2023-2024 Women’s College Basketball
- Thread starter Ale Xander
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Reese with 15 points 12 rebounds.
Iowa beat FDU, and Clark had 28 points, 10 assists, and 7 boards.
Eight of the top 12 have already lost. I think it speaks well of a sport that has historically lacked parity, and also that the top teams aren't simply scheduling "scrimmages" through the pre-conference games.
Iowa's struggling to shoot the ball tonight as they go back and forth with Kansas State. Currently tied 42-42 late in the 3rd quarter.
For all of Clark’s brilliance she’s only at 36.7% so far this year from 3. She’s a huge volume shooter. The modern day AI.
Clark 9-for-29, 2-of-13 from 3. K-State only has one player who can score, but they have a 1-pt lead and the ball with less than a minute to play.
And UConn rebounds without Azzi Fudd by destroying #20 Maryland at Gampel last night. Bueckers with a cool 24 on 10-15 shooting. 51 points in her last two games on 21-33 shooting (.636).
Yeah. I've been here for three decades and this was an old school "UConn always destroys even top-20 teams like it's nothing" whooping. Arnold is going to be fantastic. She's that super quick guard that they haven't had since Crystal Dangerfield or Moriah Jefferson. It's the piece they've needed going up against teams that have those uber quick guards. Muhl is a great defender but she's not quick enough to handle those kinds of players. And Bueckers, as great as she is, can't handle them either and they give her fits. Arnold gives them that extra dimension.
The concerns are: (1) depth up front. Edwards is a legit All-American. She's awesome in every way. But after that they have very little. When their 6'5" center got hurt for the year, it was a huge loss of depth. Brady will improve but, while she's solidly built, she's not THAT tall - just 6'2". Ducharme isn't big enough to play with the legit bigs on top 10 teams. DeBerry isn't very good. They need Edwards to be awesome and out of foul trouble against the top teams, and if that opposing team has two terrific bigs, it's an enormous problem for UConn. But (2) is health. Bueckers has a bad left thumb (it's worse than what the people on TV tell you). Ducharme has always dealt with concussion issues. Bueckers got poked in the eye last night. And now Fudd is out for who knows how long with a knee injury. This team the last 5 years has suffered just an unfathomable number of injuries - and major ones too.
So in no way can I put them in as the national title favorite. No way. But they are absolutely good enough to win it all if they are healthy. They're really fun to watch.
Are you frigging kidding me? Holy crap this team - I've never seen so many injuries over the last handful of years. Mind boggling. TOTALLY sucks.
Fudd done for the year of course. As is UConn’s 6’5” center. And now tonight Ducharme is out.
On top of that, Paige just crashed hard to the floor, came up limping, and has just been taken out.
On top of that, Paige just crashed hard to the floor, came up limping, and has just been taken out.
Man, really nothing in here about the Angel Reese stuff?
Angel Reese, Kateri Poole not with LSU at Cayman Islands Classic
Angel Reese, Kateri Poole not with LSU at Cayman Islands Classic
I've just been assuming it's some team disciplinary thing, since nobody is saying anything about it, and all Mulkey has said is that it's not an academic matter. So I really don't have a lot of time for the big drama and speculation. Reese has a big mouth, I can imagine all sorts of possibilities for how things went down, but in the end it's all projection and we have no facts. Those who say, don't know; those who know, don't say.
Call me when we're told why she was suspended or when she will be welcomed back, and we can at least talk about if the punishment fit the crime. Until then, this "I'm not talking about it!" routine feels like a look-at-me move by Mulkey, and I won't give her the satisfaction of wasting my time with it.
It's jarring watching UConn women these days. Yesterday - on top of all their other injuries - they had to sit All-American Aaliyah Edwards for much of the game (she only played 18 minutes and missed the entire fourth quarter of a close game) because she got elbowed in the head. Obviously concerns about a concussion. And what that showed was that their other two healthy bigs - DeBerry and Brady - are not remotely ready for prime time. Everything for UConn was a struggle. Bueckers, who herself was out for a large amount of time in this game due to foul trouble, came up huge with big shot after big shot, and Aubrey Griffin was terrific, but man, this is NOT your father's UConn team, if you know what I mean. In years past they beat a team like Kansas by 30 and do not lose to UCLA. But this is tough. Seeing them try to play these games with Edwards, Fudd, Ducharme, Patterson, and El Alfy (6'5" center who would have started this year) all out because of injury is very difficult. The last few years have just been absolutely brutal for this team. That group of five right there that I just listed would be a starting unit for a top 20 women's college basketball team all by themselves. And they're all out with injuries right now. And Paige is very banged up at this point too.
It's unbelievable.
It's unbelievable.
UConn has four players out for the season. All really good players.
But this week they handled two top 20 programs in pretty solid fashion. They’re starting to hum and now hit the conference schedule.
But this week they handled two top 20 programs in pretty solid fashion. They’re starting to hum and now hit the conference schedule.
That was to cap off a 40-point night. She also (violently) blocked an MSU layup in last minute of game.She's pretty good.
She's going to make a WNBA team very, very happy. She's a better version of Ionescu, who is also really good.
Omg now for UConn Aubrey Griffin goes down with what looks like a serious knee injury. Totally non contact and all she did was jump like normal. Wasn’t even turning or twisting. Just jumping. It’s been an absolute epidemic for this team the last few years.
There has to be a thorough look at UConn's strength and conditioning with this program. It's one thing for it to happen a couple of times but this is insane. Something is majorly wrong with what they're doing.
There has to be a thorough look at UConn's strength and conditioning with this program. It's one thing for it to happen a couple of times but this is insane. Something is majorly wrong with what they're doing.
It is a terrible epidemic. They should just issue two knee braces to every player once they enter high school.
The crazy thing is that UCONN has a cutting-edge, rockstar sports performance staff led by Andrea Hudy.
Her cutting edge stuff isn’t working. More injuries the past few years than in the previous twenty combined.
Jumping to "it isn't working" right away seems unfair. There's a world where this is a SSS thing. There's another team out there with 0 injuries. It doesn't mean their staff is better.
I don’t know enough about medicine and sports performance to say with any authority but I’ve been around the D1 sports world for a very long time. What’s happening there is either the freakiest of freak things or they’re not doing something right. The past three years have seen a rash of injuries to one singular program like I’ve never seen in my entire life connected to D1 athletics.
It looks like the good version of Cotie McMahon has shown up today.... raising my hopes for a good game between the Buckeyes and Hawkeyes today.
Iowa up 45-43 at the half. Clark with 20 points while the refs allow her to do whatever she likes. Jacy Sheldon with a slow start, but then kept Iowa from establishing a comfortable lead before halftime. Ohio State has hardly used their full court press today after Maryland shrugged it off on Wednesday.
...and the refs have taken Ohio State out of the game. Half the Buckeyes lineup is in foul trouble while Clark has gotten away with 3 blatant fouls.
Screw the officiating... Celeste Taylor gives Ohio State the lead with 16 seconds left. She's pretty much been invisible today because of early foul trouble.
OT... the Buckeyes got back into it by ignoring the foul trouble and playing aggressively, but they aren't in good shape to survive this.
I was wrong again. Clark only hits one shot in OT and Ohio State runs away with it.
I don't understand how Coty McMahon disappears in so many games when she's shown over and over again that she can dominate against top competition. This should be a top 5 team. It's seemed like a disappointing season until today, but they only have one "WTF loss" this season to Michigan. Their other 2 losses were a streaky season opener against #6 Southern Cal and a loss to #5 UCLA where they just ran out of time before they could complete a 20-point comeback. They have a deep cast of contributors, but they need McMahon to finish at the rim on a regular basis.
I don't understand how Coty McMahon disappears in so many games when she's shown over and over again that she can dominate against top competition. This should be a top 5 team. It's seemed like a disappointing season until today, but they only have one "WTF loss" this season to Michigan. Their other 2 losses were a streaky season opener against #6 Southern Cal and a loss to #5 UCLA where they just ran out of time before they could complete a 20-point comeback. They have a deep cast of contributors, but they need McMahon to finish at the rim on a regular basis.
I read the tweet before really looking at it. While court storming are mostly fun they can to accidents like this. They ran into each other but they shouldn't be on the court until players have left the court