huskerchode

I am really enjoying watching these girls play. Anybody can score. If the shot clock is counting down, it isn't just up to Theriot to bail us out. I hope the outside shooting continues along as we have seen in the first few games, and that our 3 point shot gets better. These girls really seem to get along well and they share the ball well. Just great chemistry, and it's fun to see Yori so excited. I am also happy to see that Kalenta is getting some minutes, and that Emily Wood has knocked down some 3s. Hopefully Esther will pick up some points in the next game.

The main thing with UConn is that they have a tremendous ability to completely take you out of your game. And then players start doing things that are uncharacteristic of them, like taking iffy shots, fouling a lot, turning the ball over because they are thinking too much, etc. They made OSU look like a high school team in the little bit that I watched, and I have seen them do that to many other teams in the past. OSU is a very good team, but if you just watched them for the first time playing UConn the other night, you would never have guessed that. I think the UConn game is a tough game to prepare your players mentally. If you go into it with the mindset that UConn is going to win, then it will be a self-fulfilling prophecy. I suppose you break it down into possessions rather than the entire picture and pick your battles.

I think Cal could be a tough game.

I saw very little of the OSU-UConn game. It looked like OSU was completely shell-shocked. There were a couple of times where they had 4 girls under the basket to rebound, and a lone UConn player would hustle in and grab the rebound for an easy put-back. OSU either would just stand there and watch, or then hack the UConn player for an and-1. UConn had taken them completely out of the game. I am not looking forward to playing either of these teams. OSU is a good team, but UConn is probably going to win another NC and everyone else is fighting for second place. I would like to think maybe we can hang with them for a quarter, but our defense is my biggest concern. We need to be tested before we play UConn but I don't think that is going to happen. On the one hand, I do like that the bench is getting to play and we are seeing what these girls can do. On the other hand, the first two games have been too easy.

Nice...

Thank you! Who is high scorer?

I'm not at the game so if someone would provide occasional score updates it would be well appreciated.

Here's another thing I like about Jess. After missing some free throws in the first exhibition game, she made all 10 in the second game. Also, when one of her early shots was blocked, I told my daughter that it looked like Jess was kind of pissed off about it, and I wouldn't be surprised if she went on a huge run. And she did.

I think Maddie will take a leap from freshman year to sophomore year because she is now focusing on just basketball.

I thought Maddie did some good things today. I could swear she should have 11 points instead of 9 because I remember a drive to the basket the first half. So happy Emily knocked down a 3.

I was surprised we didn't shoot more 3 pointers. But we didn't need to yesterday.

Not only does she know what needs to be done, she then goes out and GETS IT DONE.

I also wanted to mention that every time Clark got the ball, she had a huge smile on her face. That will never get old. I think these girls are going to have a lot of fun this season.

I really liked what I saw today. Considering that Shepard hasn't been able to fully practice and is not in game shape, she did very well. I was impressed with Clark and felt while watching her that she looks like she has been playing with these girls for 4 years, she fits in that well. Theriot - what can I say other than SMOOOOOOOOTH. I think this will be an extra special year for her being senior year and coming off injury. Blackburn is tremendous and she and Jess should throw a scare into opposing teams. To think we will have them 4 years makes me giddy. Maddie did a good job today and I'm hoping her shots will fall better as we progress into the season. I also thought Kalenta played well and so did Washington. I wasn't sure what to expect from Washington but I liked what I saw in her few minutes in the game. I can say I'm definitely a fan of Emily Wood. She is such a pest on defense! And absolutely no fear from her on the floor. I know on a few of those steals she got a finger on the ball to disrupt a pass, and she also had a couple of nifty assists. I saw that Jess made sure she acknowledged her on one of her assists. The girls appear to genuinely like each other and encourage each other. I'm looking forward to seeing the rest of the girls that were injured or not playing this season. I do think our defense needs to improve. While I thought UNK was better than I anticipated, I don't think they should have scored as many points as they did.

Is this the girl that had also verballed to KState and Wisconsin?

I just wondered because I had seen an article a few days ago with projected starters and they had Natalie in instead of Maddie.

Is Maddie Simon starting instead of Romeo?

How much is the parking pass and where do you park with it?

Received mine today as well.

I really think Maddie sort of flew under the radar when it came to recruiting. She played multiple sports during her youth and HS and didn't focus solely on basketball prior to college, so that could be part of the reason why. She isn't afraid to do the work to improve her game. The club team she played on was very well coached and was a solid team.

I agree about Jess being more than a post player. I first saw her play when she was in 4th grade. I walked into the gym and saw this girl absolutely schooling everyone on the court, even older players. I saw her playing point guard fairly regularly when she was younger. She always had a huge smile on her face when she was playing or practicing. It was obvious she loved the game. Some kids around that age you can tell that their parents are really pushing them and they maybe don't really want to be there but are doing it for their parents, but not Jess. I watched her play through junior high and HS. She has very very good ball handling skills, especially when you consider her height. Almost like a Delle Donne type, but I don't want to say she is Delle Donne because nobody is Delle Donne but Delle Donne. But in the sense that she has a variety of skills and can help out in all positions on the court. There aren't many players like that with a combination of height and size (not a bean pole) and those skills. She will be a very special player for us and I pray she stays healthy. I think Maddie Simon is a bit under-rated. She will need to adjust to the college game, but once she does she will be a solid contributer. She is another girl I have seen play since she was in 4th grade. She always stood out to me, and she is extremely athletic and could have also played soccer in college or she could have been a track athlete (maybe even golf?). She has a good basketball IQ. She was very hampered with injury her senior year in HS, but it sounds like she is fully recovered now.

So what you are saying is that she is a consistently good 3 point shooter, among other things. Not sure we have had a consistent 3 point threat from anyone for a while except for Hooper. We have had some streaky shooters, and I think Romeo can become more consistent from the 3, and Theriot can usually hit from just about anywhere it seems like, but Clark will be solid. I'm liking the sound of that. Sometimes when you have one player that is knocking them down, it becomes contagious. I'm liking the sound of that A LOT.

I really think we could be a nightmare for other teams in the sense that who do they guard closely? They are going to have to guard EVERYONE and not double-team like we have had in recent years. I also think that there won't be a big drop-off when subbing, at least not once everyone gets some experience under their belt.

What I also heard was that this was an injury that they knew she had for some time due to playing tennis. Wondering if this was ever disclosed in the recruiting process. Thinking we dodged more than one bullet when we cut ties with the Page family. My daughter is going through the recruiting process right now for track and field, and we have been very open and honest about a nagging injury that she has had. I would hope other people are also open and honest during their recruitment.

I had heard that Lanie is out for the season with a torn labrum.