B1G Game 13: Gophers Visit Iowa (2-9-22)

Donate To GopherHole
whalenfan said:
Its really tough defending Clark when you cant touch her at all and if your close to her shes gonna run it to you and flop. Some bad turnovers and shot attempts in the 4th. Really needed someone other than Scalia and Winters to help out.
Click to expand...
this 100% ... you can't breathe on her.. and if you get in her face she makes contact and flops.. also goodness does she whine.. she's like Parker who has still to this day hasn't committed a person foul.

9-2 for free throws in the 4th quarter.. Tawio had 6 free throws tonight, had 15 coming into the season also 14 ties a season high for her, first time scoring 14 since their game at Illinois..
 

Most super stars get the benefit of the doubt and the final FT # 's were us 15-17 and IO. 20-24. I admire Clark for staying home to play for her home state but this season she has been very annoying and this new diva behavior is not a good look.
 


I think there are a lot of things to feel good about: great effort, great team work, nine players scoring, everyone making contributions, competitive against a very good team, two players with big scoring, and more.
 

The good:
Energy, resilient, never stopped fighting.
Deja and Sara kept it close.

What didn't go so well:
-I dont think we were patient every 3 or 4 possessions.
-Smith should never take a jump shot without even making a pass to start the O. Smith dosen't see the floor real well
- I'm still a Kadi fan, but she hasn't made an elbow jumper all year. Pass and cut, be active on the boards, but jump shot it isn't working.
- Hubbard played great D on Clark but I didnt think she made the best decisions on Offense.
- Rose is going to be good, but those fouls are from being either a step behind or caught in the wrong spot on D.

Still I like the energy, the fight, so now on to a favorable stretch, lets see if we can string some W's together.
 



nonpareilonline.com

No rout this time, Hawkeyes hold off Gophers

IOWA CITY — That was then. This is now.
nonpareilonline.com nonpareilonline.com

"The way we beat them on their home court, they came in here wanting to beat us," Iowa guard Caitlin Clark said. "We knew this wasn’t going to be easy. Their offense was better. Their transition defense was better. I know I couldn’t get to the paint as easily as I did up there."

As coach Lisa Bluder put it, "It was a different game."
But, the Hawkeyes relied on their leaders to finish off the Golden Gophers.

Not only did Clark finish off her 32-point game with seven in the fourth quarter, Iowa pounded the ball into Monika Czinano, who shook off a 5-of-13 start from the field to hit five of the six shots she took in the fourth quarter.

"It would have been easy to get frustrated, but coach (Jan) Jensen trusts me and Caitlin and my teammates keep me going," Czinano said. "It was tough early, but once I got a couple to fall there, everything felt good."
Click to expand...
 

The Gophers last two games have been played against teams with depleted rosters that have experienced player transfers and/or injuries. This team plays way better together without Powell - I could have told you that 2 years ago. However, they need to look forward to next season. They are not going to win the BIG10 and are not tourney bound. At one point in the game last night, they had Helgren, Winters, Hubbard, Scalia, LBK in the game. Four of those five girls have 6 games left in their career. It's time to see what the players returning next year can provide. Especially Strande and Sconiers. We know what everyone else can and cannot do.
 

Clark reminds me of Diana Taurasi. Great talent, intense competitor. And a first class whiner. Worse yet, she gets away with it.
 




MOGopher said:
The Gophers last two games have been played against teams with depleted rosters that have experienced player transfers and/or injuries. This team plays way better together without Powell - I could have told you that 2 years ago. However, they need to look forward to next season. They are not going to win the BIG10 and are not tourney bound. At one point in the game last night, they had Helgren, Winters, Hubbard, Scalia, LBK in the game. Four of those five girls have 6 games left in their career. It's time to see what the players returning next year can provide. Especially Strande and Sconiers. We know what everyone else can and cannot do.
Click to expand...
The reality here is Scalia, Micheaux and Sissoko are back who will play significant minutes. Its a good core, but they desperately need another player like Deja and a 5 like Helgren. We need somebody or two who can score from the portal like Deja did this year. Plus we lose Hubbard and even though she has tapered off, she provides senior leadership. If we don't get anybody from the portal, then we are rebuilding and that is not a good plan.
I'm not sure what I see in store for Borowitcz, I personally think she is to small for this level. Strande is in the mix but I see her transferring because now she is competing with Battle and Braun too. Sconiers has potential but does she want it?
I think MN would be attractive to a player like Deja in the portal because we need an experienced scorer.
This offseason will be the most important to Whalen, she loses talent on a team below 500 and desperately needs a established portal player or 2 or 3
 

Whalen and staff get to see players like Strande and Sconiers every day in practice. I'm thinking that if these players were even marginally good enough, they'd be playing. I don't think any of us should be surprised if some Gophers will be entering the transfer portal after the season is over...maybe just for the sake of playing time in another program. I'm really hoping that the coaching staff can identify players in the transfer portal who can truly help the program and fill in areas where there is a need. Especially at the 4 and 5 positions, where Micheaux and Sissoko haven't really earned the playing time they've been getting. I still think Micheaux can have a good future here, but she'll have to be able to stay out of foul trouble and she'll have to step up her game. I look at a player like Iowa's Czinano and I think it's possible that Micheaux could eventually become that effective. Czinano is not a great athlete, but she is a very good player. It's obvious that she has worked on her game. Megan Gustafson was the same way, although probably a bit more talented. Not sure if that it the Iowa coaching staff, or the players...probably a bit of both.

One other non-related note as long as I'm rambling. Is there a national stat for the number of illegal screen calls a team gets? If there is, the Gophers have to be among the worse teams in the nation for this. I wish Lindsay & Co. would teach these players how to screen. Especially with the offense they want to run. Enough said.
 

tripledouble said:
Whalen and staff get to see players like Strande and Sconiers every day in practice. I'm thinking that if these players were even marginally good enough, they'd be playing. I don't think any of us should be surprised if some Gophers will be entering the transfer portal after the season is over...maybe just for the sake of playing time in another program. I'm really hoping that the coaching staff can identify players in the transfer portal who can truly help the program and fill in areas where there is a need. Especially at the 4 and 5 positions, where Micheaux and Sissoko haven't really earned the playing time they've been getting. I still think Micheaux can have a good future here, but she'll have to be able to stay out of foul trouble and she'll have to step up her game. I look at a player like Iowa's Czinano and I think it's possible that Micheaux could eventually become that effective. Czinano is not a great athlete, but she is a very good player. It's obvious that she has worked on her game. Megan Gustafson was the same way, although probably a bit more talented. Not sure if that it the Iowa coaching staff, or the players...probably a bit of both.

One other non-related note as long as I'm rambling. Is there a national stat for the number of illegal screen calls a team gets? If there is, the Gophers have to be among the worse teams in the nation for this. I wish Lindsay & Co. would teach these players how to screen. Especially with the offense they want to run. Enough said.
Click to expand...
I think you are giving this coaching staff too much credit for judging player ability. I'm confident Sconiers could have played productive minutes this season given the woes or Micheaux (travelling, screens setting, and fouling) and Sissoko (turnovers & fouling, plus can't go left). Strande would have been able to fill the role the Winters and Hubbard with no problem. She can score (much more so than Smith) and has played well when given the opportunity. Coaches should be building for the future versus plugging roster spots with Minnesota TP players and MN AAU teams. Whalen's inability to communicate and recruit outside of MN will ultimately be her demise. Especially, recruits from Iowa. Every Iowa team (UNI, Drake, Iowa, Iowa State) is heads above the Gophers. Plus, they pull kids from the best AAU program in the country.
 



I much rather have Micheaux in there over Sconiers. She has a much higher ceiling based on her athleticism, strength and youth. Sconiers is solid but has the same skill set as Micheaux but with a lower ceiling and Helgren has a whole different skill set than either, based on her height. I would like Strande to get more time too but imo she is not even on the same planet as Hubbard even less, Winters at present although I think she could be just as good as either over time. I think Strande at present is error prone and tentative. I was impressed that she was put in early in the last game with the game very much on the line. I do think she should get more time just for development sake. Sconiers has had a lot of development time but I would like to have seen here get more opportunities at times just to change things up when things are not going well. Honestly, the bench not getting as much playing time as I would like to see has been a theme no matter the coach (men's or women's) since I can remember. I would also agree that I think Strande has a higher ceiling for scoring than smith but smith has been very good at defense and more dependable with the ball, although she has plenty of room for improvement too.
 

I'm pretty sure Sconiers has battled a significant injury this season-she's been no where near 100%.
 


MOGopher said:
I think you are giving this coaching staff too much credit for judging player ability. I'm confident Sconiers could have played productive minutes this season given the woes or Micheaux (travelling, screens setting, and fouling) and Sissoko (turnovers & fouling, plus can't go left). Strande would have been able to fill the role the Winters and Hubbard with no problem. She can score (much more so than Smith) and has played well when given the opportunity. Coaches should be building for the future versus plugging roster spots with Minnesota TP players and MN AAU teams. Whalen's inability to communicate and recruit outside of MN will ultimately be her demise. Especially, recruits from Iowa. Every Iowa team (UNI, Drake, Iowa, Iowa State) is heads above the Gophers. Plus, they pull kids from the best AAU program in the country.
Click to expand...
Another " expert " predicting the demise of Whalen. Good thing for Hutch, U of MN., and the Lynx she lead her teams to previously unseen successes. Time will tell on her coaching career.
 

Ignatius L Hoops said:
I'm pretty sure Sconiers has battled a significant injury this season-she's been no where near 100%.
Click to expand...
I had not seen any evidence of this being an issue. If it was an issue I don't think she would have been put in the Iowa or Purdue games at all. Do you think this accounts for her not playing? Do you think she is a better option than Micheaux?
 



You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom