Non-Lady Vol Basketball News 2024-25

[creekdipper]

Dolson and Charles were no shrinking violets.

 

[Rooster1]

Ironically, Edwards was guilty of a moving screen on the play that Geno flipped out about and got a T. She shoved her butt into the next zip code.

Look, the Uconn ladies are excellent BB players, some of the most skilled in the game. But it’s not all sugar and spice when you play them, they get after you defensively. Muhl, Edwards, Griffin and even Lou mix it up with the best of them. It is ironic that Uconn coach was complaining about how physical Lou was being guarded, because on defense she was playing as physical as anyone and she could have been called for enough fouls to foul out twice, but she got away with most of it, like many players do every game. The Euro players are more sneaky in their fouls, not as blatant usually, but they get their licks in, Muhl especially.

 

[creekdipper]

I doubt it is a card. It is her lived experience.

Can you have an unlived experience?

 

[creekdipper]

We've been over this a hundred times, but Lobo was worse. Even with benefit of replay called out RJ as the agressor. Got quite a few retweets of the photos of all 3 intentional and dangerous fouls Edwards committed. But I'm sure both she and Geno are still convinced they were right.

The Ol' Philly Piledriver!

 

[Amb3096]

Look, the Uconn ladies are excellent BB players, some of the most skilled in the game. But it’s not all sugar and spice when you play them, they get after you defensively. Muhl, Edwards, Griffin and even Lou mix it up with the best of them. It is ironic that Uconn coach was complaining about how physical Lou was being guarded, because on defense she was playing as physical as anyone and she could have been called for enough fouls to foul out twice, but she got away with most of it, like many players do every game. The Euro players are more sneaky in their fouls, not as blatant usually, but they get their licks in, Muhl especially.

Nothing sneaky about Muhl's physicality. She looks like a damn velociraptor out there!

 

[djtee]

Nice! Abbey is on my fantasy team in a small league I’m a part of. I was thinking about going to see Columbia play Yale this weekend…

She can play on the power 5 level to

 

[Rooster1]

Nothing sneaky about Muhl's physicality. She looks like a damn velociraptor out there!

She is tough as nails, I love her game tbh. Fearless.

 

[Amb3096]

She is tough as nails, I love her game tbh. Fearless.

I do too. She's just what you want from a PG on offense and defense. She doesn't force her passes, she's smart about when she decides to shoot and she's aware of what's going on around her. On defense, she's got that bulldog mentality to really get on her opponent's nerves. I didn't think she'd be as much of an impact player, but especially with Paige out, she's the proverbial straw the stirs Huskies on both ends of the floor.

 

[djtee]

Dawn just said Fletcher will get the start again against Aub ? When Raven comes in it`s whole different ball game should be starting ?

 

[Rixxx]

I do too. She's just what you want from a PG on offense and defense. She doesn't force her passes, she's smart about when she decides to shoot and she's aware of what's going on around her. On defense, she's got that bulldog mentality to really get on her opponent's nerves. I didn't think she'd be as much of an impact player, but especially with Paige out, she's the proverbial straw the stirs Huskies on both ends of the floor.

If you don't pay attention to Nika she will either drop 10 assists or 10 points.

 

[LurkerExposed]

Observations:

In Dawn Staley's audiocast, she talked about two things specifically: Luigi's comments, and other perceptions of her team from other sources NOT named Luigi. The comments having to do with racial or sexist connotations were NOT directed towards Luigi, but at other "sources", but it involved her whole message that if her team was going to be disparaged by multiple sources, she was not going to stand for it. Seems some misinterpretation, and then poor judgements based off of those misinterpretations, have taken place in this thread.

South Carolina is currently 14th in the nation in Field Goal % (46.7%). Being in the top 15 nationally in converting shot attempts defies the many statements here that South Carolina is a poor shooting team. A "shot" is defined by a legal (per basketball rules) attempt to put the basketball through the rim of the goal by various methods: by the jump "shot", a set "shot", a lay-up, a hook "shot", or a dunk. All methods result in the same thing - two points scored, unless the attempt was taken outside of the designated three-point line, in which any successful "shot" attempts from there results in three points being scored. If ANY team in a league of 350 teams is able to successfully convert their "shot" attempts at a rate that only 13 other teams can do better, then by most estimates that conversion rate is an excellent rate, and NOT a poor rate. That represents to being in the top 0.04% of the league. It doesn't matter if that team misses the first 5-6 attempts, but rebounds every miss before finally converting - if the total conversion % from all those attempts is STILL in the top 15 overall, it is relatively speaking highly efficient shooting.

South Carolina tends to play MAN defense. That's a Dawn Staley signature for her defense. She has played zone from time to time, but FAR more man D than anything else. Man defense - for the unknowing here at LadyVol Land - involves defending PLAYERS, which often involves the defending player getting up close to the defended player. This creates increased opportunities to have body contact, and fouls.

South Carolina's OPPONENTS tend to play ZONE defense against them. Crowd into the paint and smother the interior players, giving more room to the perimeter players forcing them to take more shots from the outside. This is due to the great talent and depth of post players South Carolina has had for most of Staley's time at USC, as well as not-so-great scoring producers from the perimeter. Connecticut deployed zone defense mostly against South Carolina Sunday. Zone defense involves defending AREAS instead of players, which often involves giving opponents - especially perimeter players - more room and freedom to take shots. That's the purpose for zone defense. This creates decreased opportunities to have body contact, and fouls.

Sunday, CT fouled South Carolina 23 times, to the Gamecocks fouling the Huskies 21 times. The 21 fouls was STILL the most fouls in regulation that the Gamecocks have committed thus far, tying the mark they just got through committing versus Kentucky in their previous game. The Gamecocks' season high is 22 fouls committed versus Stanford, but 2 of those came in overtime. Those are the only 3 games that South Carolina has committed as many as 20 fouls.

South Carolina is actually 2nd in the SEC behind Mississippi State in fewest fouls per game, and was #1 until a couple of weeks ago or so. They do NOT commit a lot of fouls, despite having the top defense in WCBB, and earning that distinction by playing physical and aggressive man defense most of the time. This may be because Staley has maintained a hard rule for most of her coaching time that if a player picks up her 2nd foul in the 1st half, she sits down until the start of the 2nd half. Doesn't matter if it is Boston or Olivia Thompson. Doesn't matter if it happens with 2 minutes left to play in the 1st half, or if it was after 2 minutes have been played to start the game. They sit down.

In the NCAA Championship Game last season, South Carolina's defense held CT to just 49 pts for the game, despite only fouling the Huskies 11 times, and CT fouling the Gamecocks 21 times. In the past 5 games, USC is 4-1 versus CT, but CT has out-fouled USC 4 of those times: the lone time the Gamecocks fouled more was a win for the Gamecocks in last season's Battle 4 Atlantis tournament.

A lot of those extra fouls CT has committed in the recent games stem from them deliberately fouling the Gamecocks at the end of games where they are trying to stop the game clock, and force the Gamecocks to miss FT attempts, in order to climb back into games. But it is interesting and even funny, that as Luigi whines about the Gamecocks (and other opponents) being rough and physical with his team - and the implication is there that those opponents do this deliberately - that it has been THE HUSKIES who have more often in recent games, gone out onto the court with the deliberate orders from their coaches to FOUL THE GAMECOCKS at the end of games.

 

[Rooster1]

I’ll say this and then not comment any further on the Uconn Coach comments. He said his player(s) were being physically muscled/fouled and the refs were letting it happen. He said this after another loss to SC, which like his team plays a physical style of defense. His teams are able to physically overwhelm their conference counterparts in conference play, and have done so for years, wasn’t last season the first time Conn lost a conference game in years?

In all those years, his teams were usually more physical and yes more skilled than their conference opponents. But after all those countless conference wins over the years, and against some much weaker teams, I don’t ever recall him at a post game presser saying “ I wish we had not been so physical with that team” after years of 40-60 point blow outs. You think he worried if Seton Hall’s players were sore after playing his team?

He is the goat, but he is slipping with his antics (water bottle anyone?) and whining……it’s below him. Take the L and shut up until you get another chance to win on the court. In years past his teams would either go undefeated or lose 1-2 games a year at most. He was good about not whining so much back then. Now that he hasn’t seen a NC in something like 6 years and his teams have experienced more losses to the much improved field of teams, he has started whining and bitching.

He needs to just keep adjusting to the new landscape and stop tarnishing his reputation imo. I don’t think his run of excellence is anywhere close to being over, but he can forget about dominating the entire field anymore, those days are gone.

 

[lvocd]

She is tough as nails, I love her game tbh. Fearless.

She's a former professional player.

 

[Rooster1]

She's a former professional player.

I did not know that. Pro as in paid to play?

 

[Amb3096]

She's a former professional player.

Most of the Europeans are. I think Marta was too? But there's a world of difference in being a professional player for Croatia/Spain national teams vs. being on the USA team.

 

[Rooster1]

Most of the Europeans are. I think Marta was too? But there's a world of difference in being a professional player for Croatia/Spain national teams vs. being on the USA team.

Yeah, I know many play for their national teams, which must include some stipend money, but I was asking if she played in a pro league? That would be a disqualifier right? I know on the SC roster, Cardoso plays for team Brazil and Amihere plays for team Canada, is that considered a pro? Otherwise, yeah, Muhl is a pro in every sense of the word, she will be real good in the WNBA.You can’t teach the grit and all out effort that young lady plays with. I want one on my team!

 

[Amb3096]

Yeah, I know many play for their national teams, which must include some stipend money, but I was asking if she played in a pro league? That would be a disqualifier right? I know on the SC roster, Cardoso plays for team Brazil and Amihere plays for team Canada, is that considered a pro? Otherwise, yeah, Muhl is a pro in every sense of the word, she will be real good in the WNBA.You can’t teach the grit and all out effort that young lady is blessed with.

I don't know if there are different rules for international players? Looks like Dorka Juhasz also played professionally in Hungary before she started college.

 

[Rooster1]

GA will get his chance next year with a lineup of Muhl, Paige, Azzi, Ducharme, Edwards and likely Griffin (sp?) plus all the other 5 star recruits. That will be quite the offensive show if they are all healthy.

 

[Amb3096]

GA will get his chance next year with a lineup of Muhl, Paige, Azzi, Ducharme, Edwards and likely Griffin (sp?) plus all the other 5 star recruits. That will be quite the offensive show if they are all healthy.

They will be scary good. I'm hoping their lack of a true inside presence and the redundancy of shooters will prevent them from being a steamroller.

 

[lvocd]

It's not illegal for foreign players to have been paid professionals before coming to the U.S. to play in college.

I think Muhl played three years of pro ball, and some others on CT's squad, I think, have either played professionally and/or for their senior national teams in the Olympics. While those leagues aren't the WNBA, they're still gaining valuable experience playing in them and, obviously, have access to agents that hook them up with coaches in the U.S.

 

[J.P.]

Muhl played for a professional team, but obviously retained amateur status. I believe that players can be reimbursed for certain expenses by their clubs and remain amateurs, as long as they're not paid a salary.
Now, in the NIL era, probably have to go to Division 2 to get real amateurs.

 

[glv98]

Now this I can get behind. Much better said than the initial reaction, IMO. But I'm sure she was pissed at GA, rightly so.

Actually, Dawn is one of the last adherants to the Pat Philosophy: D and boards, points off putbacks and turnovers, any other offense a bonus but not a must. Still working after all these years with the right personnel.

Not sure what Pat would have thought about the current level of physicality. The Corn Fed Chicks were physical for sure, but I don't remember even 15 yrs ago being like it is today.

 

[Rooster1]

Great post game interviews after SC Uconn game…coaches and players….watch until the end…really interesting stuff here…thx and shout out to that Husky guy with the credentials for those interviews..

 

[LurkerExposed]

Yeah, I know many play for their national teams, which must include some stipend money, but I was asking if she played in a pro league? That would be a disqualifier right? I know on the SC roster, Cardoso plays for team Brazil and Amihere plays for team Canada, is that considered a pro? Otherwise, yeah, Muhl is a pro in every sense of the word, she will be real good in the WNBA.You can’t teach the grit and all out effort that young lady plays with. I want one on my team!

Playing for your national teams is a bit different than playing for privately owned professional franchises. Used to be all national team players men's and women's were considered amateurs who played for free - their teams received donations and some money from governments (and some country's teams more government $$ than that), as well as teams can establish corporate sponsorship that pays a huge sum, but the players were only given stipends for food, room and board was mostly paid for, transportation to venues and training were all free for them too, paid for by the Olympic committees. Then the Dream Team happened, and now there are professionals playing on the teams. So don't know if they get paid now. I think USA Basketball pays each athlete a per diem, and I do know that they get bonuses depending on what medals they win, but even that I don't know if amateur athletes (collegiate) are included in that. Actual players that were already professionals (NBA, WNBA) could establish their own personal endorsements. Of course, with today's NIL, everything's changed........

 

[Rooster1]

Now this I can get behind. Much better said than the initial reaction, IMO. But I'm sure she was pissed at GA, rightly so.

Actually, Dawn is one of the last adherants to the Pat Philosophy: D and boards, points off putbacks and turnovers, any other offense a bonus but not a must. Still working after all these years with the right personnel.

Not sure what Pat would have thought about the current level of physicality. The Corn Fed Chicks were physical for sure, but I don't remember even 15 yrs ago being like it is today.

Dawn is way more classy than given credit for. The camera loves to show her scowling face on the bench, like she is pissed or something all the time. She saves that look for her team and players because she wants better play from them always. She never harasses refs in game, and she never disparages an opponent after a loss.

She may rub some of you wrong because she is so dedicated to improving the lives of all minority women and players, which is her mission, but in the game of BB she is and always has been a class act from college through the WNBA and the Team USA Olympic teams. She does not relent in her mission to make life better for underprivileged people, and coming from her background it is understandable. She gets a bad rap from some in my opinion. The woman is doing what she believes is right and being respectful at the same time.

Most of us fans are white guys tbh, it’s almost impossible to relate completely to a minority woman who has had a much diff background than we have, but I try to understand because I know what a good person she is and I want to relate better to the issues she feels are important to her and minorities in this country. I’m getting better at it. I hope all College WBB fans realize how much she means to the minorities who have struggled before and after her, do not hate on her for taking up that honorable mantle. You would have done the same in her shoes if you were as passionate about lifting up those behind you.