[TheFarm07]

One thing that had my eyes bugging out of my head at the time was with I think 3 minutes to go in regulation, maybe a bit less, when we were I think up 2 (I should check but I am lazy, and no matter, the game was tied or very close), we had a possession where Kiana dribbled out the shot clock deliberately, like we were killing clock when ahead.  I'm sure it must have been done because coaches said to, but why would that be the call there?  Can't run out the clock up 2, how does wasting most of a shot clock help?  We needed a score or two, not hold and hope for an end of clock play to work (they usually don't).  Just seemed really odd to me, like we hamstrung ourselves for no good reason.  Am I misremembering the score?  I can't bring myself to go look.

Also, to add to my long post above, one key to being a great player is consistency.  Good players can look great occasionally, great players, star players, do it more often than not, and when they are off, they are not as badly off.  That's what differentiates the play of someone like Kiana, she can be great but is not great consistently, which means she is simply a very good player but not really a star.  I don't want to pick on Kiana, whose career I have very much enjoyed and appreciated.  Just want to be clear about how I see her game.  The patterns have been the same the past two years.  Now is our system optimal for her game?  I don't know and maybe someone could argue that it impedes her in some way.

Chimera, it's like you're reading my mind on both points. That first point also stuck out in my mind during the game and my thought process for Tara's rationale was that she wasn't confident in our offense and wanted to reduce the number of possessions that Colorado had and that was why she directed Kiana to drain clock. I don't agree with it, but that's my only explanation on why they did that only up by one score with 2-3 minutes left.

On your second point, I also agree. It's been a pleasure watching Kiana her four seasons on the Farm. I'll always remember her buzzer beating 3-pointer to beat Colorado last year and when she's on, she can drain long range shots from incredible range. I always watching her play; her crossovers are a joy to watch too. However, unfortunately, I would concur that I would put her in the very good category, rather than the great one. As many of us have wondered on this board about her prolonged shooting slumps, she can go through multi-game stretches where she's ice cold. It would have been great to have paired her up with the Ogwumikes or Betts in a couple seasons where they can snag more of her misses for second opportunities.

[TheFarm07]

One thing that had my eyes bugging out of my head at the time was with I think 3 minutes to go in regulation, maybe a bit less, when we were I think up 2 (I should check but I am lazy, and no matter, the game was tied or very close), we had a possession where Kiana dribbled out the shot clock deliberately, like we were killing clock when ahead.  I'm sure it must have been done because coaches said to, but why would that be the call there?  Can't run out the clock up 2, how does wasting most of a shot clock help?  We needed a score or two, not hold and hope for an end of clock play to work (they usually don't).  Just seemed really odd to me, like we hamstrung ourselves for no good reason.  Am I misremembering the score?  I can't bring myself to go look.

Also, to add to my long post above, one key to being a great player is consistency.  Good players can look great occasionally, great players, star players, do it more often than not, and when they are off, they are not as badly off.  That's what differentiates the play of someone like Kiana, she can be great but is not great consistently, which means she is simply a very good player but not really a star.  I don't want to pick on Kiana, whose career I have very much enjoyed and appreciated.  Just want to be clear about how I see her game.  The patterns have been the same the past two years.  Now is our system optimal for her game?  I don't know and maybe someone could argue that it impedes her in some way.

Chimera, it's like you're reading my mind on both points. That first point also stuck out in my mind during the game and my thought process for Tara's rationale was that she wasn't confident in our offense and wanted to reduce the number of possessions that Colorado had and that was why she directed Kiana to drain clock. I don't agree with it, but that's my only explanation on why they did that only up by one score with 2-3 minutes left.

On your second point, I also agree. It's been a pleasure watching Kiana her four seasons on the Farm. I'll always remember her buzzer beating 3-pointer to beat Colorado last year and when she's on, she can drain long range shots from incredible range. I always watching her play; her crossovers are a joy to watch too. However, unfortunately, I would concur that I would put her in the very good category, rather than the great one. As many of us have wondered on this board about her prolonged shooting slumps, she can go through multi-game stretches where she's ice cold. It would have been great to have paired her up with the Ogwumikes or Betts in a couple seasons where they can snag more of her misses for second opportunities.