2021-2022 WBB Team
- Thread starter Cocky 45
- Start date
fwiw - that is a quote from last year. LSU won't be in the Final Four this season.
Moving my Mizzou game thoughts to here,
The flu freaks, bottom feeding trolls who wish our team ill aww eff em.
Did not see this coming, but had bad feeling from early third quarter. Shot poorly from field and line. We got up on them in OT and then played not to lose.
Will have to go back and watch OT. Was clock management poor? Shot selection was! Chaps my ass to see cheap shot Sophie celebrate.
The flu freaks, bottom feeding trolls who wish our team ill aww eff em.
Did not see this coming, but had bad feeling from early third quarter. Shot poorly from field and line. We got up on them in OT and then played not to lose.
Will have to go back and watch OT. Was clock management poor? Shot selection was! Chaps my ass to see cheap shot Sophie celebrate.
Last time we lost SEC Opener was the 12-13 season when lost 73-53 to UT. We went 26-8 and 11-5. Lost in second round of NCAA’s
Really surprised that the team didn't come out pressing full court, especially with Mizzou down to 8 players. Why not go for the kill shot from the beginning?
My biggest concern about this team is Dawn appears to be getting a bit too comfortable with the team playing subpar in the 1st half of games. I get wanting to be composed and confident when the team falls behind, but maybe a bit more urgency is in order. They came back from 13 down against Stanford and 18 against Stanford. Not tonight. Maybe a good thing, if lessons were learned.
I think our team learns from this defeat. No more sleep walking through early quarters. I'd rather end the winning stream and take the pressure off now than later. Would love to draw them in the tourney as that may be our only chance for redemption. Cunningham's celebration and storming of the court really sticks in my craw.
That's a good matchup for us because they are an average shooting team. A nice changeup after our last 4 opponents. They've been without the good Hayes sister, though, for about a month. I'm sure they're much better offensively when she plays. Don't know about her status for tomorrow.
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It will be an odd vote. It was an upset that reaffirmed some of the chinks in our armor. It happened, but it was a night not a resume. it doesn’t change 6 top 15 wins. A second loss will be treated with more consequences.
Who would replace us? You can’t move Stanford to #1, they have 3 losses. Louisville or Arizona possibly🤷♂️🤷♂️
I rewatched the USC/Mizzou game. It became evident as the game progressed that Mizzou's game plan was to stay away from Boston when on offense. So they used a lot of pick and roll action involving their big who was being guard by Saxton/Amihere/Cardoso. None of those players had a good defensive game (Cardoso, however, did score on the offensive end).
Tomorrow, they will be matched up against Rickea Jackson. So our other bigs not named Boston need to step up defensively. If they can't get it done, then play Beal at the 4 (which coach did late in the game). It would be nice to have Lele back as an option. We miss her attitude.
Tomorrow, they will be matched up against Rickea Jackson. So our other bigs not named Boston need to step up defensively. If they can't get it done, then play Beal at the 4 (which coach did late in the game). It would be nice to have Lele back as an option. We miss her attitude.
I have basically come to that conclusion as well after sitting on it for a day or so. Our scheduling makes it a hard argument to bring us down. I do believe it could have been a different story if Louisville, Arizona or even Tennessee was the current #2.
It's a bit frustrating that Zia is taking the brunt of the blame for the loss to Mizzou. The last time we lost, also by 1 point to Stanford, she scored 25 points. The common denominator in both losses was the poor play of Saxton. Don't get me wrong: Saxton has many very good games; however, if people are going to blame someone when this team loses, identify the right person.
The biggest issue on the offensive end is no one guards her outside the paint, which allows the defense to collapse on Boston.
She makes up for it on the offensive end by being a great offensive rebounder, usually. She's normally a plus player, until she's isn't. And that game could be a tournament game. Season over.
If she has a bad matchup, however, there are other possibilities:
* Play Cardoso at the 5 and Boston at the 4. This was an effective lineup against Mizzou, unfortunately Boston's foul trouble limited the use of this lineup.
* Play Amihere at the 4. Amihere's presence does make the lineup better defensively, but she's having trouble finishing on offense.
* Play Lele at the 4. This was very effective against Mizzou last season. Unfortunately, not an option much so far this season.
* Play Beal at the 4. She's more than capable of defending most 4's and boxing them out. Very few teams play two bigs anymore. For this lineup to work, however, we need Rivers/Russell/Hall to emerge as another wing option. Potentially a very good lineup on both ends of the court.
* Play Feagin more. In her limited minutes, she's proven she can finish around the basket.
Dawn loves her seniors, though. In 2015, she played Ibiam minutes that should have gone to A'ja. In 2017, the only reason she got creative with the lineup in the tournament was due to Coates going down win an injury.
Coach has done such a great job of recruiting; she have given herself many options. Why not explore them?
The biggest issue on the offensive end is no one guards her outside the paint, which allows the defense to collapse on Boston.
She makes up for it on the offensive end by being a great offensive rebounder, usually. She's normally a plus player, until she's isn't. And that game could be a tournament game. Season over.
If she has a bad matchup, however, there are other possibilities:
* Play Cardoso at the 5 and Boston at the 4. This was an effective lineup against Mizzou, unfortunately Boston's foul trouble limited the use of this lineup.
* Play Amihere at the 4. Amihere's presence does make the lineup better defensively, but she's having trouble finishing on offense.
* Play Lele at the 4. This was very effective against Mizzou last season. Unfortunately, not an option much so far this season.
* Play Beal at the 4. She's more than capable of defending most 4's and boxing them out. Very few teams play two bigs anymore. For this lineup to work, however, we need Rivers/Russell/Hall to emerge as another wing option. Potentially a very good lineup on both ends of the court.
* Play Feagin more. In her limited minutes, she's proven she can finish around the basket.
Dawn loves her seniors, though. In 2015, she played Ibiam minutes that should have gone to A'ja. In 2017, the only reason she got creative with the lineup in the tournament was due to Coates going down win an injury.
Coach has done such a great job of recruiting; she have given herself many options. Why not explore them?
I think Cooke going 4-19 in 35 minutes of play is definitely worth pointing out plus adding an unusual 2-12 performance from Henderson is a recipe for disaster.It's a bit frustrating that Zia is taking the brunt of the blame for the loss to Mizzou. The last time we lost, also by 1 point to Stanford, she scored 25 points. The common denominator in both losses was the poor play of Saxton. Don't get me wrong: Saxton has many very good games; however, if people are going to blame someone when this team loses, identify the right person.
The biggest issue on the offensive end is no one guards her outside the paint, which allows the defense to collapse on Boston.
She makes up for it on the offensive end by being a great offensive rebounder, usually. She's normally a plus player, until she's isn't. And that game could be a tournament game. Season over.
If she has a bad matchup, however, there are other possibilities:
* Play Cardoso at the 5 and Boston at the 4. This was an effective lineup against Mizzou, unfortunately Boston's foul trouble limited the use of this lineup.
* Play Amihere at the 4. Amihere's presence does make the lineup better defensively, but she's having trouble finishing on offense.
* Play Lele at the 4. This was very effective against Mizzou last season. Unfortunately, not an option much so far this season.
* Play Beal at the 4. She's more than capable of defending most 4's and boxing them out. Very few teams play two bigs anymore. For this lineup to work, however, we need Rivers/Russell/Hall to emerge as another wing option. Potentially a very good lineup on both ends of the court.
* Play Feagin more. In her limited minutes, she's proven she can finish around the basket.
Dawn loves her seniors, though. In 2015, she played Ibiam minutes that should have gone to A'ja. In 2017, the only reason she got creative with the lineup in the tournament was due to Coates going down win an injury.
Coach has done such a great job of recruiting; she have given herself many options. Why not explore them?
Most teams tend to sag off both Saxton and Beal when they are on the floor, we have lived with that the past two seasons for what they bring both defensively and on the boards(their extra effort in particular on the boards is priceless). Both have improved a little when it comes from shooting the 3 in Beal's case and the midrange from Saxton but not nearly enough to offset the dominance of Boston brings when she's on the floor
I agree that we need to experiment some more. Littleton might need some more minutes and when Cooke is struggling this much offensively, I wouldn't mind seeing more of Russell. She came in and shot nice 3 and then never came back in. I trust Dawn and she's been less stubborn with blind loyalty to upperclassmen like she used to. I doubt the starting lineup changes anytime soon, but minutes played could definitely change if we don't improve offensively. I do agree that Feagin is an overlooked piece, she is allegedly pretty good from the midrange, rotating her in around Boston could be huge and take some pressure off Boston.
What's with Grissett out for 2 weeks? Does she have problems with her injury or other things?
Oh wow that stinks, I don't get how they can practice but not be available for the game.
Ap Top 25 released, Gamecocks still #1, Missouri still not ranked
https://apnews.com/article/sports-c...e-basketball-9a71121ee87c418a8c99182c7a67c8c1
https://apnews.com/article/sports-c...e-basketball-9a71121ee87c418a8c99182c7a67c8c1
| 1. South Carolina (22) | 13-1 | 737 | 1 |
| 2. Stanford | 9-3 | 694 | 2 |
| 3. Louisville (5) | 12-1 | 691 | 3 |
| 4. Arizona (3) | 10-0 | 660 | 4 |
| 5. NC State | 12-2 | 636 | 5 |
| 6. Indiana | 11-2 | 578 | 8 |
| 7. Tennessee | 13-1 | 571 | 7 |
| 8. Michigan | 12-1 | 540 | 9 |
| 9. Texas | 10-1 | 483 | 12 |
| 10. Maryland | 10-4 | 478 | 6 |
| 11. UConn | 6-3 | 462 | 11 |
| 12. Iowa St. | 12-1 | 429 | 14 |
| 13. LSU | 14-1 | 365 | 19 |
| 14. Baylor | 10-3 | 355 | 10 |
| 15. Georgia | 12-2 | 318 | 13 |
| 16. Georgia Tech | 10-3 | 287 | 16 |
| 17. Duke | 10-2 | 232 | 15 |
| 18. BYU | 10-1 | 183 | 18 |
| 19. North Carolina | 13-0 | 162 | 24 |
| 20. Notre Dame | 11-3 | 130 | 17 |
| 21. Kentucky | 7-3 | 122 | 20 |
| 22. Iowa | 7-3 | 119 | 21 |
| 23. Oklahoma | 12-1 | 118 | - |
| 24. South Florida | 10-4 | 92 | 22 |
| 25. Texas A&M | 10-3 | 58 | 23 |
So we're about halfway through the season. Here's the way I see it:
Strength: Whenever Aliyah Boston is on the court.
Weakness: Whenever Aliyah Boston is off the court.
I honestly think we could play any 4 players with Boston, including Thompson and Wesolek, and it would be a plus lineup against most teams. The challenge, of course, is to identify the optimal lineup with Boston in there. The other challenge is to identify the best lineup without Boston.
I think it's clear that Henderson/Cooke are two players that would also be a part of our best lineup. If you're concerned about dribble penetration and the lack of outside shooting, the two most common complaints I see, then we should address them at Beal's spot and not Zia's, IMO. Beal is an excellent defender against bigger guards/forwards like Rhyne Howard, but a bit shaky against smaller guards. Russell looked good in that spot last night, but are you willing to live with her inevitable 3 to 4 turnovers a night?
The Boston/Cardoso combination is growing on me.
Offensively, they are especially nice combo. Those two are a matchup nightmare for most teams. Cardoso doesn't struggle with layups, That sounds like faint praise, but it's not. Since we don't space the floor well, our bigs have to be able to score in a congested lane. She's does that.
Defensively, Boston is always excellent. She played very well against Rickea Jackson on the perimeter last night.
Cardoso still bites on the fake nearly every time. Opposing teams have scouted and are aware. I'm sure our coaches have emphasized this to her, but she can't resist. Hopefully that aspect of her game will improve over time.
As far as the best lineup without Boston: I have no idea beyond Henderson and Cooke.
Strength: Whenever Aliyah Boston is on the court.
Weakness: Whenever Aliyah Boston is off the court.
I honestly think we could play any 4 players with Boston, including Thompson and Wesolek, and it would be a plus lineup against most teams. The challenge, of course, is to identify the optimal lineup with Boston in there. The other challenge is to identify the best lineup without Boston.
I think it's clear that Henderson/Cooke are two players that would also be a part of our best lineup. If you're concerned about dribble penetration and the lack of outside shooting, the two most common complaints I see, then we should address them at Beal's spot and not Zia's, IMO. Beal is an excellent defender against bigger guards/forwards like Rhyne Howard, but a bit shaky against smaller guards. Russell looked good in that spot last night, but are you willing to live with her inevitable 3 to 4 turnovers a night?
The Boston/Cardoso combination is growing on me.
Offensively, they are especially nice combo. Those two are a matchup nightmare for most teams. Cardoso doesn't struggle with layups, That sounds like faint praise, but it's not. Since we don't space the floor well, our bigs have to be able to score in a congested lane. She's does that.
Defensively, Boston is always excellent. She played very well against Rickea Jackson on the perimeter last night.
Cardoso still bites on the fake nearly every time. Opposing teams have scouted and are aware. I'm sure our coaches have emphasized this to her, but she can't resist. Hopefully that aspect of her game will improve over time.
As far as the best lineup without Boston: I have no idea beyond Henderson and Cooke.
Good to see no recency bias. Though Mizzou did almost beat Baylor as well, so I would put them in my top 25.
Boston is now tied with Coates and Kiki for 2nd all time with 210 blocks and only trails A'ja Wilson 363 blocks.
Voters must have felt certain that South Carolina took the night off & it was a fluke loss. At 12-2 I don't see how Mizzou isn't ranked after beating a #1 ranked team, especially the 1st time in their school's history. It's kinda funny because I don't like them but still makes you wonder how they didn't make the top 25 this week.
That's what I thought - from the coach right on down. That was an inexcusable performance when the opposition could hardly have been more depleted.
I believe they should have been ranked as well, they haven't really played anybody else except Baylor but they lost that game. I think beating the #1 team with a decent record considering the circumstances should be worth at least 23-25 ranking.
Or maybe the pollsters believe they don't have a very good team, even at full strength.
I gave Mizzou a lot of credit for showing up to play and then they turn around and don't show up to play against Vandy. lol. I guess I'm too cynical. I believe **some** coaches use the ability to postpone a game to their advantage. You're free to believe what you like.
Credit to Joannie Taylor for playing the first two conference games without Jenna Staiti. I'm glad they were able to pull one out yesterday.
Credit to Joannie Taylor for playing the first two conference games without Jenna Staiti. I'm glad they were able to pull one out yesterday.
Voters must have felt certain that South Carolina took the night off & it was a fluke loss. At 12-2 I don't see how Mizzou isn't ranked after beating a #1 ranked team, especially the 1st time in their school's history. It's kinda funny because I don't like them but still makes you wonder how they didn't make the top 25 this week.
mizzou was a night, we have a better resume than anyone. A second loss will not be treated as kindly
mizzou was a night, we have a better resume than anyone. A second loss will not be treated as kindly
There's not an SEC womens basketball program that has a losing record...Mulkey is doing a HECK of a job at LSU...proof of the pudding that a high powered coach can mean the difference in mediocrity or excellence....
I'm pulling for her at LSU....
I'm pulling for her at LSU....
Morris and Pointer are the best pair of guards we will face in conference. Aifuwa is a 6’5” post who can score down low, play D and rebound. Newby, Cherry, and Tarasi all contribute and can have a night offensively. As a team they play good D especially Pointer and Aifuwa. They also rebound well. They have played us tough the last four years, so there is no intimidation factor.
They are THE MOST experienced team in the league. Seven player rotation and all 7 are 5th year seniors.
Fargas taught tough man to man D, so Mulkey started with a strong foundation. They are much faster tempo this year and better offensively. The team has bought in totally.
And in the believe it or not category. They shoot free throws much worse than we do🤣
They had a VERY weak OOC, but that seems to have jelled them as a team. I am surprised they are 2-0. This is a statement/must win game on both sides. Expect a big fired up crowd and fourth quarter game
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Mulkey will send her players driving for lay ups because we can't seem to stop it unless going zone. Staley very rarely will play zone. The forwards need to make an effort to make shots instead of throwing it away down low. They better play a complete game or they can see another loss. Cut turnovers, make shots.
I understand the upset at the layups, but a few points.
•We had no prep for the game. No practice for D concepts, except a very limited walk through Sunday morning.
•Anastasia Hayes is a top level scorer, 26ppg last season and an excellent PG. They are a team with 6-8 guards who live off the dribble drive. It is who they are.
•They shot 34% last night, their worst shooting night of the season. So we must have done something right.
The thing that frustrated me the most was the substitution pattern. Had them down by 11 in first quarter. So we pulled 4 starters and kept them til the lead was 4. I know DS is working to develop depth but wholesale subs in the first half for an extended stretch ain’t working. KO first then develop the bench
I am a little nervous about our trip to LSU thursday nite....this would be a big signature win for her as the newbie coach in the SEC...I'm pulling for her and LSU but just not thursday nite...GO Carolina!!
I don't buy it. A team with a pretty good record, beating the undefeated and unanimously voted #1 team without their best player definitely shouldn't be overlooked.
I agree. We all know the history between these two teams. They don't like each other. But Mizzou clearly earned a spot in the top 25 after they pulled out that 1 point win.
