Where UConn's Starting Lineup is Heading
- Thread starter oldude
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I think Morgan and Allie have upped their stock since the past couple of games.
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Especially Morgan. Does not give up on the play or the ball.
cwh20
Six is good!
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There are 200 minutes in a game. Your 6x35=210 and 7x35=245. You’re exaggerating the wear and tear the women would be going through. The point is that the 35+ minute scenario is not going to happen. And no one said Geno has to be down to a 7 player rotation by Jan 1. But come March the 7 or 8 players, whoever they turn out to be, should be getting all the minutes. That’s a very real possibility. You want your best out there. No one should be getting tired with that rotation.
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My impression was based on her overall physical APPEARANCE compared to last season. Also, I was (in my own mind) thinking
of ICE's comment (during some video interview) that she worked hard in the off season on nutrition and conditioning. I could have
been more specific... but I like seeing that we have a "trio" rather than a "duo" of "BIGS". GO UCONN! GO BIGS!
In Morgan's, Sarah's and Jana's junior year won't Ash be a senior? It will be her team because she will have been First team All Big East twice already and maybe Player of the Year next year. Ash is a pretty big spark plug herself. As Geno said after the game, she is just coming out of her shell now. It's pretty awesome to see.
Have to agree with you deacon. She looks like a real player to me. A pretty solid 6"2" with a good head for the game, a very smooth stroke on the 3 ball, a pull up J, and a nose for the ball. Also, this is the baseline we are seeing for her. She will only get better and better. She had 6 points, 4 boards and an assist in 15 minutes against an older and very physical USF team in her second D1 game. She definitely can play and will likely be 8th man on Friday. Let's see how she does in the lion's den on the road.Has Morgan left the building?
Geno raves about her. It's strange virtually no one here is giving her a shot at PT. She looked competent and confident vs. BU, although not wholly impactful, and we need to remember that was her first competitive outing.
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You make a good point. Will it belong to the 4 of them at that point, then? All of them will contribute to the team spirit, but somehow I suspect Jana’s big heart and Sarah’s quiet confidence and Morgan’s intensity will be more foundational than Ash’s relentlessness. But who am I to exclude anyone from this tremendous group? I’ve been following Ash since high school and have a pretty good idea what she means to a team.
And lest the lawyers or the accountants demand to know how I can say anything about the character of these young women, I’ll share this anecdote. In her junior year, in the state championship, Ash had the ball and a chance to win the game, and she passed it to a less celebrated teammate and let her score the winning basket. She’d carried the team all season, but she let a teammate have some of the glory. Kinda reminds me of Paige passing to KK at the end of the Syracuse game.
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Sarah and Azzi. But the more the merrier. Jana too - who knows.
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Oh, I think in 2 years time this will be Jana's team- she has that fire, game intensity, and natural leadership qualities that seems to easily attract everyone-Sarah and Azzi. But the more the merrier. Jana too - who knows.
Love her but alas in one year, two years or three years, it will still be Geno's team.
I hear what you are saying and it's logical to think 7-8 players in big games. However, if they can shed the injury bug, I say it's 10 this year.
Paige
Azzi
Sarah
Chen
Ice
Shade
KK
Jana
Aubrey
Morgan
And I'm even willing to contemplate 11 if Ayanna can get into tip top form. 5 more fouls in the front court.
Unfortunately I think Q and Allie need to work on defense which can keep them out of big games. Caroline is still a huge question mark.
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Geno and Paige agree with you.
Developing the team to play UConn basketball without Paige is a point of emphasis by Geno (per Paige @ 0:44 in attached SNY YouTube video) this season.
- Geno knows what he has and the delayed return of the walking wounded is a blessing in disguise;
- When the walking wounded return, I am optimistic that, in most games, the regular rotation ((5)+9 or (5)+10) will have game-wide, from-the-start dominance (see next post as well as #1) that the youngest players get the fourth quarter to themselves to supplement practices with game experience;
- It helps to have 10 really talented players now and that most of them are freshmen and sophomores; otherwise, Geno would revert to his usual MO of prioritizing upperclassmen.
Note: I am as impressed as you with this team at the start of the season.
- I guardedly think this start is better than the start of the TASSK freshman year, which if memory serves, involved an inordinate amount of pressing;
- You can see in the BU game, the team was already trying to play half-court in the first game but was just a little off-sync;
- There was drastic improvement in the USF game;
- The press is already potent and can be unleashed at any time.
#2: Another part is to reserve Jana’s offensive firepower against lesser rotations. I have implied this same reason in my post favoring a starting lineup where Paige is not the point guard (i.e. Ash is not in the starting lineup) vs one where Ash is.
- with Geno’s point of emphasis above, if the starting lineup doesn’t overwhelm the opponent, then consistent rotations thereafter (including when the starting lineup is used again) will, with no let-up;
- visually, this is the near 40 minutes of UConn basketball we love; statistically visually, this is akin to a game flow similar to the USF game.
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Which team has had the hardest OOC schedule all these years? Against those teams, Coach G doesn't wait until March to try and win them. And, before he increased his roster, from 9 to 10 to now 14 (likely 15 next year) those included walk-ons.....hence, he would be lucky to have 6 rotation players who he could rely on to win as many as they can, OOC and tournament.
Don't you remember the state of health Gabby and company had by the time they reached the FF? (Gabby viewed it as a challenge but she did intimate after the loss Miss State that it was an exhausting year). Regular season and playoffs, high pressure games in OOC plus self-generated pressure by being UConn WBB. And, do you really think it is just physical when to consider everything they have to face? The mental load is taxing too. And, the short rotation of primarily 6 for those teams and those that followed since. Why do you think Coach G had to reduce the use of pressure defense for those teams, only selectively using it as a change of pace.
Anyway, given the effects of injuries on available rotation pieces in the past several years, Coach G has changed his recruiting limits hasn't he?
cwh20
Six is good!
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This team seems loaded with talented players. Of course Geno’s not going to play only six or seven as he’s not forced to. The players will get their chance during the season and he will figure out the best rotation and minute allocation as the season progresses. If anything most of the players will want more minutes, not less. So short of another disastrous injury bug there is no reason for anyone to be overworked especially during the BE stretch where the opponents are mostly overmatched and the games are put away early. I have to think come BE and NCAA tournament time the rotation will be shortened and not everyone will play while a game is in doubt. You don’t want your eighth or ninth option at that point.
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Fewer minutes means faster pace. With 14 talented players, I could very easily see 11 of them playing in the NCAA tournament, with three of them at the five (15 fouls). The biggest question, IMO, is which three won’t play. I’m not sure that will be answered until March.
Are Azzi and Chen known for their defense, and Chen has a tendency to pick up her dribble at the worst possible times, and Chen isn’t exactly immune from turnovers. Geno signed Chen as a dependable backup for Paige, and in that role she is very valuable. Ziebel was ranked #4 in her class for a reason and could be the best long range shooter on the team. She did win the 3pt shooting contest at the Mickey D classic beating a lot of terrific shooters, and then beat the boys champ Trent Perry.
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I get your concern for Allie and Q. Those two have talent that shouldn’t be minimized. I have high hopes for each of them. But calling Kaitlyn Paige’s backup doesn’t feel right to me, though I could be wrong..
Geno knew Kaitlyn only had one year left, as does Paige. I mean without Paige, maybe sitting in foul trouble, or other issues, who could run the show almost as good as Paige? The answer is Kaitlyn Chen. I get that Geno’s playing them both at the same time, but as the season progresses and KC gets more comfortable, I think you’ll see less of that as long as Paige stays healthy.
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Azzi, Chen, and Allie are not known for their Defense. In regard to 3pt shooting Azzi has been identifed by the coaching staff as a player who doesn't miss. OFC thats an exaggerration but if you are going to look back at H/S as you are with Ziebel then you should do the same with Fudd. Fudd was regarded as the number 1 h/s recruit. Fudd beat out one year Paige as the number 1 recruit when Azzi was a soph and Paige a jr.
Fudd was also a signifciant part of UCONN's success when she was a frosh in which she was 3rd on her team in scoring during the NCAA's in which UCONN went to the Finals.
Listening as recently as after the 1st preseason game at the end of Geno's postgame Geno was still referring to Fudd in much higher regard that you seem to be holding her vs Allie. Fudd matched Clark head-to-head. Add up everything Fudd is the much, much, much, much preferred player. With Fudd being the #1 recruit I'm sure in her time she won many 3pt shoting contests too.
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HuskyNan
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I disagree, HH. Kaitlyn played for Carla for 4 years, a coach that demanded defensive excellence, the same defense she learned from Geno.
On the court, Chen says that her biggest adjustment from high school to Princeton was perfecting Coach Berube’s suffocating defensive scheme. As a player that is known for her quick transition offense and explosive ball-handling skills, Princeton’s system demanded Chen to contribute on the defensive end as well.
“We [at Princeton] pride ourselves on our defense,” Chen continued. “So, it takes a lot of time and effort and focus during practices.”
As a result, Chen is playing the best defense of her collegiate career, averaging 1.2 steals per game and fitting seamlessly into the well-oiled Princeton defensive machine.
Kaitlyn Chen: The offensive leader of a defensive team
The 2022–23 Ivy League Player of the Year reflects on her rise as women’s basketball top offensive player, the path that led her to the Orange Bubble, and her hopes for the Tigers’ postseason dreams — and the fifth year that lies beyond.
www.dailyprincetonian.com
As for Allie, she might surprise you.
"[Allie] was so intense on the defense end and there were many times where they put her out there for that very reason," Braunel said. "Even in the gold medal match, with three, four minutes left and a 1-point game, they trusted her to put her on the court − the youngest kid on the team. That says a lot. So we're super proud of her and thrilled all of the hard work paid off."
'We're super proud of her': Neenah's Allie Ziebell helps Team USA win gold at U19 FIBA Women's World Cup
Neenah standout helped Team USA U19 national team claim gold with 69-66 win over Spain in Madrid.
www.postcrescent.com
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Faster I agree with, but being a very fast paced team may not be. Even though Geno always talks about wanting to play fast, the fact of the matter is we have not been a fast paced team for several years, as measured by possessions per 40 minutes (the best gauge). Now there are several reasons for that, injuries, small rotation, and the opposition has something to do with it too. The Big East conference as a whole had teams that played at a relatively slow pace, and of course that was much of our schedule.
In addition two players that tended to push the pace the most last year, Nika and Aubrey are not here for the start of this season. KK pushes the pace, and Kaitlin might, but she comes from a program that had a relatively low pace. Of course more players means we can increase the pace particularly if we press a great deal (I hope so), but when we run our half court offense we take our time looking for the best shot, not just jacking up the first mediocre one we get.
I fully expect a much deeper rotation, fewer minutes from the starters, more intense pressing creating turnovers, and looking more to break off of missed shots. My main point is we have been a below average team in possessions per 40 minutes for several years. All of the changes many of us are hoping and expecting to see should increase the pace substantially, but we are a long way from being a very fast paced team, and will never be a run and gun team that sacrifices efficiency to increase volume. We will look to run when appropriate and be disciplined on offense when a break isn't there, as it should be.
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Azzi is not known for her defense because she's known for something else and it distracts us from noticing her defense. Azzi is a fine defender -- maybe not Nika-in-your-face on ball defense, but she does not make a lot of mistakes, and she can be at the front of the full court press as we saw against Texas and NC State two years ago. She's a focused, high-IQ player who already understands Geno's schemes.
Something similar can be said of Kaitlyn, who led the press for Carla for the last 3 years. She's learning a new system, so we should expect a few lapses, but those will disappear soon enough.
Allie was a very good defender in high school. There used to be a few videos of games from her senior year -- not just highlights -- and she was the anchor of that team's defense, more so than their offense. It was a small team with only one other player her size and a bunch of speedy little guards who knew how to score. She is still learning Geno's defense, and so we shouldn't be surprised by a few mistakes. The other thing visible in those videos is her leadership. The rest of the team looked to her to get the tough basket and to rally the defense. This is the same thing Ash experienced in high school, and Paige too, and Nika showed it too, and Evina too. If the anchor player plays good aggressive defense the rest of the team rallies.
The other player who knows how to energize a team with her defense is Morgan. She's also still learning Geno's defense, but her energy and commitment is really obvious. And if anyone watches her high school games from last year, they'll see an intense leader of a great team -- not a naturally great scorer, but a scrappy kid who never gives up. If Morgan had arrived last season instead of Ash, I have little doubt we'd be talking about her role on the team in the same way right now. Her trajectory may be slightly more gradual merely because she won't get as many minutes as Ash did last season. But the end point is probably the same -- leading the team for a season or two. Allie may not have the same intense energy Morgan has, but she will be great soon enough.
As for Kaitlyn's turnovers, she makes more than I'd like for the moment, and aside from picking up her dribble too soon I can think of one particular mistake from the closing minutes against USF that is probably typical. She drove and kicked a pass to Allie in the corner. But the pass wasn't well prepared and Allie wasn't really open to shoot, so she passed it back to the top. A moment later, Kaitlyn made a similar drive and got trapped by a double team in the lane and tossed up a desperation shot that missed. What she didn't see but should have was Allie now wide open in the same spot. This was a mistake and tantamount to a turnover. I'm confident those mistakes will not recur as Kaitlyn gains more familiarity with the read and react style Geno teaches. She, herself, said in a presser that Carla's offense involved more plays and she was still finding her way here. At Princeton her offense was brilliant, but in a different system. It will shine again once she gets comfortable. You can already see hints of it with her midrange jump shot, which is almost as automatic as Ash's