JoePgh
Cranky pants and wise acre
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2011
- Messages
- 3,685
- Reaction Score
- 21,455
To me, the big news occurred after the game. As I was driving home, I heard CD being interviewed on the radio postgame show. She was asked when the 3 injured players would return, and she volunteered the fact that while it all depends on the orthopedist's opinion, she thinks Natalie Butler could be back before the date previously mentioned. She said "They say 4-6 weeks" (after surgery, I presume), "and we hope it's closer to 4 than 6."
As I recall, Natalie's surgery was right around the time of First Night, in mid-October. So four weeks after that would be the Ohio State game, or more realistically the Kansas State game. That would be great if it happens.
CD said that Saniya had practiced briefly this week, but stopped after she continued to feel discomfort. CD did not say anything new about Ms. Boykin. (I use that form because I can't remember how to spell her first name!)
For what it's worth, after watching the game, I think all doubt has been removed about who the 5th starter will be -- it will be Gabby. CD had another interesting comment about her after the game: "Geno and I were talking, and we don't think we have ever had a player in the program as athletic as Gabby. Yes, Moriah is athletic, but at her size, no one has ever been more athletic than Gabby." The interviewer said, "What about Maya?" CD immediately and emphatically said, "No, not Maya. Maya had slow feet. Gabby does not have slow feet. Maya was the most relentless player we have ever had -- she went all out in every game, every scrimmage, and every practice. We use her as an example of that. But she was not as athletic as Gabby." Quite a statement.
One last, unrelated observation about the game: Someone asked after the last game whether there is any reason to believe that Napheesa is an especially good defender. I thought after Monday's game that she seemed to have that ability, and today's game confirmed it (to the extent that the level of opposition allowed any conclusions to be drawn). Napheesa can move her feet to go laterally and stop a drive, just as Moriah, Kia, and Gabby can. She has a lot of flexibility in her body, and she has long arms and unusually long legs. She got several contested defensive rebounds that I don't think most people her size would have gotten. On offense, she seemed to be in the right place under the basket and behind the zone defense, an I thought she would have had 6 to 8 more points if the guards had found her with passes. So far, she hasn't hit any shots that weren't right under the basket, and she has missed a number of those, but I think that is just freshman jitters.
As I recall, Natalie's surgery was right around the time of First Night, in mid-October. So four weeks after that would be the Ohio State game, or more realistically the Kansas State game. That would be great if it happens.
CD said that Saniya had practiced briefly this week, but stopped after she continued to feel discomfort. CD did not say anything new about Ms. Boykin. (I use that form because I can't remember how to spell her first name!)
For what it's worth, after watching the game, I think all doubt has been removed about who the 5th starter will be -- it will be Gabby. CD had another interesting comment about her after the game: "Geno and I were talking, and we don't think we have ever had a player in the program as athletic as Gabby. Yes, Moriah is athletic, but at her size, no one has ever been more athletic than Gabby." The interviewer said, "What about Maya?" CD immediately and emphatically said, "No, not Maya. Maya had slow feet. Gabby does not have slow feet. Maya was the most relentless player we have ever had -- she went all out in every game, every scrimmage, and every practice. We use her as an example of that. But she was not as athletic as Gabby." Quite a statement.
One last, unrelated observation about the game: Someone asked after the last game whether there is any reason to believe that Napheesa is an especially good defender. I thought after Monday's game that she seemed to have that ability, and today's game confirmed it (to the extent that the level of opposition allowed any conclusions to be drawn). Napheesa can move her feet to go laterally and stop a drive, just as Moriah, Kia, and Gabby can. She has a lot of flexibility in her body, and she has long arms and unusually long legs. She got several contested defensive rebounds that I don't think most people her size would have gotten. On offense, she seemed to be in the right place under the basket and behind the zone defense, an I thought she would have had 6 to 8 more points if the guards had found her with passes. So far, she hasn't hit any shots that weren't right under the basket, and she has missed a number of those, but I think that is just freshman jitters.