Monday, November 4, 2024

Doggy's Doghouse 11/4/2024

 





 



                                                                                                                       
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Even my daughter Elizabeth (mother to Logan and Barrett) is looking for my Blog!!!


GO UCONN!!!!!

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DoggyDaddy says VOTE!!!!!!! 

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Straight from the Dog


A couple of great games between Top 25 teams on Monday played in Paris, France.

No. 5 UCLA defeated No. 17 Louisville 66-59 in a game that was close throughout. Jeff Walz has another very good but not great team. He hasn't had a really great team since the Angel McCautry led teams. But he certainly has another terrific freshman in Tajianna Roberts, a 5'10" guard. Against UCLA she had 21 points hitting 4-10 three pointers. I had to look her up as it's hard to believe she really is a freshman. Not bad for her career opening game against a Top 5 team. But UCLA won the day behind possible 1st team AA Lauren Betts. The 6'7" center dominated the game with 18 points, 13 rebounds (5 offensive boards), 4 assists and 4 blocks. Also impressive was foward Timea Gardiner, a 6'3" transfer from Oregon State. She game off the bench for UCLA scoring 15 points going 5-7 on three pointers. She brings them a different dimension. While the game was close, we have to remember that UCLA was missing star guard Kiki Rice, who was out with some sort of injury. They did not announce what it was. But she makes that team hum and I don't believe it would have been that close if Kiki was available. 

In an even more exciting game, No. 3 USC beat No. 20 Ole Miss 68-66. This one went down to the final buzzer. Unlike the UCLA/Louisville game, this game wasn't close throughout. Ole Miss was just awful early. I believe they shot 18% in the first half and were 1-11 on threes. They were down 15 points early in the third quarter and still down 13 points, 49-36 with 5 minutes remaing in that quarter. The Rebels closed to 52-45 going into the fourth quarter using a 9-3 run. The fourth quarter was more Ole Miss, and they finally took the lead 57-56 half way through the quarter. That's a 21-7 run. The game was tied 66-66 with 17 seconds left and Ole Miss had the ball after USC tied it on two free throws. They threw the ball away and two more free throws for the Trojans gave them the lead with 9 second remaining. Tought USC defense prevented a game winning or tying shot and the Trojans squeaked it out. Superstar Juju Watkins had 27 points on 8-19 shooting, 1-4 on threes. She added 10 rebounds and almost had a triple double with 9 turnovers. She was a big part of winning and also a big part of letting Ole Miss get back in the game. And she played 40 minutes. I was not impressed with the USC bench. They had 4 players play 31 minutes and theyb only produced 5 points, 5 rebounds, 5 turnovers and 1 assists. Juju might have a bunch of 40 minute games. Superstar transfer Kiki Iriafen showed her stuff with 22 points and 13 rebounds and some clutch free throw shooting going 8-11. Can't wait to see them play UConn. A really good measuring stick for the Huskies and the Trojans.        

The rest of the games were all the usual mismatches for Top 25 teams. But there were some great individual performances.

No. 6 Notre Dame beat Mercyhurst 105-61 and welcomed back Olivia Miles. She didn't miss a beat starting with a Triple Double. She had 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists reminding us how talented she is. All-American Hannah Hildago had her usual game with 19 points,  9 rebounds a 6 steals. Pittsburgh transfer Liato King, a great rebounder at 6 feet in hight had 24 points and 11 rebounds. And freshman post Katie Koval had a nice first game with 18 points, 7 rebounds and 5 blocks. When Lisa Karlen and Maddy Westbeld are available, they are not only a talented team but a really deep team. 

No. 10 Oklahoma beat Southern 76-44. Why am I posting about this game you might ask? Well, their starting center was of great interest to UConn and their fans. Raegan Beers transferred to the Sooners from Oregon State and was down to Oklahoma and UConn according to reports. She would have been a great addition to the Huskies. Instead she had 18 points and 10 rebounds for Oklahoma in her first game for the Sooners. Bummer.    

In a later game, No. 1 South Carolina had their hands full with unranked Michigan. The Spartans fought to the end before succoming to the Gamecocks 68-62. It was an unimpressive initial outing for South Carolina. Their shooting was just terrible and thankfully for them, Michigan's wasn't much better. SC shot 33% from the field and was only 5-26 on threes. Their best shooters Paopao was only 1-4 on threes, Hall 1-3, Fulwiley 0-4 and Johnson 0-5. Last season, they hit close to 40%. Based on the first game, can we call that number an outlier for the Gamecocks? In 22-23 they shot 31.8%, in 21-22 they shot 30.6, 20-21 they shot 33.7. Without that dominating big in the middle they will need to shoot closer to 40% than 30%.       

Maryland won their opener. Amari DeBerry, former UConn players, garnered 10 minutes and was 1-1 from the field for her only 2 points. No rebounds or assists. But I'm glad she got double digit minutes. 

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Here is an option for any contributions for my time in putting together this blog.

I'm not requiring the contribution in order to read the blog. It's totally voluntary. And I'm not recommending how much to donate or how often. 

Thanks to all my loyal readers!!!

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And here is another option that is being pushed by Paige!!



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UCONN Information

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I'm always open for suggestions. Just please reply to this blog or email me at:

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Sunday, November 3, 2024

Doggy's Doghouse 11/3/2024

 





 



                                                                                                                       
                    ****************************************************





Even my daughter Elizabeth (mother to Logan and Barrett) is looking for my Blog!!!


GO UCONN!!!!!

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It was so great to see some game action!!! The season is here and I'm so looking forward to see how is plays out. 

Slow 1st and 3rd quarters, 15-11 and 20-19. And great 2nd and 4th quarters, 27-6 and 27-13. 

That's 35-30 in the odd quarters and 54-19 in the even quarters. I have no idea what that means, but I thought that was interesting. 

This was a typical exhibition game. Lots of rusty players, bad passes and bad shots. But also lots of good passes and good shots. It served it's purpose. They got to play against someone other than their teamates and practice players. No one got hurt. And Geno got to see how his players performed. 

There is plenty to work on. Geno will see that they do just that.

So, how did the players look? 

Bueckers - Well, she looked in mid-season form. 27 points on 12-14 shooting. She was 3-4 on threes. She tied for the team lead with 9 rebounds and had a steal and a block. Paige added 2 assists. Talk about silling up the stat sheet!! She just looks so good. Strong and smart as usual. 

Shade - Ashlynn looked terrific. Great shooting as usual scoring 15 points, going 6-11 from the field and 3-6 on threes. And she looks even stronger than last year. You can tell she really hit the weight room. And she was all over the court on defense with 4 steals.   

Chen - In her first action as a Huskie , Kaitlyn looked like she has been there for a few seasons. She was also 6-11 from the field and 2-3 on threes in scoring 14 points. She led the team in minutes with 35. Unusual in a game like this. But Geno showed how much he trusts her. She added 7 rebounds and led the team in assists with 5. Even when KK is back I see her staying in the starting lineup.  
   
Strong - This girl has Talent, with a capital T. She added 11 points on 5-13 shooting. She was only 1-6 on threes. I will say that several of those just rattled around the rim. They will fall. What I liked most was her defense. She had 8 rebounds and 2 steals. And she played D on the perimeter and also in the paint effecively. 
    
Samuels - It looks to me that Samuels has some new found confidence. She scored 12 points on 4-8 shooting, going 2-5 on threes and was 2-2 from the foul line. She drove to the basket with strong dribbles and just seemed to get it more than she did last season. If she plays like this it will be difficult to keep her on the bench and not in the regular rotation. 

Ziebell - She does like to shoot...lol. She was 3-11 from the field and 2-10 on threes. Yep, 10 of her 11 shots were three points. Her drive to the basket for her only 2 pointer was excellent and I'd love to see her do more of that. 

Brady - Boy did she struggle with her shot, going 0-5 from the field and 0-1 on threes. But she added 5 rebounds and was second on the team with 4 assists. I'll focus on the passing and hope the shooting is better next time.

El Alfy - Well, she certainly looked like a player that hasn't seen a competative court on over a year. Kinda looked lost out there for much of it and as many predicted was in fould trouble early and often. It limited her to 11 minutes, but in that short timeframe she had 9 rebounds to tie Bueckers for the team lead.  

So we wait for Thursday when is counts. I'm not sure Boston University is any better than Fort Hays. I'll put together a game preview and I'll know more as I put it together.

I'm very hopeful that the 8 player rotation will turn into a 10 player rotation with KK Arnold and Morgan Cheli coming back for minutes. 

Just a start! GO HUSKIES!!!!    

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Game Highlights


Game Replay 
(minus the first 5 minutes of the game)

Geno's Postgame

Shade, Chen, Strong Postgame

BOX SCORE


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No. 1 South Carolina vs Michigan
No. 3 USC vs No. 20 Ole Miss 
No. 5 UCLA vs No. 17 Louisville
No. 6 Notre Dame vs Mercyhurst 
No.  8 Iowa State vs Chicago State
No. 10 Oklahoma vs Southern
No. 11 Duke vs Radford
No. 13 Kansas State vs Green Bay
No. 15 North Carolina vs Charleston Southern 
No. 18 Maryland vs UMBC
No. 19 Florida State vs North Florida
No. 22 Kentucky vs South Caroline Upstate
No. 23 Nebraska vs Omaha
No. 24 Alabama vs New Orleans
No. 25 Indiana vs Brown

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Straight from the Dog

Geno's pregame interview was as always a pleasure to watch. Funny, reflective, informational. 

He reflected some on the fact that this is his 39th season. He metioned that Doug Bruno is the only BE coach that is still coaching. Some schools changed head coaches 2-3 times since he started. But he said he is excited about this season, so happy to have options in the lineup.

Speaking of lineups, he also game an injury update.

Azzi Fudd is practicing great. She looks amazing. He is just waiting for her to come to him say she is ready to go. He is ready to see her play. My best guess is she will only miss one or two games. However, after watching her teammates play, I wouldn't be surprised to see her get a few minutes Thursday night.

KK Arnold tweaked an ankle. Obviously enough of a tweak to keep her out of the exhibition game. She should be ok for Thursday night. Geno did say it was minor. 

Morgan Cheli is very close. She might be ready for Thusday night. When practicing, she is playing really well and like Sarah Strong, can play both inside and outside.

Ayanna Patterson is still an unknown. Geno shrugged his shoulders a few times when asked when she might be back. Not a good sign. She did not have the arm in a sling, but it was hanging from the side and she didn't look comfortable.

He didn't mention Aubrey Griffin. She is expected back in January. No change to that I would think.

He didn't mention Caroline Ducharme either. She was not dressed, she was in sweats. I have no idea what to make of that. It's hard to believe she will play at all this season. I hope I'm wrong. 
     
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By PHIL

So why Fort Hays State?

Let's start with minor connections which don't explain why way of playing them.

My good friend Ginny goes to final fours with me every year and is a Fort Hays grad. I'm pretty sure they didn't schedule Fort Hays because she graduated from there.

When I went on my basketball/history Road tour a few years ago, one of the stops was at Kansas State. While standing in line, I saw a couple people wearing for a sweatshirt so I stopped to talk to them. What did I talk about? I talked about the game between Fort Hays State and UConn in 2017. But that obviously wasn't why we were playing Fort Hays State.

You may have heard of Peter Werth. He has a residence center named after him, as well as the "Werth family UConn basketball champion center" He is a Fort Hays grad and while I'm making a supposition, I suspect it's a good one. I assume he's the reason we played them in 2017 and in 2021 and again this year.

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Written before the game - UConn opens as 41 point favorites against Fort Hays State

Why it could be more:

When you contemplate Fort Hays State in 2021 they were 38 point favorites and won by 64. What I think Massey does a very good job of estimating strengths, I'm guessing it's tricky to evaluate Division I versus Division II. I haven't looked at enough data points to know whether the algorithm does a decent job of comparing different division teams but it seems quite plausible that it might not do well. In addition this got to be an intimidation factor one a division two team walks into Gampel, sees all the NC banners and national players of the year and other indicators that this is a very very good team. It's certainly a larger audience than they are used to and it's understandable there may be some stage fright.

Why it could be less:

While it's easy to argue why there might be stage fright, I watched both prior games with Fort Hays State, and if there was stage fright they hid it well. There was no confusion about which was the better team, but the Fort Hays team appeared to ignore the school board and just played hard as well as they could. Another reason why the margin could be smaller is that I anticipate Geno getting a lot of time to the bench. I think the starters will get most minutes, but I bet they'll be more bench minutes in this game than in almost all regular-season games.

Doggydaddy added - Well, it ended up 40, only one point less than the betting line. They are almost as good as me!!!

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SPIDER STATS

Net positives (assists plus rebounds plus points plus blocks plus steals) - (every missed shot plus turnovers plus fouls).

Paige 38, Kaitlyn 16, Ashlynn 14, Sarah 14, Qadence 13, Jana 7, Allie 4, Ice 0.

Great crowd especially students. Privilege to watch Paige, almost every shot just touches the bottom of the net going through. Sarah is tough and very quick. Qadence should be a contributor! Jana fouled too much but rebounded and showed one nice move. Sarah has a soft touch. Allie missed a lot but was solid. Only really disappointing performance, reminiscent of earlier games of last year, was Ice.

Azzi’s mother recovering from knee replacement two weeks ago, as usual Azzi’s father leading the UConn cheers. Wishing her a good recovery.


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By David in Naples

I did get a commitment that David will contribute again this season. Looking forward to his wonderful takes on the Huskies!!

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Here is an option for any contributions for my time in putting together this blog.

I'm not requiring the contribution in order to read the blog. It's totally voluntary. And I'm not recommending how much to donate or how often. 

Thanks to all my loyal readers!!!

If you don't have Venmo, you can sign up here 
or add the app to your iPhone or iPad.

And here is another option that is being pushed by Paige!!



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UCONN LINKS

Some links are pay sites. Sorry!


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Message Boards

UConn Territory - The best UConn women's message board ever!!! 
Vol Nation - Tennessee women's basketball board
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UCONN Information

UConn 2024-2025 Statistics (updated after 1st game)

I'm always open for suggestions. Just please reply to this blog or email me at:

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Thursday, October 31, 2024

Doggy's Doghouse 10/31/2024

 





 



                                                                                                                       
                    ****************************************************





Even my daughter Elizabeth (mother to Logan and Barrett) is looking for my Blog!!!


GO UCONN!!!!!

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It's another season, my friends, and it's decision time for me. Do I blog for hours a day? Do I only do game reports? Or just sit back and watch the games? 

I received many emails, texts, messages, etc asking me when I would start. Nice of compliments. Yeah, I have an ego and it feels good to be wanted!!!!

So, here I am again. I can't promise every day, but I can tell you I will do my best to bring you all the info I can find out there on our beloved UConn Huskies! And of course some of my own opinions!

So, off we go! A look at the exhibition game, the Top 25 games coming up, a Preseason peek, UConn news and a few other things. Enjoy!!     
         
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The first exhibition game is Sunday at Noon. It will be available, for free, on UCONN+ and on that new station WWAX, channel 27 on Xfinity in the Hartford area. 

There are several ways to watch on UCONN+:

  1. Download the UConn app
  2. Watch on Apple TV, Amazon Fire, or Roku
  3. Go to UConnPlus.tv on your laptop, tablet, or phone. It’s possible to connect your laptop to your TV or, if your TV is new enough, link via Bluetooth with your tablet or phone. Techies, correct me if I’m wrong
  4. Go to UConnHuskies.com, the official site, and click on UCONN+ (see below)

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Game Preview

The Huskies are taking on the Fort Hays University Tigers in their one and only exhibition game. The Tigers are a Division II school in the Mid-America Intercolligiate Athletic Association in the Great American Conference. I'll admit it. I've never heard of the school, the Association or the Conference. And I just wonder why they took off the "e" in Hays. 

The Tigers opened the 2024-25 season ranked 23rd in the WBCA NCAA Division II Preseason Coaches Poll, so they are no slouch. Fort Hays State is coming off a 25-8 record in 2023-24. The Tigers reached the MIAA Tournament finals before advancing to the Central Region Semifinals in their eighth appearance in the NCAA DII Tournament over the last decade.    

Former Fort Hays State standout women's basketball player and head coach Annette Wiles was inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame on October 13. She was a great player  for the Tigers.  Wiles was the all-time leading scorer in Fort Hays State program history with 2,407 points and a scoring average of 20.4 points per game. She also owns the single-season records for points (880, 1990-91), scoring average (24.4 ppg), field goals made (358), field goals attempted (582), and rebounds (364).  

Fort Hays returns leadin scorer 5'11" grad student guard Katie Wagner Degarmo. She averaged 17.2 PPG and shot a solid 37% on three pointers. Katie leads the team in rebounds as well with 8.7 RPG. She is a good defensive player with 2 steals per game and gets to the FT line 5 times per game shooting 80%.  

6'3" post Olivia Hollenbeck returns as a grad student as well. She was the second leading at 12. 2 PPG and second on the team in rebounds at 5.5 RPG. 

5'8" Junior guard Ellie Stearns is the only other starter that returns. 

The Tigers take around 20 three pointers per game. 

Not much to say on the matchup. UConn will dominate from opening tip to final buzzer. There are no true "bench players" this year that will only play in the last couple of minues of the game. So no let up. As always,  just hoping for an injury free game and a chance to see how the new players fit in. I'd love to see Fudd on the court for a few minutes. Probably not.  

It's just great to get the season started!!!!

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There is so much to look forward to in the 2024-25 season, it's just hard to figure out where to start. I'm going to put in the class and Hoopsgurlz ranking next to their name. 

We bid a fond fairwell to Aaliya Edwards and Nika Muhl who will move on to their professional careers and to Amari DeBerry and Ines Bettencourt, who have both entered the transfer portal. Amari is playing for Maryland this year and Ines tranfered to Gonzaga. Good luck to all in their future endevors!!!

Let's look at the players that finished the season and are coming back and and what we can expect next season from each player. Also a highlight video for each one.

How do you not start with Paige Bueckers (2020, No. 1). She is coming back for one more season and after this disaapointment, you can bet she will be loaded for bear every second of every minute of every game that she plays next season. Prohibitted favorite for POY next season, she will be moving back to her guard position where she will dominate.  

It's Paige's freshman season, 
but my favorite Highlight video for her 

Two other starters just might not be starting next season, but for sure they will be big contributors. Ashlynn Shade (2023, No. 15)  and KK Arnold (2023, No. 6) had their moments and at times were the difference in winning or losing. As sophomores, we can look forward to their improvement and seeing what they will bring next year.

KK Arold Full season Highlights

Ashlynn Shade Highlights

Off the bench last  season were Ice Brady (2022, No. 5) and Q Samuels (2023, No. 41). I'm not sure where Q will fit in next year as between the injured players coming back and great freshmen coming in, her minutes might not be there. For Brady, she has a clear path to a starting position for 24-25. She will be the only experienced post on the roster. But she will have to show more of her BE tournement play. She has the skills.

Best I could find. 
Brady Highlights in the news report

Q Samuels Highlights against NC State - 14 points


That's the 5 players that were available at the end of the year that are coming back. 

Let's look at the 5, yes, 5 players that were on the bench injured. 

I'm not sure who to start with. Let's go by class. 

Aubrey Griffin (2019, No. 21) - Anyone think that Aubrey's knee injury in Jaunary was the difference between winning and losing that Iowa game? No doubt in my mind. She might not be ready for full time play until next January, but she will be back and contribute her final season at UConn.  

Aubrey Griffin Highlights

Azzi Fudd (2021, No. 1) - Sigh....are you tired of seeing Azzi on the bench? I know I am. I'm also tired of fans dimishing what she will bring to the tabel. As good as Shade was this year in bringing the three point threat to the team, she is Fudd-light. The No. 1 HS recruit in 2021, when she was healthy, she played like an All-American. Until she can't I will be optimistic that she will be back to form by November. And eventtually in the starting lineup.

Azzi Fudd Highlights

Caroline Ducharme (2021, No. 5) - I suppose she is the biggest question mark of the returning injured players. Head injuries can be unpredictable. I'm sure both Caroline and Geno expected her to come back sometime this past season. She just didn't improve enough to do that. Now, she has been traveling with the team, no earplugs, looking ready to play. Will she be able to do that this summer and beyond? She is certainly planning on that and so am I.  

Caroline Ducharme Highlights

Ayanna Patterson (2022, No. 4) - I can't believe the message board chatter about her being a possible transfer candidate. That makes no sense to me. I think fans forget how amazing she is in regards to athleticism. She can jump out of the building and rebound like a maniac. I love her game at the 4 and to match up with the terrific fowards she might meet. Thinking of Watkins at SC and Iriafrin at Stanford. Remember, she really hasn't been healthy at UConn. Don't sleep on her contributions. Sadly she had a shoulder injury in a practice session and might not be ready to start the season.

Hamilton Neill on Ayanna Paterson 


Jana El Alfy (2023, unranked) - I posted the praise from Geno about Jana. It was amazing. Here it is again. 

"There's nobody that is enjoying life more than she is, that is totally engaged in what we're doing. Everything we do as a team, she feels as though it's happening to her. I can't say enough about her as a person. Nobody has seen her play. No one at UConn nation has seen her play, and they don't anything about her. All they know is what they see. Myself, the staff, the players, and everyone associated with our program has been really truly, truly blessed that she's come into our life because I can honestly say in 40 years I've never coached anybody better at Connecticut, never, in my life." 

Now, I have seen a ton of minutes of her playing. Folks downplayed the FIBA tournament but she dominated the post. And she is a true 6'6". The big we have been waiting for. 
 
Jana El Alfy Highlights


Ok, that is the 10 returning players. What's left is the three players in the 2024 recruiting class. It was a great class that just got greater!! Also included in new players on the roster is Grad Student transfer from Princeton guard Kaitlyn Chen. 

Chen is a 5'9" guard. She has some amazing ball skills and while her stats don't show it, her shooting form tells me she will be a solid three point threat. She averaged 15.8 PPG and 4.9 APG. She has a great feel for the game and playing under UConn protege head coach of Princeton Carla Berube for four seasons, she just gets the UConn way. A great addition to the team.  

Kaitlyn Chen Highlights

Morgan Cheli (2024, No. 18) - What a great pickup for UConn. At 6'2" she is a really big guard who can also do well under the basket. She is basically the "swiss army knife" of women's basketball. She can play the point or along side the lead guard. Or both forward positions. Her defense is terrific. That will make Geno happy and earn her minutes as a freshman.  

Morgan Cheli Highlights

Allie Ziebell (2024, No. 4) - I think I've seen more minutes of her playing than almost any other player in the 2024 class. Most people look at her as just a three point shooting demon. And for sure she is. She won the three-point contest at the McDonalds game including beating the boy contestant. And she hit a couple of threes in the actual game. But she is more than that. She is a really tough-nosed competitor and a physical guard. She reminds me of the Mabrey sisters that played at Notre Dame. She will be behind some great guards next season, so I'm not sure how many minutes she will play. She was amazing in the three point contest on First Night hitting 12-14. 

Allie Ziebell highlights

Sarah Strong (2024, No. 1) - Ok, I had to pinch myself as I typed her name. I tried to be positive that she would come to UConn but the loooonnnngggggg wait for her to commit game me too much time to change my mind several times on what her decision would be. She is the most complete player to come to UConn since Maya Moore (someone reminded me of that fact), and I could see her starting at the four spot next year. Geno is a little more flexible in the idea of starting freshmen and she is certainly talented enough. And she fills the need with Edwards leaving. Starting or not, she will get her minutes and be a huge contributor in UConn's march to the championship. And she will make it more attractive to other elite players that UConn is recruiting.         

Sarah Strong Highlights
       
Ok, that's it for the players. 14 right now. 9-10 available to start the season.

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TEAM BY HEIGHT

5'9" KK Arnold
5'9" Kaitlyn Chen
5'10" Ashlynn Shade
5'11" Azzi Fudd
5'11" Allie Ziebell
6' Paige Bueckers
6' Qadence Samuels
6'1" Aubrey Griffin
6'2" Ayanna Patterson
6'2" Carolina Ducharme
6'2" Morgan Chelli
6'2" Sarah Strong
6'4" Ice Brady
6'6" Jana El Alfy

This is a pretty big team. Ice and Jana rotating at the center would be great. Young but talented. And Patterson and Strong at the 4? Rebounding machines!!

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Possible Lineups

With 13 players that can all contribute next year, it will be interesting to see the lineups Geno comes up with especially who will be in his starting lineup. Of course there are players who have to rehab and be ready for the start of the season. 

Even if he settles on one starting lineup, it certainly can change as the season progresses. So, here are a few different lineups. The first starting lineup is my best guess at what Geno will go with. The rest? Just some fun!!

Starters (when everyone is healthy)

PG Paige
SG Azzi
SF Caroline
PF Sarah
C Ice

Well, that was tough. I'm taking it back. I have no idea if this is what Geno will do. It's more what I would like to see. Several maybes due to prior injuries, but healthy this is just an amazing lineup. If you are a fan of HS rankings, you have three No. 1's, and two No. 5's. 

Three point shooting lineup

PG Paige
SG Ashland
SF Azzi
PF Ducharme
C Sarah

Every one of these players is capable of shooting 40%+ on the season. Good luck stopping them from getting an open three pointer. I can just see them swing passing around the perimeter and on the fifth pass getting an open three. And the best one might still be on the bench in Allie Ziebell.  

Rebounding Lineup 

PG Paige
SG Sarah
SF Aubrey
PF Ice
C Jana

You could put Ayanna in here for any of the forwards. For sure its a really big lineup and all really good rebounders.

All Quick Lineup

PG KK
SG Ashlynn
SF Qadence
PF Aubrey
C Ayanna   

This overall roster is not exactly quick so picking five quick players was not easy. But this is still a very quick lineup. Too small to think Geno will ever play these five together.

What other types of lineups might we see. It's just a very deep, and very varying lineup. A ton of shooters. I didn't even mention Morgan Cheli. She can play the 1-4 positions. I just hope everyone stays healthy so Geno can finally have some depth to work with. He has played 9-10 player rotations before. 13? His head will explode! 

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Season Prediction

I'll say it out loud. At this point in time, with all the injured coming back 100%, this UConn team will go undefeated and the game of the year will be No. 1 vs No. 2. UConn vs South Carolina. 

The Gamecocks will be amazing next year. They were so deep and their freshmen were just great in the final game. Tess Johnson came into her own with 19 big points going 3-6 on threes. She was so confident. And Fulwiley was so dynamic with her 9 points and 4 assists. They only lose Cardoso from the players who saw minutes against Iowa. Well, "only" is not fair to the impact that will have. She was just so unique and to difficult to defend. Ashlyn Watkins is their best returning big however, she is not on the team at this time due to legal issues. More to come on that during the season. They are still a dynamic team. 

Back to UConn. They have a minimum of 7 players that can average double digit scoring. The only thing that would prevent that is Geno spreading around the minutes. As I just wrote there are countless line ups that Geno can use and will use. He hasn't done it often, and usually because is is pissed off with the players on the court, but I can see him doing the "Hockey Line Change" on occassion. Five players being replaced five new players. Crazy.

This will be the last time I say "if healthy". I'm just going to assume that once the last unjured player is back, that everyone will be available. Maybe unrealistic, but I just think the positive vibes help.

I've followed UConn basketball for a long time and this is as talented a roster that the Huskies have had since Diana Taurasi's first two years in a UConn uniform. It's even deeper. 

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Monday Starts the regular season!!! 

No. 1 South Carolina vs Michigan
No. 3 USC vs No. 20 Ole Miss 
No. 5 UCLA vs No. 17 Louisville
No. 6 Notre Dame vs Mercyhurst 
No.  8 Iowa State vs Chicago State
No. 10 Oklahoma vs Southern
No. 11 Duke vs Radford
No. 13 Kansas State vs Green Bay
No. 15 North Carolina vs Charleston Southern 
No. 18 Maryland vs UMBC
No. 19 Florida State vs North Florida
No. 22 Kentucky vs South Caroline Upstate
No. 23 Nebraska vs Omaha
No. 24 Alabama vs New Orleans
No. 25 Indiana vs Brown

That's 17 top 25 teams playing to open the season. Just awesome!

Looking forward so see how many minutes Amari will get for No. 18 Maryland. And there are two Top 25 teams playing each other. USC should have not problem with Ole Miss. It should be interessting to see how Coach Close does with this  strong roster at UCLA in taking on Louisville. 

UConn finally opens their season against Boston University on Thursday.     

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Straight from the Dog


The Cupcake express has started for LSU. Yes, the first two games have been exhibitions but many of their other OOC games are against similar level teams. 

Using Massey.Com, here are their ratings from last year for the teams LSU is playing OOC.

Eastern Kentucky - 209
Northwestern LA - 331
Charleston So - 347
Murray State - 133
Troy - 112
Tulane - 113
Washington - 47
NC Central - 313
Stanford - 3
Grambling - 261
Louisiana - 169
Seton Hall - 66
IL Chicago - 181
Suny Albany - 221

Hey, credit them for playing Stanford. And maybe even Washintgon. But the rest of the OOC schedule is just weak. 

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I couldn't trash LSU's OOC schedule without doing the same for Tennessee. 

Samford - 256
TN Martin - 195
MTSU - 51
Liberty - 141
W. Carolina - 348
Florida State - 38
Iowa - 4
NC Central - 315
Memphis - 102
Richmond - 81
Winthrop - 349
Connecticut - 2

Congrata on the Iowa and UConn games Tennessee fans. 

Note, the new SEC is just a terrific conference. So it's understandable that the teams want to take it easy in the OOC schedule. But South Carolina is playing 2, 8, 9, 13, 21 and 35 in their OOC schedule, so it can be done! 
     
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By PHIL

Can't wait to see what Phil has in store for us this season!!!!! 

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By David in Naples

I did get a commitment that David will contribute again this season. Looking forward to his wonderful takes on the Huskies!!

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UCONN LINKS

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UCONN Information

UConn 2024-2025 Statistics (updated after 1st game)

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