Which of the top 3 #1 seeds do we have the best chance of upsetting and making the Final Four

[ochoopsfan]

The key for a win over all three is how Liv plays,
against Baylor 0 points and 6 rebounds
Against Oregon 8 points and 6 rebounds
Against SC 10 points and 9 rebounds
Average of 6 points and 7 rebounds a game
Her opponents had --Cox 16 points and 6 rebounds, Hebard 22 points and 12 rebounds and Boston 13 points and 12 rebounds, Her opponents had 17 points and 10 rebounds.
SC has a freshman center/PF who could feel the pressure and Harris might be able to be contained.
So I picked SC.

 

[jabstep]

All three of the games have certain consistencies about them. All three winners had 74,74,70 points and we as the loser had consistencies as well. We scored 58,56,52 In the losses we had lousy 4th quarters 6 against B, 7 against O and 11 against SC. Were we tired out in the 4th? Do we need more substitutions for 2 minutes here or there? We need more offense and we can look to some poor outputs by at least 2 starters per game thru the course of all three games. Against B, KI was still the starter and played 32 minutes 0 points, Liv 23 min O points. Geno benched her in the 4th quarter if we played them again we need Liv in the game. AM takes over for KI and we can hope for more offensive output. Against O, MW had 8 and CW had 5 if they had their averages we are in the game. Against SC we al remember the 2 points in the first quarter OMG it was shocking. MW had 10 points and CW 2 points and AM 0 points. So either the other teams have shutdown defenders or we were not ready for those teams. We COULD beat any of the three on a given day but the best chance and the closet game was Baylor. That is my choice. 2nd choice is SC and I think Oregon is the best team in the country right now.

 

[SCGamecock]

The key for a win over all three is how Liv plays,
against Baylor 0 points and 6 rebounds
Against Oregon 8 points and 6 rebounds
Against SC 10 points and 9 rebounds
Average of 6 points and 7 rebounds a game
Her opponents had --Cox 16 points and 6 rebounds, Hebard 22 points and 12 rebounds and Boston 13 points and 12 rebounds, Her opponents had 17 points and 10 rebounds.
SC has a freshman center/PF who could feel the pressure and Harris might be able to be contained.
So I picked SC.

As good as Dangerfield is offensively (she's the only reason the SC game didn't get out of hand), she is a liability on defense when it comes to guarding Harris. Dangerfield is not like Mo Jefferson, who had an uncanny ability to guard players bigger than herself. Just from rewatching that game it was obvious that the better matchup might actually be Dangerfield on Cooke and Williams on Harris.. but I am not sold on Williams as a defender either.

I know this is surprising to a lot of people because UConn usually always has the superior backcourt when it comes to matchups... but the Huskies don't match up well with neither of SC, Baylor or Oregon when it comes to guard play. As good as the post players performed for Oregon, Baylor and SC in those three games.. I thought the backcourt was the real separator in all three, which is so weird to say about UConn.

 

[bballnut90]

All three of the games have certain consistencies about them. All three winners had 74,74,70 points and we as the loser had consistencies as well. We scored 58,56,52 In the losses we had lousy 4th quarters 6 against B, 7 against O and 11 against SC. Were we tired out in the 4th? Do we need more substitutions for 2 minutes here or there? We need more offense and we can look to some poor outputs by at least 2 starters per game thru the course of all three games. Against B, KI was still the starter and played 32 minutes 0 points, Liv 23 min O points. Geno benched her in the 4th quarter if we played them again we need Liv in the game. AM takes over for KI and we can hope for more offensive output. Against O, MW had 8 and CW had 5 if they had their averages we are in the game. Against SC we al remember the 2 points in the first quarter OMG it was shocking. MW had 10 points and CW 2 points and AM 0 points. So either the other teams have shutdown defenders or we were not ready for those teams. We COULD beat any of the three on a given day but the best chance and the closet game was Baylor. That is my choice. 2nd choice is SC and I think Oregon is the best team in the country right now.

I think the biggest thing for the Huskies is they just need to hit shots. Dangerfield is the only one who consistently has been able to score against good teams, and it's usually long bombs or jumpers off the bounce. Without those, the games would've been even uglier.

Walker is going to be hounded and has to take and make tough shots. She hasn't been able to do that against good teams so far but I'd imagine this is something Geno and Co are working on since she's their best scorer.

ONO needs to hit face up jumpers. If she looks in rhythm, they usually go in. If it's a little awkward and opponents seemingly dare her to shoot, she's not hitting them. Her knocking down a couple of face up jumpers early would be huge since it forces someone like Cox/Boston to guard her further out and creates opportunities for backdoors and open lanes to the rim. I don't see her getting baskets on the block against Cox/Boston. I think she can out muscle Hebard though, but on the flip side Ruthy is the most difficult to defend.

Williams....I have no idea what's up with her. The only positive I can see is that she seems to be following a very similar path to her freshman season. Start out most of the year playing well, then just disappeared for a long time before playing her best ball to finish the season. If she catches fire, UCONN is a lot more formidable, but there aren't any signs that she's going to do that.

Lastly, if it's Irwin or Makurat out there, they need to stick an open 3 or two and move off the ball to get shots. I think if UCONN is going to compete with the big 3 in a regional game, the key will be making shots early and get in a rhythm. If they get themselves into a hole it's going to be very difficult to come out of.

 

[bluedevil]

If Irwin is out there against those teams the party is over...