getting to a NC game are slim and none. That's a lot of pressure for those two. I am not knocking them in any way. Bria needs to find a way to contribute if her shots aren't dropping, Breanna needs to have a game like she had at Seton Hall and Pitt, against Notre Dame and Baylor.

 

[Buckaroobanzai]

Whatever the reason, Bria Hartley's offense has suffered a precipitous falloff. Since the Pitt game was less than scintillating, I spent time watching her move about the court. She seemed to move freely and played good defense. She simply cannot shoot - the trajectory of her jump shot cannot become any flatter. Thus, as the team prepares for South Florida and Notre Dame, it is essentially reduced to two dependable shooters: Mosquada-Lewis and Dolson, with some potential help from Faris and Stewart. Without Hartley's "killer" threes, I do not see how we beat Notre Dame, either at Notre Dame or at the BE tournament, or get through the Bridgeport regional. On the other hand, I have never seen a glass other than half empty.

 

[Tonyc]

JMO folks. Bria got hurt during the summer and hasnt gotten back to form. Why one reason is she didnt sit and let it heal. She continued to practice and when your hurt and try to continue to play you favor your injuries and that throws your game off. Before the Baylor game she was sick and played in the Rutgers game and Baylor game not 100% . I think its safe to say that she wont be 100% for the rest of the season. Morgan and Kiah still have lingering injuries and BB is gone for the season.

For me thats not doom and gloom. I believe Bria Morgan and Kiah can still contribute. I also believe that Breanna could be our means to the end in April. The way she played the past couple of games was monsterous and dominate. We will need our guards Bria Kelly MJ and Caroline to make some shots. They dont have to score 20 but they have to keep the defense honest.

I agree if Bria was playing like she did last season we would be the all out favorite but shes not and we will have to find a way to pick her up. Hey we have 2 losses and both close and in both games we were physically in worse shape then we are now. Saturday and Monday will tell us alot. Monday I like our chances alot. We are a team and when somebody is hurting somebody else needs to pick them up. Thats what great teams do, thats what UConn will do this 3 day weekend.

 

[CONNFAN23]

Enough about the ankle already! If she was limited making cuts and couldnt get to the basket I would totally agree that the ankle was the problem. But the fact is she cant even hit wide open jumpshots which tells me the problem lies more between her ears than her ankle.

 

[blackbird]

No, as others pointed out, Bria's shot has always been flat..so her height of her jump is essential. Not only that, but she's simply not moving as fast as she was.

Not that I don't think she's got "between the ears" issues. She does. But she's got injury issues too.

 

[husky24]

No, as others pointed out, Bria's shot has always been flat..so her height of her jump is essential. Not only that, but she's simply not moving as fast as she was.

Not that I don't think she's got "between the ears" issues. She does. But she's got injury issues too.

I watched Bria very closely last night and saw a continuing issue. She passed up numerous open shots, missed numerous open teammates, made numerous bad decisions. None of these issues is are ankle related. They are all confidence related. Thats why Geno left her out there for 36 minutes in a blow out. When you lose your confidence your brain slows down and you lose your instinctive game. Bria has always had an issue with decision making, but now it is really acute.

 

[ChrisSmith]

Enough about the ankle already! If she was limited making cuts and couldnt get to the basket I would totally agree that the ankle was the problem. But the fact is she cant even hit wide open jumpshots which tells me the problem lies more between her ears than her ankle.

I believe even her free throw percentage is down significantly. Hard to blame your ankle for that.

 

[boontonbomber]

regarding comments concerning her turning the ball over, it should be noted that her assist/ turnover is 1.9 for the season, second only to kelly's 2.4. not bad, considering how much she handles the ball. last year it was 1.4. also note that in the last 7 games that she's had minutes( not including rutgers) she is averaging 12 pts, 4+ assists and 4 rebounds. it's pretty obvious that the one thing that is so different this year is her shooting. i think her form is radically off due to the injury. she's not even comfortable with that little pull-up jumper of hers on the break. and her foul shooting is awful.i wish she would focus at this point in taking the ball to the basket more, and get fouled, drop it off, or convert.

 

[Sonny44]

I agree, an NC seems impossible without the former Bria.

 

[alexrgct]

I was hopeful Bria turned the corner after the Marquette game, but I haven't seen it since. Indeed, UConn cannot get past Baylor with Bria playing at the level she is. If both she and KML are shooting, Stef and Kelly fight hard, and the freshmen make an impact? Maybe.