Doggy's UConn/Virginia Post Game Report

UConn 83 Virginia 44

Here is the full game replay

Game Analysis

This game was a little bit of old school. I can't remember when I've seen so many back door plays. Was some of that because Virginia was overplaying on defense? Sure, but the offense has to recognize that and then execute the pass and then catch and then make the basket to complete the play. It was enjoyable to watch that kind of play.

UConn did a lot of good things in this game. Their passing was crisp and unselfish. Their shooting is improving. The bench contributed 20 points.

I noted in my pregame report that UConn would do a good job on Virginia's leading scorer Willoughby. While she did score 14 points, she was 3-15 from the field and 0-2 on threes. They held Virginia to 44 points, 24.6% from the field, and turned them over 19 times. A good, solid defensive effort.

Offensively, the team looked a lot more in sync in this game. Players moved freely, and then the passes followed the good movement. As Geno said, when the players know a good pass will be coming, they cut hard to get into position.   

Overall, it was certainly the best the team has played this season both offensively and defensively. With more improvement coming. It looks to me that Geno is going to settle on a 7 player rotation but I guess I'm not convinced that we won't see Kyla losing time against more athletic teams. Time will tell.   

Game Highlights

Game Stats and Box Score

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Game Quotes from Geno

“Our ball movement from day one to today, it’s drastically different. We’ve still got a lot of work to do. Don’t get me wrong. There’s still a lot of work that we have to do, but I like the direction that we’re going in.”

“I told Anna, ‘You really know how to impact the game. She passes to everybody but the net. She hits everything but the net. Her favorite targets are her teammates and the rim. So hopefully she’ll start making a couple.

“But that obviously adds a lot. Not everybody is going to play great every night. Somebody’s going to get in foul trouble, somebody’s going to struggle one night. What I like about Anna, she knows how to impact the game whether she’s scoring points or not, she’s going to have an effect on the game. When the shots are going in, she’s going to have a huge effect on the game.”

“It’s funny, that where you’re looking at things really changes how you see things. After our first couple games the perception, rightly so, was, ‘these guys are terrible. They don’t look anything like Connecticut. This is awful.’ Why? Because our expectation is so high. And it was a disaster, but we’re 2-0 and we won both games. So when we went down to Temple [head coach Tonya Cardoza] said to me, ‘I’m surprised how good you guys are, I didn’t think you guys were going to be this good this early.’ So it’s interesting, the way we look at it because of what we expect and the way outside people look at it. We have to change our lenses.” 

“It’s a blessing and a curse when you see yourself as a scorer, because you think you can score anytime, anywhere and against anybody. And part of being a scorer is knowing when to and how to, so when Meg’s in a flow she’s really hard to play against, and when Meg tries too hard to make something happen, it doesn’t look so great. So, for the most part, these four games, she hasn’t let whether the ball is going in or not going in affect how she plays, whereas last year if she had started the game the way she started today [0-for-2 on two layups], it would have had an effect on her the rest of the game.” 

UConn Post Game Interviews

Geno Interview

Anna Makurat Interview

Kyla Irwin Interview

Megan Walker Interview

Game Quotes from

Virginia Coach Tina Thompson

“We got a little tired, but they are good. They are just really good. There is a reason they are the number four team in the country. All though our kids played hard, they are a lot. They do a good job of countering what you are trying to take away. They read each other very well. It is reminiscent of a team that has been playing together for a while and is very well trained. When a team runs a motion offense like that and they move and they move, we have to go into a zone because it is impossible to guard. They do counters and reads based on what the defense is giving. You can’t take away everything, so our best option was the zone.”

UConn Player Evaluations

Christyn Williams

I know she's not happy with her three point shooting, but her overall games is terrific. It looks to me that consistency is starting to be part of her game. In her 31 minutes, she was 7-14 from the field but only 1-6 on threes. Doing the math, that means she was 6-8 on her 2 point shooting. Excellent.  She added 3 rebounds and 2 assists. I would bet that Geno would like to see more from her in those areas. If you want to see spectacular plays, watch her. You will see a couple a game. I particularly liked her baseline drive where she hit a little pull up shot with her right hand. Truly ambidextrous. 

Crystal Dangerfield

While the team had a very good game, I'm sure Crystal was not happy with her effort.  She hasn't found her range yet. I know that Anna get's a lot of comments about her shooting issues, but Crystal is a known commodity and we all expect more of her. In her 31 minutes, she was only 3-9 from the field, 2-6 on threes with only 3 assists. She did grab 4 rebounds and didn't have a turnover. She did deliver on the defensive end, causing problems all over the court. She ended up with 3 steals. I'm looking for a bounce back game from her against Ohio State with 7+ assists and a high percentage of shots hitting the bottom of the net.     

Megan Walker

It's pretty amazing that this is considered a down game for Megan. She has really set the bar high early in the season. In her team leading 33 minutes she 19 points, was 2-3 on threes, added 9 rebounds and 3 assists. I loved her aggressiveness in this game. I've said this before and I will probably say this against but when she gets the ball in the block, she is either going to score or get fouled. Her conditioning is really showing. She doesn't get tired and only gets stronger as the game does on. She is too quick for bigger defenders and too strong for smaller defenders. Definitely a match up nightmare.   

Olivia Nelson-Ododa

You look at her numbers and you say, oh, what a mediocre game for Olivia. I mean, she had only 9 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists. Then you look at the box score and see that she only played 19 minutes due to foul issues. If she played her usual 30 minutes you can bet she would have had another double double. She is starting to become that reliable post presence that Geno is looking for. Her scoring is coming on. She only took 4 shots but made all three. I'm sure Geno was happy with her percentage there. Her defense was excellent. Yes, she had a dumb foul around the three point line. Dumb. But she is a defensive presence with her 4 blocks in those limited minutes.   

Anna Makurt

“Crowd cheered for so long, I won’t forget it. It’s a good feeling.”

I'm sure it was. This was after hitting her first three of the season. She hit another one and was 2-4 on threes in this game. She really is a very good shooter!! She had 10 points and added 6 rebounds and another 5 assists. She has such a great feel for the game. It's a very mature skill set. While she appears to get beaten on defense when players are trying to drive by her, she uses her smarts to play good help defense, getting her hands in the passing lanes. She is just a delight!!! I expect big things from her. We will be laughing about her slow shooting start before you know it.

Kyla Irwin

After that fun 5 minutes against Temple in her homecoming game, I really didn't expect a great follow-up game. Well, she blew my expectations out of the water. She had career highs all over the place. In her 24 minutes (yes, 24), she almost had a perfect offensive game. She was 4-4 from the field, 2-2 on three pointers, and 3-4 from the foul line (slacker!). She added 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks. Whew. What a great game. Can she play like this in every game? Maybe if given the chance. But Geno has played players big minutes one game and cut them way back the next. I truly hope this was her breakout game and we see her play a lot more for the rest of the season. 

Aubrey Griffin

A freshman game for Aubrey. She only played 15 minutes, with Irwin getting more minutes. She only scored 6 points, grabbed three rebounds and had 2 assists. You can tell she is still learning the offense.  She was a disrupter on defense, poaching two steals. She really uses her length to cause all sorts of issues for the opponent's offense.

 Final Thoughts

I really enjoyed this game. They really played like a team and hopefully the improvement will be a progression.  I'm more and more confident that they can beat any team on their schedule. Yes, both Baylor and Oregon. 

Next game is Sunday, 10/24  at 3:00 on ESPN against Ohio State on the road.