huskerchode

I'm surprised this didn't happen sooner. I recall several years ago, there were a number of class A schools that needed to have their players play on three different levels of teams during the week just so they had enough for games. It wasn't unheard of for a girl to play on the freshman, reserve, and JV teams (or reserve, JV, and varsity). At the time, there was a limit on the number of quarters they could play (I don't recall what it was), so it took a lot of planning on the coaches' parts to make sure they weren't violating any of those rules. But why was interest in playing basketball so low in these larger schools? I think it's a combination of a lot of things, not the least of which is VB is much more enticing to many of the girls. There were also some questionable demands by many of the HS basketball coaches (possibly other sports as well although that wasn't our experience) where they indicated an athlete's playing time was directly related to how much off season 'volunteer' practices they showed up to. I'm talking off season (like summers and fall leading up to the season). I personally know of several solid basketball players that were given the message they wouldn't get much playing time because they had chosen to do a different club sport in the summer and only made it to half the 'volunteer' practices. I'm talking about kids that were very athletic who went on to play division 1 sports in something else. They would have loved to play basketball if the demands were more reasonable, and they could have contributed, but instead they quit and often played coed intramurals (and a few even continued to play club basketball when they could) rather than deal with power plays from their HS basketball coach. On the flipside, I know of several girls that gave up other sports to focus on basketball. Many went to all 'volunteer' practices, and eventually earned scholarships to play at different levels. However, many of them became bench riders or wound up quitting (burnout often cited as the reason, another was that they just weren't all that great to begin with and found out at the college level). At some point it needs to be recognized that either the talent/skill is there, or it isn't, and it doesn't matter that little Suzy gave up everything to go to all clinics and practices and was rewarded with increased playing time in HS. Kids need to be well-rounded. It's part of what distinguishes those that are skilled alone versus those that are skilled and athletic. Can she shoot the 3? Awesome! Can she run down the court without her feet being stuck in molasses and jump more than 2 inches off the ground? Because that stuff's important, too.

Sam Griesel.

Thought this was worthy of its own thread. Thank you Coach Yori. You are one of the best. https://gocreighton.com/news/2024/6/7/womens-basketball-connie-yori-announces-retirement.aspx

Has anyone seen class of 2026 Ava Markowski play (Pius X, Alexis' sister)? 5'11" guard.

I'm very concerned, but I've been very concerned for quite some time. We had some good games later in the season, but still suffered from inconsistencies. I hoped we would pick up some solid players from the portal, but so far, we only know of one. Now we find out we lost a top recruit (I did not read the article since it's paywall, so I don't know if there was a reason included or not), but then again, I never feel it's a done deal until the player is signed and on campus. We have three freshmen coming in, but one is injured and may not play and is also short, so not sure how much of an impact she will make anyway. The other two are solid and will need to adapt quickly, especially since our conference is growing and getting even tougher. Maybe the team will surprise me this next year, I sincerely hope they do, but I honestly feel like we may be looking at finishing in the bottom half.

Saw we lost Mathurin.

Article on Koupal. https://605sports.com/Wagner's-Ashlyn-Koupal,-a-rising-college-basketball-prospect,-soars-to-another-state-high-jump-title-?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR19L6iyA1ftkt-zFRMwdcgGN5Q5s3CSGYvwE1KHDU912zG1wlzDgJdvXXk_aem_AQlHW5IIW-Ix2w8pYXIFgn84_1JWCEUQJJ-eqrWAZ8enM1c-fansXhtKPv7yI4U3ZN_989No4MeqnvcKgSx3ns4m

She has to get better control of her emotions as well. I believe Indiana was ahead when she fouled the Connecticut player and then picked up the T. That was seriously costly.

Her main weakness is really glaring right now - and that's defense. It's pretty ugly, and it almost looks like she's tiring herself out trying to play D. But, honestly, her defense is worse than what I thought it would be.

I only watched about the first 4 minutes. Does anybody on the Indiana team know how to play D?

I think she had 4 fouls as well, 2 were early. Didn’t watch so not sure if they were push-offs or something else.

She probably had a plane to catch...

Here's another portal list, broken down differently from the previous one I posted: Women’s Basketball Transfers: D-I, 2023-24 - WBB Blog I notice the big from Iowa State (previously Sac State where she was a solid player) hasn't committed anywhere yet. 6-5 is hard to argue with. Grad transfer.

Got some tough tough road games. https://huskers.com/news/2024/05/7/big-ten-announces-conference-home-away-plays-for-womens-basketball

Here you go! We are a way-too-early 5 seed. Iowa an 8. UConn a 1, Creighton a 5. NCAA Women's Bracketology: 2025 women's college basketball projections (espn.com)

I was just reading that Idaho had not finalized her contract, so USD does not have to do a buyout. Oops. Also, the Bridgeport player that just transferred from Colorado may very well switch to USD now. Apparently Idaho was doing a pretty good job in the portal under Eighmey.

von Oelhoffen commits to USC. According to ESPN, this gives the Trojans the #1 recruiting class. https://www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/story/_/id/40050817/ex-oregon-state-star-guard-talia-von-oelhoffen-commits-usc

Just read today Thiesse signed a contract extension so it looks like she’s staying put.

Purdue’s Mary Ashley Stevenson is in portal. https://www.jconline.com/story/sports/college/purdue/womens-basketball/2024/04/25/purdue-womens-forward-mary-ashley-stevenson-enters-transfer-portal/73456539007/

Rumor has it AW’s sister might be the new HC at USouthDakota.

Believe I heard she’s headed to Texas.

I wonder if we're pursuing Isnelle Natabou out of Iowa State. Played at Iowa Western for a year, then transferred to Sacramento State (ranked 5th in NCAA in FG %, 11th in off rebounds per game, 28th total rebounds, 35th FG made, and 39th rebounds per game). She's a junior from Czech Republic and she's 6'5".

No longer part of a power conference. Want to play on a bigger stage. Also possible the coach is thinking the same thing, although I haven't heard he's moving on yet.

Heard she has a 'do not contact' tag in the portal, and a rumor that she's leaning toward Indiana. No idea if the latter is true.

UConn doing a great job making her uncomfortable and forcing her into stupid mistakes and bad shots. That being said, Iowa only down by 6. If any of CC's teammates decide to show up, they can still win.