Doggydaddy's Den: UConn-Central Florida Post game report

UConn-South Florida Post game report

(pictures from the Hartford Courant, UConnhuskies.com)

UConn decides to play 4 on 5 to keep the game competitive.
It didn't matter.

Well, I'm getting good at calling these blowouts. Here was my final prediction from Tuesday.

"This is one of those games that Geno and the end of the bench will decide the final margin. as we get closer to the end of the regular season, Geno will care less and less about keep the score down and more and more about making sure the team is ready for the NCAA's. This one might get real ugly for UCF. There is only one way that this can go. And UConn will determine the score. UConn by 55+."

Yeah...pretty good. I guess it's not that difficult to do, but I originally had it at 45 and when I was reviewing what I wrote, I just felt it would be a bigger spread.

Game Quotes

KML - ''When you have teammates who you know are going to make their open shots or are posting up when you're not open, it's easier, I'm not worried about pressing to make shots and that helps me take the right ones.''

Geno - ''Jefferson's in one of those zones, The number one thing you can do on offense is your shot selection. When you take good shots, you shoot high percentage.''

Coach Joi Williams - ''What's great about it (the matchup) is having a team like that on your home court, that you can see them up close and personal, that kind of relentless effort is what it takes to be a championship-caliber team. Especially for our young players, the great thing for them is they saw that this is the level, speed and pace that you have to play for the entire game. And it's not easy.''

Here are the coach and player evaluations -

Coach Geno Auriemma

Always teaching, always coaching, even in blowouts like this. He is working this team hard and I believes that he finally thinks this team can win it all. He is integrating the bench into the rotation and in a few more games they will be going a true 9 deep. In this game, he cut back the starters minutes as much as he has done all season.

Player of the Game

Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis

Is it the angle? Trick photography? Just look at her body in these shots. She looks fit as a fiddle!!!

This was a really nice game for KML in only 18 minutes. She scored 23 points, the first 20 point game since November 28th against Charleston. Shooting 5-7 from three, she is back over 50%. As good as her shooting was, I was just as impressed with her five assists. She is one of the best passers on the team and her post passing was terrific. She sure showed she belongs on the Wooden list.

Moriah Jefferson

I predict she won't miss a shot the rest of the season. Nah....not really, but boy, she sure makes you feel that was. Just a reminder that she was ranked 2nd in her class out of high school. I remember the folks that were wondering what the big deal was for most of her freshman year and much of her sophomore year. Now she is playing like the best in her class (sorry Jewel). 7-7 from the fields and 1-1 on three pointers, she finished with 15 points. An unusual game for her in that she only played 18 minutes and she had only one assist. She made 2-3 drives to the basket that blew my mind.

Morgan Tuck

Another solid game for Tuck. 10 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists in 23 minutes. She just plays hard every minute she is on the court. And now she is leading by more than example, getting more and more vocal with her teammates. Just one more great passing forward on this team.

Breanna Stewart

I love these two pictures. They show the diversity of Stewarts game. At 6'4" her ball handing on her drives to the basket along the baseline are forceful and that jump hook is impossible to defend. She is hitting that shot with more regularity. She had three more blocks and when you watch her, she just seems more determined and aggressive in everything she is doing on the court.

Kia Nurse

Dare I say it again? Freshman Wall????? I think offensively, she certainly has hit that. More single digit scoring in the last 6 games than all season long before that. But she is still playing HARD. And this too shall pass. Her defense is still stellar.

Kiah Stokes

I love her stat line. Makes me want to play the slots - 7 7 7. Points, rebounds and blocks. Stokes is now up to 4.4 blocks per game, second in the country and only .2 behind the leader. Her defense is impeccable and her offense was excellent this game. 3-3 from the field and 1-1 from the line.

Geno was glowing about her game in the post game report. He loved her aggressiveness on the offensive end and he hopes she builds on it. So do we all!!

Saniya Chong

I saw these two pictures and I just had to use them for Saniya. She is starting to FINALLY get more comfortable with her role and it's showing on the court. The picture on the right shows the kind of pass she regularly made in HS. You don't average 10 assists a game without having great court vision. And I love the floor leadership she shows in the picture on the left.

She had another four assists and only one turnover. Her focus also appeared to be on the defensive end and that will continue to get her plenty of playing time.

Gabby Williams

Left hand, Right hand, Williams can finish with either hand as captured by the pictures above.

You can see her playing better and better, and that is saying something considering how well she was playing a few weeks ago. 15 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 steals is a terrific line. I loved how aggressive she was on the defensive end flashing into the passing lanes. She seemed quicker in this game and used it to her advantage. And of course, her post moves, with either hand, are a devastating weapon.

Courtney Ekmark

Her best game so far this season in her comeback from her stress reaction in her right foot. After a slow start, she hit a nice three pointer and two aggressive drives to the basket. It was great to see her get so many minutes. She must be putting in the effort in practice for Geno to give her those minutes.

So.....what is up with the GI Joe Kung Foo grip on that jumper??? Weird.

I LOVE OUR WALKONS!!!!!!