[ti]GameDay[/ti]UCONN @ Seton Hall: 1.17.24 8:30 PM - TV: SNY

Nice night for Q, too. She's moving more decisively, as well.

I like that pass that q made to Ines for an easy layup. I think her instinct is to shoot there.

Not the prettiest game.

The silver lining is that every game is a valuable learning experience for the freshmen. they have played 18 games and this game added roughly 5% to their game experience library. They will play lots of teams that will grab and bump and learning to overcome that is part of the maturation process. Luckily UConn has Bueckers as their backstop so they still win while they learn. 

I didn't see the game, only the highlights posted above. They are highlights. but wow, I saw even better ball movement. I saw Ice and Q move better, too. The team is shooting great (over its nation-leading shooting percentage) and moving so wonderfully.

Despite it being a bit height challenged (less so as Ice works her way in), this team has the horses for the March/April courses.

Road games are going to be like this , especially SH which is always tough on Uconn at home.Seems like there is some more tweaking going on, and Ice and Q seemed much more " in tune " with what needs to be done .Interesting that Ashlynn just seemed out of sync tonight. Some nights like tonight, Paige just has to take over. Pereimeter defense still a big issue. Still too many missed assignments. Ice and Q both fighting for rebounds a big help. Chalk up the W.

Last night was not allowing the game to be more physical. It was shoddy understanding of the rules. Missed calls. Whistles with literally no contact. No idea about what constitutes a moving pick. Blow whistle take a minute then flip a coin about charge vs block. They called one moving pick all game. They missed about 30.

Your statement is correct that more holding and bumping is allowed and we have to get used to watching it while teams get used to playing under those conditions. That part is a shame, but true.

Geno is essentially down to a rotation of 7 core players, only 9 total available. Amari and Ines are, generally, not going to get large chunks of time. It is mid-January, the season is half over. Geno is now in the mode of fine tuning the team and rotations for late season play. No matter what, at least one starter is always going to be on the floor. Even when the final buzzer sounds.

I do agree that perhaps some of the players played too many minutes against Seton Hall considering the margin. But, with only a 7 player core rotation, we are likely going to see some players with well over 30 minutes.

Looks like Geno is toying with some interesting options. Small ball with Paige, Nika, Ashlynn, KK and Aaliyah. Or substitute out one guard and add Ice , who is improving by the day, adding size and double post with Aaliyah. Or insert Q who is long runs the floor like a Cheetah and is long and can shoot. If only they can work Ines or amari into a helpful 10 - 15 minutes. We'll find out a lot about what this team is capable of in the next three weeks, with the meat of the schedule coming up.