DoggyDaddy's UConn/Oregon Post Game Report

The game was never in doubt. And from my perspective, that was true way before the game started. This was one of the easiest predictions of the year for me. A young team playing a talented UConn team that is coming off a "weak" game? A recipe for disaster for the UConn opponent.

From the start, the Huskies were in control. Like a cat playing with a mouse in the corner, UConn did whatever they wanted even with a few minutes each quarter that Oregon was able to play with the Huskies.

Lots of great quotes, post game interviews and  highlights and of course, some opinion about the players. Enjoy!!!  

Game Highlights

 Game Stats and Box Score

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Game Quotes From Geno

Post Game Interivews

''There were a lot of question marks going into the season and maybe they didn't have any in their own minds. They seemed to answer every single one of those questions. They deserve to be in the Final Four. They earned it.''

''They've owned the whole month of March, they weren't just along for the ride. It's theirs and that's a huge step. That's a big step to go from riding in the backseat on a trip you're going to, to all of a sudden you're in charge of driving the bus you're responsible for getting us there.''

“There’s not much you can say about what just happened. Right from the opening tip we just had a look and a feel about how we were playing and what we were trying to do.”

"Maybe the only people that expected it to happen was them. Maybe somehow or another, they thought, 'We can do this. Why is everybody doubting us?' But going into practice the first couple of weeks? Nobody saw this coming. But they just kept getting better and better and better."

Game Quotes from

Oregon Coach Kelly Graves

''I just think all of it is part of the process. A run like this will make it easier to motivate our team in the offseason. Our goal is to host the first and second round and not to make two trips across the country. Those things will really help us and give these guys confidence that they can win in the tournament.''

''The turnovers doomed us right from the get-go. That defensive pressure set the tone.''

“We knew we were going to give up something at the other end. Gabby Williams has shown at times that she is not as comfortable shooting that 17 footer as she was tonight. You have to give up something. When you are not quite as good, you have to pick your poison, we picked and we chose wrong. Those kids are great players, they really are. That set the tone for them, shooting is contagious, good shooting and bad shooting. Once she started making them then Saniya (Chong) was making them.”

“We played them in stretches fairly well, but … obviously not for 40 minutes. You can’t just have those let-ups because that 10-0 run in a minute and a half crushes you, and then you try to dig out of it. Then, bam, it’s another 10-0 run.”

"Everybody talks about their offense. I've always felt what sets them apart from everybody else is the defense. They give you nothing, and we've been a really good offensive team. I think we're one of the more efficient teams in the country, and we were playing on our heels all night long, and it was survival mode at times."

Player Evaluations

Player Interviews

Napheesa Collier

She is back in front of Katie Lou in leading the team in scoring. And there is a good reason for that. While she has dominated games with her inside presence, in this game, it was her mid-range jumper that put away the Ducks. They intentionally left her open at the foul line extended and Collier made them pay time after time. She still dominated the post, but also went 2-4 on threes. In her 33 minutes, she had 28 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 4 blocks. And she mad it look so easy. I don't know Geno, a player can't be accused of playing no defense when she has 2 steals and 4 blocks. But gotta love his way of motivating his players.

''It means a whole lot, especially with this group because no one thought we'd be here and we worked so hard this year,'' said Collier, who earned most outstanding player of the region honors.

Gabby Williams

Like the announcers said a few times during the game. How can the best player in the country not be a 1st team AA? It's really too bad that having great teammates hurts her ability to win awards. She was just spectacular in this game. In 33 minutes she had 25 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 steals. She is averaging 21 points per game for the tournament, really turning up her output. But she is much more than scoring points. Her athleticism is so off the charts, the opponents can't help but be intimidated. They know from the start there is no one on their team that can guard her. Too big for guards, too quick for bigs. Game over. In this game it wasn't even close and she was a huge part of that.

“When teams play off of us that much, for her (Collier) it doesn’t make much sense because she can hit that shot with her eyes closed. For me, it has been a little bit of a struggle all year. That was probably the only shot they were going to give me so I had to make it. It is the next step, I have been struggling with it and just trying to be consistent because if I can get people to play up on me, I can find my teammates earlier.”

“Being undefeated is a feeling that never gets old. We’ve been there before, but it never gets old.”

Kia Nurse

Another ho hum game for Kia...lol. In her 33 minutes, she had 11 points hitting 2-3 threes. Her percentage on her long range shots is an unworldly 72%. Seriously? She added 7 assists and had NO turnovers. She really looks to be 100% back from her ankle issues. Bad news for opponents. Her on the ball defense should strike fear into any opponent.    

Katie Lou Samuelson

Well, not the best scoring game for Katie Lou. She struggled from long range, going 0-4 on threes. But the rest of her game was pretty darn good. She used her long arms for 5 steals. And she handed out 4 assists. She is in a mini-slump, but she scored 21 points against Mississippi State last year and I expect her to break out with some long distance shooting against them at the Final Four.

“We just wanted to come out and make a statement that we really wanted to make it to Dallas. Right before we started playing we were like, ‘Let’s get this one. Let’s do this right now.’"

“We saw what happened. It was a little warning that … whoever is playing right now is playing for a reason. They’re not just going to get scared and play worse because we’re a No. 1 seed.”

Saniya Chong

Joy. That is what I feel for Saniya. She is just loving her senior season. She is just not playing, she is playing great. In this game she played 35 minutes, and hit two huge three pointers in the first quarter. For the game she had 11 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. And some great ball handling. Like the picture above shows, she escaped every pressure defense that was put on her.     

Crystal Dangerfield

As much as we want Dangerfield to contribute more in each game, she has only had the occasional game where we see the possible greatness. I'll post the stat comparison in one of my Dailies, but I can tell you that her freshman year has been comparable to Moriah Jefferson in every way and better in some. This game was not one of her best. In her 13 minutes she had 2 points, 1 rebound and 1 assists. But she pretty much only played mop up time.

Natalie Butler

Natalie only played 10 minutes, but I think Geno might be finding more time for her against the big frontline of Mississippi State after how she did in her limited minutes. She had 5 points, 8 rebounds and 2 sweet blocks.  

Kyla Irwin,  Molly Bent, Tierney Lawlor

Just a few minutes each, but they enjoyed every second of it!!!  

 Final Thoughts

I only have one final thought.

BEAT MISSISSIPPI STATE!!!