Worst Game

[Tufkas]

Williams' game was rather difficult to characterize - spectacular to the point of being indescribable in spots, puzzling in others. Stats bear it out - 21 points, 4 blocks led the team, 8 rebounds tied for the team lead. 2 steals accounted for half of the team's total.

5 turnovers led the team - 2 in the OT. 4 missed free throws, 2 in OT with the score tied at 60. 2 offensive rebounds, as the team was outrebounded offensively 14-6. Perhaps most tellingly, only 2 assists for the team's assists leader, as the high post driven offensive flow frequently broke down.

All-in-all a heroic, drain-the-tank effort, (reminiscent perhaps of Barbara Turner vs Duke in Bridgeport a lifetime ago and Maya Moore's semi-final loss to ND) that was unfortunately every bit critical in a game where others struggled. The last second questionable choices (I agree with Kara Lawson - my shot must absolutely be the last shot in a tie game, rebounds notwithstanding). The wasted give-a-foul with 17 seconds left.

For me, Samuelson stepped up extraordinarily late 4th and OT with clutch jumpers, rebounds and 2 massive nothing-but-net free throws tying the game with 27 seconds left in OT, giving her team the winning possession, against a hostile, screaming crowd, an empty key, and an apoplectic opposing coach. She was there when it mattered most, which portends well for continued development over her final 2 years.

I reckon Coach's post-game perspective, as always, was bang on, "“Maybe we’re just not ready for this. Maybe we were ready for everything else, but maybe we’re just not mature enough for this. Maybe all our young kids needed to experience this so that we can come back and really be ready for this.”

Times like these emphasize just how blessed this team and its fans are to have this man and his staff as stewards over this once-in-a-lifetime program.

Clearly, the saying all along has been, "We have Geno and they don't!"

 

[JustinesGuy]

Yup. I was uneasy watching the game from the beginning, and never felt good during the game. There was hope when we took a lead in Qtr 3, but then our momentum stopped and we missed chance after chance to build on that lead. From that point on, the missed free-throws and the turnovers were agonizing and frequent. After watching the team play such a near-perfect game against Oregon, I couldn't believe what I was seeing against MissSt.

This was not our only poor showing this year. There was of course the Tulane game, and I didn't think we dispatched UCLA as decisively as we could have. A couple of other examples were UCF toward the end of the season and Kansas earlier in the season. We won those games handily despite not playing our A game. But MissSt is a good team that brought their A game, and we did not play our A game. Yes, they played great defense and consistent offense, and all credit for that. But we helped by missing lots of easy shots in the first half and missing free-throws and committing turnovers in the second half.

It shows just how good our team really is, that even with MissSt playing a great game and our team sputtering, we still nearly won the game. And it shows how amazing it is to win so many games in a row, because let-downs happen. Alas, we finally had an ill-timed letdown against a very good team in the Final Four.

This

 

[DaddyChoc]

Honestly, you could tell things were not going to go well right from the first possession where we ran one of our usual sets and they easily intercepted the pass, as if they knew what was coming.

Surprised more teams don't intercept UConn passes, they run the same basic plays every game. Double screen, roll out for a 3... If that don't work a screener (collier) roll to the basket and get a lob pass from Gabby.

 

[Shenandoah]

That was good.Thinking about it LT and Jim Brown have a lot in common as far as off the field stuff

I remember watching Jim Brown play as a kid. An amazing running back. Almost like a man among boys at times.

 

[Replicant]

Teams win and teams lose, not players. It's just wrong to pin the loss on any one player.

This TEAM had been playing with 'house money' all season long, beginning with the squeaker with FSU. Every game from then forward was a net-win and a joy to watch!

To your point - MSU won as a team! They had a great game plan and they executed it to near perfection. Part of UConn's legendary dominance has always been that 99.99% of teams can't/won't/don't give 100% effort for the full 40 mins against us. Well MSU did just that for the full 45 mins on Friday night.

And on the losing side, the TEAM shot 10% below our season average (68% vs. 78%) on FT's. That's an add'l 3 points on the 25 FT attempts we had Friday and would have been the difference in regulation time. 3 of our 5 starters scored below their season averages. The TEAM also had only 11 assists for the night, compared to our season average of 23.

All credit to MSU. We got beat.

 

[browns]

I remember watching Jim Brown play as a kid. An amazing running back. Almost like a man among boys at times.

One of the few "superstars" to retire when they were still the best ie: Barry Sanders,Sandy Koufax

 

[warbler1055]

If you do not feel a bit of sadness and letdown at the end of an era you are not a UConn fan. I root and love this team and I am disappointed that they lost!!!

 

[connie]

Williams' game was rather difficult to characterize - spectacular to the point of being indescribable in spots, puzzling in others. Stats bear it out - 21 points, 4 blocks led the team, 8 rebounds tied for the team lead. 2 steals accounted for half of the team's total.

5 turnovers led the team - 2 in the OT. 4 missed free throws, 2 in OT with the score tied at 60. 2 offensive rebounds, as the team was outrebounded offensively 14-6. Perhaps most tellingly, only 2 assists for the team's assists leader, as the high post driven offensive flow frequently broke down.

All-in-all a heroic, drain-the-tank effort, (reminiscent perhaps of Barbara Turner vs Duke in Bridgeport a lifetime ago and Maya Moore's semi-final loss to ND) that was unfortunately every bit critical in a game where others struggled. The last second questionable choices (I agree with Kara Lawson - my shot must absolutely be the last shot in a tie game, rebounds notwithstanding). The wasted give-a-foul with 17 seconds left.

For me, Samuelson stepped up extraordinarily late 4th and OT with clutch jumpers, rebounds and 2 massive nothing-but-net free throws tying the game with 27 seconds left in OT, giving her team the winning possession, against a hostile, screaming crowd, an empty key, and an apoplectic opposing coach. She was there when it mattered most, which portends well for continued development over her final 2 years.

I reckon Coach's post-game perspective, as always, was bang on, "“Maybe we’re just not ready for this. Maybe we were ready for everything else, but maybe we’re just not mature enough for this. Maybe all our young kids needed to experience this so that we can come back and really be ready for this.”

Times like these emphasize just how blessed this team and its fans are to have this man and his staff as stewards over this once-in-a-lifetime program.

Clearly, the saying all along has been, "We have Geno and they don't!"

Nice summary, especially the balanced overview of Gabby's game. I do love her so, notwithstanding.

 

[Aluminny69]

Good point. I wonder what the difference was with this game versus say South Carolina last month with all the media attention, stands packed with former players, for win #100.

The SC game was on UConn's home court? (Just a wild guess.)

 

[warbler1055]

Truth be told I agree with the OP, UConn did not play our regular excellent game, but maybe due to the pressure of the FF and MS game plan which is to punch them in the mouth
.

 

[HuskyNan]

If you do not feel a bit of sadness and letdown at the end of an era you are not a UConn fan. I root and love this team and I am disappointed that they lost!!!

Different people had different expectations. Just because someone doesn't feel the same way you do doesn't mean they're not fans.

 

[tomcat]

Some differences that either put more pressure on or negatively affected the Huskies:

1. Final Four
2. It was played in Dallas vs. Connecticut, in a court they've never played on
3. The crowd seemed tilted toward Miss St/underdogs/SEC fans
4. A loss against SC would not have ended the season
5. That Hoe-down in Dallas and whatever unusual Texas foods they might have eaten
6. The HBO series

Not to disagree with anything you said but to say the crowd "seemed" tilted toward MSU is like suggesting that World War II was just a bit of a dust-up. From the first tip, all SC fans were solidly in MSU's corner. And why not? Who would you want to play in the final, MSU or UConn?

Stanford fans seemed slightly in favor of MSU initially, and more so as MSU proved themselves as the game went on. If there were any Dallas neutrals, they seemed on board with their Cowboys quarterback, Zak or Dak or whatever, who was from MSU. By the end of the game I would estimate the volume for MSU at maybe 3 or 4 times the volume for UConn, if not more.

 

[tomcat]

Honestly, you could tell things were not going to go well right from the first possession where we ran one of our usual sets and they easily intercepted the pass, as if they knew what was coming.

This is a really good observation. We noticed that early interception, too. It seemed obvious numerous times that their coaches knew UConn's passing tendencies and created a strategy to disrupt them.

We all know that UConn lives by the pass. We've just never seen them die by the pass until Friday.

This is not meant as a knock on UConn coaching, but I kept waiting for them to adjust to the way MSU had taken away their passes, and they never did. I know this is not likely the case, but it almost seemed like UConn couldn't believe anyone could do that to them and, as a result, could not come up with an effective counter-strategy.

 

[UConnNick]

More facts--better in game like 3rd quarter--I said Offensive Rb's were terrible

Uconn 43.5 FG Miss 37.2
Uconn 46.7 3 pt Miss 27.3
Uconn 68 ft Miss 76.9
Uconn 11 A Miss 11
UConn 14 To Miss 17
Rebounds
Uconn off 6 def 25 tot 31
Miss off 14 def 24 tot 37

The above hardly shows great Miss prowess in stats---Uconn was beaten in 3 stats FT-s and Rebound and final score.

Uconn fouled less had fewer player and had to allow Miss to go by often without defending
Rebounds ---smaller players in the post vs 6 ft 5 post players for miss Uconn's only 6 ft 5 proved too less mobile

These stats are end of game stats---in the third quarter the shooting (except FT's ) were better stats.
Didn't track the To' or assists---

The one category not on this list that was the key to winning or losing this game is layups. By my count, which could even be conservative, we missed at least 8 and maybe as many as 10 layups. Most of those were uncontested. We make half our missed layups and we win by double digits. The rest of the negative stats wouldn't have mattered.

Why did we miss so many layups? Playing too fast, loss of concentration, defensive pressure, late game fatigue, any number of reasons may have contributed.

 

[cferraro04]

Kudos to Mississippi State...a 66 point turnaround. Lost by 64 last year won by two this year. Amazing...really.

 

[Bigboote]

This TEAM had been playing with 'house money' all season long, beginning with the squeaker with FSU. Every game from then forward was a net-win and a joy to watch!

To your point - MSU won as a team! They had a great game plan and they executed it to near perfection. Part of UConn's legendary dominance has always been that 99.99% of teams can't/won't/don't give 100% effort for the full 40 mins against us. Well MSU did just that for the full 45 mins on Friday night.

And on the losing side, the TEAM shot 10% below our season average (68% vs. 78%) on FT's. That's an add'l 3 points on the 25 FT attempts we had Friday and would have been the difference in regulation time. 3 of our 5 starters scored below their season averages. The TEAM also had only 11 assists for the night, compared to our season average of 23.

All credit to MSU. We got beat.

What he said. I was going to point to the Box Score thread. We got outhustled for the first time in a very long time. They beat us on rebounds and steals, got 20 more shots.

UConn doesn't lose because a player has the "worst game," they win as a team and lose as a team. Together.

One of my favorite quotes is from Henry Ford: Don't find fault, find a solution.

 

[BostonCanuck]

This is a really good observation. We noticed that early interception, too. It seemed obvious numerous times that their coaches knew UConn's passing tendencies and created a strategy to disrupt them.

We all know that UConn lives by the pass. We've just never seen them die by the pass until Friday.

This is not meant as a knock on UConn coaching, but I kept waiting for them to adjust to the way MSU had taken away their passes, and they never did. I know this is not likely the case, but it almost seemed like UConn couldn't believe anyone could do that to them and, as a result, could not come up with an effective counter-strategy.

I kept waiting for them adjust to the MSU defense that took away our perimeter passing too, and I do mean that as a knock on UConn coaching. Also, we played the entire game at their tempo. Even on our own possessions, we consistently slow-walked the ball up the floor, burning precious time off the clock effectively minimizing our number of possessions. Why would you keep doing that in the forth quarter when our offence had bogged down again and the score so close? And don't get me started again on the obvious failure in the final huddle to ensure proper clock management on our final possession. This was an in-game coaching dumpster fire from start to finish.

 

[browns]

I kept waiting for them adjust to the MSU defense that took away our perimeter passing too, and I do mean that as a knock on UConn coaching. Also, we played the entire game at their tempo. Even on our own possessions, we consistently slow-walked the ball up the floor, burning precious time off the clock effectively minimizing our number of possessions. Why would you keep doing that in the forth quarter when our offence had bogged down again and the score so close? And don't get me started again on the obvious failure in the final huddle to ensure proper clock management on our final possession. This was an in-game coaching dumpster fire from start to finish.

I agree.Every time they got the ball in the 4th quarter I kept saying,"come on come on

 

[JustinesGuy]

Felt just like Tulane. They played a similar defense.

Add in poor FT shooting and a poor NC performance and the rest was history.

 

[donalddoowop]

Felt just like Tulane. They played a similar defense.

Add in poor FT shooting and a poor NC performance and the rest was history.

Was her performance really poor, or just not up to her standards. Usually, when one player did not play a good game, her teammates picked up the slack. They could have used more from the rest of the team, except Gabby, of course.

 

[JustinesGuy]

Was her performance really poor, or just not up to her standards. Usually, when one player did not play a good game, her teammates picked up the slack. They could have used more from the rest of the team, except Gabby, of course.

No I agree, Kia barely showed up too.

I think if u compare her game to every and I mean every game, yes it was poor. I say that not as a personal attack. I think the world of NC and she's better than I'll ever be. In the meantime everything was off for her. She just didn't even look confident, sharp. It's not like her shots just didn't drop. She could not establish position nor could her teammates get her the back where she wanted it.

I'm still concerned with next year. I think we are front court heavy. I think we may be guard deficient. What happens if danger doesn't progress? Walker will not be ready day one. Can gabby play two and bring the ball up? I was hoping for more growth from danger.

 

[Buzzyboy]

One of the few "superstars" to retire when they were still the best ie: Barry Sanders,Sandy Koufax

Man, did I love to see Barry Sanders play and I loved the class he had when he scored. No showtime crap, just hand the ball to the referee, end of story. He averaged more yards per carry than anyone in NFL history who was over 10,000 yards though Jim Brown is close. For a guy who played for a team that NEVER had a quarterback or any other offensive threat and was undersized, that is truly amazing. Look at the support that Jim Brown had offensively on his team, besides himself. Barry was THE MAN!

 

[Buzzyboy]

Was her performance really poor, or just not up to her standards. Usually, when one player did not play a good game, her teammates picked up the slack. They could have used more from the rest of the team, except Gabby, of course.

Gabby played with indomitable energy and played her heart out but as has been mentioned, she had a number of turnovers, some key missed foul shots. No one played a "perfect" game but her performance was a big plus to creating an opportunity for us to win this game. I feel the same could be said for KLS, because though she had turnovers during that big run that Mississippi State had to open a big lead, the whole team was really sloppy and out of kilter during that stretch. Other than that, KLS played well, with some nice rebounding and hit some key shots down the stretch and foul shots that tied the game in the waning seconds that should at least have sent the game into another overtime, if not give us the chance to win in that first overtime.

 

[Buzzyboy]

Was her performance really poor, or just not up to her standards. Usually, when one player did not play a good game, her teammates picked up the slack. They could have used more from the rest of the team, except Gabby, of course.

Who are we talking about here? I'm not sure if it's Pheesa or KLS or Kia or ???????

 

[Buzzyboy]

Lawrence Taylor played for the Browns?

No and neither does Barry Sanders or Dick Butkus!