[M T]

Ah, the hubris of fans saying that to the winningest WBB coach that a loss is not acceptable. 

Tara has been helping the conference to get good coaches and teams for many years. If you play most of 20 games against good teams and coaches, they are going to help you find any Achilles Heel you might have.  Better to find it when it means close games or even losses rather than meaning the end of your season. 

People here are talking as though taking mid-range jumpers is equal to making them. Not so.

[M T]

Ah, the hubris of fans saying that to the winningest WBB coach that a loss is not acceptable. 

Tara has been helping the conference to get good coaches and teams for many years. If you play most of 20 games against good teams and coaches, they are going to help you find any Achilles Heel you might have.  Better to find it when it means close games or even losses rather than meaning the end of your season. 

People here are talking as though taking mid-range jumpers is equal to making them. Not so.

[martyup]

I'm not worried.  Our team held USC to 10 points below their average.  We had a low energy off-night shooting.  I don't think USC did anything magical on defense to prevent us from scoring more.  We just didn't make the shots we usually make and we didn't run our offense the way we usually do.

I felt like the whole team played like Hayley does at times, too complacent.  I felt the same about the Cal game.  Rather than wait for a good shot, we took poor shots.  Rather than be patient on offense, passing the ball and moving without the ball, we stood around while Haley dribbled and then, with the shot clock running down, made a bad pass or took a bad shot.

We played this way against Cal and USC, but not against UCLA.  This tells me that this team is not mentally getting up for games when they think they will win, and should win, easily. 

IMO, if this team plays with normal intensity, they should win the rest of their conference games and make the final four.  If they play with high intensity, they could win a NC. 

Now that they have two losses, this has to be corrected.  The team and the coaches had better figure out how to avoid this mistake for the rest of the season.  They are at risk of losing valuable seeding position in the NCAA Tourney.

[martyup]

I'm not worried.  Our team held USC to 10 points below their average.  We had a low energy off-night shooting.  I don't think USC did anything magical on defense to prevent us from scoring more.  We just didn't make the shots we usually make and we didn't run our offense the way we usually do.

I felt like the whole team played like Hayley does at times, too complacent.  I felt the same about the Cal game.  Rather than wait for a good shot, we took poor shots.  Rather than be patient on offense, passing the ball and moving without the ball, we stood around while Haley dribbled and then, with the shot clock running down, made a bad pass or took a bad shot.

We played this way against Cal and USC, but not against UCLA.  This tells me that this team is not mentally getting up for games when they think they will win, and should win, easily. 

IMO, if this team plays with normal intensity, they should win the rest of their conference games and make the final four.  If they play with high intensity, they could win a NC. 

Now that they have two losses, this has to be corrected.  The team and the coaches had better figure out how to avoid this mistake for the rest of the season.  They are at risk of losing valuable seeding position in the NCAA Tourney.

[BostonCard]

Ah, the hubris of fans saying that to the winningest WBB coach that a loss is not acceptable. 

That's the fun of being a fan.  You can cosplay being a hall of fame coach without any consequences to your strategy being wrong.  You can advocate for more mid-range jumpers without having to witness a game where we brick a bunch of mid-range jumpers and wonder why we weren't getting the ball inside to our all-American posts.

BC

[BostonCard]

Ah, the hubris of fans saying that to the winningest WBB coach that a loss is not acceptable. 

That's the fun of being a fan.  You can cosplay being a hall of fame coach without any consequences to your strategy being wrong.  You can advocate for more mid-range jumpers without having to witness a game where we brick a bunch of mid-range jumpers and wonder why we weren't getting the ball inside to our all-American posts.

BC

[81alum]

Ah, the hubris of fans saying that to the winningest WBB coach that a loss is not acceptable. 

That's the fun of being a fan.  You can cosplay being a hall of fame coach without any consequences to your strategy being wrong.  You can advocate for more mid-range jumpers without having to witness a game where we brick a bunch of mid-range jumpers and wonder why we weren't getting the ball inside to our all-American posts.

BC

Exactly.

I got interested in football in 1977, when as a freshman I went with friends to see our team playing with the new "Bill Walsh offense."  What made the game fun for us was sitting in the stands trying to guess which play Walsh was going to run, given down and distance and Walsh's "keep them off balance" philosophy.  When they came to the line I'd yell "Francis in the left flat!" or "Nelson up the middle" and some of the time I was right, and I felt as smart as the genius.  We had competitions to see who among us would predict the most plays in the game.  The truth is that we were all terrible, but was fun to play-act at being the play caller.

Now, as a much older man, I guess I'm doing the same thing with WBB.  No disrespect to the real genius, Tara, intended.

[81alum]

Ah, the hubris of fans saying that to the winningest WBB coach that a loss is not acceptable. 

That's the fun of being a fan.  You can cosplay being a hall of fame coach without any consequences to your strategy being wrong.  You can advocate for more mid-range jumpers without having to witness a game where we brick a bunch of mid-range jumpers and wonder why we weren't getting the ball inside to our all-American posts.

BC

Exactly.

I got interested in football in 1977, when as a freshman I went with friends to see our team playing with the new "Bill Walsh offense."  What made the game fun for us was sitting in the stands trying to guess which play Walsh was going to run, given down and distance and Walsh's "keep them off balance" philosophy.  When they came to the line I'd yell "Francis in the left flat!" or "Nelson up the middle" and some of the time I was right, and I felt as smart as the genius.  We had competitions to see who among us would predict the most plays in the game.  The truth is that we were all terrible, but was fun to play-act at being the play caller.

Now, as a much older man, I guess I'm doing the same thing with WBB.  No disrespect to the real genius, Tara, intended.

[2006alum]

Along these lines, I had the following thought:

Let's say I'm on the short list for A-A, have already won a national championship, make over half a million a year in NIL, and will be drafted in the top three of the WNBA in April, so I need to graduate in the next two months. I also have a history of peaking in March/April, and in the games that actually count, so some days I phone it in a little. Most of the time, I can get away with that on talent alone, but I also have a high beta as a player, so I'm used to the occasional very bad night off, where almost nothing goes right. 

If I'm that player, do I care that I just lost an essentially irrelevant game to U$C? 

And if that player is Haley Jones, will I really remember this in a year? Based on everything I've seen from her, for better and for worse, I think we've probably dwelled on this loss more than she has. At this point, as long as she's clutch when it counts, I'm fine to forgive the occasional fat lip.

[2006alum]

Along these lines, I had the following thought:

Let's say I'm on the short list for A-A, have already won a national championship, make over half a million a year in NIL, and will be drafted in the top three of the WNBA in April, so I need to graduate in the next two months. I also have a history of peaking in March/April, and in the games that actually count, so some days I phone it in a little. Most of the time, I can get away with that on talent alone, but I also have a high beta as a player, so I'm used to the occasional very bad night off, where almost nothing goes right. 

If I'm that player, do I care that I just lost an essentially irrelevant game to U$C? 

And if that player is Haley Jones, will I really remember this in a year? Based on everything I've seen from her, for better and for worse, I think we've probably dwelled on this loss more than she has. At this point, as long as she's clutch when it counts, I'm fine to forgive the occasional fat lip.

[Baez87]

Just getting back to normal after driving to Southern California in the worst storm of the century. The good news is that we were able to find a break in the storm both ways, so we can’t complain.
We were treated to a dogfight on Friday night. Two fighters went at each other for three rounds before one of them was exhausted and flamed out, the other played some stunningly good basketball and prevailed. Stanford looked formidable, and truly like a top team in the country, which they are.
We have family in LA, and had treated our special twelve-year old niece to last summer's week-long basketball camp at Maples with Tara, her coaching staff, and her current players (unfortunately, part of the camp had to be suspended due to an electrical issue, but our niece was undaunted). We took her and her older sister to the Sunday afternoon game against USC, hoping to further their interest in basketball in general and Stanford basketball in specific.
The game against USC was painful. My wife and I cringed at the lack of scoring and of the general poor execution by the team. It seemed, at one level, that our players were stymied by a very well-designed and effective defense. It also seemed that our players were not psychically ready to play another game that weekend after having spent their energies against UCLA. Basketball is not only a game of spurts, but it is also a game of team psychic energy, and they seemed to be critically short of that. 
After the game we took the girls out to dinner. We felt disappointed and apologetic that we had taken them to one of the worst games we had seen over the years. We told the girls that we were sorry that they had to see such a horrible game.
Their perspective is one that got us through our disappointment and negativity. The twelve year old said, and her sister agreed, that "oh, this was fun, I’m glad we went! We really enjoyed coming to the game with you!" During the game, they cheered at every basket, referred to the team as "we" or "our team", and marveled at their personal favorites, Talana and Cam. They are both ready to attend another game whenever they get a chance!
Perhaps, in the youthful perspectives of these two young girls, we can all find the essence of the game experience and not be so attached to winning and perfection. It’s a challenge that my wife and I are going to take to heart

[Baez87]

Just getting back to normal after driving to Southern California in the worst storm of the century. The good news is that we were able to find a break in the storm both ways, so we can’t complain.
We were treated to a dogfight on Friday night. Two fighters went at each other for three rounds before one of them was exhausted and flamed out, the other played some stunningly good basketball and prevailed. Stanford looked formidable, and truly like a top team in the country, which they are.
We have family in LA, and had treated our special twelve-year old niece to last summer's week-long basketball camp at Maples with Tara, her coaching staff, and her current players (unfortunately, part of the camp had to be suspended due to an electrical issue, but our niece was undaunted). We took her and her older sister to the Sunday afternoon game against USC, hoping to further their interest in basketball in general and Stanford basketball in specific.
The game against USC was painful. My wife and I cringed at the lack of scoring and of the general poor execution by the team. It seemed, at one level, that our players were stymied by a very well-designed and effective defense. It also seemed that our players were not psychically ready to play another game that weekend after having spent their energies against UCLA. Basketball is not only a game of spurts, but it is also a game of team psychic energy, and they seemed to be critically short of that. 
After the game we took the girls out to dinner. We felt disappointed and apologetic that we had taken them to one of the worst games we had seen over the years. We told the girls that we were sorry that they had to see such a horrible game.
Their perspective is one that got us through our disappointment and negativity. The twelve year old said, and her sister agreed, that "oh, this was fun, I’m glad we went! We really enjoyed coming to the game with you!" During the game, they cheered at every basket, referred to the team as "we" or "our team", and marveled at their personal favorites, Talana and Cam. They are both ready to attend another game whenever they get a chance!
Perhaps, in the youthful perspectives of these two young girls, we can all find the essence of the game experience and not be so attached to winning and perfection. It’s a challenge that my wife and I are going to take to heart

[Softball Fan]

Perhaps, in the youthful perspectives of these two young girls, we can all find the essence of the game experience and not be so attached to winning and perfection. It’s a challenge that my wife and I are going to take to heart

Thanks Baez, that's a good story.  I've put the loss in perspective and moved on.  I have a much more important setback in my life I'm facing this week.  The local Subways no longer offer bacon and egg sandwiches because they can't get eggs.

[Softball Fan]

Perhaps, in the youthful perspectives of these two young girls, we can all find the essence of the game experience and not be so attached to winning and perfection. It’s a challenge that my wife and I are going to take to heart

Thanks Baez, that's a good story.  I've put the loss in perspective and moved on.  I have a much more important setback in my life I'm facing this week.  The local Subways no longer offer bacon and egg sandwiches because they can't get eggs.

[triangle2]

Just getting back to normal after driving to Southern California in the worst storm of the century. The good news is that we were able to find a break in the storm both ways, so we can’t complain.
We were treated to a dogfight on Friday night. Two fighters went at each other for three rounds before one of them was exhausted and flamed out, the other played some stunningly good basketball and prevailed. Stanford looked formidable, and truly like a top team in the country, which they are.
We have family in LA, and had treated our special twelve-year old niece to last summer's week-long basketball camp at Maples with Tara, her coaching staff, and her current players (unfortunately, part of the camp had to be suspended due to an electrical issue, but our niece was undaunted). We took her and her older sister to the Sunday afternoon game against USC, hoping to further their interest in basketball in general and Stanford basketball in specific.
The game against USC was painful. My wife and I cringed at the lack of scoring and of the general poor execution by the team. It seemed, at one level, that our players were stymied by a very well-designed and effective defense. It also seemed that our players were not psychically ready to play another game that weekend after having spent their energies against UCLA. Basketball is not only a game of spurts, but it is also a game of team psychic energy, and they seemed to be critically short of that. 
After the game we took the girls out to dinner. We felt disappointed and apologetic that we had taken them to one of the worst games we had seen over the years. We told the girls that we were sorry that they had to see such a horrible game.
Their perspective is one that got us through our disappointment and negativity. The twelve year old said, and her sister agreed, that "oh, this was fun, I’m glad we went! We really enjoyed coming to the game with you!" During the game, they cheered at every basket, referred to the team as "we" or "our team", and marveled at their personal favorites, Talana and Cam. They are both ready to attend another game whenever they get a chance!
Perhaps, in the youthful perspectives of these two young girls, we can all find the essence of the game experience and not be so attached to winning and perfection. It’s a challenge that my wife and I are going to take to heart

This is great perspective. As is the reminder that the men's team was once in the top-5 stratosphere. It's good not to take for granted that we've been following a once in a lifetime coach who built a program from scratch that wins all the time.

[triangle2]

Just getting back to normal after driving to Southern California in the worst storm of the century. The good news is that we were able to find a break in the storm both ways, so we can’t complain.
We were treated to a dogfight on Friday night. Two fighters went at each other for three rounds before one of them was exhausted and flamed out, the other played some stunningly good basketball and prevailed. Stanford looked formidable, and truly like a top team in the country, which they are.
We have family in LA, and had treated our special twelve-year old niece to last summer's week-long basketball camp at Maples with Tara, her coaching staff, and her current players (unfortunately, part of the camp had to be suspended due to an electrical issue, but our niece was undaunted). We took her and her older sister to the Sunday afternoon game against USC, hoping to further their interest in basketball in general and Stanford basketball in specific.
The game against USC was painful. My wife and I cringed at the lack of scoring and of the general poor execution by the team. It seemed, at one level, that our players were stymied by a very well-designed and effective defense. It also seemed that our players were not psychically ready to play another game that weekend after having spent their energies against UCLA. Basketball is not only a game of spurts, but it is also a game of team psychic energy, and they seemed to be critically short of that. 
After the game we took the girls out to dinner. We felt disappointed and apologetic that we had taken them to one of the worst games we had seen over the years. We told the girls that we were sorry that they had to see such a horrible game.
Their perspective is one that got us through our disappointment and negativity. The twelve year old said, and her sister agreed, that "oh, this was fun, I’m glad we went! We really enjoyed coming to the game with you!" During the game, they cheered at every basket, referred to the team as "we" or "our team", and marveled at their personal favorites, Talana and Cam. They are both ready to attend another game whenever they get a chance!
Perhaps, in the youthful perspectives of these two young girls, we can all find the essence of the game experience and not be so attached to winning and perfection. It’s a challenge that my wife and I are going to take to heart

This is great perspective. As is the reminder that the men's team was once in the top-5 stratosphere. It's good not to take for granted that we've been following a once in a lifetime coach who built a program from scratch that wins all the time.