jonson

"Pubic" or "Punic"--or a joke?

I've defended Graves here (a long time ago) and on the 247 site, but I now think that, for reasons I can't quite get a handle on, the program is in free-fall, with this year a total disaster and, as far as I can tell, no sign that things will get better. One of the things I find especially disappointing is the lack of improvement by the two sophomores who were supposed to be this year's leaders (Gray and VanSlooten). I realize that isn't necessarily Graves's fault, but it's been the story for most everyone on the team for several years now--not to mention the fact that he suddenly can't recruit shooters--or perhaps more accurately, the shooters he does recruit seem to regress once they arrive--unlike, say, the shooters on even some of his pre-Sabrina teams. He obviously still looks like an improvement after the Bev Smith mediocrity and Westhead disaster, but WBB has become increasingly popular in recent years (South Carolina, for example, regularly draws nearly 14K fans, and there are now numerous games on national TV every week) and UO seems to be getting further and further behind. Graves has been a very successful coach--at Gonzaga for a very long time and here during the Sabrina years--but I now (reluctantly) think it's time for a change.

I think that this was a really gritty victory not only because Arkansas is good and a very difficult match-up, but also because of the shock from Jenna Isai's decision, about which even her roommates (the other 3 freshmen) apparently knew nothing. What seems especially puzzling is the fact that she came to San Diego with the team, participated in the team dinner Monday night, and then? Perhaps we will know more within a couple of days. In any case, I hope she finds whatever it is she wants/needs. I also think that Te-Hina was kind of overwhelmed playing in front of family and friends during the first half, but not, fortunately, the second. So, on to Ohio State with a roster of 8.

I think it's a little unfair to talk about jelling "after Sedona retired" since we never had a chance to see what this team might have looked like with her. That said, it's certainly true that Philly has made the most of the added minutes, and maybe Grace as well. And, as much as I feel bad for Sedona, that's a very good thing. I think most fans have theories about what went wrong with the heralded top rated class of 2020. My sense is that what (to me) initially looked like a major plus--the fact that 3 of them were best buds before coming to Eugene and, as such, sort of a package--turned out to be really bad for team chemistry, and perhaps even for the three of them as well, since Parrish and Watson seem to be doing better at their new locations. But, in any case, this years group is very different and a pleasure to watch; I also think they have a far higher upside as well (discounting Tehina; I'd love to hear her take on the 3 that transferred at the end of last season.) Other than Tehina, there was no one in the 2020 class comparable to Grace or Chance or even Jenna, and I think Jackie Nared Hairston deserves a lot of credit for that.

Not mentioned above, or maybe not emphasized enough, was the play of Taylor Hosendove, who almost had a double/double and seems like a completely different player than she was with her late start a year ago or even early this season. She rebounds, plays defense, runs the floor, and has become a backup front court player upon whom Graves can depend. I used to worry when she entered a game, but not anymore.

I think Graves is right to be positive about this loss/team. Yes, they should have won--and would have if Rogers hadn't had the worst game I've seen from her in an Oregon uniform (8 turnovers + some other questionable decisions) and the team remembered how to make free throws. (They were actually quite good early in the season; don't know what's happened in the past couple of games.) They also didn't get much help from the more experienced guards on the bench. (I thought Hosendove was solid.) But--on the positive side of things, the best 4 on the court were the 3 freshmen + Philly (who is, I believe, still the youngest, and surely the least experienced, player on the team). VanSlooten certainly deserves all the praise she's getting, but Isai was also terrific, and, although she didn't score much, Chance Gray seemed to me quite composed and the best perimeter defender on the team (by a lot). And Philly--well, she just seemed more in control than she has been in the past. More minutes, and the better conditioning that requires, will only make her impact even greater. Time will tell (obviously) how much better they can/will get, but if North Carolina isn't massively over-ranked, and there aren't any more serious injuries, this team has the potential to be the best Oregon WBB team post-Sabrina. And, in any case, it is (to me) a breath of fresh air after the past season.

"Closest to date" may be accurate, but it is also more than little misleading: a 37 point win on the road vs. 2x43 point wins at home. I realize that comparative scores don't mean much, but I do think it's worth noting that Iowa State (a potential future opponent and currently ranked in the top 10) beat Southern by 22, and that was on their (iowa State's) home court.

I know it's early but this trio looks so much stronger than the trio that transferred after last season. With none of them playing more than 26 minutes they scored 20 (VanSlooten), 17 (Isai), and 14 (Gray) points, had 10 assists (vs. 4 turnovers), and 5 steals. I don't recall seeing anything close to those numbers all season from the departed. The team overall also looks so much more focused, fluid, relaxed, and committed than last year's version. (With some exceptions, of course.) But: there is a lot of depth at the guard position, but a major injury up front, especially to VanSlooten, would be a major blow. So fingers crossed on that.

Here is an ESPN story on impact freshmen, with a bit of a write-up on VanSlooten. There is a similar article on the Athletic, but since it's only available to subscribers I can't link it. However, both Gray and VanSlooten make their list of the top 15 freshmen. (There are 4 others on the list from the Pac12; no other team has two.) It points out that, among other things, Gray is the #2 point guard in the class and VanSlooten will be (their words) a "mismatch nightmare." https://www.espn.com/womens-college-basketball/story/_/id/34913241/instant-impact-freshmen-2022-women-college-basketball-preview

I'm obviously a new poster here and likely too long-winded for many, but, as someone who has watched/attended WBB games for a little over 30 years now, I feel that comments like this one seem to downplay a history with which I am familiar (I wasn't around for the Bev Smith years), as well as undervalue Graves's accomplishments both here and at Gonzaga. First, the history (as I see it, at least): I began watching/attending games in the late 1980s. The results were up and down initially--some good teams, some not so good, but after Jody Runge's arrival in 1994 the results improved (and became more consistent) with a couple of league championships around 2000 and multiple NCAA tournament appearances, all of which ended no later than the round of 32. After Runge was fired, Bev Smith had some early success but her overall results were (like Ernie Kent's) inconsistent (nor were they equal to Runge's) and she was fired after going 14-17 in 2007-08 and 9-21 in 2008-09. Pat Kilkenny's pal Paul Westhead then (imo) nearly destroyed the program (only one winning season--18-16--over 5 years), making it a source of bewilderment, if not ridicule, in the process (maybe some folks here remember Geno Auriemma's incredulous reaction to the team's style of play after UCONN obliterated Oregon late in Westhead's tenure). Graves's record over the past 6 years (and in a conference far stronger WBB-wise than the one Runge or Smith or Westhead had to navigate) includes 3 Pac12 championships and, in order, two Elite 8's, a Final 4, a really good shot at a national championship derailed by Covid, a Sweet 16, and an NCAA appearance the ended early. The last two were post-Sabrina and with teams decimated by injuries to key players (Paopao. N. Sabally, Prince). None of his predecessors over the the history I've summarized are even remotely in that ballpark. Indeed, as disappointing/frustrating as the last two seasons have been, they are still better than Runge's best, NCAA Tournament-wise, since I don't believe that any of her teams (or Smith's or Heiny's) reached the Sweet 16. Was Sabrina absolutely central to/the catalyst for his best years? Of course. But one could also say something comparable about any successful WBB program or coach. Consider the sport's gold standard UCONN for a moment: if one assumes (as I do) that the Elite 8 is our program's "promised land" at present, then for UCONN it's a national championship. And they have (I think) 11 of them--with ALL of those teams, and this is my key point, led by at least one current or future Hall of Famer--Rebecca Lobo, Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, Maya Moore, Tina Charles, Breanna Stewart--3 of whom are in the conversation for the greatest WBB player of all time, not to mention rosters filled with a host of others who are just short of that level. After the third of Taurasi's titles UCONN didn't win another championship until 5 seasons later. So--are we to assume that Auriemma somehow lost the ability to coach and then suddenly rediscovered it? Or it is more reasonable to assume that an important key to winning another championship (as he has often acknowledged) was the arrival of Maya Moore in Storrs? In short, having a bunch of uber-talented players on the roster (a bunch of Satou's or Ruthy's in Oregon-speak) apparently wasn't enough for arguably the greatest coach in WBB history; it took someone akin to a Sabrina (or a Taurasi, or, etc., etc.) together with good coaching. Neither is sufficient by itself. And, again, Auriemma has himself said that on numerous occasions. Now, in the world of WBB Oregon is clearly not UCONN. Nor is it (at this point) South Carolina or even Louisville. We don't reload; we rebuild. So the wait for us post-Sabrina is apt to require some patience, as well as an acknowledgment that the Covid year squad may never be equaled, let alone bettered, even if we hope otherwise (as I do). There are lots of reasons for this, one of them being that we aren't located in what anyone would call a recruiting hotbed for WBB; another is that Tara and Stanford typically have their pick of the best WBB recruits in our area (and elsewhere), since that school's degree has so much to offer anyone who can qualify (and in WBB that's a hefty number of the best players: see Cameron Brink from outside Portland). In saying this I don't mean to imply that Graves has no flaws or shouldn't be criticized. In my view, he certainly deserves the latter for not evaluating most of the members of the heralded 2020 recruiting class very accurately (as does Mark Campbell, who, if I've got the years right, was the lead recruiter for that group). And there other (negative) things to be said as well. But, at this point, I think he deserves more credit, as well as more patience, that some folks seem willing to give. On a less defensive note: based on the Friday exhibition, I believe that the top 3 recruits in this year's class are a major upgrade over the trio that left after last season--in talent, certainly, but also in athleticism, speed, attitude, motor, commitment, basically anything that comes to mind.