Post Game report
I watched this game in amazement when Tulsa hit three after three. Geno put it best when he said if they shot like this all the time, they would have a better record. I think that some were contested, but most were shots that the defense just didn't get out to defend. Probably has to do somewhat with the last day of a road trip.
Thankfully, the offense was in high gear behind the performance of Katie Lou Samuelson. More on her in the player evaluation. More good minutes for the bench.
I loved the passing in this game. A lot of terrific post entry passes to Collier and Williams. There were a few wonderful back door passes reminiscent of years past.
Thankfully, the offense was in high gear behind the performance of Katie Lou Samuelson. More on her in the player evaluation. More good minutes for the bench.
I loved the passing in this game. A lot of terrific post entry passes to Collier and Williams. There were a few wonderful back door passes reminiscent of years past.
Enjoy the highlights, quotes and player evaluations!
Game Highlights
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Game Quotes From Geno
''She's on the right track to be an all-time great. 'What's going to be the deciding factor is, what does Lou want to be? One of the best players in college? Does she want to be one of the best shooters? Or does she want to be talked about as one of the best players ever at Connecticut?''
''If that's her goal, she's got some work to do.''
''Lou does things better than anybody else in the country. 'She does things that other kids can't do. There's great shooters in America, but they're not her size. There's kids her size, but they don't shoot it the way she does.''
"I didn't quite like Lou's her response this morning. And you know what? To her credit, she came out today and she had it going and she figured it out. … When would you rather have it, game time or shoot around? I'd rather have it game time, myself, but it didn't prevent me from getting pissy with her this morning."
''The final score - that doesn't mean anything. We didn't play as well today as we did in games where we won by five. The final score is never indicative of the way the game went.''
"Tulsa made a lot of shots today. I don't know that they make those shots all the time. If they make those shots all the time, they probably have a way better record than they have."
"Williams is one of these kids that every game it seems like there's a wow moment and then another wow moment and then another one. I don't see that anywhere else in the country. I don't care if it's here or anywhere. We've played everywhere and there's nobody that looks like her in America. Nobody."
“You get in a trip scenario like this where you’ve been traveling for five days and something’s going to show itself, and it’s usually a little bit of mental fatigue. We score so many points so quickly that sometimes we’re not as focused right now as we were a couple of days ago or last week. We need to go home and get back to class.”
Game Quotes from Coach Matilda Mossman
''Not displeased with our team's effort. I thought we played hard. I thought we competed with them.''
''We feel like we have pretty good 3-point shooters, and we knew that we didn't want to attack the paint and try to attack them inside because they're so big and they're capable of blocking all kinds of shots. So I felt like our kids were really disciplined.''
“Obviously Shug Dickson played pretty well and we were feeding off her for the longest time. I think she’s a very talented, gifted young lady, and as she gets more accustomed to the pace of the game, the physical-ness of the game, it’s only going to be better things for her in the future.”
“Obviously Shug Dickson played pretty well and we were feeding off her for the longest time. I think she’s a very talented, gifted young lady, and as she gets more accustomed to the pace of the game, the physical-ness of the game, it’s only going to be better things for her in the future.”
Player Evaluations
Katie Lou Samuelson
Geno needs to challenge her EVERY game. She really does respond. This was the first game that reminded me of her outstanding Team USA performance of a few years ago when she hit 10 three pointers.
But this is not the same Lou. She has made her game so diverse that even Geno can't stop talking about it. The drive down the right side of the lane and finish off the glass was (dare I say) Stewart like. She has a toughness that her sisters didn't seem to have at Stanford. Maybe it was from being the baby. She had to fight harder. Whatever it is, she is closer in attitude to Taurasi than anyone I can remember in recent UConn history.
In her 29 minutes she scored 34 points on 13-18 from the field and 7-12 on threes. Wow. Talk about offensive efficiency? She had it in this game.
''He was really mad at me and said I couldn't make a shot in shoot around, so I had to make my shots in the game. He likes to challenge me, and I'll be the type of person that says, `Oh yeah, then watch,'''. ''He knows how certain people work, but that's how he gets me going, by trying to knock me down, so I have to prove him wrong.''
"I've tried to expand my game this year so I'm not just standing at the three-point line. I can be cutting or doing other things so it's more of a mismatch when teams try to figure out who to put on me. I think that's kind of my growth from last year to this year. I've been trying to do more things."
But this is not the same Lou. She has made her game so diverse that even Geno can't stop talking about it. The drive down the right side of the lane and finish off the glass was (dare I say) Stewart like. She has a toughness that her sisters didn't seem to have at Stanford. Maybe it was from being the baby. She had to fight harder. Whatever it is, she is closer in attitude to Taurasi than anyone I can remember in recent UConn history.
In her 29 minutes she scored 34 points on 13-18 from the field and 7-12 on threes. Wow. Talk about offensive efficiency? She had it in this game.
''He was really mad at me and said I couldn't make a shot in shoot around, so I had to make my shots in the game. He likes to challenge me, and I'll be the type of person that says, `Oh yeah, then watch,'''. ''He knows how certain people work, but that's how he gets me going, by trying to knock me down, so I have to prove him wrong.''
"I've tried to expand my game this year so I'm not just standing at the three-point line. I can be cutting or doing other things so it's more of a mismatch when teams try to figure out who to put on me. I think that's kind of my growth from last year to this year. I've been trying to do more things."
Napheesa Collier
The machine does it again. Wind her up and you get a double-double. Tulsa's shorter front line didn't have a chance against one of the best post up players in the country. In her 24 minutes she scored 21 points. She will be shooting 70% soon if she keeps shooting 8-10 from the field. And her 13 rebounds were just dominating. Five of those were offensive boards. Great job.
Gabby Williams
Gabby Williams. Lawrence Taylor. Wayne Gretzky. This girl is a game changer. Eight assists? Are you kidding me? Who needs a point guard when you have a point forward?
In her 28 minutes she had 13 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals, 1 block. Geno said there is no one like her in WCBB and I totally agree. ASGR had her the NO. 2 ranked recruit in her senior year. She is every bit of that level.
In her 28 minutes she had 13 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals, 1 block. Geno said there is no one like her in WCBB and I totally agree. ASGR had her the NO. 2 ranked recruit in her senior year. She is every bit of that level.
Kia Nurse
Well, not the best game for Kia. Only 8 points and 3 assists in her 34 minutes. She didn't do a great job getting out on the three point shooters, but I thought she played an overall smart game and a good job on defending the drives by the Tulsa players.
Ok....let's just say it. She is finally playing game after game to her potential. Her defense has really improved (although in this game, she was also guilty of not getting out to the 3 point shooters) and she is a smart passer. In her team leading 34 minutes (get well soon Crystal) she had 10 points, 7 assists, 3 steals and ZERO turnovers. Again. Her assists to turnover ration leads the nation and this game will only make that better.
Butler, once again, had a solid game. She showed a lot of aggressive play and that is exactly what Geno wants to see. He will deal with any mistakes as long as they are on aggressive plays.
In her 21 minutes she had 9 points and 4 rebounds. She also added an assists and 2 blocks. She has turned into a valuable member of the regular rotation.
Natalie Butler
Butler, once again, had a solid game. She showed a lot of aggressive play and that is exactly what Geno wants to see. He will deal with any mistakes as long as they are on aggressive plays.
In her 21 minutes she had 9 points and 4 rebounds. She also added an assists and 2 blocks. She has turned into a valuable member of the regular rotation.
She put in 21 minutes, she had 2 rebounds and 3 assists. She is a natural passer. But she is still making the silly turnovers. Geno will cut back her minutes if she continues to do that. She is a smart enough player to figure that out and improve in that area.
Kyla Irwin
Only 7 minutes for Kyla, but I still love her effort. She had one basket, one free throw and one rebound.
Tierney Lawlor
Tierney got in her 3 minutes and as always, she hustled all over the court.
Final Thoughts
Next for the Huskies is a game at home. Finally. They play 12-6 Tulane. I hope to have a pre game soon.
I just love the support the starters give the bench players!
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