The game was very interesting for the first 8 minutes. DePaul was on fire, UConn was scoring at will, the projected score was 130-120 and I was still trying to get settled in my seat. In watching the tape, it appeared to me to be a case of some early game defensive mistakes by UConn and great shooting by open DePaul players.
In what is becoming a standard for UConn, Geno brought in Kiah Stokes and the game changes. Over the next 5 minutes UConn went on a 14-2 run. The defense was turned up a notch. It wasn't that Stokes blocked 5 shots or grabbed 10 rebounds in that run. But just her presence allows the other players to be more aggressive on the perimeter, knowing Stokes will protect the basket if they get beat by their opponent.
Once that trend was set, UConn looked as they have looked against most opponents the last few years: a juggernaut on offense and tenacious on defense. Let's take a look at the numbers.
Offensively, UConn was on top of their game. 28 assists on 40 baskets is as good as it gets. They also only turned the ball over 11 times. Their overall ball handling skills showed well in this game. UConn shot 54% for the game and 37% on 3's. I'm not sure Geno was happy with 20 three point shots in the first half; UConn only took 7 of them in the second half. It was surprising to see Nurse with ten 3 point attempts, but it's great to see that kind of confidence.
Defensively, after a slow start, UConn really put on the clamps against a very good DePaul team. The numbers tell the story.
First 8 minutes of the half: 9-11 and 3-4 on 3's.
Last 12 minutes of the half: 4-21 and 1-9 on 3's.
Last 32 minutes of the game: 15-58 and 3-23 on 3's.
That's 25.9% from the field and 13% on 3 pointers. Those are some really dominating numbers against a very good offensive team. Looks good going forward.
Player by Player
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| Hartford Courant |
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| Hartford Courant |
Breanna Stewart 30 minutes, 25 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, 1 block
Now THAT is the Stewart we need to see the rest of the season. Offensively aggressive, looking for her shot every time she has the ball. Geno said she has been a different player the last seven practices and it sure showed in this game. She hit 3 of 5 point shots, 10 of 17 shots overall and while looking to shoot, she still managed several great passes for assists. It's time for the POY to play like it and this was a great start.
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| Hartford Courant |
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| Hartford Courant |
Moriah Jefferson 28 minutes, 4 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals
Moriah, Moriah, Moriah. No, that is not a takeoff on the Brady Bunch. But it sums up how I'm feeling about her game right now. She has so much more to give and I'm sure we will see it. Sometimes when your outside shot is not going down it impacts the rest of your game and I can see a little of that going on. The last thing she should do is stop shooting. It wasn't an accident she shot over 40% on 3's last season. One thing she is still doing is playing great defense. While Stokes was impressive in paint, Jefferson was excellent with her perimeter defense against DePaul. And she did have those two highlight real drives to the basket. As my friend Dan said, how did she get there with 2 dribbles and 4 steps?
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| Hartford Courant |
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| Hartford Courant |
Kaleena Moqueda-Lewis 31 minutes, 16 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals
I just love watching her play. For a big girl, she moves with grace and balance at all times. And her strength on the boards is a great compliment to her other skills. In this game, she showed a little of everything. She hit her 3's, was tough on the boards, drove to the basket and defended hard the entire game. And even with missing a game, this "step slow" player is leading the team in steals. If anyone separates herself from the rest of the team in regards to leadership, it will be her.
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| Hartford Courant |
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| Hartford Courant |
Morgan Tuck 20 minutes, 14 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists
A quieter game for Tuck yet so efficient shooting 7-9 from the field and most of those were passes from Stewart on cuts to the basket. She returned the favor a few times with great entry passes to Stewart as well. There is a real chemistry between these two players. The weird stat was that Tuck only had 1 rebound in a game. I'll have to watch it again to really see why, but I suspect it was the fact that she had to defend a guard on many possessions and didn't have as many opportunities to grab as many as usual. If you were looking for who would replace Dolson as the designated screener, look no further. Morgan set some beauties for Stewart. Along with a knee brace, she has a shin guard on the other leg. But she is toughing it out. With only 20 minutes logged in this game, Geno took a chance to limit her minutes.
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| UconnHuskies.com |
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| Hartford Courant |
Kia Nurse 30 minutes, 19 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists
Boy, can she fill a box score. Points, rebounds, assists, defense, freshman or not, this young woman is one of the best guards in the country. Watching in person really gives you the feel of how physical she is. She uses her upper body so well to keep the defender away from the ball and players just bounce off of her as she caroms to the basket. In this game, she was very aggressive with her 3 point shot and very successful as well hitting 4 of 10. With five more assists and only 1 turnover her season assist/to ratio is a sparkling 1.9. I'm beginning to think she is Sue Bird 2.0, bigger and stronger.
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| Hartford Courant |
Kiah Stokes 17 minutes, 4 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 blocks
I really really really like that shot of the blocked shot. She was close to 6 feet away. I'm officially changing her name to The Game Changer. I am a big fan of impact players off the bench, and usually the impact is based on offensive skills. A long range shooter off the bench is the typical type of impact player. Having a defensive presence like Stokes changes everything the opposing team can do when she is there. It's as much her rebounding as her shot blocking and this game was no different. DePaul was able to get to the basket early in the game and that ended once Stokes entered the game. She still is not very offensive minded but she gives this team exactly what they need.
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| Hartford Courant |
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| UconnHuskies.com |
Gabby Williams 20 minutes, 14 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block
We have seen the occasional play that tells us that Williams will be a terrific player, bursts of energy and amazing athleticism. But in this game we saw sustained excellent play. She not only did her great work in the paint, showing her improved post game, but she was able to show so much more this game. She ran the court, she defended a much larger player in the post (see the picture above on the right), she initiated the offense and had her hands in the passing lanes all game. Her most impressive play was a one handed rebound and putback. It was a remarkable and a very Maya Moore-like play.
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| Hartford Courant |
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| Hartford Courant |
Saniya Chong 20 Minutes, 2 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 2 steals
Chong, as we all can see, is still struggling with her shot. And it's gotten to the point that she is hesitant to shoot. She clearly gave up 2-3 open looks. Now, is this what Geno wanted? Run some more clock? I don't think so. But other than her shooting woes, I thought she played a smart game. She handled the ball well, made some really nice passes and defensively she was a pest and really helped disrupt the DePaul offense. I'm sure Geno will be in her ear about taking a good shot when it's there.
Final Words
After the expected slow start, as Doug Bruno said after the game, the National Championship runs through UConn. Of course, Geno's reaction to that was to downplay expectations. There are some teams, last years was one, that Geno has no issues with piling on the expectations. With this year's I think he senses that he has to keep the pedal to the metal to win another championship. There is no doubt that this team is talented enough. But without the strong leadership that came from Dolson and Hartley, they are more fragile. It certainly is more interesting.
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