ChipperF1
12-21-2001, 12:18 AM
Normally, I only do game previews of Nebraska's upcoming contest, but this game excites me so much, that I had to write one about it.
Connecticut is a Rome of womens basketball. A place of high civilization and progress. This Rome seemed to have been built in a day. Final Four in 1991, National Champion by 1995, Establishment Power by 2000. Few teams win like UCONN. No team holds such a dominion over an area as UConn.
From the far suburbs that look onto New York City, to the quiet New England hamlets that hug Massachusetts and Rhode Island. From the woods of Storrs, to the Seawolves of Groton, "Lets Go Huskies" is the common lingua franca of the nutmeg state.
Their legends become one-name icons. Geno. Rebecca. Jen. Shea. Svet. Nykesha.
Their team brings a response, whether the fan is young or old. A response normally held for a President, or a Beatle.
They even have their own broadcast bard to tell the tales of their heroism, and ask for money between stories http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/smile.gif
This is all new to the Oklahoma Sooners. A decade ago, womens basketball was to be offered up as a virgin non-revenue sacrifice. Now, OU is strong, thanks largely to a coach who someday may join Bud and Barry as one-name icons.
The coliseum of this northeastern Rome, will host a team from afar, who will seek to be Hannibal. Sherri Coale has a task ahead that is just is daunting as that of the Carthaginian.
#1 CONNECTICUT HUSKIES (10-0) vs. #3 OKLAHOMA SOONERS (10-0)
Saturday, Dec. 22, 2001 2 P.M. EST - Hartford Civic Center - Hartford, Conn
Television: ESPN2
Radio: KOMA 1520-Oklahoma City
WTIC 1080-Hartford
(Access to both radiocasts of the game are available on the World Wide Web at http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaw/live.html)
THE STAKES
Although its a non-conference fight at the third-post of the season, there are some dead presidents on the table.
For both teams, this game could have NCAA tournament seeding implications. An Oklahoma win could factor in again come Selection Day should the Sooner be on the bubble for a regional top seed. A Connecticut win bolster their number one hopes, and more important staying the East Region come tournament time.
Also for Oklahoma, there is the matter of respect, not only for themselves but for the league. Big XII partisans have been shouting from Ames to Waco that their league has supplanted the Southeastern Conference as the best league top to bottom. This Big XII partisan disagrees.
A Sooner win would greatly enhance the Big XII profile, especially with Oklahoma coming into one of the biggest home court advantages in sport today.
CONNECTICUT: Auriemma's Attackers
Connecticut womens basketball does to the opposing team what the Wehrmacht did to Poland in 1939. They have a way of quickly and overwhelmingly destroying an opponent's game plan and taking their will to fight.
Consider their team statistics, and their national ranking within them.
1st in Field Goal Defense (29.7%), 1st Rebound Margin (19.6 rpg), 1st in Scoring Margin (38.3), 3rd in Scoring Defense (49.8 rpg), 3rd in Scoring Offense (88.1), 4th in Field Goal Percentage (53.3%)
The main rotation of UConn isn't as deep as last year's was before injuries took away two frontline starters. But teams have to deal with 6 or 7 player who can all become a gamebreaker when the situation dictates at any time.
Connecticut strength starts with their backcourt, arguably the nation's best.
Statistically, Sue Bird's numbers don't look dominating. The 5-9 senior is third on her team in scoring (13.7 ppg). Her 6.5 assists per game rank her #21 in the nation right now. She leads the club with 29 steals, but that number doesn't get her in the top 40 nationally.
Put all those numbers together, and you have the nation's best quarterback, period. Bird's gift is that she can take Geno Auriemma's lightning attack and make it flow like electric current. A flow that has built a terrifying trend. In each game that UConn has played, the Husky scored 7 or more points before the opposition has gotten on the board in EVERY GAME.
Much of that is due to UConn ability off transition, much of that goes through Bird, offensively and defensively. On at least 60% of UConn defensive rebounds this season, the first outlet as gone to Bird, and the rest is form, function and scoring for UConn.
Her partner in crime is Diana Taurasi, who showing that Sophomore Jinx doesn't happen to everybody. Second on the team in scoring (14.8 ppg), second in assists (5.7 assists per game). She's been deadeye Diana from the 3-point arch. Her 3.3 tryes per game are ninth ranked nationally, and she's #5 in the nation with her guady 55.9 percent accuracy rate.
Taurasi is one of "ooh-aah" kids on this team. 7 of her assists this year have been legit "SportsCenter" quality. She can still do it behind the back or between the legs. Truly, the six-footer is a crowd pleaser.
The flair is tempered this season by disicpline. Her assist-turnover ratio is 3.1 to 1. Her defensive effort is a quantum leap from freshman year. She still get beat by quicker players off the dribble, but she recovers well and she shows a solid extension on opposing shots (She has 17 blocks this year, not too shabby for a perimeter player.)
Also, Diana looks more even more fit this year. There were concerns about her conditioning at the start of last season. She decisively quelled with a solid early season showing. She's look quicker and plays quicker. She may never be a great defensive player, but she isn't a poor one anymore.
In the frontcourt? Well, saying UConn has a frontcourt can be a bit misleading, because of the way this team plays. When you look at UConn roster, they aren't a team whose size leaps out at you, although that have a solid corps of 6-2 and 6-3 players. The trick is the athleticism of each of these player is almost otherworldly.
We begin with Swin Cash. The 6-2 senior from McKeesport, Pennsylavania would be a megastar in any other program. She has guard-like ball handling skills (she's not great, but more than serviceable), is a deft passer, can bang inside with people taller and heavier than her. Her jumping ability is among the nation's best (She'd make a serious college volleyball middle blocker or outside hitter on her jumping alone). Cash deserves more national respect and attention that what she gets for she is truly one of the best all-around in the land.
This season she leads the team in scoring at 14.9 points per game. She pulls down 9 rebounds per game, with an average of 6 per game on the defensive end.
That is what Swin's prime responsibility is defensively. Force the miss, get the rebound, kick-start the UConn blitzkreig. And she does her job well. Add 10 blocked shots and 11 steals this year to the kitty as well.
Swin effectively masks the teams lack of a traditional center, as does her partners in the paint.
Senior forward/center Asjha Jones is Swin exact height and weight, and matches Cash's aggressiveness. Jones averages 5.4 rebounds per game, and brings 11 blocks and 10 steals to the party. Offensively, the UConn transition has enhance her numbers. She scoring at a 12.5 points per game clip, including a 16 point outing vs. Louisiana Tech in their last game.
On the downside, Jones is the teams leader in fouls. Both her and backup Jessica Moore average nearly 3 fouls per game, and each has at least 2 4-foul games.
Tamika Williams continues to be the George Harrison of this group. She just quietly goes about her business. This season her business is 9.4 points per game and 7.4 rebounds per game (#2 on the team). Williams has a little more beef than the slimmer Cash and Jones, but is still effective at running the floor the way Geno Auriemma likes to. Her greatest value has been on the offensive end. Swin has the natural gift to outjump people for rebounds. Ashja can muscle people down for them. Tamika as a hybrid of both, plus she really has a better court sense than people give her credit for. The 6-2 senior has a head for finding the ball, and then doing something with it. At times she tries to play too fast, with results in many of her 15 turnovers this year. Also, have you ever seen Tamika set a screen? It can be a thing of beauty. Unofficially she has about 14 pancakes this year.
The Husky bench is more than servicable, although it is more in line with many women college basketball teams in that it is a thinner, less experienced outfit.
Redshirt freshman center Jessica Moore averages 20 minutes per game. She has scored an average of 5 points and pulled down 4 rebounds per game in her time in. A sticking point is her 25 fouls this far in the season. But don't be fooled by her lack of experience. This kid has shown the hints of her potential. A game like this would be a good learning ground for her.
The backup guards also have potential and just need seat time. The scariest of the bunch is six-footer redshirt freshman Ashley Battle. Injuries last season put her out early, but she's cat quick averaging 5 points per game, and 5 rebound per game with legs that seem to be more pneumatic than organic. She doesn't run up the court, she bounds up the court with serious spring.
5-9 sophomore Maria Conlon's been much maligned as slow, a defensive liability and being "chunky". The stats paint a different story. She's shooting 45.5% from three point range, she averaging 2.2 assists per game (against 0.8 turnovers a game), and she has 2.2 rebounds per. In limited engagement, Maria would not be as big a drop-off as some would believe, but if she has to play beyond her 18-minute per game average, questions may set in.
THE OKLAHOMA CHALLENGE.
OU's backcourt is a match for UConn's. Quarterback Stacey Dales as seen as a serious challenge by some, and a pretender to others (many of those of the latter viewpoint have yankee inflection only heard around Storrs).
One things Dales is this season is tougher in my view. Her international experience of the past couple season have shown in an increased aggressiveness and physicalness in her play. I saw that against Wichita State this season. The shockers are one of the more physical teams in the nation. They play very much like a Cuban or Eastern European team in that they try to turn games into pier-six brawls and try to intimidate teams. Dales answered with a gritty 6-for-11, 18 point performance with 10 assists where OU basically outboxed and outfoxed Wichita State.
Dales is taller than Bird, outweighs her by about 10 pounds, and has the potential to muscle Bird and use an extended wingspan to short-circuit Bird's ability to pass.
Backcourtmate LaNeisha Caulfield has been on fire this season. She's putting in 20.3 points per game. Her last five games have been nuclear hot.
24 vs. TCU, 22 vs. Wichita State, 26 vs. SMU, 33 vs. Montana State, and 28 vs. Illinois...all while shoting 58.3 percent from the field.
And her scoring has opened up Stacey Dales, who scored 21, 18, 26, 13, and 21 points in those games respectively and averaged 7 assists a game on those contests.
Oklahoma often runs a three guard set, to take advantage of the special skills of 5-9 senior Rosalind Ross. She's a jackrabbit scoring guard, although she's off her game thus far this year with just 11.9 points per game. Acceptable, but a little under for a player who has shown to be a game breaker. One thing about Ross, she seems to like National TV. In two national appearances, she put in 24 vs. Purdue, and 18 against Illinois.
While this troika can score, they are all the poster children for the Sooners #1 weakness (besides, the interior, but we are getting to that.). The Sooner assist-to-turnover ratio is almost 1 to 1. As a team they commit 17.5 per game. Respectable, but dangerous against a team like UConn (The Huskies commit 14.9 a game). Ross and Dales have 30 each. And three players in their main rotation, Ross, Caton Hill and Jamie Talbert have more turnovers than assists.
On the upside. Oklahoma forces nearly 22 a game, much of it do to the aggressiveness of their backcourt. Caulfield, Dales and Ross each average 2 steals per game and have 67 steals combined, also had reserve Dionnah Jackson's 20. Oklahoma as a team averages 12.7 steals per game. Fagin would definitely be a Sooner fan.
The Sooners seem short on tall girls inside. The loss Jen Cunningham greatly depleted the OU frontcourt. 6-1 junior Caton Hill has had to step in to more of post role this season. She averages a workmanlike 5 rebounds per game. 6-2 senior Jamie Talbert does the same. Neither are are the type of player Cunningham was. Neither are the athletes that Cash, Jones and Williams are. Backing up is 6-1 senior Shannon Selmon, who has been seldom used.
Benchwise, Oklahoma is about the same as UConn. Although the Sooner have a definite sixth-woman in Dionnah "Action" Jackson. The 5-9 freshman's averaging 6.2 points per game, plus she puts up 4 assists per and 3 rebounds a game, too. She's also averaging about 24 minutes a contest. Sherri Coale is getting increasingly comfortable with her in the lineup, especially when the Sooners try to maximize their guard play with a 4-guard system. 4-guard offense is a prime option in this game. The Sooner also mix in smart junior Stephanie Simon, and freshman Lauren Shoush into the mix.
KEYS FOR UCONN
1. START FAST: UConn must continue the pattern that they have against every team they've faced this year. Get on the horse, get scoring, get the Husky faithful fired up and force the other team to play catchup. Catchup would hurt Oklahoma who can be a little sloppy with the basketball at times.
2. SWIN CASH: This should be her game to really shine, with her athleticism and tenacity. I don't think Hill or Talbert can really present a challenge to her by themselves. But, Cash on the blocks making plays inside can really blow this game open.
3. TIGHT PERIMETER DEFENSE: UConn could win a scoring race with Oklahoma, but the more points Oklahoma scores, the greater Oklahoma's chance of winning. The Huskies cannot allow Oklahoma to do what Ball State did, because the Sooner can go inside and outside on UConn and they must. If OU has success there, it fundamentally changes the game to UConn detriment. The last thing UConn needs to see is Caulfield, Dales and Ross dictating the Husky response.
Plus, UConn has to take advantage and test Oklahoma's ability to avoid turnovers early. The Sooners have a tendency to be careless.
KEY FOR OKLAHOMA
1. BE AGGRESSIVE BOTH ENDS. Vanderbilt tried to cat-and-mouse UConn. Louisiana Tech tried to cat-and-mouse UConn. Both lost. In 1999-2000, a less capable OU team played solid, aggressive basketball against UConn and didn't fair badly against a more capable UConn team.
This year the two teams are a lot more closely matched, enough to where OU getting aggressive can close the gap between the games.
Dales, Caulfield and Ross have to drive. Talbert and Hill have to get mucking and grinding and in fact, do a little bit more. Defensively, the Sooner have to be lightfingered like they have. They have to take chances and challenge drives and passes. OU may have to lean on UConn a little.
If Sherri Coale plays percentage ball, they will lose this game by the blowout margins UConn been running all year, because that is not the way OU plays.
2. FORCE FOULS (see #1)
UConn's worse nightmare is Cash and Jones in foul trouble. The Huskies may attempt to pack inside and dare OU to shoot threes. The Sooner will take some ICBM strikes, but they should be prepared to attack the basket no matter what.
The Sooner are a respectable three-point unit (39% as a team), but not good enough to live or die by it. Caton Hill is the best they have (48% from three), Rosalind Ross and Lane Caulfield are solid, but not enough to warrant 25 long-range strikes.
Attack the basket try for fouls, go for good looks at three and convert when you get.
3. MOVE THE FRONTCOURT BACK
Whenever Sue Bird has the ball, Stacey Dales (or whoever is guarding her.) has to stay in her shirt. Yeah, Sherri Coale may have to be Fred Sanford, and roll out the junk defenses.
The point is: OU has to force Swin, Ashja and Tamika to move up court and not camp out from 12 feet in. If UConn has to use them to set screens and make some room, that help Oklahoma, because that is fewer people their porous inside game has to account for.
It's a different situation because you just can't necessarily pack the inside and dare UConn to shoot outside, because of the way Taurasi's playing right now. She hitting 55%, she's confident, and she likes her odds.
4. LANEISHA CAULFIELD
She's been the hot rocket, but isn't the only weapon in the arsenal. Auriemma will most like game plan the entire team, not necessarily aim to stop one person.
Get Laneisha into the groove early. Make Auriemma make an adjustment he really doesn't want to make (i.e. we have to chase somebody, like we did against Notre Dame last year), and force perhaps a Swin Cash to move into defensive help and away from her role of getting the rebounds to get the transition started.
Overall Outlook:
Oklahoma has to march their elephant across the alps and meet the Romans head on. They have to play a near-perfect game, and more importantly, dictate the terms of the game early and often.
I think they can do it well enough to keep the game competitive. Caulfield and Dales I think can have a lot of success against the UConn backcourt. The Sooner can hit some outside shots.
But UConn has so many bases that Oklahoma has to cover, and while my heart want the Sooners to get a win, the lack of an inside force for OU will hurt them. Does Sherri Coale give up her guards' ability to rebound and set them back to help against UConn's transition, for example? How much to do you depend on Caton Hill and Jamie Talbert to be board bangers?
My head says: Connecticut 79, Oklahoma 72
My heart says: Oklahoma 88, Connecticut 84
ChipperF1 http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/smile.gif
Sherri Coale: In Your Heart, You Know She's Nice http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/smile.gif
GOOD LUCK http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/ou.gif!
Connecticut is a Rome of womens basketball. A place of high civilization and progress. This Rome seemed to have been built in a day. Final Four in 1991, National Champion by 1995, Establishment Power by 2000. Few teams win like UCONN. No team holds such a dominion over an area as UConn.
From the far suburbs that look onto New York City, to the quiet New England hamlets that hug Massachusetts and Rhode Island. From the woods of Storrs, to the Seawolves of Groton, "Lets Go Huskies" is the common lingua franca of the nutmeg state.
Their legends become one-name icons. Geno. Rebecca. Jen. Shea. Svet. Nykesha.
Their team brings a response, whether the fan is young or old. A response normally held for a President, or a Beatle.
They even have their own broadcast bard to tell the tales of their heroism, and ask for money between stories http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/smile.gif
This is all new to the Oklahoma Sooners. A decade ago, womens basketball was to be offered up as a virgin non-revenue sacrifice. Now, OU is strong, thanks largely to a coach who someday may join Bud and Barry as one-name icons.
The coliseum of this northeastern Rome, will host a team from afar, who will seek to be Hannibal. Sherri Coale has a task ahead that is just is daunting as that of the Carthaginian.
#1 CONNECTICUT HUSKIES (10-0) vs. #3 OKLAHOMA SOONERS (10-0)
Saturday, Dec. 22, 2001 2 P.M. EST - Hartford Civic Center - Hartford, Conn
Television: ESPN2
Radio: KOMA 1520-Oklahoma City
WTIC 1080-Hartford
(Access to both radiocasts of the game are available on the World Wide Web at http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaw/live.html)
THE STAKES
Although its a non-conference fight at the third-post of the season, there are some dead presidents on the table.
For both teams, this game could have NCAA tournament seeding implications. An Oklahoma win could factor in again come Selection Day should the Sooner be on the bubble for a regional top seed. A Connecticut win bolster their number one hopes, and more important staying the East Region come tournament time.
Also for Oklahoma, there is the matter of respect, not only for themselves but for the league. Big XII partisans have been shouting from Ames to Waco that their league has supplanted the Southeastern Conference as the best league top to bottom. This Big XII partisan disagrees.
A Sooner win would greatly enhance the Big XII profile, especially with Oklahoma coming into one of the biggest home court advantages in sport today.
CONNECTICUT: Auriemma's Attackers
Connecticut womens basketball does to the opposing team what the Wehrmacht did to Poland in 1939. They have a way of quickly and overwhelmingly destroying an opponent's game plan and taking their will to fight.
Consider their team statistics, and their national ranking within them.
1st in Field Goal Defense (29.7%), 1st Rebound Margin (19.6 rpg), 1st in Scoring Margin (38.3), 3rd in Scoring Defense (49.8 rpg), 3rd in Scoring Offense (88.1), 4th in Field Goal Percentage (53.3%)
The main rotation of UConn isn't as deep as last year's was before injuries took away two frontline starters. But teams have to deal with 6 or 7 player who can all become a gamebreaker when the situation dictates at any time.
Connecticut strength starts with their backcourt, arguably the nation's best.
Statistically, Sue Bird's numbers don't look dominating. The 5-9 senior is third on her team in scoring (13.7 ppg). Her 6.5 assists per game rank her #21 in the nation right now. She leads the club with 29 steals, but that number doesn't get her in the top 40 nationally.
Put all those numbers together, and you have the nation's best quarterback, period. Bird's gift is that she can take Geno Auriemma's lightning attack and make it flow like electric current. A flow that has built a terrifying trend. In each game that UConn has played, the Husky scored 7 or more points before the opposition has gotten on the board in EVERY GAME.
Much of that is due to UConn ability off transition, much of that goes through Bird, offensively and defensively. On at least 60% of UConn defensive rebounds this season, the first outlet as gone to Bird, and the rest is form, function and scoring for UConn.
Her partner in crime is Diana Taurasi, who showing that Sophomore Jinx doesn't happen to everybody. Second on the team in scoring (14.8 ppg), second in assists (5.7 assists per game). She's been deadeye Diana from the 3-point arch. Her 3.3 tryes per game are ninth ranked nationally, and she's #5 in the nation with her guady 55.9 percent accuracy rate.
Taurasi is one of "ooh-aah" kids on this team. 7 of her assists this year have been legit "SportsCenter" quality. She can still do it behind the back or between the legs. Truly, the six-footer is a crowd pleaser.
The flair is tempered this season by disicpline. Her assist-turnover ratio is 3.1 to 1. Her defensive effort is a quantum leap from freshman year. She still get beat by quicker players off the dribble, but she recovers well and she shows a solid extension on opposing shots (She has 17 blocks this year, not too shabby for a perimeter player.)
Also, Diana looks more even more fit this year. There were concerns about her conditioning at the start of last season. She decisively quelled with a solid early season showing. She's look quicker and plays quicker. She may never be a great defensive player, but she isn't a poor one anymore.
In the frontcourt? Well, saying UConn has a frontcourt can be a bit misleading, because of the way this team plays. When you look at UConn roster, they aren't a team whose size leaps out at you, although that have a solid corps of 6-2 and 6-3 players. The trick is the athleticism of each of these player is almost otherworldly.
We begin with Swin Cash. The 6-2 senior from McKeesport, Pennsylavania would be a megastar in any other program. She has guard-like ball handling skills (she's not great, but more than serviceable), is a deft passer, can bang inside with people taller and heavier than her. Her jumping ability is among the nation's best (She'd make a serious college volleyball middle blocker or outside hitter on her jumping alone). Cash deserves more national respect and attention that what she gets for she is truly one of the best all-around in the land.
This season she leads the team in scoring at 14.9 points per game. She pulls down 9 rebounds per game, with an average of 6 per game on the defensive end.
That is what Swin's prime responsibility is defensively. Force the miss, get the rebound, kick-start the UConn blitzkreig. And she does her job well. Add 10 blocked shots and 11 steals this year to the kitty as well.
Swin effectively masks the teams lack of a traditional center, as does her partners in the paint.
Senior forward/center Asjha Jones is Swin exact height and weight, and matches Cash's aggressiveness. Jones averages 5.4 rebounds per game, and brings 11 blocks and 10 steals to the party. Offensively, the UConn transition has enhance her numbers. She scoring at a 12.5 points per game clip, including a 16 point outing vs. Louisiana Tech in their last game.
On the downside, Jones is the teams leader in fouls. Both her and backup Jessica Moore average nearly 3 fouls per game, and each has at least 2 4-foul games.
Tamika Williams continues to be the George Harrison of this group. She just quietly goes about her business. This season her business is 9.4 points per game and 7.4 rebounds per game (#2 on the team). Williams has a little more beef than the slimmer Cash and Jones, but is still effective at running the floor the way Geno Auriemma likes to. Her greatest value has been on the offensive end. Swin has the natural gift to outjump people for rebounds. Ashja can muscle people down for them. Tamika as a hybrid of both, plus she really has a better court sense than people give her credit for. The 6-2 senior has a head for finding the ball, and then doing something with it. At times she tries to play too fast, with results in many of her 15 turnovers this year. Also, have you ever seen Tamika set a screen? It can be a thing of beauty. Unofficially she has about 14 pancakes this year.
The Husky bench is more than servicable, although it is more in line with many women college basketball teams in that it is a thinner, less experienced outfit.
Redshirt freshman center Jessica Moore averages 20 minutes per game. She has scored an average of 5 points and pulled down 4 rebounds per game in her time in. A sticking point is her 25 fouls this far in the season. But don't be fooled by her lack of experience. This kid has shown the hints of her potential. A game like this would be a good learning ground for her.
The backup guards also have potential and just need seat time. The scariest of the bunch is six-footer redshirt freshman Ashley Battle. Injuries last season put her out early, but she's cat quick averaging 5 points per game, and 5 rebound per game with legs that seem to be more pneumatic than organic. She doesn't run up the court, she bounds up the court with serious spring.
5-9 sophomore Maria Conlon's been much maligned as slow, a defensive liability and being "chunky". The stats paint a different story. She's shooting 45.5% from three point range, she averaging 2.2 assists per game (against 0.8 turnovers a game), and she has 2.2 rebounds per. In limited engagement, Maria would not be as big a drop-off as some would believe, but if she has to play beyond her 18-minute per game average, questions may set in.
THE OKLAHOMA CHALLENGE.
OU's backcourt is a match for UConn's. Quarterback Stacey Dales as seen as a serious challenge by some, and a pretender to others (many of those of the latter viewpoint have yankee inflection only heard around Storrs).
One things Dales is this season is tougher in my view. Her international experience of the past couple season have shown in an increased aggressiveness and physicalness in her play. I saw that against Wichita State this season. The shockers are one of the more physical teams in the nation. They play very much like a Cuban or Eastern European team in that they try to turn games into pier-six brawls and try to intimidate teams. Dales answered with a gritty 6-for-11, 18 point performance with 10 assists where OU basically outboxed and outfoxed Wichita State.
Dales is taller than Bird, outweighs her by about 10 pounds, and has the potential to muscle Bird and use an extended wingspan to short-circuit Bird's ability to pass.
Backcourtmate LaNeisha Caulfield has been on fire this season. She's putting in 20.3 points per game. Her last five games have been nuclear hot.
24 vs. TCU, 22 vs. Wichita State, 26 vs. SMU, 33 vs. Montana State, and 28 vs. Illinois...all while shoting 58.3 percent from the field.
And her scoring has opened up Stacey Dales, who scored 21, 18, 26, 13, and 21 points in those games respectively and averaged 7 assists a game on those contests.
Oklahoma often runs a three guard set, to take advantage of the special skills of 5-9 senior Rosalind Ross. She's a jackrabbit scoring guard, although she's off her game thus far this year with just 11.9 points per game. Acceptable, but a little under for a player who has shown to be a game breaker. One thing about Ross, she seems to like National TV. In two national appearances, she put in 24 vs. Purdue, and 18 against Illinois.
While this troika can score, they are all the poster children for the Sooners #1 weakness (besides, the interior, but we are getting to that.). The Sooner assist-to-turnover ratio is almost 1 to 1. As a team they commit 17.5 per game. Respectable, but dangerous against a team like UConn (The Huskies commit 14.9 a game). Ross and Dales have 30 each. And three players in their main rotation, Ross, Caton Hill and Jamie Talbert have more turnovers than assists.
On the upside. Oklahoma forces nearly 22 a game, much of it do to the aggressiveness of their backcourt. Caulfield, Dales and Ross each average 2 steals per game and have 67 steals combined, also had reserve Dionnah Jackson's 20. Oklahoma as a team averages 12.7 steals per game. Fagin would definitely be a Sooner fan.
The Sooners seem short on tall girls inside. The loss Jen Cunningham greatly depleted the OU frontcourt. 6-1 junior Caton Hill has had to step in to more of post role this season. She averages a workmanlike 5 rebounds per game. 6-2 senior Jamie Talbert does the same. Neither are are the type of player Cunningham was. Neither are the athletes that Cash, Jones and Williams are. Backing up is 6-1 senior Shannon Selmon, who has been seldom used.
Benchwise, Oklahoma is about the same as UConn. Although the Sooner have a definite sixth-woman in Dionnah "Action" Jackson. The 5-9 freshman's averaging 6.2 points per game, plus she puts up 4 assists per and 3 rebounds a game, too. She's also averaging about 24 minutes a contest. Sherri Coale is getting increasingly comfortable with her in the lineup, especially when the Sooners try to maximize their guard play with a 4-guard system. 4-guard offense is a prime option in this game. The Sooner also mix in smart junior Stephanie Simon, and freshman Lauren Shoush into the mix.
KEYS FOR UCONN
1. START FAST: UConn must continue the pattern that they have against every team they've faced this year. Get on the horse, get scoring, get the Husky faithful fired up and force the other team to play catchup. Catchup would hurt Oklahoma who can be a little sloppy with the basketball at times.
2. SWIN CASH: This should be her game to really shine, with her athleticism and tenacity. I don't think Hill or Talbert can really present a challenge to her by themselves. But, Cash on the blocks making plays inside can really blow this game open.
3. TIGHT PERIMETER DEFENSE: UConn could win a scoring race with Oklahoma, but the more points Oklahoma scores, the greater Oklahoma's chance of winning. The Huskies cannot allow Oklahoma to do what Ball State did, because the Sooner can go inside and outside on UConn and they must. If OU has success there, it fundamentally changes the game to UConn detriment. The last thing UConn needs to see is Caulfield, Dales and Ross dictating the Husky response.
Plus, UConn has to take advantage and test Oklahoma's ability to avoid turnovers early. The Sooners have a tendency to be careless.
KEY FOR OKLAHOMA
1. BE AGGRESSIVE BOTH ENDS. Vanderbilt tried to cat-and-mouse UConn. Louisiana Tech tried to cat-and-mouse UConn. Both lost. In 1999-2000, a less capable OU team played solid, aggressive basketball against UConn and didn't fair badly against a more capable UConn team.
This year the two teams are a lot more closely matched, enough to where OU getting aggressive can close the gap between the games.
Dales, Caulfield and Ross have to drive. Talbert and Hill have to get mucking and grinding and in fact, do a little bit more. Defensively, the Sooner have to be lightfingered like they have. They have to take chances and challenge drives and passes. OU may have to lean on UConn a little.
If Sherri Coale plays percentage ball, they will lose this game by the blowout margins UConn been running all year, because that is not the way OU plays.
2. FORCE FOULS (see #1)
UConn's worse nightmare is Cash and Jones in foul trouble. The Huskies may attempt to pack inside and dare OU to shoot threes. The Sooner will take some ICBM strikes, but they should be prepared to attack the basket no matter what.
The Sooner are a respectable three-point unit (39% as a team), but not good enough to live or die by it. Caton Hill is the best they have (48% from three), Rosalind Ross and Lane Caulfield are solid, but not enough to warrant 25 long-range strikes.
Attack the basket try for fouls, go for good looks at three and convert when you get.
3. MOVE THE FRONTCOURT BACK
Whenever Sue Bird has the ball, Stacey Dales (or whoever is guarding her.) has to stay in her shirt. Yeah, Sherri Coale may have to be Fred Sanford, and roll out the junk defenses.
The point is: OU has to force Swin, Ashja and Tamika to move up court and not camp out from 12 feet in. If UConn has to use them to set screens and make some room, that help Oklahoma, because that is fewer people their porous inside game has to account for.
It's a different situation because you just can't necessarily pack the inside and dare UConn to shoot outside, because of the way Taurasi's playing right now. She hitting 55%, she's confident, and she likes her odds.
4. LANEISHA CAULFIELD
She's been the hot rocket, but isn't the only weapon in the arsenal. Auriemma will most like game plan the entire team, not necessarily aim to stop one person.
Get Laneisha into the groove early. Make Auriemma make an adjustment he really doesn't want to make (i.e. we have to chase somebody, like we did against Notre Dame last year), and force perhaps a Swin Cash to move into defensive help and away from her role of getting the rebounds to get the transition started.
Overall Outlook:
Oklahoma has to march their elephant across the alps and meet the Romans head on. They have to play a near-perfect game, and more importantly, dictate the terms of the game early and often.
I think they can do it well enough to keep the game competitive. Caulfield and Dales I think can have a lot of success against the UConn backcourt. The Sooner can hit some outside shots.
But UConn has so many bases that Oklahoma has to cover, and while my heart want the Sooners to get a win, the lack of an inside force for OU will hurt them. Does Sherri Coale give up her guards' ability to rebound and set them back to help against UConn's transition, for example? How much to do you depend on Caton Hill and Jamie Talbert to be board bangers?
My head says: Connecticut 79, Oklahoma 72
My heart says: Oklahoma 88, Connecticut 84
ChipperF1 http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/smile.gif
Sherri Coale: In Your Heart, You Know She's Nice http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/smile.gif
GOOD LUCK http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/ou.gif!