Xavier Postgame Thread

[mdmiller6]

I think the Huskies played a great game today. I really think we have some athletic bigs. I loved the big line up with Liv, Aubrey, and Edwards. I would like to see this big/athletic line up when we go up against the likes of Baylor and South Carolina. The Huskies are only going to get better. Great Game!!!

 

[JordyG]

agree with all except ref calling travels slow the game down. It's not the ref's it's the players traveling that slows the game down. A problem that needs to be corrected asap or sooner.

That's a fact. Once again, complaining about referee's always seems to me like homer flailing. I saw Liv get away with a lot of arm smacking tonight with no calls. All of the travels called against UConn were so obvious it became a comedy. Don't call these and you may as well allow 3 and 4 steps to the hoop. Heck, isn't enough that Paige gets away with palming the ball on every possession?

 

[RockyMTblue2]

 

[BBallF]

Another game under their belts and an easy win. It looks like we have a set rotation of 7 now. All 7 contributed well, with a nice breakout by Squeeks. Paige wasn't flashy but has a team high 9 assists and a fine shooting percentage. My biggest takeaway was Evina taking and making more shots. As we hit the better teams in the schedule having her as a legit offensive threat will make a big difference and she has the game to make that happen.

It will be 8 in the set rotation, not 7, when Nika returns. I am very hopeful about Mir also but we have to be patient. Totally agree about Evina. We are witnessing her comeback from her surgeries evolve game by game and it is thrilling to watch. 4 assists and 4 steals to go along with 4 boards as well today and she is going to be the lock down defender on his team. Some beautiful passing today for a team that may well become one of the best passing teams ever.

 

[EricLA]

Don’t sleep on AG busting the starting lineup. Picture that half court trap with Aubrey at the outset. Anna would be a good first sub. Only at UConn do you think about having 4 ball handlers.
You alluded to it. She could be on top instead of Paige and Paige could lay for the steals and/or trap with her long arms at the second level.

You guys with these starting lineup changes. NOT...GONNA...HAPPEN unless Anna or Evina go into a prolonged slump. Or unless they don't listen to Geno (ie. Geno has told Anna she needs to take more shots when the outcome of the game is undecided - she took and made 2 shots in 1 in the 1st quarter).

I'm not sure why soe people are so obsessed with changing up the starting lineup. UCONN won the 1st quarter 38-7 with most of the starting 5 in there. I think he subbed someone in the last 3-4 minutes, and another towards the end of the Q. I get that people are super excited about how Aubrey and Aaliyah are playing, but to boot someone out of the starting lineup? Just no...

Each great sub brings something special off the bench. But Aubrey STILL doesn't know the offense and she's a sophomore. I see other players on the floor having to tell her where to go at times. Megan said the coaches had to simplify what they ask Aubrey to do on offense. But she and Edwards had a really good 21 or so minutes each.

This was Xavier. One of the 3 worst teams in the BE according to pre-season polls. I expected a 40+ point win. Mission accomplished. But we won Q2 by 2 points and Q4 by 3 points (hey... I'm just channeling Geno!!). Christyn's first good shooting game this season, to go with the rest of her game that is pretty darn good. Really wanted to see Paige get a double double. 9 assists = great, 5 TO's, boo.

REALLY loved seeing Evina have a better than average scoring game! 15 points, 4 boards, 4 assists, 4 steals. She doesn't bring an edge to the team, she brings leadership and a proven scoring ability that showed today. Do NOT expect this team to shoot 55% from 3 for the rest of the season, but boy was that nice to see!!

And Olivia with a double double. There were some stretches where she dominated. Really hoping Mir gets out of the doghouse and earns reserve minutes instead of mop-up minutes. Nice seeing Piath get on the scoreboard and I'm still hoping Aubrey hits some 3's this season!! Piath and Mir made the most of their time on the floor as far as fouls are concerned - 3 for Piath in 3 minutes, 2 for Mir in minutes.

 

[JoePgh]

I was very impressed with Aaliyah's postgame interview. She is very self-aware and unusually accurate in her self-assessments -- she didn't downplay either her strength down low or her need to show that she can hit the midrange shot so that defenders don't play off of her. Impressive maturity for a freshman.

 

[Golden Husky]

Thanks for the video postings, Rocky.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

 

[Golden Husky]

Again, thanks for the video postings. Much appreciated.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Again, thanks for the video postings. Much appreciated.

You're welcome. Get them while they're hot.

 

[GRIFFBIFF20]

I would say that Aubrey Griffin had a pretty efficient game today. 4 of 5 from the field, 5 of 6 from the line. 3 Boards, 2 Assists and ZERO Turnovers, in 20 minutes of play. I would bet that Geno would be happy to get that kind of performance from AG every game. I love AG's game and yes, if she could get a bit more confidence (and opportunities) to hit that Mid-Range Jump Shot, to compliment her game, that would be gravy for this team. BUT, I think right now, being the 6th Man for this team, suits this team just fine and thus I don't feel she should start. (How does averaging 14 points a game, with 6 boards and 5 assists a game sound). Does everyone else agree with this?

 

[bluedevil]

Scored more points in the first quarter than they did in the first half against Creighton! Defense was particularly good in the first half. Offensive rebs kind of low so far?

Christyn had a breakout game. Her 24 matched Aaliyah & Aubrey combined, and those 2 were playing well. CW's short range efficiency could improve.

First time 3 pt shots going in -- CW 4/5, Evina Westbrook, 3/5, Bueckers 2/5, Mak only 1, but early in the game to set the tone. Free throws pretty good, though maybe not as good as in the Creighton game. PB's missing 2/3 for the 3 pt foul was unusual. CW missed her first, but 4/5 overall. Both Evina & LIv 2/2.

It didn't seem like Liv played a lot of minutes, but the skills she demonstrated in the Creighton game haven't diminished.

PB's passing is impressive, but as she gets used to D1 defense, I think she'll get better & have fewer turnovers. Good that she avoided foul trouble this time around.

Refs calling so many travels slows down the game to the point of being annoying.

EW is getting better and better. Better passer than PB at this point?

Nika needs to keep her mask on. And I'm sure Geno's voice can be heard through that bank robber thing; seemed like it was more off than on. Isn't he on the verge of Social Security?

Waiting for full retirement age..could have started collecting at 62..

 

[EdSaid]

We also saw what Geno is most likely going to do in the Baylor game. Anna goes to the bench replaced by Aaiyah. With the remaining starters, that was an effective lineup in the 1st quarter.

I saw something I don't think we've seen for extended minutes; ONO, AE, & AG. That's the big lineup. Geno is obviously using building blocks here. He's trying to see what works. The trap worked great, the zone not so much. He is building game by game. Nika will come along just fine, Mir might take a bit longer, but she will be ready for important minutes.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Ha! Caption this:

 

[Charliebball]

Nice comments. More minutes could smooth out some of her rough edges. Frankly I don’t need her to be able to shoot anything but a lay up. Anything else is gravy. She can finish!

she's a handful right now but her offense in the half court is predictable............imagine if she shows she can make a few jumps shots and brings the defender closer to her........she's quick enough to drive past anybody at that point............you're talking about the difference between an 8 point a game player and a 16 point a game player.....

 

[Charliebball]

Got to love Edwards!!! Love her!! We started a thread on her a while back but i feel like thee should be more. This year we hit a jackpot in terms of frosh recruits with her and Paige.

Last few years I didn't want to really see a physical team go against us-- now I'm like "Bring it on!" While at this point she still would be inconsistent and could lay a clunker-- but so what-- she just has so much force to her game. And with Aubrey - a freak athlete and Liv is also a tremendous athlete-- we have a real nice core of 3.

I'm absolutely giddy over Edwards.

she's got the power and the aggressiveness, she just needs to borrow a bit of finesse from a certain Ms Collier.............

 

[EdSaid]

Just looking at the NCAA.com scoreboard, full schedule of women's games today. 50 games being played, 13 games postponed. That is the most postponed games I've seen. Roller coaster ride, stay positive, and play whatever games you can.

 

[chrissaran]

I know Paige is strong, so please don't post about how I said she isn't strong. What I worry about is UConn is only four games in, and there are times Paige looks tired. When we get into the challenging part of the schedule, I hope she's rested enough to play her best.

 

[DEpup]

I was really impressed with Evina's game today. For me, she has game by game been adding more and more and I think today was the perfect sweet spot on the stat sheet. Geno talks about consistency and what can a player be depended on to get every game. If Evina can bring today's stat line routinely, good things will happen for this team.

In addition, there is constant talk about not having any seniors but today Evina was clearly the senior on the team in demeanor and stat line.

I felt like she really gave a Kia Nurse type performance today. A solid bit of everything that the team needed with both an edge and maturity.

I know what I want to see Tuesday already. I want to see if Evina can lead a shut down of Siegrist and hold her to around 12 pts..

 

[Dillon77]

she's got the power and the aggressiveness, she just needs to borrow a bit of finesse from a certain Ms Collier.............

I got to watch a fair amount of this game -- longest watch of UConn to this point -- and your eyes are drawn to Ms. Edwards. Many folks have commented that Maddy Westbeld has a "college-ready body." If that's the case, Edwards is ready to enter pro ball. Sure, there is a lot to learn, but she's in a perfect situation to contribute what she can while growing. Impressive. Great get.

 

[oldude]

Ha! Caption this:

Paige did that last game too, in a similar situation. It’s her acknowledgment that Aaliyah has just scored under the basket while knocking opponents around like pinballs.

 

[CMC'72]

Replay link?

 

[FridaFriend]

I was really happy for Evina today. I focused on her and her effort for her entire minutes. She had been solid in the earlier games, but today she showed more of what she could do. I think she plays great defense and she works well with the other players. I wondered whether she could be a good team player and she is.

 

[Argonaut]

I know Paige is strong, so please don't post about how I said she isn't strong. What I worry about is UConn is only four games in, and there are times Paige looks tired. When we get into the challenging part of the schedule, I hope she's rested enough to play her best.

We actually talked about this (kind of) at my house today. I think Paige looks a little exasperated. For probably the first time in her life, basketball is kind of hard. Whether it’s getting called for violations she isn’t used to or players getting hands on balls they don’t normally get — she’s just not used to it.

Don’t get me wrong, I think she’s playing really, really well, but I bet if you could get a truly candid answer from her, she isn’t playing as well as she anticipated she would. Some of those easy high school moves just haven’t translated as well (yet!) to the college game.

 

[HopJim]

As near a perfect game as I have seen UConn play for some time. Near perfect defense and happy to see the entire team do well with 3 pointers

My only wishes for this game that didn't come true:
-No strong defender on ONO. Love that she is getting more aggressive but it would be great experience to have a tough, tall defender to shoot over. Her opposition this year were basically good high school level players. ONO doing as well as possible playing great against the "B-team."
-No strong back up point guard. Have not seen anyone this year who could take over for Paige. Hope this does not becomes a need but you never know.
Fun game to watch. As blow outs go, enjoyable to see the development UConn is showing.