Lexie Brown Will Transfer From Maryland

#51
#51
So I have a feeling Davis and Brown will both head to USC....if that's the case it makes the SEC super top heavy with us and them I think one of us takes down CONN in the next two years. This could be like the years where LSU CONN TENN UGA NC Stan Louisville Oklahoma were all strong contenders during the Parker years
 
#52
#52
I'd say it makes sc better than us. Why would we put a positive spin on a very good player going to our biggest conference rival---and lending more legitimacy to staley's program?
 
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#54
#54
armchair said:
I'd say it makes sc better than us.
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Honestly, I'd like to see the logic in statements like this. SC barely beat us in Columbia when we had zero post players, and they struggled for 2/3 of a game with us in the SECT with the same. And let's not forget, we tied for the SEC championship this last season with them. And that's with the SEC POY and AA in Tiffany Mitchell and us without any kind of post presence and without Diamond DeShields.

Kaela Davis will never play with the current roster at SC and will never play with their best player: Tiffany Mitchell. She will play one year with Coates and two with Wilson. In no way, shape or form is losing Mitchell and gaining Davis going to make them a better team.

Now if Lexie goes there, yeah. Because they would actually have a good PG. But I don't think Lexie will go to SC.
 
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#55
#55
armchair said:
I'd say it makes sc better than us. Why would we put a positive spin on a very good player going to our biggest conference rival---and lending more legitimacy to staley's program?
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I welcome it because as a program we've been unable to make adjustments since early 2000s to keep up with UConn but we've skirted along actually by racking up conference titles (2007-2008 are clearly exceptions).

Dawn Staley is a champion and come hell or high water she believes she's gonna get her program to the top. If we want to remain the standard bearer of this conference she will force us to either step up or be relegated to second.
 
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#56
#56
armchair said:
I'd say it makes sc better than us. Why would we put a positive spin on a very good player going to our biggest conference rival---and lending more legitimacy to staley's program?
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Why wouldn't you want a strong SEC? I think it's a great for recruitment. All the top talent going to the SEC is a great thing. If all the big recruits are coming this way, well they all can't go to just one school. Sometimes you have to stand back and look at the big picture.
This just makes the rivalry even more exiting now!!!
 
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#57
#57
SC is only better than us if we can't get quality post players in there in 2016. If we keep trying to play them with tweeners like Nared and Jones they will certainly be better. I think were in good shape against them next season with Russel and Graves barring injuries. I think those two can at least match Coates and Wilson. This is a big year for Holly in recruiting we'll see if she is up to getting Tennessee some post players like we have always had in the past.
 
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#58
#58
I agree. We will be fine if we win the recruiting battle with quality post players. It is a must.
 
#59
#59
Volfan2012 said:
SC is only better than us if we can't get quality post players in there in 2016. If we keep trying to play them with tweeners like Nared and Jones they will certainly be better. I think were in good shape against them next season with Russel and Graves barring injuries. I think those two can at least match Coates and Wilson. This is a big year for Holly in recruiting we'll see if she is up to getting Tennessee some post players like we have always had in the past.
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I thank Nared and Jones are very good players, and happy to have them as Lady Vols.:clapping:
 
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#60
#60
Volfan2012 said:
SC is only better than us if we can't get quality post players in there in 2016. If we keep trying to play them with tweeners like Nared and Jones they will certainly be better. I think were in good shape against them next season with Russel and Graves barring injuries. I think those two can at least match Coates and Wilson. This is a big year for Holly in recruiting we'll see if she is up to getting Tennessee some post players like we have always had in the past.
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But will it be Russell and Graves versus Coates, Wilson, Imovbioh, and White? Don't forget that Imovbioh is 6-2 and predominantly played center for UVA, and was a dbl-digit scorer her career there and led the ACC in rebounding last season. The ACC is pretty tough too, and Sarah will know how to play in the post against quality post players.

And Jatari is a quality post who like Russell was hampered with injury and illness last season, not to mention falling behind a lot of talent and experience ahead of her. If she is healthy next season she could become a consistent force inside for the Gamecocks.

IMO, Dawn Staley and her staff need to have big recruiting yields for the 2016 and 2018 cycles, respectively if they wish for USC to remain as a major contender for titles, and not just be a one-class flash in the pan. Only Coates and reserve Tiffany Davis leave after 2016-2017 so the 2017 cycle won't be that big a deal, but USC loses 5 players each after the 2016 and 2018 seasons....
 
#64
#64
LurkerExposed said:
But will it be Russell and Graves versus Coates, Wilson, Imovbioh, and White? Don't forget that Imovbioh is 6-2 and predominantly played center for UVA, and was a dbl-digit scorer her career there and led the ACC in rebounding last season. The ACC is pretty tough too, and Sarah will know how to play in the post against quality post players.

And Jatari is a quality post who like Russell was hampered with injury and illness last season, not to mention falling behind a lot of talent and experience ahead of her. If she is healthy next season she could become a consistent force inside for the Gamecocks.

IMO, Dawn Staley and her staff need to have big recruiting yields for the 2016 and 2018 cycles, respectively if they wish for USC to remain as a major contender for titles, and not just be a one-class flash in the pan. Only Coates and reserve Tiffany Davis leave after 2016-2017 so the 2017 cycle won't be that big a deal, but USC loses 5 players each after the 2016 and 2018 seasons....
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Were definitely hurting in the post position versus them next season. We'll have to fill in with Moore, Johnson, and Nared. This is really not ideal since they will have trouble guarding players of this size. This is the biggest weakness of the Tennessee team next season. We'll have over twenty minutes a game when we'll be playing small against teams like SC.
 
#65
#65
Holly is a little slow when it comes to transfers. SC and Kentucky are usually on them before it is even announced. Brown would be a good addition to our perimeter even though we do not lose any players back there after next season.
 
#66
#66
Despite me reading elsewhere that the staff isn't pursuing Lexie, I happen to disagree, and I do believe they are pursuing her, although I'm not sure how hard. I doubt the staff is losing sleep over any of it, as we certainly need posts more than we need guards. But when you're a good player and a stand-up person and you don't have a travelling circus for a family (i.e. Diamond and Lexie), you'll get looks from our staff. Not to mention I would have trouble believing that the staff doesn't recognize the relationship between Te'a, Diamond and Lexie.

With all that being said, I think Lexie will wind up at Georgia. It's not as obvious with her as it was with Kaela, though, as she hasn't burned any bridges with any schools during the high school recruiting process and she also hasn't left any clues as to where she will go other than saying she wants to be closer to home.
 
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#68
#68
The coaches erred rather badly by not recruiting a post this past year. I don't know why. They should have gotten one--even it was someone who was not considered a top prospect. Was there not a 3-star post somewhere in America whom we could have gotten? We'll have decent size with Graves and Jones and Nared and Moore--but Moore is the thinnest center in America, and we can only hope that Jones stays healthy next year. Jones should be backing up Graves, IMO--that would be her best position and keep her closer to the basket, where she can help with rebounding and make fewer mistakes with the basketball.
 
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#69
#69
^ Do you mean LANDING a post? We definitely recruited three (two HS, one JUCO).

This year's incoming freshman class was pretty much barren of posts. If you go by Hoopgurlz rankings (which, as a side note, are pretty much garbage these days), there were only 5 posts in the top 50.
 
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#70
#70
SC was beating us last season because of post play. Banging the offensive boards is something we used to do. This coming season we can match them with the first team and that is it. When we play them our top two will have to stay out of foul trouble. Maybe Dunbar can out on some muscle for post play. I think if she could do that it would be her best way to get on the floor for more that five minutes after the game is decided.
 
#71
#71
Volfan2012 said:
SC was beating us last season because of post play. Banging the offensive boards is something we used to do. This coming season we can match them with the first team and that is it. When we play them our top two will have to stay out of foul trouble. Maybe Dunbar can out on some muscle for post play. I think if she could do that it would be her best way to get on the floor for more that five minutes after the game is decided.
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Tennessee has Mercedes Russell 6-6, Nia Moore 6-3, Jasmine Jones 6-2, Bashaara Graves 6-2, Jaime Nared 6-2, and Kortney Dunbar 6-2. That is a very nice line up in the post.
 
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#72
#72
Ladyvol777 said:
Tennessee has Mercedes Russell 6-6, Nia Moore 6-3, Jasmine Jones 6-2, Bashaara Graves 6-2, Jaime Nared 6-2, and Kortney Dunbar 6-2. That is a very nice line up in the post.
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We'll have to use them in the post but three of them are not post players and want be effective guarding the SC big girls. They dominated us on the boards in two game last year when we tried. Russell will make a huge difference hopefully she avoids injury next season.
 
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#73
#73
Welch hurt us in both south carolina games last year with her offensive rebounding. Reynolds did a terrible job of blocking her out in the first loss, but she did the same thing in the second loss. She was--i hope she graduated!--a physical player, only 6' as I recall but a tenacious rebounder.
 
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#74
#74
Reynolds does a terrible job blocking out period. She is what you would call a "ball-watcher" and it absolutely drives me insane.
 
#75
#75
Ladyvol777 said:
Tennessee has Mercedes Russell 6-6, Nia Moore 6-3, Jasmine Jones 6-2, Bashaara Graves 6-2, Jaime Nared 6-2, and Kortney Dunbar 6-2. That is a very nice line up in the post.
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No, it really isn't. Moore, Dunbar and Nared aren't physical at all which makes them poor rebounders and defenders. Jones never plays down low although most of us speculate that would be a better position for her.

That leaves you with Graves, who also has some real physical limitations, and Russell. We desperately needed a post and didn't get one. And it will be worse next year because we will be forced to break in several post players all at once.

We will have to scheme around this weakness and it will likely bite us hard against some of the better teams or against teams with a physical and talented post game. We saw how well small ball worked last year when Harrison went down. Watch for teams to try to get Russell in foul trouble and then take it to our posts. It will be the same dynamic we saw at work this past year.
 
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