Who will be Geno’s starting point guard in the NCAA tournament?

[sun]

"Someone get this kid out of my face. . . I NEED HELP!!!!"

What's interesting is that UConn played Iowa twice in the past 2 years.
Last year when Nika played 40 minutes, UConn beat Iowa by 7 points with Clark scoring 25.
In 2021 when Nika did not play any minutes, UConn beat Iowa by 20 points with Clark scoring 21.
Clark actually scored more points when Nika played & guarded her.
UConn scored more points when Nika didn't play at all & Paige was the PG & played 37 minutes.

2022 box score:

UConn 86-79 Iowa (Nov 27, 2022) Box Score - ESPN

Box score for the UConn Huskies vs. Iowa Hawkeyes NCAAW game from November 27, 2022 on ESPN. Includes all points, rebounds and steals stats.

www.espn.com

2021 box score:

UConn 92-72 Iowa (Mar 27, 2021) Box Score - ESPN

Box score for the UConn Huskies vs. Iowa Hawkeyes NCAAW game from March 27, 2021 on ESPN. Includes all points, rebounds and steals stats.

www.espn.com

 

[Bone Dog]

What's interesting is that UConn played Iowa twice in the past 2 years.
Last year when Nika played 40 minutes, UConn beat Iowa by 7 points with Clark scoring 25.
In 2021 when Nika did not play any minutes, UConn beat Iowa by 20 points with Clark scoring 21.
Clark actually scored more points when Nika played & guarded her.
UConn scored more points when Nika didn't play at all & Paige was the PG & played 37 minutes.

2022 box score:

UConn 86-79 Iowa (Nov 27, 2022) Box Score - ESPN

Box score for the UConn Huskies vs. Iowa Hawkeyes NCAAW game from November 27, 2022 on ESPN. Includes all points, rebounds and steals stats.

www.espn.com

2021 box score:

UConn 92-72 Iowa (Mar 27, 2021) Box Score - ESPN

Box score for the UConn Huskies vs. Iowa Hawkeyes NCAAW game from March 27, 2021 on ESPN. Includes all points, rebounds and steals stats.

www.espn.com

Interesting indeed, though probably not in the way you mean. Notice any other differences between those two games? Oh heck, I'll just tell you. No Dorka in the last game. It was another one of those shorthanded games, and in this one Aaliyah had no backup. Now let's think about the meaning of that fact.

The common thread in both games is that someone played shutdown defense on Caitlin. In the earlier game, Christyn and Evina held Caitlin to 7-21 shooting while Christyn scored 27 herself on 12-23 shooting. In the next game, it was Nika who held Caitlin to 9-24 shooting. It's also worth observing that Evina shared PG duties with Paige and especially in the transition game, because Nika was out with an ankle injury. And Evina also had a great offensive game, 7-9 shooting, and 3-5 from beyond the arc... and Evina was just one rebound short of a triple double.

My point is the difference between these two games isn't Nika. In the first game, Paige had a flat first half and came on in the second half, while Evina and Christyn both had one of the best games of their careers. In the second game, Azzi came out flat in the first half and then shot the lights out in the second half, and Caroline added 15 pts on 5-11 shooting and 3-6 from 3. If you ask me, Nika kept Caitlin in check until our big guns could put the second game away. And her 13 assists played a big role in the win just as Evina's 10 assists had in the previous game.

My conclusion: Nika was the indispensable player in the second game, as I expect she'll be in many games this coming season.

 

[hoophuskee]

What's interesting is that UConn played Iowa twice in the past 2 years.
Last year when Nika played 40 minutes, UConn beat Iowa by 7 points with Clark scoring 25.
In 2021 when Nika did not play any minutes, UConn beat Iowa by 20 points with Clark scoring 21.
Clark actually scored more points when Nika played & guarded her.
UConn scored more points when Nika didn't play at all & Paige was the PG & played 37 minutes.

2022 box score:

UConn 86-79 Iowa (Nov 27, 2022) Box Score - ESPN

Box score for the UConn Huskies vs. Iowa Hawkeyes NCAAW game from November 27, 2022 on ESPN. Includes all points, rebounds and steals stats.

www.espn.com

2021 box score:

UConn 92-72 Iowa (Mar 27, 2021) Box Score - ESPN

Box score for the UConn Huskies vs. Iowa Hawkeyes NCAAW game from March 27, 2021 on ESPN. Includes all points, rebounds and steals stats.

www.espn.com

Wow. -- just wow.

 

[#12in21]

What's interesting is that UConn played Iowa twice in the past 2 years.
Last year when Nika played 40 minutes, UConn beat Iowa by 7 points with Clark scoring 25.
In 2021 when Nika did not play any minutes, UConn beat Iowa by 20 points with Clark scoring 21.
Clark actually scored more points when Nika played & guarded her.
UConn scored more points when Nika didn't play at all & Paige was the PG & played 37 minutes.

2022 box score:

UConn 86-79 Iowa (Nov 27, 2022) Box Score - ESPN

Box score for the UConn Huskies vs. Iowa Hawkeyes NCAAW game from November 27, 2022 on ESPN. Includes all points, rebounds and steals stats.

www.espn.com

2021 box score:

UConn 92-72 Iowa (Mar 27, 2021) Box Score - ESPN

Box score for the UConn Huskies vs. Iowa Hawkeyes NCAAW game from March 27, 2021 on ESPN. Includes all points, rebounds and steals stats.

www.espn.com

Believe what you want to believe but I'm going to take Caitlin's frustration at Nika's defense at face value (possibly pun intended). Couple that with the collective opinion of the the BE coaches who chose Nika back to back years as BE DPOY and what I've seen with my own eyes and I will have to respectfully disagree.

 

[#12in21]

Believe what you want to believe but I'm going to take Caitlin's frustration at Nika's defense at face value (possibly pun intended). Couple that with the collective opinion of the the BE coaches who chose Nika back to back years as BE DPOY and what I've seen with my own eyes and I will have to respectfully disagree.

A continuation of my thoughts. One aspect of Nika's game I would have thought that we could have general consensus on is her ability to play defense (but perhaps not.....). Most of the discussion in this chain (and the earlier one that was locked) in regards to what Nika brings as a starter centers on her scoring (or lack there of) as compared to other player options. But little or no weight seems to be given to what she brings on the defensive end. The game is played on both ends - this isn't football where the offensive unit runs off and the defensive unit comes in.

Some comments on the offensive end. Prior to this season a chief concern (which some posters continue to bring up), in regards to Nika being on the court, was that the defense would play off of her and double team others. I think this past season has shown that that is not the case. She upped her scoring numbers, drives to the hoop and drawn fouls while leading the nation for almost the entire season in assists and the defense covered her at all times and in the occasional instances that they left a little space she took the shot or drove to the basket. Look at the numbers and see what you find between combined scoring and assists as to where Nika fell in the teams offensive production. You may also want to ponder why in the 24th game of the season Dawn Staley made it the teams focus to take the ball out of Nika's hands. It doesn't seem that in her analysis of our first 23 games she concluded that they could just lay off Nika and double the scorers.

How many shots do you really want her (or whomever would start in her place) taking when she is on the floor with Paige, Azzi and Aaliyah and who ever the fifth starter is? With her main focuses being on shared leadership, defense, ball handling and feeding her teammates she will likely be the fourth or fifth scoring option, which she has shown she will be more than capable of delivering on. We aren't looking to field an all star team, we want to put on the floor the most effective combination of players, so it isn't all just about scoring as to who gets the nod.

Aaliyah rightly so was selected as the BE most improved player but the kid wearing #10 made huge strides in what she brought to the table for her team during an outstanding junior campaign. She was challenged by Geno preseason and delivered in spades and along the way put her name in the record book in a few places. She may have come to Uconn as a perceived backup or role player but has matured into a very unique piece of what should be a championship roster.

 

[Alydar]

Believe what you want to believe but I'm going to take Caitlin's frustration at Nika's defense at face value (possibly pun intended). Couple that with the collective opinion of the the BE coaches who chose Nika back to back years as BE DPOY and what I've seen with my own eyes and I will have to respectfully disagree.

There are those who think the DPOY award should have gone to Griffin this past season. That's perhaps why I like having both of them coming off the bench to cool off any hot opposing players.

 

[sun]

Take a look at 5' 10" LSU freshman Flau Jae Johnson.
She started every game for LSU, & Reese credited her for playing tremendous defense all season long including in the NC game.
She also scored 10 points in the NC game, and was named 2023 SEC Freshman of the Year.
A lot of players can play good defense including freshman.
Flau Jae proves that a freshman can make a huge difference towards winning a NC.
She played 36 minutes in the NC game & now she's a big star all because Kim trusted her enough to let her play.

Flau’jae Johnson

lsusports.net

 

[hoophuskee]

Take a look at 5' 10" LSU freshman Flau Jae Johnson.
She started every game for LSU, & Reese credited her for playing tremendous defense all season long including in the NC game.
She also scored 10 points in the NC game, and was named 2023 SEC Freshman of the Year.
A lot of players can play good defense including freshman.
Flau Jae proves that a freshman can make a huge difference towards winning a NC.
She played 36 minutes in the NC game & now she's a big star all because Kim trusted her enough to let her play.

Flau’jae Johnson

lsusports.net

Just wow - yet again.

 

[hoophuskee]

A continuation of my thoughts. One aspect of Nika's game I would have thought that we could have general consensus on is her ability to play defense (but perhaps not.....). Most of the discussion in this chain (and the earlier one that was locked) in regards to what Nika brings as a starter centers on her scoring (or lack there of) as compared to other player options. But little or no weight seems to be given to what she brings on the defensive end. The game is played on both ends - this isn't football where the offensive unit runs off and the defensive unit comes in.

Some comments on the offensive end. Prior to this season a chief concern (which some posters continue to bring up), in regards to Nika being on the court, was that the defense would play off of her and double team others. I think this past season has shown that that is not the case. She upped her scoring numbers, drives to the hoop and drawn fouls while leading the nation for almost the entire season in assists and the defense covered her at all times and in the occasional instances that they left a little space she took the shot or drove to the basket. Look at the numbers and see what you find between combined scoring and assists as to where Nika fell in the teams offensive production. You may also want to ponder why in the 24th game of the season Dawn Staley made it the teams focus to take the ball out of Nika's hands. It doesn't seem that in her analysis of our first 23 games she concluded that they could just lay off Nika and double the scorers.

How many shots do you really want her (or whomever would start in her place) taking when she is on the floor with Paige, Azzi and Aaliyah and who ever the fifth starter is? With her main focuses being on shared leadership, defense, ball handling and feeding her teammates she will likely be the fourth or fifth scoring option, which she has shown she will be more than capable of delivering on. We aren't looking to field an all star team, we want to put on the floor the most effective combination of players, so it isn't all just about scoring as to who gets the nod.

Aaliyah rightly so was selected as the BE most improved player but the kid wearing #10 made huge strides in what she brought to the table for her team during an outstanding junior campaign. She was challenged by Geno preseason and delivered in spades and along the way put her name in the record book in a few places. She may have come to Uconn as a perceived backup or role player but has matured into a very unique piece of what should be a championship roster.

She'll be the starting pg for the NCAA as long as UCONN continues to win along with as long as she can hit her shot to about the same numbers, or unless someone else such as Caroline is playing so great that Geno has to make a change.

I really love senior leadership.

I'm also looking forward to how Gneo expects to press between during the season and then for the NCAA's. As you say, it's not all about Offense.

 

[From France]

Who knows who will be available when march comes ??????

My current Prediction would be 1. Nika 2.Paige

 

[Bone Dog]

Take a look at 5' 10" LSU freshman Flau Jae Johnson.
She started every game for LSU, & Reese credited her for playing tremendous defense all season long including in the NC game.
She also scored 10 points in the NC game, and was named 2023 SEC Freshman of the Year.
A lot of players can play good defense including freshman.
Flau Jae proves that a freshman can make a huge difference towards winning a NC.
She played 36 minutes in the NC game & now she's a big star all because Kim trusted her enough to let her play.

Flau’jae Johnson

lsusports.net

Flau’jae is a good player, and soon may be a great one. She’s got a smooth offensive game and is pretty good on D, too, though if we account for SoS, her stats aren’t quite as gaudy as they appear. I’d take Angel’s remarks with a grain of salt. She is the leader of the team and takes her role seriously. She works quite hard to motivate her teammates, which is what I think she was doing there in preparation for next season just as she did it in games all season long. And LSU did not win the NC game by playing defense.

I expect Flau’jae will be someone to watch this coming season. Wouldn’t it be cool if one of our freshmen had a comparable season?

 

[HuskyNan]

So many point guards - how to choose? Oh, wait…

 

[HuskyNan]

Please, not another LSU thread

Geno will most likely start his senior, Nika, as he’s famously loyal to his players. He’s got the luxury this year of running a variety of combinations based on matchups and who’s got it going that night.

Paige, Nika, Azzi, KK, Ines at the guard spot
Azzi, Ashlynn, Aubrey, Caroline, Qadence at the wing
Aubrey, Ayanna, Ice, Aaliyah, Jana, Amari at the forward position

Geno will find combos he likes and may sub in as pairs or use the hockey line replacement the way he did in, um, 2106? Who starts is really pretty irrelevant

Geno loves versatile players. Start Azzi at the wing and have her bring the ball and set up plays - why not? Caroline can be shooting guard, small forward, or power forward, the label does not matter. I think some times people get a little too hung up on them.

 

[sun]

There can be a little too much reliance on the defensive aspects regarding who will be playing PG.
Some consideration must be given to who would be defending whoever UConn's PG is & which of our PG's can best handle the pressure.
That could mean that ball handling skill would be one of top considerations, especually if UConn is expected to play more 1 on 1 to generate plays & not be as easy to disrupt.
We need to recognize & give credit to the ability of the top opponents to defend against our PG's.
If I had to rate the ball handling skills of our PG's/ guards, then Paige, Azzi & KK would be my top 3 ball handlers.
Nika would probably come in 4th.
Nika's passing skills are superior but not better than Paige's.
Each player has a report card & can be rated in different areas of skill.
Passing ability may or may not be such a huge difference between our PG's.
If all boils down to Geno's judgment of what he considers the most important traits for his starting/ favored PG's to have, and how that affects PT.
I'm not too concerned about KK getting PT since her skill set can translate into any guard position because she can break down most any defender just like Paige can, and Azzi too as long as there's help with screens.
Our top players can probably score points without screens but the top defenders still need to be considered & respected according to which of our players can defeat them 1 on 1 when needed.
UConn may need to at least partially reinvent itself this year in order to win a NC against the teams loaded with top talent.
I think that Geno really wants to cut down on all of the turnovers to be more efficient which can make ball handling more important this year.

 

[#12in21]

There can be a little too much reliance on the defensive aspects regarding who will be playing PG.
Some consideration must be given to who would be defending whoever UConn's PG is & which of our PG's can best handle the pressure.
That could mean that ball handling skill would be one of top considerations, especually if UConn is expected to play more 1 on 1 to generate plays & not be as easy to disrupt.
We need to recognize & give credit to the ability of the top opponents to defend against our PG's.
If I had to rate the ball handling skills of our PG's/ guards, then Paige, Azzi & KK would be my top 3 ball handlers.
Nika would probably come in 4th.
Nika's passing skills are superior but not better than Paige's.
Each player has a report card & can be rated in different areas of skill.
Passing ability may or may not be such a huge difference between our PG's.
If all boils down to Geno's judgment of what he considers the most important traits for his starting/ favored PG's to have, and how that affects PT.
I'm not too concerned about KK getting PT since her skill set can translate into any guard position because she can break down most any defender just like Paige can, and Azzi too as long as there's help with screens.
Our top players can probably score points without screens but the top defenders still need to be considered & respected according to which of our players can defeat them 1 on 1 when needed.
UConn may need to at least partially reinvent itself this year in order to win a NC against the teams loaded with top talent.
I think that Geno really wants to cut down on all of the turnovers to be more efficient which can make ball handling more important this year.

great argument for having two point guards on the floor, i.e., Paige and Nika together, and a bonus you aren't sacrificing what we can do on the defensive end

 

[Cedar]

I think that Geno will choose Paige as his starting point guard in the NCAA tournament.

As others have noted, Paige can be effective at the 1 - 3 positions. If she plays shooting guard, she takes away Azzi’s optimal position, so I think Geno will probably play Paige at the 1 or 3. If she plays the 3, then Nika would play the 1. That combination would work well against many teams, but it is a smaller lineup that could have problems against bigger, athletic teams such as South Carolina. Paige would also run the risk of being roughed up by larger opposing SF/W players.

There has been a lot of discussion about whether or not Geno should have Caroline be a starter at the 3 position. I think that Aubrey may be a better choice. As the table below indicates, Aubrey is a better scorer, and she has a better eFG%, PER, Win Shares, offensive rating, and defensive rating. With her tremendous athleticism, Aubrey can create real problems for opponents.

Barring injuries or other health problems, I think that Geno’s best starting lineup in the NCAA tournament will have Paige at the point guard position, Azzi as the shooting guard, Aubrey at the 3 position, Aaliyah at the 4, and Jana or Ice at the 5.

Player	Points/game	Effective field goal %	Player efficiency rating (PER)	Win shares	Offensive rating	Defensive rating (lower numbers are better)
Aubrey Griffin	11.3	56.4%	21.6	5.9	117.0	83.3
Caroline Ducharme	7.4	48.1%	12.2	1.5	90.4	86.1
Azzi Fudd	15.1	54.4%	23.2	2.2	109.3	87.7
Nika Mühl	7.1	50.2%	14.3	4.8	102.8	87.2

Data source: Sports Reference. Stats are for the 2022-2023 season.

 

[Bone Dog]

I think that Geno will choose Paige as his starting point guard in the NCAA tournament.

As others have noted, Paige can be effective at the 1 - 3 positions. If she plays shooting guard, she takes away Azzi’s optimal position, so I think Geno will probably play Paige at the 1 or 3. If she plays the 3, then Nika would play the 1. That combination would work well against many teams, but it is a smaller lineup that could have problems against bigger, athletic teams such as South Carolina. Paige would also run the risk of being roughed up by larger opposing SF/W players.

There has been a lot of discussion about whether or not Geno should have Caroline be a starter at the 3 position. I think that Aubrey may be a better choice. As the table below indicates, Aubrey is a better scorer, and she has a better eFG%, PER, Win Shares, offensive rating, and defensive rating. With her tremendous athleticism, Aubrey can create real problems for opponents.

Barring injuries or other health problems, I think that Geno’s best starting lineup in the NCAA tournament will have Paige at the point guard position, Azzi as the shooting guard, Aubrey at the 3 position, Aaliyah at the 4, and Jana or Ice at the 5.

Player	Points/game	Effective field goal %	Player efficiency rating (PER)	Win shares	Offensive rating	Defensive rating (lower numbers are better)
Aubrey Griffin	11.3	56.4%	21.6	5.9	117.0	83.3
Caroline Ducharme	7.4	48.1%	12.2	1.5	90.4	86.1
Azzi Fudd	15.1	54.4%	23.2	2.2	109.3	87.7
Nika Mühl	7.1	50.2%	14.3	4.8	102.8	87.2

Data source: Sports Reference. Stats are for the 2022-2023 season.

You may be right about Paige starting in the tournament at PG. I think that would mean that the Nika-driven offensive model turns out to be less effective. This is as likely a result as any other.

As for Caroline vs Aubrey, Geno started Aubrey from the beginning last season because Caroline wasn't ready to go, and was substantially hindered by the lingering effects of concussion. As a result, I'm not sure the stats (especially win shares) are as informative as they might otherwise be. I like the look of the team when Aubrey is on the floor, and I hope and expect she'll get ~20 mins/g. But within the set offense, she can sometimes seem confused. To borrow a football term, she's a great broken-field runner, but not quite as good running off tackle. She's at her best in the transition game, grabbing rebounds, putting back offensive rebounds, and playing stifling defense at the top of the key. She scrambles for loose balls really well. But she seems more dependent than others on having someone else find her for a pass-and-score and less effective at creating her own shot than Caroline, for example.

By contrast, Caroline has been injured most of her 2 seasons. As a freshman, she had a remarkable run of 10 games after Paige went down and Azzi was not always 100%, when she was the go-to player on offense and defense, and we've been waiting for that Caroline to return. Except for that run, and the second half of the Iowa game this season, we've only caught glimpses of her promise.

When I imagine Caroline starting before Aubrey, I have two things in mind: 1) I'm imagining a 100% healthy Caroline, and I worry that playing Aubrey for 30 mins/g is not sustainable given her back. I think we saw this last March when Aubrey seemed slower and often wore a back brace when she came out of games. 2) I'm also picturing Caroline as a forward rather than a wing. This would mean Geno would have opted to play small-ball. He may not think this is wise to start this way in some or even all games. But I think it is a setup he will put on the floor for stretches of many games, so I think he might want to try it at the opening tip. In effect, we would start in a five-out setup like this: 1-2-2-4-4, with a pair of 4s who could step out to the elbow and beyond. Isn't this more or less what Stanford started against us for much of the game in 2022? Brink, Jones, Hull, Hull and Wilson. It's what tOSU ran against us this season, with no one over 6'0" on the floor for much of the game.

 

[Cedar]

You may be right about Paige starting in the tournament at PG. I think that would mean that the Nika-driven offensive model turns out to be less effective. This is as likely a result as any other.

As for Caroline vs Aubrey, Geno started Aubrey from the beginning last season because Caroline wasn't ready to go, and was substantially hindered by the lingering effects of concussion. As a result, I'm not sure the stats (especially win shares) are as informative as they might otherwise be. I like the look of the team when Aubrey is on the floor, and I hope and expect she'll get ~20 mins/g. But within the set offense, she can sometimes seem confused. To borrow a football term, she's a great broken-field runner, but not quite as good running off tackle. She's at her best in the transition game, grabbing rebounds, putting back offensive rebounds, and playing stifling defense at the top of the key. She scrambles for loose balls really well. But she seems more dependent than others on having someone else find her for a pass-and-score and less effective at creating her own shot than Caroline, for example.

By contrast, Caroline has been injured most of her 2 seasons. As a freshman, she had a remarkable run of 10 games after Paige went down and Azzi was not always 100%, when she was the go-to player on offense and defense, and we've been waiting for that Caroline to return. Except for that run, and the second half of the Iowa game this season, we've only caught glimpses of her promise.

When I imagine Caroline starting before Aubrey, I have two things in mind: 1) I'm imagining a 100% healthy Caroline, and I worry that playing Aubrey for 30 mins/g is not sustainable given her back. I think we saw this last March when Aubrey seemed slower and often wore a back brace when she came out of games. 2) I'm also picturing Caroline as a forward rather than a wing. This would mean Geno would have opted to play small-ball. He may not think this is wise to start this way in some or even all games. But I think it is a setup he will put on the floor for stretches of many games, so I think he might want to try it at the opening tip. In effect, we would start in a five-out setup like this: 1-2-2-4-4, with a pair of 4s who could step out to the elbow and beyond. Isn't this more or less what Stanford started against us for much of the game in 2022? Brink, Jones, Hull, Hull and Wilson. It's what tOSU ran against us this season, with no one over 6'0" on the floor for much of the game.

Good analysis. I think that Geno will probably conclude that his offense is most efficacious and potent with Paige at the 1 and Azzi at the 2. Time will tell.

With Caroline’s concussions and Aubrey’s back issues, there are definitely question marks at the 3 position. We’re all hoping that Caroline can recapture some of the magic that she had during her remarkable run of games as a freshman.

I agree with you that Caroline seems to understand Geno’s offense better than Aubrey does. However, Aubrey is a better athlete. So there is a mental vs. physical trade-off.

How did Stanford’s lineup work out for them when they played us in 2022? Ohio State did have success against us with a smaller lineup; I think Geno may employ some of Kevin McGuff’s tactics this season, particularly with respect to the full-court press.

I think we can agree that Geno will be experimenting with different player combinations and lineups this season. At different times, he may well implement the 1-2-2-4-4 lineup that you mentioned. Ultimately, I believe that he’s going to ride on the Paige Bueckers Express in his quest for a championship. I see him choosing Paige as his primary point guard in the NCAA tournament, with Azzi playing shooting guard.

 

[Zarathustra]

Nika. You go with your senior.

Probably "true": Start Nika. But I'm sure that Nika will be happy
to play the "off the bench" ignitor for her buddy, Paige.

 

[Rudy1927]

Paige is the PG. Nika back to the bench.

 

[Cuango]

What's interesting is that UConn played Iowa twice in the past 2 years.
Last year when Nika played 40 minutes, UConn beat Iowa by 7 points with Clark scoring 25.
In 2021 when Nika did not play any minutes, UConn beat Iowa by 20 points with Clark scoring 21.
Clark actually scored more points when Nika played & guarded her.
UConn scored more points when Nika didn't play at all & Paige was the PG & played 37 minutes.

2022 box score:

UConn 86-79 Iowa (Nov 27, 2022) Box Score - ESPN

Box score for the UConn Huskies vs. Iowa Hawkeyes NCAAW game from November 27, 2022 on ESPN. Includes all points, rebounds and steals stats.

www.espn.com

2021 box score:

UConn 92-72 Iowa (Mar 27, 2021) Box Score - ESPN

Box score for the UConn Huskies vs. Iowa Hawkeyes NCAAW game from March 27, 2021 on ESPN. Includes all points, rebounds and steals stats.

www.espn.com

That’s not going to play well on Main Street! Incoming in 1,2,3.

 

[Bald Husky]

These PG discussions sometimes get ridiculous. How about watching some of the games from LY and see what player is mentioned most by the commentators. Sure, you may blame the Ohio State debacle on Nika, but Azzi was terrible, Aaliyah, who is the press buster in the middle, was on the bench. She got no help, so the team just stunk during that time in the game. Also remember, not only was Nika the BE DPOY, and maybe it doesn't matter to some of you, but she was in the final 5 for the Nancy Lieberman Trophy as the best PG in the country. So, if the media and coaches think she is a great PG, why would any fan of UConn dispute that fact. Get over it, she is, and she always be our starting PG until somebody besides Paige proves different. I mention Paige because she will be at her best position, SG.

 

[Bone Dog]

How did Stanford’s lineup work out for them when they played us in 2022?

I agree with your excellently argued post. I highlight this one sentence merely to suggest reversing the question. The fact that Stanford played small ball against us suggests that the prevalent BY fear of bigger teams dominating us may be overstated. We seem to be at least as vulnerable to quicker teams.

And Tara could have played a big lineup against us but mainly chose not to. We won that game but it was close at the end, largely due to their press. Of course, in the next game we were indeed outmuscled by a bigger team.

And, as I never tire of remarking, in the Stanford game Nika outrebounded Brink. I know, it’s a weird isolated fact, maybe an outlier statistically. But it is intriguing.

 

[Childhood]

I think that Geno will choose Paige as his starting point guard in the NCAA tournament.

As others have noted, Paige can be effective at the 1 - 3 positions. If she plays shooting guard, she takes away Azzi’s optimal position, so I think Geno will probably play Paige at the 1 or 3. If she plays the 3, then Nika would play the 1. That combination would work well against many teams, but it is a smaller lineup that could have problems against bigger, athletic teams such as South Carolina. Paige would also run the risk of being roughed up by larger opposing SF/W players.

There has been a lot of discussion about whether or not Geno should have Caroline be a starter at the 3 position. I think that Aubrey may be a better choice. As the table below indicates, Aubrey is a better scorer, and she has a better eFG%, PER, Win Shares, offensive rating, and defensive rating. With her tremendous athleticism, Aubrey can create real problems for opponents.

Barring injuries or other health problems, I think that Geno’s best starting lineup in the NCAA tournament will have Paige at the point guard position, Azzi as the shooting guard, Aubrey at the 3 position, Aaliyah at the 4, and Jana or Ice at the 5.

Player	Points/game	Effective field goal %	Player efficiency rating (PER)	Win shares	Offensive rating	Defensive rating (lower numbers are better)
Aubrey Griffin	11.3	56.4%	21.6	5.9	117.0	83.3
Caroline Ducharme	7.4	48.1%	12.2	1.5	90.4	86.1
Azzi Fudd	15.1	54.4%	23.2	2.2	109.3	87.7
Nika Mühl	7.1	50.2%	14.3	4.8	102.8	87.2

Data source: Sports Reference. Stats are for the 2022-2023 season.

Wow, I know Aubrey is great but she is even better than I think. She's our best SF.

 

[hoophuskee]

These PG discussions sometimes get ridiculous. How about watching some of the games from LY and see what player is mentioned most by the commentators. Sure, you may blame the Ohio State debacle on Nika, but Azzi was terrible, Aaliyah, who is the press buster in the middle, was on the bench. She got no help, so the team just stunk during that time in the game. Also remember, not only was Nika the BE DPOY, and maybe it doesn't matter to some of you, but she was in the final 5 for the Nancy Lieberman Trophy as the best PG in the country. So, if the media and coaches think she is a great PG, why would any fan of UConn dispute that fact. Get over it, she is, and she always be our starting PG until somebody besides Paige proves different. I mention Paige because she will be at her best position, SG.

Looking forward to if UCONN is healthy an undefeated reg. season or at tops 1 loss leading into NCAA with Nika Muhl running the fastbreak with Azzi on one side and Paige on the other. The elite scoring potential from both Wings might be the most explosive Wing scores/passer combos UCONN has ever had.

To add to that, any big team that tries to pound UCONN in the paint, every time they don’t; get the rebound, we'll punish them with an example of this three-player juggernaut fastbreak group (among other combos as well).

Then after UCONN punishes the opposing team on the break, what will they do? They will press. And press more. That's what many of us have loved to see for a long time. Its' just that you just don’t press against "Butler." You press against the big teams. Posters talk about how the other team would wear us down with their size if we have Paige as an example the SF. That's nonsense if UCONN is healthy. When you press, more than likely you're looking to wear out the other team's posts if that is their advantage. If Paige is cleared to play and has played the whole season, let's stop with this "being too roughed up." We heard that when she was a frosh how all these teams were going to low post her. We heard as s a soph how Stewie was going to get "roughed up palying the PF> We heard how the 01-02 team was going to get plastered by a team with size. All myths.

And for every miss from the other team which UCONN gets the rebound, UCONN runs the ball down their throat. For every made basket the other team makes, UCONN looks to run the ball down the bigger team’s throat even after a make. It doesn't mean you take a shot every 5 seconds but it means the opposing big players are either running all the time or fighting for rebounds all the time or getting stuck on swtiches on Defense being forced to defend our guards. And by the end of the season as Tourney starts, it should be the big teams that are more worn out. Did I mention that their bigs when they touch the ball the are being pressed too if their guards are trapped etc?

And for those that believe pressure is about elite quickness and steals, they don’t understand what "press" means. You can even press to slow down a game. But in this case, UCONN could press just to push pace. So, for the big teams, force their guards to make plays by playing fast so their bigs can't get as involved. At some point the more raggedy the game gets, that favors the team with superior guard Wing play that looks to push pace.

And that's what's exciting about the Muhl as pg, and Azzi/Paige on the Wing combos especially at Tourney time.