[81alum]

I was not able to see this game but can report that Toni was held out, presumable because of her concussion, and Sara James got 31 minutes, in which she scored a career-high 18 points including 3/5 three pointers.  We had 19 assists and only 6 turnovers, so we have improved on two key areas of concern.  However, the game was within 2 points with 13 mintues left, so we did not exactly dominate.  Chiney missed a double-double for the first time in a long while with just 6 rebounds but with 20 points on 9/19 shooting.  Joslyn was 5/10 for 12 points, and Amber was 6/9 for 16 points.  So we had four people in double digits, but the shooting percentages were not stellar (46.6%).

Those of you who saw the game, did the offense look more in sync, as those 19 assists suggest?  Give us the story on Sara James. 

C.al is up on Tuesday at the bart station and again on Sunday at Maples.  It looks like a dangerous team for us this year--better than last year, and as you all know, we barely beat them at Maples last year in a squeaker.

[81alum]

I was not able to see this game but can report that Toni was held out, presumable because of her concussion, and Sara James got 31 minutes, in which she scored a career-high 18 points including 3/5 three pointers.  We had 19 assists and only 6 turnovers, so we have improved on two key areas of concern.  However, the game was within 2 points with 13 mintues left, so we did not exactly dominate.  Chiney missed a double-double for the first time in a long while with just 6 rebounds but with 20 points on 9/19 shooting.  Joslyn was 5/10 for 12 points, and Amber was 6/9 for 16 points.  So we had four people in double digits, but the shooting percentages were not stellar (46.6%).

Those of you who saw the game, did the offense look more in sync, as those 19 assists suggest?  Give us the story on Sara James. 

C.al is up on Tuesday at the bart station and again on Sunday at Maples.  It looks like a dangerous team for us this year--better than last year, and as you all know, we barely beat them at Maples last year in a squeaker.

[Viking_Guy]

First, the worrisome.  Toni Kokenis didn't play again today; we could definitely use her back for Tuesday night's big tilt in the East Bay.

That being said, the revelation for this game and the game ball for me goes to Sara James.  While she didn't start (Greenfield was out there with Ruef, Chiney, Jos and Amber), she definitely finished, and may have reminded a few people why she was a top recruit a couple of years ago.  It may not be pretty, but you notice despite that fact that the ball ends up going in the basket, that she sets up other players well once she draws the defense, and she isn't afraid to shoot.  She ended up 6-8 from the field, 3-5 from 3 point range, with I would bet a career high 18 points, 4 assists, and a couple of rebounds and steals.  She did have three turnovers, and against a hard-core press I'm not certain how she would fare.  But darned it, she took the ball to the hoop strong time and again, and managed to not give up too much on defense.

The game itself was a nip and tuck affair until a late push got the lead out to double digits.  Stanford was ahead throughout, but only by about 2-6 points for the majority of play.  Every time Stanford threatened to push it out, Iwalani Rodrigues would hit a big shot.  One down side of today's game - Amber still seems to be having defensive issues - a whole lot of trailing the play, getting caught either on or going under screens, and biting too hard on upfakes.  Rodrigues often either got a good look from 15, or drew help defense leaving Plouffe or Crozon alone at the arc or on the baseline, or stepped back and popped from outside when her defender went under the screen.  To be fair, the hedging by the pick defender was horrid - as in not there.  Jos and Ruef often simply stayed glued to the pick rather than get a hand out or any sort of help to the perimeter defender.

Stanford actually had a chance to push it out late in the second half, when with a 7 point lead and the ball, Taylor Greenfield collected an offensive rebound, but after dribbling out of the lane, she reversed and drove back to the hoop along the baseline.  Her shot was blocked, and the ensuing transition opportunity led to a layup and the eventual halftime score of 29-24.

The other key for Stanford throughout the game was the ability of Chiney to get good looks and prevent Utah from ever really getting on a run.  The lead slowly grew to double digits midway through the second half, only to be reeled back in from the three-point line by the Utes, again off kick outs when the defense had to rotate to cover a perimeter player getting beaten at the point of attack, getting down to 56-50 with just over 5 minutes left.  But the Ogwumike safety blanket got another nice spin move look, Amber converted a couple of FTs and James scored in transition after Chiney poked the ball away, and the lead was back to 12.  While Rodrigues again converted to cut it to 10, the Utes then missed 3 of 4 FTs that could have cut the lead late, and a Tinkle 3 pushed it back out to 12 with just over 2 minutes left.  When Utah came up empty on the subsequent possession, they didn't foul or press really hard, and Stanford contentedly ran the clock for 29 seconds before Jasmine Camp launched a desperation 3 that missed.  But at that point, there wasn't enough time left for Utah to make a serious push to get back in it.

As I said, my gameball to Sara.  A good offensive bounceback by Amber, and good games from Chiney and Jos, especially with both of them passing well (9 assists between the two).  Defensive difficulties, and not a great rebounding game (only winning the rebounding battle 33-31, and only getting a little less than 20% of the available O-boards).  And Utah is not quick enough to really impose the ball pressure that's been giving the offense fits.

But the second hardest true roadtrip in terms of opponent quality out of the way (I would say hardest games left are the next two, the weird back-to-back against Low APR U, and the road trip to UCLA).  And, while not pretty offensively, at least some progress.

Now I want to hear about Toni's status.

VG

[Viking_Guy]

First, the worrisome.  Toni Kokenis didn't play again today; we could definitely use her back for Tuesday night's big tilt in the East Bay.

That being said, the revelation for this game and the game ball for me goes to Sara James.  While she didn't start (Greenfield was out there with Ruef, Chiney, Jos and Amber), she definitely finished, and may have reminded a few people why she was a top recruit a couple of years ago.  It may not be pretty, but you notice despite that fact that the ball ends up going in the basket, that she sets up other players well once she draws the defense, and she isn't afraid to shoot.  She ended up 6-8 from the field, 3-5 from 3 point range, with I would bet a career high 18 points, 4 assists, and a couple of rebounds and steals.  She did have three turnovers, and against a hard-core press I'm not certain how she would fare.  But darned it, she took the ball to the hoop strong time and again, and managed to not give up too much on defense.

The game itself was a nip and tuck affair until a late push got the lead out to double digits.  Stanford was ahead throughout, but only by about 2-6 points for the majority of play.  Every time Stanford threatened to push it out, Iwalani Rodrigues would hit a big shot.  One down side of today's game - Amber still seems to be having defensive issues - a whole lot of trailing the play, getting caught either on or going under screens, and biting too hard on upfakes.  Rodrigues often either got a good look from 15, or drew help defense leaving Plouffe or Crozon alone at the arc or on the baseline, or stepped back and popped from outside when her defender went under the screen.  To be fair, the hedging by the pick defender was horrid - as in not there.  Jos and Ruef often simply stayed glued to the pick rather than get a hand out or any sort of help to the perimeter defender.

Stanford actually had a chance to push it out late in the second half, when with a 7 point lead and the ball, Taylor Greenfield collected an offensive rebound, but after dribbling out of the lane, she reversed and drove back to the hoop along the baseline.  Her shot was blocked, and the ensuing transition opportunity led to a layup and the eventual halftime score of 29-24.

The other key for Stanford throughout the game was the ability of Chiney to get good looks and prevent Utah from ever really getting on a run.  The lead slowly grew to double digits midway through the second half, only to be reeled back in from the three-point line by the Utes, again off kick outs when the defense had to rotate to cover a perimeter player getting beaten at the point of attack, getting down to 56-50 with just over 5 minutes left.  But the Ogwumike safety blanket got another nice spin move look, Amber converted a couple of FTs and James scored in transition after Chiney poked the ball away, and the lead was back to 12.  While Rodrigues again converted to cut it to 10, the Utes then missed 3 of 4 FTs that could have cut the lead late, and a Tinkle 3 pushed it back out to 12 with just over 2 minutes left.  When Utah came up empty on the subsequent possession, they didn't foul or press really hard, and Stanford contentedly ran the clock for 29 seconds before Jasmine Camp launched a desperation 3 that missed.  But at that point, there wasn't enough time left for Utah to make a serious push to get back in it.

As I said, my gameball to Sara.  A good offensive bounceback by Amber, and good games from Chiney and Jos, especially with both of them passing well (9 assists between the two).  Defensive difficulties, and not a great rebounding game (only winning the rebounding battle 33-31, and only getting a little less than 20% of the available O-boards).  And Utah is not quick enough to really impose the ball pressure that's been giving the offense fits.

But the second hardest true roadtrip in terms of opponent quality out of the way (I would say hardest games left are the next two, the weird back-to-back against Low APR U, and the road trip to UCLA).  And, while not pretty offensively, at least some progress.

Now I want to hear about Toni's status.

VG

[meos]

The offense looked better (to me) mainly because more people were involved. Players looked more free to play their game and take reasonable risks (take an open shot; try to make an aggressive pass in moderate traffic). They were not focused on pounding the ball in to one player. I liked seeing Chiney trying a few jump shots, even a 3. She should work on short jumpers near the basket, the bank shot kind, off the backboard (its a good counter move and doesn't require perfect touch. All the places where the offense runs thru her, are opportunities to turn and face the opponent - triple threat, and practice jumpers in those spots (and get to very good-to-excellent at making those). Chiney tried and made a few jumpers today, which is nice to see, even if she is missing. Keep working on it.

Sara looked like she has been putting in work and was ready for her opportunity. Her scoring was an obvious to positive thing to see, but her head was also in the game. She was anticipating game action and made some nice plays and assists that way. And she seemed calm, playing well within herself.  She wasn't just floating around playing the offense "by-the-numbers". She seemed to have more of a purpose and embraced pursuing good scoring (or assist) possibilities. A real nice job for someone unexpectedly coming off the bench for major minutes. Once you show a good game, next is to keep it up and be consistent -- given the opportunity.

It was also nice to see Chiney out of the game in stretches to make everyone else learn to play their games (without her).

[meos]

The offense looked better (to me) mainly because more people were involved. Players looked more free to play their game and take reasonable risks (take an open shot; try to make an aggressive pass in moderate traffic). They were not focused on pounding the ball in to one player. I liked seeing Chiney trying a few jump shots, even a 3. She should work on short jumpers near the basket, the bank shot kind, off the backboard (its a good counter move and doesn't require perfect touch. All the places where the offense runs thru her, are opportunities to turn and face the opponent - triple threat, and practice jumpers in those spots (and get to very good-to-excellent at making those). Chiney tried and made a few jumpers today, which is nice to see, even if she is missing. Keep working on it.

Sara looked like she has been putting in work and was ready for her opportunity. Her scoring was an obvious to positive thing to see, but her head was also in the game. She was anticipating game action and made some nice plays and assists that way. And she seemed calm, playing well within herself.  She wasn't just floating around playing the offense "by-the-numbers". She seemed to have more of a purpose and embraced pursuing good scoring (or assist) possibilities. A real nice job for someone unexpectedly coming off the bench for major minutes. Once you show a good game, next is to keep it up and be consistent -- given the opportunity.

It was also nice to see Chiney out of the game in stretches to make everyone else learn to play their games (without her).

[M T]

UConn lost to ND at home yesterday!  (I missed it)  Let's see what that does to the polls.  Unfortunately, that probably means Stanford drops another place, but hey, I'd have to say it is worth it.  Wasn't it about 3 years ago that #1 beat #2, who beat #3, who beat #4, who beat #1, or some sort of vicious circle?


The Stanford-Utah game was webcast and I don't see a way for it to be repeated (nor do I know how one would capture it).  The cameras were fairly tight on the players so you couldn't see all the players, and we kept missing basketball as they would put up replays & graphics for the home crowd (clearly this was the feed to their big screen).  So it was harder to follow what was going on.

I got confused by the game time and came in an hour late, several minutes into the second half.  So I missed whatever KZSU might have said about Toni as well.  The release after the game indicates she was "held out as a precaution".

But I am DELIGHTED about Sara's performance.  In preseason she had some flashes of brilliance, taking the ball aggressively to the hoop.  She did that today.  I have the impression she must have really worked hard over the summer, and came back ready to make the starting lineup.  I love it when hard work pays off.  18pts beat her previous career high (frosh year vs USF) of 14.

Beware what you wish for.  Tara wished for a better PAC-12 WBB.  It seems we have it.

This was our season low in offensive rebounds and in offensive rebounding %.  Despite a near-average, defensive rebounding %, the total of the two was also our season low.  Our season-low 4 second-chance points all came on free throws late in the second half.  They had our opponent's season-high 8 three-pointers.

But on the good side of the ledger, we had our season low of just 6 turnovers (avg 12) with a season low of 1 that wasn't a steal.  Utah thus had a season low of just 1 point off turnovers (avg 10).  While our 19 assists were not a season high (avg 14, high 21), our A/FG was a season high at 70%.  Our A/TO was also a season high.  We also had a good number of steals (9, avg 5, high 11).  Our FT% was really good at 11 of 12.

Other than that, we were pretty close to our season average.

I didn't see the relatively weak first half by Chiney, but what I saw was Jos playing the post & Chiney out more.  Thus her (and Stanford's) rebounding was down, esp. on the O-boards.  I suspect this also increased our A/FG ratio as well, since Chiney's good interior play doesn't tally up the assists.

VG, I see it differently than "Jos and Ruef often simply stayed glued to the pick rather than get a hand out or any sort of help to the perimeter defender."  I didn't see enough of today's game, but I've seen them follow the dribbler enough to cause me concern in previous games. 

One thing I again saw in Amber was her going for an O-board.  Great if she gets it, but her job (IMHO) is to get back on defense, which I believe she should do more of.  That showed up in the UConn game.

KZSU asked Chiney whether anyone said anything about her 3pt shot.  She said not.  At one point, it looked like Chiney may have rolled her ankle and was out for a while, but she came back.  She didn't mention it during the radio interview.  But it makes one appreciate the offensive experimentation.

(By the way, Sam Fisher (KZSU announcer) indicated that the print media press conference gets whatever two players they want, and KZSU, by rule, is stuck with the third choice.  But today, Chiney apparently came out after the press conference.  So, it appears maybe the athletic department wasn't leaving KZSU in the lurch.)

[M T]

UConn lost to ND at home yesterday!  (I missed it)  Let's see what that does to the polls.  Unfortunately, that probably means Stanford drops another place, but hey, I'd have to say it is worth it.  Wasn't it about 3 years ago that #1 beat #2, who beat #3, who beat #4, who beat #1, or some sort of vicious circle?


The Stanford-Utah game was webcast and I don't see a way for it to be repeated (nor do I know how one would capture it).  The cameras were fairly tight on the players so you couldn't see all the players, and we kept missing basketball as they would put up replays & graphics for the home crowd (clearly this was the feed to their big screen).  So it was harder to follow what was going on.

I got confused by the game time and came in an hour late, several minutes into the second half.  So I missed whatever KZSU might have said about Toni as well.  The release after the game indicates she was "held out as a precaution".

But I am DELIGHTED about Sara's performance.  In preseason she had some flashes of brilliance, taking the ball aggressively to the hoop.  She did that today.  I have the impression she must have really worked hard over the summer, and came back ready to make the starting lineup.  I love it when hard work pays off.  18pts beat her previous career high (frosh year vs USF) of 14.

Beware what you wish for.  Tara wished for a better PAC-12 WBB.  It seems we have it.

This was our season low in offensive rebounds and in offensive rebounding %.  Despite a near-average, defensive rebounding %, the total of the two was also our season low.  Our season-low 4 second-chance points all came on free throws late in the second half.  They had our opponent's season-high 8 three-pointers.

But on the good side of the ledger, we had our season low of just 6 turnovers (avg 12) with a season low of 1 that wasn't a steal.  Utah thus had a season low of just 1 point off turnovers (avg 10).  While our 19 assists were not a season high (avg 14, high 21), our A/FG was a season high at 70%.  Our A/TO was also a season high.  We also had a good number of steals (9, avg 5, high 11).  Our FT% was really good at 11 of 12.

Other than that, we were pretty close to our season average.

I didn't see the relatively weak first half by Chiney, but what I saw was Jos playing the post & Chiney out more.  Thus her (and Stanford's) rebounding was down, esp. on the O-boards.  I suspect this also increased our A/FG ratio as well, since Chiney's good interior play doesn't tally up the assists.

VG, I see it differently than "Jos and Ruef often simply stayed glued to the pick rather than get a hand out or any sort of help to the perimeter defender."  I didn't see enough of today's game, but I've seen them follow the dribbler enough to cause me concern in previous games. 

One thing I again saw in Amber was her going for an O-board.  Great if she gets it, but her job (IMHO) is to get back on defense, which I believe she should do more of.  That showed up in the UConn game.

KZSU asked Chiney whether anyone said anything about her 3pt shot.  She said not.  At one point, it looked like Chiney may have rolled her ankle and was out for a while, but she came back.  She didn't mention it during the radio interview.  But it makes one appreciate the offensive experimentation.

(By the way, Sam Fisher (KZSU announcer) indicated that the print media press conference gets whatever two players they want, and KZSU, by rule, is stuck with the third choice.  But today, Chiney apparently came out after the press conference.  So, it appears maybe the athletic department wasn't leaving KZSU in the lurch.)

[Viking_Guy]

MT--

They may chase the dribbler, but what I was looking for was simply the "hard hedge" - stepping out from behind the pick to force the dribbler higher and away from a direct cut at the basket, forcing the "roll" of the pick and roll to be the operative offense.  Today, I saw quite a few instances where the curl off the pick directly into the lane worked for the Utes; I thought it was because Mikaela and Joslyn were caught a little too upright and tight to the pick player, on her inside hip and thus held by the breadth of her body away from the dribbler as she came around them.  Most of the time it was Rodrigues who seemed to get free.  Of course, then it becomes a question of the division of responsibility or the response to that play - was trying to assess why it was working so well for them, and didn't want to put it all on the on-ball defender (mostly Amber or Sara).

One other additional good thing - more PT for Jasmine Camp, and some added development, including some of both Jasmine and Amber in the backcourt.  Jasmine appears to be a bit better/more willing of a distance shooter than Amber, so that would be a nice combination.  A post I considered after the UConn game was going to talk about one of the under-appreciated downsides of playing such a tough OOC preseason; a lot less minutes where Tara appears comfortable going deep into her bench, or playing non-normal lineups.  Even if the reason is Toni's knock, it's good to see.

In any case, hope they're working on defending that move in practice tomorrow; given da Bares' relative dearth of outside shooting and the quickness and athleticism of their guards and posts, I'll bet they see more of it.  Along with some zone defenses and ball pressure, I have a feeling.

VG

[Viking_Guy]

MT--

They may chase the dribbler, but what I was looking for was simply the "hard hedge" - stepping out from behind the pick to force the dribbler higher and away from a direct cut at the basket, forcing the "roll" of the pick and roll to be the operative offense.  Today, I saw quite a few instances where the curl off the pick directly into the lane worked for the Utes; I thought it was because Mikaela and Joslyn were caught a little too upright and tight to the pick player, on her inside hip and thus held by the breadth of her body away from the dribbler as she came around them.  Most of the time it was Rodrigues who seemed to get free.  Of course, then it becomes a question of the division of responsibility or the response to that play - was trying to assess why it was working so well for them, and didn't want to put it all on the on-ball defender (mostly Amber or Sara).

One other additional good thing - more PT for Jasmine Camp, and some added development, including some of both Jasmine and Amber in the backcourt.  Jasmine appears to be a bit better/more willing of a distance shooter than Amber, so that would be a nice combination.  A post I considered after the UConn game was going to talk about one of the under-appreciated downsides of playing such a tough OOC preseason; a lot less minutes where Tara appears comfortable going deep into her bench, or playing non-normal lineups.  Even if the reason is Toni's knock, it's good to see.

In any case, hope they're working on defending that move in practice tomorrow; given da Bares' relative dearth of outside shooting and the quickness and athleticism of their guards and posts, I'll bet they see more of it.  Along with some zone defenses and ball pressure, I have a feeling.

VG

[M T]

There may have been problems in the Utah game with handling picks.  But I reviewed the 1st half of the UConn game,, and I don't see any picks used by the dribbler in the first half.  In the Colorado game, there were a number (~16) of cases where the dribbler used a pick, but only one of them (2nd 13:31, Chiney) seemed inadequately handled, where a harder hedge would have been better.  She did step out, but could have taken another step or two because the dribbler's defender got stuck on the pick.  In particular, Mikaela handled a number of these just fine.

[M T]

There may have been problems in the Utah game with handling picks.  But I reviewed the 1st half of the UConn game,, and I don't see any picks used by the dribbler in the first half.  In the Colorado game, there were a number (~16) of cases where the dribbler used a pick, but only one of them (2nd 13:31, Chiney) seemed inadequately handled, where a harder hedge would have been better.  She did step out, but could have taken another step or two because the dribbler's defender got stuck on the pick.  In particular, Mikaela handled a number of these just fine.