After experiencing another late game collapse by the football team, the game today was completely refreshing. As I mentioned previously, I suspected the days between the Drake game and this one would have great dividends. Rest and practice do that to you when you are as young as this squad.
Cincinnati pulled into town with two hotshot players in tow…both nearly averaging double doubles and 20 ppg. As with Drake, one - Lovett - didn’t play. The other, Jamison, was held to a season low 8 points by our tenacious defense.
The first half was a bit of a slugfest. There were numerous fouls called, mostly on ISU even though it appeared the Bearcats had committed their fair share, without the calls. Along the way something interesting happened. Free throws kept Cincinnati in the game. A team that was shooting 59% on the season was a perfect 10-10 in the first half. That alone kept them relatively close as, like the Drake game, the visitors were shooting miserably. The difference here was the defense. Cincinnati was facing the most aggressive defense the sisters had put together all season. They were switching off, hustling, and making it a tough day for the Bearcats. Meanwhile, our sisters who normally shoot lights out at the line struggled. First, they didn’t get the calls to get to the line, but still missed opportunities that normally come easy.
The Cyclones would pull out in front early behind four quick points from a much more active Fernstrom. She was doing everything she didn’t do against Drake. She was moving, shooting, and fighting for rebounds. Apparently, the coaches message was clear. Yet, not matter what we did in the first half the Bearcats hung around. They pulled within two on a couple of occasions and were just doing enough to be pesky. I have to say, I was very impressed with #3, Ana Owens. She was fast and had an extremely quick first step off the dribble. On several occasions she blew right past our defender and made us pay when we didn’t make a shift to cover. She led the way for the Bearcats with 13 points.
Throughout the half Coach Fennelly continued to “play†with his lineups. It ranged from 3 frosh on the floor to a group of veterans. One particular observation I made concerned this later group. When the returning players from last year’s squad were on the floor together it seems like the game was a mirror image of last year’s team. The ball stayed at the three point line and there was no movement to attack. We passed the ball until little time remained and then rushed up a quick shot that usually missed. It was like a flashback. When Coach mixed in the new players, the whole complexion of the team changed. There was movement. People sliced down the lanes. The passes were crisper and had an edge to them. It was readily apparent that the new players are having a profound impact on not only the team’s game, but in the energy they transmit to the other players. When Coach shifted back to a lineup that incorporated this energy towards the end of the half you could sense a shift taking place. Using it the team edged out to an 8 point lead at intermission 38-30. That’s as close as the game would be the rest of the way.
The ladies came out on fire on both ends in the second half. It didn’t seem to matter who was on the court there was a “killer’s†mentality out there. After some of the great plays you could see hands being slapped and chests being bumped. It was fun to see this mentality that has been missing in the past. Fernstrom continued to play well inside, confusing the opponents with moves both left and right. Our guards, particularly Moody and Seanna, slashed the lanes for layups. With Bell in the game you often got to see Moody shift to a 2 or 3 position that allowed her to roam and attack. Bell quickly showed both her speed and sweet shot and she hit mid and long range jumpers while also driving in close to score 7 points. Seanna even handled point duties. The depth and capability of this team was clearly on display. Brynn was still stroking that sweet, sweet shot and hustling around the floor for rebounds (5). One observation I made about her is that it appears she is much trimmer than last year. She seems quicker because of it. The best part about the second stanza was the shut down defense. The posts were doing quite well down low, but it was particularly satisfying to see Maddie in there. Defensively she made her presence known. Her stat line may not have been impressive, but she changed things.
The defense and a constantly attacking offense swelled the lead little by little. There were 6 and 8 point runs and when the Kidd hit a three with a few minutes left you could literally see shoulders slump on the Bearcats team. They had been beaten into submission. The final score, 85-54 in the Sisters’ favor.
Observations
POG - In a game like this its tough to say, but I have to give it to Seanna. 13 points, 9 boards and 5 assists to go along with an amazing 4 steals is like a slam dunk. She was everywhere (surprised?).
Brynn continues to play solid senior ball. She is shooting consistently, playing shutdown defense, and contributing in ways that she didn’t previously. Her leadership is readily apparent and she is going to be fun to watch all year if this continues.
Moody is showing us what she is capable of and also showing that she worked on her game in the off-season. It always frustrated me to see her clank layups after slicing drives to the hoop. Now she still slices, but she has a much softer touch. Her confidence in her three ball is also apparent. She is showing what I think Coach Fennelly was looking for.
The posts. It couldn’t have been worse than against Drake when they snagged a whopping 2 boards. Today? They got 7 (still not good enough), but their presence was made known. There is still work to be done here. Fernstrom needs to work on footwork. She is slow to shift and you can see she has some bad habits from high school on defense (sometimes lets guards by and tries to block from behind. In college that spells FOUL). Maddie is doing well on D but isn’t showing any signs of an offensive game. Jensen and Ricketts’ minutes were greatly reduced.
Free throws - What was going on out there? First, we can’t get to the line (only 5 in the first half) and then we can’t hit them (53% on the game). You can’t even point to the frosh here. Our vets missed their share too.
Assists and turnovers. Drake? 20 turnovers. Tonight? a 20-8 ratio on the good side. We had and early 3-4 ratio early so that means the rest of the game was 17-4. I’ll take that any day of the week. The team took much better care of the ball today.
Lineup - The main rotation is 8 players deep and several other players are getting good minutes. This will pay big dividends as the season goes on.
Overall, a big step forward. The ladies head to San Fran for a holiday tournament with games against Wyoming and St Mary’s on Friday/Saturday. Included in the trip is a stop to Alcatraz. Hopefully no one will be left behind there!
Have a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving. We all have more to be thankful about than we can imagine.
Cincinnati pulled into town with two hotshot players in tow…both nearly averaging double doubles and 20 ppg. As with Drake, one - Lovett - didn’t play. The other, Jamison, was held to a season low 8 points by our tenacious defense.
The first half was a bit of a slugfest. There were numerous fouls called, mostly on ISU even though it appeared the Bearcats had committed their fair share, without the calls. Along the way something interesting happened. Free throws kept Cincinnati in the game. A team that was shooting 59% on the season was a perfect 10-10 in the first half. That alone kept them relatively close as, like the Drake game, the visitors were shooting miserably. The difference here was the defense. Cincinnati was facing the most aggressive defense the sisters had put together all season. They were switching off, hustling, and making it a tough day for the Bearcats. Meanwhile, our sisters who normally shoot lights out at the line struggled. First, they didn’t get the calls to get to the line, but still missed opportunities that normally come easy.
The Cyclones would pull out in front early behind four quick points from a much more active Fernstrom. She was doing everything she didn’t do against Drake. She was moving, shooting, and fighting for rebounds. Apparently, the coaches message was clear. Yet, not matter what we did in the first half the Bearcats hung around. They pulled within two on a couple of occasions and were just doing enough to be pesky. I have to say, I was very impressed with #3, Ana Owens. She was fast and had an extremely quick first step off the dribble. On several occasions she blew right past our defender and made us pay when we didn’t make a shift to cover. She led the way for the Bearcats with 13 points.
Throughout the half Coach Fennelly continued to “play†with his lineups. It ranged from 3 frosh on the floor to a group of veterans. One particular observation I made concerned this later group. When the returning players from last year’s squad were on the floor together it seems like the game was a mirror image of last year’s team. The ball stayed at the three point line and there was no movement to attack. We passed the ball until little time remained and then rushed up a quick shot that usually missed. It was like a flashback. When Coach mixed in the new players, the whole complexion of the team changed. There was movement. People sliced down the lanes. The passes were crisper and had an edge to them. It was readily apparent that the new players are having a profound impact on not only the team’s game, but in the energy they transmit to the other players. When Coach shifted back to a lineup that incorporated this energy towards the end of the half you could sense a shift taking place. Using it the team edged out to an 8 point lead at intermission 38-30. That’s as close as the game would be the rest of the way.
The ladies came out on fire on both ends in the second half. It didn’t seem to matter who was on the court there was a “killer’s†mentality out there. After some of the great plays you could see hands being slapped and chests being bumped. It was fun to see this mentality that has been missing in the past. Fernstrom continued to play well inside, confusing the opponents with moves both left and right. Our guards, particularly Moody and Seanna, slashed the lanes for layups. With Bell in the game you often got to see Moody shift to a 2 or 3 position that allowed her to roam and attack. Bell quickly showed both her speed and sweet shot and she hit mid and long range jumpers while also driving in close to score 7 points. Seanna even handled point duties. The depth and capability of this team was clearly on display. Brynn was still stroking that sweet, sweet shot and hustling around the floor for rebounds (5). One observation I made about her is that it appears she is much trimmer than last year. She seems quicker because of it. The best part about the second stanza was the shut down defense. The posts were doing quite well down low, but it was particularly satisfying to see Maddie in there. Defensively she made her presence known. Her stat line may not have been impressive, but she changed things.
The defense and a constantly attacking offense swelled the lead little by little. There were 6 and 8 point runs and when the Kidd hit a three with a few minutes left you could literally see shoulders slump on the Bearcats team. They had been beaten into submission. The final score, 85-54 in the Sisters’ favor.
Observations
POG - In a game like this its tough to say, but I have to give it to Seanna. 13 points, 9 boards and 5 assists to go along with an amazing 4 steals is like a slam dunk. She was everywhere (surprised?).
Brynn continues to play solid senior ball. She is shooting consistently, playing shutdown defense, and contributing in ways that she didn’t previously. Her leadership is readily apparent and she is going to be fun to watch all year if this continues.
Moody is showing us what she is capable of and also showing that she worked on her game in the off-season. It always frustrated me to see her clank layups after slicing drives to the hoop. Now she still slices, but she has a much softer touch. Her confidence in her three ball is also apparent. She is showing what I think Coach Fennelly was looking for.
The posts. It couldn’t have been worse than against Drake when they snagged a whopping 2 boards. Today? They got 7 (still not good enough), but their presence was made known. There is still work to be done here. Fernstrom needs to work on footwork. She is slow to shift and you can see she has some bad habits from high school on defense (sometimes lets guards by and tries to block from behind. In college that spells FOUL). Maddie is doing well on D but isn’t showing any signs of an offensive game. Jensen and Ricketts’ minutes were greatly reduced.
Free throws - What was going on out there? First, we can’t get to the line (only 5 in the first half) and then we can’t hit them (53% on the game). You can’t even point to the frosh here. Our vets missed their share too.
Assists and turnovers. Drake? 20 turnovers. Tonight? a 20-8 ratio on the good side. We had and early 3-4 ratio early so that means the rest of the game was 17-4. I’ll take that any day of the week. The team took much better care of the ball today.
Lineup - The main rotation is 8 players deep and several other players are getting good minutes. This will pay big dividends as the season goes on.
Overall, a big step forward. The ladies head to San Fran for a holiday tournament with games against Wyoming and St Mary’s on Friday/Saturday. Included in the trip is a stop to Alcatraz. Hopefully no one will be left behind there!
Have a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving. We all have more to be thankful about than we can imagine.
