UConn Temple II Post Game Report

What a great picture of Tonya with Geno and Chris. In 14 years together, I'm sure they have had a lot of fun times and it certainly shows in this picture. I had heard about Cardoza's great sense of humor. You don't see Geno laughing that hard often. He is usually telling the joke. But whatever she said, it must have been a good one. Tonya seems pretty pleased with herself.

 

UConn-Temple Post game report 

(player pictures from the Hartford Courant)

 

It was a slow first 4 minutes for UConn. Temple challenged UConn to shoot from the outside, laying so far off Tuck I thought her defender was going to take a seat on the bench. And she missed and did just about everyone else. Down 8-4, UConn went on 18-7 run fueled by KML and the UConn defense. As usual, Stokes comes in changes the tempo.

 

UConn was just a little off in their offensive execution. Their shots seemed rushed. You have to give Temple credit for a great game plan and the guts to stick with it. Cardoza is a brilliant coach and she showed all aspect of her ability both using strategy and as a great motivator.

 

Sanyia Chong entered the game at the 7 minute mark with UConn up 7. A nice cross court pass and Chong hits a three and the next possession, she leads a break and hits Nurse with a nice pass and Kia hits the three for a quick 13 point lead. Temple did battle for a few minutes, closing the lead  to 11 but then UConn imposed their will on Temple, expanding the lead to 18, 48-30.  

 

At this point I just looked at the half time stats and UConn is shooting 50% from the field and 50% from beyond the arc. They only have 5 TO's and they scored 48 points. I guess they played better than I thought.

 

The second half started just like the first. In the first 3 minutes, UConn was sloppy, Temple was aggressive and the Owls started with a 6-2 run. UConn settled down some, and it was 57-39 after 6 minutes in. But a great pass by Nurse to Tuck in the post for two and then a steal by Jefferson and subsequent lay in game UConn a 22 point lead with 13:35 left.  

 

It was UConn's nation leading defense that took over at this point. UConn went on a 15-2 (including those two 3's) run over the next 9 minutes for a 72-41 and that was basically it. The UConn defense was just terrific in controlling the game. They held Temple to 28% from the field and 19% on 3's and forced them into 20 turnovers. Great job! 

    

I thought Temple played as well as anyone has this year for much of the game. And Erica Covile had her second Double-Double of the season against UConn with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Impressive.   

 

I'm sure Geno is not happy with how the team played at times during this game. But they did shoot 50% from the floor for the game and it was only Geno putting on the brakes that UConn only scored 83 points. And I sure he is glad that 3 of the 4 games against his former assistance are in the books. Cincinnati on Wednesday will finish it up.      

 

Temple set a new McGonigle Hall attendance record, as 2,646 fans were on hand at Sunday's game, breaking the previous record of 2,030, set last year against UConn.

 

Game Quotes     

 Geno on the upcoming milestone - "It's something to celebrate for what it signifies in terms of what happened in the last 30 years. It's not a singular event. It's an event that's taken 30 years."  

 

Tonya Cardoza - "It's a credit to him and his staff, the type of kids they recruit to come play there. He's one of those guys that, no matter what the situation is, he's going to prepare his team. He's just a great guy, a great coach and I'm happy that I've been able to work for him for 14 years."   

 

Geno to many UConn fans - "In some places, if you've accomplished what we've accomplished, it doesn't matter what you do, no one will ever say a disparaging word/ "But the world we live in and not where we live. You've either got to win every game or there better be a reason why you lost."

 

Geno again - “We make it look easy a lot of times, but the ball still has to go into the basket. We make it look easy but it’s not always as easy as we make it look. Offensive rebounding is hard. Ask Stewie. She got a grand total of zero today. We missed 32 shots and Stewie got zero offensive rebounds. She got as many as a dead person"

 

 

 

 

Here are some pictures from my friend DannyK.

 

DannyK's Temple Pictures

 

 

Player of the Game

Dan Ray

Dan Ray, a Temple freshman from Cumberland, Maine hit a halfcourt shot that earned him $10,000 during a timeout at the UConn and Temple women's game.

Morgan Tuck 

 

I am sure that Morgan did not expect the defense she saw. She looked indecisive and unsure early in the game. After missing her first three shots, Geno took her out of the game at the first media timeout. I think it was as early as I have seen him do that. After 4 minutes on the bench, she returned and had a better handle on how to deal with the defense. She took one jumper and mostly focused on rebounding and passing. She didn't take the open three they were giving her until 7 minutes had passed. She missed that, a layup and another three to end the half. Her 3-10 from the field and 0-4 on 3's was as bad a half as I have seen her play. 

She was better in the second half, going 4-8 from he field and 1-3 on three's. It's clear though that Geno and Morgan will have to figure out the best approach if this defense comes up again. Maybe have Morgan take the ball more to the basket when they lay off of her and either try to score or pass it off if the defense comes at her. They did some of that in this game and it was effective. What I don't want to see happen is Morgan stop shooting the three as some have suggested. I'm sure some felt the same way about Kelly Faris. I'd bet that Tuck will shoot in the mid to upper 30% on three's in the next two years.   

All that being said, she scored 15 points, had 8 rebounds, 4 assists, only 1 TO and 2 steals. Not bad.

 

Moriah Jefferson 

 

This girl is gonna hurt herself...but I think we Husky fans are just going to have to get used to her flying to the basket and falling on the hardwood. Just keep your fingers crossed. When UConn made it's first big run, it was Jefferson's defense that sparked the effort. She shot 2-3 on threes pushing her percentage over 50%.       

 

 

Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis

 

It was clear they were going to let everyone but KML shoot the three. And they were able to keep her attempts to only three. Kaleena made two of them, pushing her NCAA leading percentage to 51.3%. I think in this game she was taking what they were giving her and took 6 shots inside the arc with a variety of pull up jumpers and drives to the basket. I loved the diversity in her game.     

 

 

Breanna Stewart 

 

This was a similar situation to Tuck in this game, but not as obvious. The defenders didn't drop back as pronounced as they did with Morgan, but it was clear they would rather Stewart shoot the three than post in the paint. Breanna's shooting was off but as always, she contributed in other ways with 4 assists and a block. she was great from the foul line, going 4-5 contributing to her 17 total points. I'm sure she heard Geno loud and clear on the offensive rebounding crack, comparing her to a dead person. Hysterical for fans but harsh and to the point for Stewie. I'm looking forward to seeing the impact of the comment in the Cincinnati game.   

 

Kia Nurse 

 

 It as a quiet game for Nurse, for the most part. She only had 6 points and 3 assists. But she didn't push her offense, she let it come to her. That is an amazing ability for a freshman. One other thing.  Nurse is a BRILLIANT three point shooter. That is all. 

 

 

Kiah Stokes

 

 Ho hum....just another great game for Stokes. The GAME CHANGER did it again. Stokes impacts the game with her blocks and intimidation as soon as she enters. I'm sure at this point, the opposition knows what's coming. It's probably as much a mental advantage for UConn as it is physical now. While she didn't look for her shot that often, she was effective when she did.    

 

 

 Saniya Chong

 

 Better and better. I see her playing better and better. And there is nothing better for me to see than Saniya prove all the skeptics wrong. In this game, she was cool as the other side of the pillow on the court. You can just see it in her body language. Chong scored 8 points on 3-3 shooting, including 2-2 on three's bringing her percentage up to 36.2%. She's come a long way since her initial reaction to being moved to the bench. It's great to see her gain Geno's trust.   

 

 

Gabby Williams

  

 Williams just knows how to play the angle on the backboard. I was concerned that Geno still doesn't have complete trust in her. But he finally put her in with 5 minutes left in the first half and she made  a nice drive to the basket and grabbed a few rebounds. She plays forward on offense but can cover guards on the perimeter. Having that flexibility just gives UConn more options on defense. It was another double digit scoring performance for the freshman bringing her average to 8.5 points per game.   

 

 

Courtney Ekmark

 

 Courtney was only in the game for 4 minutes, but she played as hard as she always does.

 

 

Mo'ne Mo'ne, Mo'ne Mo'ne, Mo'ne Mo'ne

 

 

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Next is the rematch with Jamell and Cincinnati. I'm sure Geno will be glad when this game is over. As I said before, these two have a special relationship and it's Geno's toughest game of the season. Twice.