Post Game report
This was certainly a typical conference game for UConn, but it was certainly not a typical situation. The Huskies beat up on SMU after one of their worst shooting quarters in a long time 88-48 behind the superb trio of Katie Lou Samuelson, Napheesa Collier and Gabby Williams. There is no better three players in the country and I have had the chance to watch all of the top teams.
It was almost stunning to see them shoot 1-9 to start the 2nd quarter, but they ended it going 6 for their last 8. The funny thing is, nothing was wrong with the shots they were taking. The were just missing them. Weird. But it happens.
The rest of the team all contributed, some more than others, but as the SMU coach said - "If my team could watch how hard they practice and how freely their body moves and how freely the ball moves. They never look tense or uptight, whether they make a mistake or not make a mistake. They could make a three-pointer, they get back. They could turn the ball over, they still get back. It all looks the same."
It all looks the same. He is so right. That sometimes makes my job as a blogger about this wonderful team so difficult. How many ways can I say "great". But they inspire me to write about them day after day.
Game Highlights
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Game Quotes From Geno
''This team is pretty good as just keeping everything on an even keel. Even afterward, there's a feeling of accomplishment, they feel like they've done something significant. But there isn't this over-the-top screaming and yelling as if we just won a national championship.''
"I'm really proud of this group and what they've been able to accomplish in a short period of time they've been together. Today was not that great, either. It's not like we've played perfect basketball every night. But I'm happy for them."
"If you expect to get something amazing back, you really do have to put yourself in a position where you feel like [you] deserve it because you've worked hard and earned it. I think these kids have done that. And what's helped them along the way is that group of people that came before them and that Connecticut mentality -- that culture -- that we're fortunate enough to have. That when there's a play to be made, there's no, 'Can I make this play? Am I good enough?' Instead it's like, 'I have no choice but to make this play, because I'm at Connecticut.' There's this belief. Things do have a way of becoming what you expect them to become a lot of times."
"So many things that have happened at UConn are just beyond anybody's expectations, beyond anybody's imagination. It's almost like it's a fairy tale. It's the kind of thing you can't ever plan for or anticipate."
Game Quotes from Coach Travis Mays
''What a good team, what a very, very good team. I hear people say at the beginning of the year UConn was supposed to have a down year. That's not a down year. That's a program that has championship pedigree, and the culture is there. You go there, they just plug you in and they keep on winning.''
"If my team could watch how hard they practice and how freely their body moves and how freely the ball moves. They never look tense or uptight, whether they make a mistake or not make a mistake. They could make a three-pointer, they get back. They could turn the ball over, they still get back. It all looks the same."
"Everything that he does, how can you not be inspired by what he's doing. He's done so much for the game. It's almost ludicrous when I hear people say, is what UConn is doing bad for the women's game? How is that even a question? Absolutely not. When you talk about some of the greatest sports programs in history, his will come up. … I'm not stroking coach, but the thing is, I give props where props is due. It's fun to watch his team play."
"If my team could watch how hard they practice and how freely their body moves and how freely the ball moves. They never look tense or uptight, whether they make a mistake or not make a mistake. They could make a three-pointer, they get back. They could turn the ball over, they still get back. It all looks the same."
"Everything that he does, how can you not be inspired by what he's doing. He's done so much for the game. It's almost ludicrous when I hear people say, is what UConn is doing bad for the women's game? How is that even a question? Absolutely not. When you talk about some of the greatest sports programs in history, his will come up. … I'm not stroking coach, but the thing is, I give props where props is due. It's fun to watch his team play."
Player Evaluations
Katie Lou Samuelson
This confident young woman just keeps getting better and better. In that horrible second quarter, Lou was 4-7 to carry the team, hitting a buzzer beater to keep the momentum in the Huskies favor. She played 34 minutes and scored 28 points on 11-21 shooting. It's unusual to see her take so many shots, but when they present themselves, she needs to shoot. She was a solid 5-12 on threes. She added 6 rebounds 3 assists and 3 steals. Lou is not a player prone to turnovers, but she did have 4 in this game. Knowing her, when she saw the stat sheet she was pretty pissed off about that. I posted a picture here of her defending. I thought this was one of her better defensive games.
''I'm not taking for granted at all this is one of the coolest things I've ever been a part of. Now we can really just focus each game at a time, and not have to worry anything if we're keeping it up or not.''
"It's a really cool accomplishment, but we know that we have a lot more we want to do this season. We'll look more back on it later, rather than right now. Maybe at the end of the year, or in a couple of years, that's when we'll really be able to look back and see that we did something that's kinda never been done before."
Napheesa Collier
Napheesa is playing like an all-American. No doubt about it. And it's on both sides of the ball that she is so effective. In her 29 minutes, she was a efficient 8-13 and hit her only three point attempt. I just love the variety of her post moves. The spin and fall away jumper is so effective against bigger players. Can't wait to see her put a few of those on South Carolina's Coates. On the defensive end, she was just over the top amazing. Her 6 blocks at 6'1" blows my mind. It's just a knack she has. She ended up with 19 points, a career high 16 rebounds and 2 assists. And what I'm sure makes Geno really really happy is that she had ZERO turnovers.
Gabby Williams
It's really hard to keep writing the same thing over and over about Gabby. Well, maybe it's really easy. Every game she does the same thing. She is efficient from the field, she grabs rebounds from all over, she makes better passes than anyone else and her defensive disruptions are game changing. She played a spectacular 25 minutes with 19 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals, and 2 blocks. Along with countless hustle plays and floor burns. I really loved the 5-5 from the FT line bringing her percentage to 70%, more than respectable.
"A lot of people are coming to watch us play, and we have to put on a show for them. When we have wasted minutes, we take it to heart. It's almost embarrassing for us."
"A lot of people are coming to watch us play, and we have to put on a show for them. When we have wasted minutes, we take it to heart. It's almost embarrassing for us."
"We make sure that we push ourselves to the very point of fatigue. When you’re at the point where you think you’re going to break, how focused can you be and how much can you push through? I think that’s the difference between us and everyone else."
Kia Nurse
Not one of her best games. I'm glad Geno only played her 26 minutes. She has been logging big minutes all season. She did struggle from the field, going 1-5 on threes. And let me tell you, you could hear the clang on those 4 misses right through my computer. Ugly. But outside of her shooting woes she played well. And that is a big change and maturation process for Kia. She used to sulk a little when missing her shots, but now she just focuses on the other parts of her game. She played excellent defense as always and had 4 assists and only 1 turnover.
"I think it's about what's happened in practice. Because there were days when we weren't very good in practice, and things were not going well at all. And some voices had to step up and be heard. We were trying to find our team identity."
"I think it's about what's happened in practice. Because there were days when we weren't very good in practice, and things were not going well at all. And some voices had to step up and be heard. We were trying to find our team identity."
Sanyia Chong
Well, the Dangerfield effect was in full force in this game as Sanyia had to play a team leading 36 minutes in what was a blowout. See my comments in the Bent write-up. After a slow start, going 0-3 on threes in the first quarter and going scoreless in the first half, with only 1 rebound and 2 assists, Chong had a much better 2nd half. She had 8 points, 2 assists and 3 steals over the final 20 minutes. Geno now has total trust in this young woman and it shows in her ability to bounce back from a tough 1st half. Maybe with Dangerfield out and Bent not quite ready and Nurse struggling some, Geno felt compelled to play her so many minutes in the second half. But I'd like to think it's more about her maturity.
Kyla Irwin
Not Kyla's best minutes off the bench. She was 0-1 from the field but she is looking more confident from the foul line. I know this kid can shoot. But it's tough to take and make shots in such limited play with the offensive reigns held back by Geno. She had 4 fouls in her 8 minutes. It's hard to do that on purpose!
Tierney Lawlor
Tierney showing that she can juggle class load, practice AND three basketballs. AND she scored!!!!! She was 1-2 from the foul line and had one steal in her four minutes of play. It's great to see her get on the box score.
Final Thoughts
Next up is Tulsa on Tuesday night. I'll hope to get a Pre Game report out, but pretty busy here in Florida so I'm not sure I'll get to it. We shall see. Beach vs Blog. It's a real battle!!!
Crystal with the two boots.
One for fashion and one for healing.
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