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The Huskies welcome Cincinnati to Storrs for a big AAC contest Thursday night. The game is on at 7:00 and can be found on SNY and ESPN3.
Cincinnati is having a solid season this year. They are 13-6 so far and 4-2 in the conference, sitting in third place in the AAC.
They returned 5 of their top 6 scorers and those returning players are 4 seniors, 1 junior. That is the beauty of WCBB, with most players staying for four years, you have a chance to have a team that starts 4 or 5 seniors and all upper classmen. That is certainly the case for the Bearcats.
5'10" junior forward llmar'l Thomas has been terrific this season. She is leading the AAC in scoring with a 20.7 average, and the team with 8,7 rebounds per game. She gets to the free throw line often and hits at an 80% clip. Thomas is only 5'10" but she is a wide body and does a great job carving out space in the paint.
5'6" senior guard Antoinette Miller is the second leading scorer for Cincinnati at 16 ppg. She is second in assists and has a decent assists/to ratio.
The rest of the starters are 6' senior forward Angel Rizor, 5'10" senior guard Sam Rodgers and 5'7" senior guard Florence Sifa. Off the bench are 5'10"RS sophomore Addaya Moore and 5'6" freshman guard Aleah Nelson.
As you can see, this is not a big team, but they are tough and seasoned. They lost to Ohio State in overtime, beat UCF by 17 scoring 81 points against what we know is a tough team to score on, and just beat Temple 86-81 in their last outing.
Last season Cincinnati lost to UConn 82-38 and then 65-55. You'd think this game would be more like the second game. Was the difference the home venue for the Bearcats? Possibly. We will see if playing in Storrs makes a difference.
First matchup highlights
Second matchup highlights
Nice interview with the Cincinnati coach
It includes highlights of the Bearcats against Temple. They have some terrific 1-1 talent. UConn will have to play solid help defense.
As a team Cincinnati averages almost 71 ppg and has a solid 8 point margin of victory. Three point shooting isn't their specialty, but they play solid defense and do a good job turning defense into offense. They also don't beat themselves. They average 17.5 assists per game and only 12.5 turnovers per game. That is a ratio a team can be proud of. Something you would expect from a senior laden lineup.
Too much talent on UConn for the Bearcats. I expect the Huskies to pull away in the first half and hold on for a 20+ point win.
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The accolades don't stop for the best HS player this season. I think I have posted something about her every day for weeks. At least it feels that way.
Here is a video where Paige and her teammates meet with the coach to review game video, but it's really a Paige tribute event. Such fun!!! Some game video to enjoy as well,
Here is how that cover looks. So cool!!!
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By David in Naples!!!!
Who is the best 3 point shooter on the current UConn team? The answer is not so simple. If you value accuracy, Kyla Irwin is shooting 50% (13-26) and leading the Huskies. If you have no minimum requirement for threes attempted, Evelyn Adebayo is 1-1 or 100%.
If you prefer the player with the most made threes, pick Crystal at 42 makes. But she has tried 103 threes and her accuracy is “only” 40.8%. Maybe switch to Megan with 41 made threes & a shooting % of 43.6%. Let’s see, who is left? Oh yeah, if you value the recent “hot hand” pick Anna Makurat. After her 0 for America start she is making threes at a 53% clip.
If the question is who is the best three shooter, the answer depends on what measuring stick you use. The better question is who would you want to shoot a game winning three in the National Championship game? Probably Makurat...or Megan....or Crystal.....😎
Go Huskies..!!
If you prefer the player with the most made threes, pick Crystal at 42 makes. But she has tried 103 threes and her accuracy is “only” 40.8%. Maybe switch to Megan with 41 made threes & a shooting % of 43.6%. Let’s see, who is left? Oh yeah, if you value the recent “hot hand” pick Anna Makurat. After her 0 for America start she is making threes at a 53% clip.
If the question is who is the best three shooter, the answer depends on what measuring stick you use. The better question is who would you want to shoot a game winning three in the National Championship game? Probably Makurat...or Megan....or Crystal.....😎
Go Huskies..!!
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UCONN LINKS
No. 21 South Dakota at Omaha
Statistical Sites
Rankings and RPI Sites
UConn Territory - The best UConn women's message board ever!!!
College Fans Only - WCBB board where no holds are barred
Vol Nation - Tennessee women's basketball board
CockyTalk - The upstart South Carolina women's basketball board
CockyTalk - The upstart South Carolina women's basketball board
ND Nation - Notre Dame women's basketball board
Rebkell - WCBB for everyone that thinks they are smarter than everyone else
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I'm always open for suggestions. Just please reply to this blog or email me at:Paige Bueckers straight up EATING 🍽 @paigebueckers1 pic.twitter.com/QU8qrXLGJR— Overtime (@overtime) November 3, 2019
