Doggydaddy's Den: Doggy's Doghouse 12/11/19

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It's not gonna be pretty, but it's got to be gritty!

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Great News. It didn't rain!!! I got to play golf today!!!! I haven't played in a month but I managed to score a tidy 40-41 - 81. I even had a birdie. It's going to be tough going home to the cold Thursday but seeing my beautiful wife will keep me warm!!!

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Geno had this to say about 6'5" incoming freshman (2020) Piath Gabriel!!

“She adds a presence in the lane that nobody in America has almost, a big six-[five] kid that can take up space,” Auriemma said. “What about the other stuff? The other stuff doesn’t exist. But you’re thinking, ‘what happens if she gets that, then you’ve got something really, really good.’ So you’re taking the chance, but a really good chance because the kid is competitive, she wants to be good. She works hard, she runs up and down the floor.”

I love this kind of player. Raw with a huge upside.

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It looks like it's SEC night Wednesday evening with four top 25 teams from that conference on the docket.

No. 11 Texas A&M is playing undefeated TCU (RPI 24)

No. 14 Kentucky is playing Winthrop (RPI 342)

No. 21 Arkansas is playing AAC's Tulsa (RPI 255)

No. 23 Tennessee vs Colorado State (RPI (290)

At least Texas A&M is playing a good team. The others are playing typical SEC OOC teams. Wouldn't an upset be just delicious???

Well, it didn't happen. Every game against a bad team was a runaway, as they should have been. As usual, the scores and links if I can find them are in the Top 25 section of the blog.

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One other game of interest with No. 16 DePaul visiting Notre Dame. A good chance to see what UConn is in for next Monday in Chicago. GO BLUE DEMONS!!!

On edit -

What a crazy high scoring game this ended up being. DePaul pulled away late for a 105-94 win over the Irish. DePaul shot 16-29 on threes, a really really good 55%. DePaul will score a lot of points against anyone shooting that well from deep. The Blue Demon's issue is on the defensive end. Giving up 94 points to Notre Dame, a team averaging only 65 ppg, is not a good sign for their upcoming game against UConn.

It's funny, but if you read the message boards, you will find a lot of concern about DePaul's three point prowess. Some have said that UConn's three point defense is not good. So I checked.

Before this hot game, DePaul was shooting 32.3% on threes. After the game they are 34.7%. A big bump, but neither number is exceptional.

Coming into the DePaul game, UConn has allowed their opponents to shoot 28.0% on threes. That number is very good. However, this comment from a fan made me scratch my head.

"We've given teams open looks from beyond the arc but they have not knocked them down so it's been an illusion of decent 3-point defense".

People just miss and UConn is lucky they do? It's magic? Sigh........

DePaul will have to hit their open threes for sure, but UConn doesn't have to worry about post play. I think they will find a way to make it difficult for the Blue Demons.

A side note - I had heard on a message board that Dough Bruno was retiring after this season. I finally had a chance to look that up. Here is what I found.

"DePaul women’s basketball coach Doug Bruno, who has taken the Blue Demons to 17 consecutive NCAA Tournaments, will remain on the team’s bench for at least six more seasons, the school announced Monday. Bruno, 68, had his contract extended through the 2024-25 season."

So glad to know this.

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By David in Naples!!!!!

Stanford is currently the #1 women's basketball team in the country. They are like UConn in several ways. They are talented, but ,with only one senior in the normal starting lineup. Their record is 8-0 and they have balanced scoring. Their schedule for the next three games may present an issue. They play Ohio State, Tennessee and Texas. The first two are home games, then they travel to Texas.

If they get through those three games, January gets tougher. They play California twice, Oregon and Oregon State away. Then #10 UCLA, then Oregon and Oregon State again. A lot of pressure comes with the #1 ranking. Nine different players have started a game for the Cardinal and injuries have been an issue. The only signature win was a 5 point victory over #10 Miss. State. The next three games will reveal what Stanford can, or can't do. The four games against Oregon and Oregon State will most likely be their undoing.

And......

Some UConn fans are unhappy with the play of Christyn Williams so far this season. The critics say she is not dominating games enough at the offensive end. They are ignoring some fairly obvious stats. Consider:

1. Last season, Christyn took 343 shots in 38 games. That comes out to 9 per game. This year she has 105 shots in 8 games. That is 13.1 per game. Exactly how many more shots do critics want her to take..??

2. Her scoring average last year was 11.7 points per game. This season she has raised that to 16.4 per game. Tell me again the problem?

3. Christyn has raised her stats in almost every category. For example, rebounds are up from 3.2 per game to 4.6 per game.

Maybe just let Geno coach and enjoy the ride this season.

Go Huskies..!!

UCONN LINKS

Gabriel getting foes best shots

Top Twenty-Five Scores and Links
Upsets in Red