Game Thread: #23/23 Lady Vols versus #3/5 UCONN

KK played too many minutes. Period. Put Lou out there and go small. Put Harris out there but KK ain’t it. At all. She did nothing tonight that brought me any confidence. The game tonight imo was lost on turnovers and interior play. Two of which I felt would be our Achilles. Key is good but needs to build muscle and add post moves to her game, she’s a freshman. She’s already good defensively and has a bit of an offensive game already. Horston, does not make good decisions. She’ll be great in the W but she’s going to have to mature with the ball a bit to be as great as she’s going to be. Davis played well, Brown played well, Massengill played well, Burrell played well. The two we missed in order to win this game were Horston and Key. Those two maturing the rest of this season will be the key to this team’s success. Tamari is the only true post presence we have and Horston is a guard with great skill and poor decision making.
Agree with everything you said except Rae more often out of control and got some lucky ones to fall tonight. She has tons of potential if she could just take that high gear she has. I'm done with KK.
 
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That’s why I don’t like when posters say they don’t care how they played a win is a win. Those same mistakes have been coming back and biting us in the ass over and over again.
 
I'm like all of you guys, upset!....

I really wanted to win this game, but our endless number of turnovers has worn most of us out...I don't know how many times I yelled at the TV "take the shot, don't pass it into trouble, etc.... etc....etc!"

What a pisser!
 
Georgia over number 21 Arkansas on their home floor is a shocker. I was not that impressed with Georgia when we beat them. Texas A&M comes back and beats Bama 79 to 74 another game I thought would go the other way with Carter out. Another game Miss St 31 Vandy 30 at the half is sort of closer than expected as well. If we could learn how to pass the ball and play against pressure without throwing the ball away we have a great shot at a very high finish in the SEC.
 
Georgia over number 21 Arkansas on their home floor is a shocker. I was not that impressed with Georgia when we beat them. Texas A&M comes back and beats Bama 79 to 74 another game I thought would go the other way with Carter out. Another game Miss St 31 Vandy 30 at the half is sort of closer than expected as well. If we could learn how to pass the ball and play against pressure without throwing the ball away we have a great shot at a very high finish in the SEC.

Bama had a tough week. They are having a similar stretch to us last season. Lots of close losses. In the game and leading most of the way tonight but just fell short.
 
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Bama had a tough week. They are having a similar stretch to us last season. Lots of close losses. In the game and leading most of the way tonight but just fell short.
I don't mind them losing almost everytime they play but was hoping they might win tonight while Carter is out to get another loss on A&M.
 
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I knew this crap would happen. Tennessee struggles to beat Tennessee State early in the season, and Alabama a few days ago, yet the majority of posts tonight are from people who appear to be shocked and devastated that Tennessee didn’t handle one of the best teams in the country on a court they’ve lost about 2 games on in 15 years. If people are shocked and devastated, they may actually be stupid.
Hmm, I'm not feeling as much stupid shock and devastation as I am disappointment and dismay that a really promising first half effort dissolved into the usual toxic brew of poor decision making and wasted possesions.

Of course we've seen that before. Way too much. Call me stupid, and I think you just did, but I do have hope it can get better.

Anyone hear KJH postgame comments? I got some questions for her.
 
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I think LSU will apply the pressure they have the guards that can do it. How we take care of the ball will decide that game. We'll lose at home with 27 turnovers.
 
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Some positives (first half):

We weren't intimidated by the UCONN name nor the big hostile crowd nor the travel. Played loose, took good shots, applied good defensive pressure, got back in transition in fitst half.

As far as VN is concerned, got to identify the fair weather fans.

Negatives:

Weaknesses really magnified in 2nd half. Size advantage negated by lack of speed and quickness. Poor fundamentals in boxing out, setting and using screens, lack of ball movement, securing rebounds, meeting the pass, and particularly in making the safe, efficient pass. Didn't get back in transition.

Subbing exposed lack of bench depth badly. It appears that we need to go with best six players as long as possible against best opponents and just hope they can stay on the floor.
 
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I don't mind them losing almost everytime they play but was hoping they might win tonight while Carter is out to get another loss on A&M.

I was too, would have put us in an even better position with Arkansas going down tonight. Putting us another game ahead.

Watching now and so far they look more like Gary Blair teams usually look. A lot more balanced and under control.
 
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Subbing exposed lack of bench depth badly. It appears that we need to go with best six players as long as possible against best opponents and just hope they can stay on the floor.

I agree with this, though I thought first half subbing mostly worked while UConn seemed rattled. I thought it was a good move by Kellie to pull certain players after they picked up their first foul and let them rest while we maintained the lead. Agree though, when we needed a comeback, it made no sense to have our bench posts in the game.
 
Hmm, I'm not feeling as much stupid shock and devastation as I am disappointment and dismay that a really promising first half effort dissolved into the usual toxic brew of poor decision making and wasted possesions.

Of course we've seen that before. Way too much. Call me stupid, and I think you just did, but I do have hope it can get better.

Anyone hear KJH postgame comments? I got some questions for her.

It appeared to me to be a case of delayed nerves. They came out loose and confident, but in the second half I could see their body language quickly chang from confident/loose/“the pressure is all on them” to tentative/unconfident/OMG. I don’t know what was said in the locker room at halftime by either coach, but it as clear that Tennessee came out worried and CT came out confident.

The Tennessee staff and players will grow from this. I have no doubt about tht.
 
I understand the frustration with the turnovers. But the truth of the matter is your only quality guard is Zaay. If you had Z available, she would cut your turnovers in half right away.

The one thing I didn't get about the way you played tonight is the continual emphasis on scoring in transition without guards. I always thought that when you lack ball handlers, slow the game down. Don't let players get in the habit of rushing to make a play. When a shot goes up 4 players have to crash the boards hard. You guys are so big, play to your strength. Tonight you played into UConn's hands. You were kind of faked into it by some early success running,


With your height advantage, I expected to see more high low and interior picks set. UConn was so small for most of the game. 3 players under 6', and 2 at 6'1" and you got out rebounded 47-45. Perhaps you have an explanation for that but I don't. The fourth Quarter was just brutal 18 total points.

Well your girls played hard and they are becoming a good team. 15 point spread is about what I expected, but I expected 75-60 not this.
 
Third quarter was 21 to 7 and so the margin of the game. Even with 27 turnovers three quarters we could play with them one bad quarter was our downfall.
 
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I knew this crap would happen. Tennessee struggles to beat Tennessee State early in the season, and Alabama a few days ago, yet the majority of posts tonight are from people who appear to be shocked and devastated that Tennessee didn’t handle one of the best teams in the country on a court they’ve lost about 2 games on in 15 years. If people are shocked and devastated, they may actually be stupid.

I was stunned we were leading at halftime, TBH.
 
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Nope. She got canned at NC State....TRUE
  • Associated Press
RALEIGH, N.C. -- North Carolina State has fired women's basketball coach Kellie Harper after four seasons.
The school said Tuesday the 35-year-old coach wouldn't return after missing the NCAA tournament for the third straight year. Harper, a former player under Tennessee's Pat Summitt, was the successor to late Hall of Famer Kay Yow, who died in 2009 after a long fight with cancer.

Harper's first team went 20-14, made a surprise run to the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament final and reached the NCAAs in 2010. But that season ended up being the high point.
The Wolfpack never reached 20 wins again, going just 50-50 with a 16-32 mark in ACC play and two trips to the WNIT in the past three seasons.
 
Dude,where does that say her players were undisciplined??? We all know her history!! Your comment still remains false!
 
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Subbing exposed lack of bench depth badly.

I feel like this one of those things that a lot of people who get angry overlook. Harper has nowhere to go. There's no one who can help Tennessee hide their problems, and who they have is who they have. Whatever mistakes they make, she doesn't have someone equal or close to sub in and maintain the team's performance. Bench this person, or get angry at that person, or whatever, but the reality is that Tennessee is probably 4 players short of a real lineup and rotation right now. It really sucks. It's probably the most alarming concern when it comes to recruiting. Whiffing in year one in some ways, hey, you have to get your bearing, it's understandable. But if Tennessee whiffs this season and maybe even the next, the road back will be impossibly hard.
 
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post game presser

Women's Basketball | Coach Harper Presser | UConn

Hmm, I'm not feeling as much stupid shock and devastation as I am disappointment and dismay that a really promising first half effort dissolved into the usual toxic brew of poor decision making and wasted possesions.

Of course we've seen that before. Way too much. Call me stupid, and I think you just did, but I do have hope it can get better.

Anyone hear KJH postgame comments? I got some questions for her.
 
With your height advantage, I expected to see more high low and interior picks set. UConn was so small for most of the game. 3 players under 6', and 2 at 6'1" and you got out rebounded 47-45. Perhaps you have an explanation for that but I don't. The fourth Quarter was just brutal 18 total points.

I'm baffled by this, too. When ONO was in the game, there was a near 100% chance she was holding Key or whoever she was closest to and keeping them from grabbing the board. But that doesn't explain the 3rd quarter. The LVs just seemed nervous and didn't go aggressively after boards like we're used to this season -- too much standing and waiting for the board to come to them.
 
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