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WBB opens season with first practice

I thought this quote from Lisa was most interesting because it was very specific and insightful.

"It's nice to have everyone back, especially Tania," Bluder said. "When we lost her, we lost depth at that position and it was hard to run our offense against each other without two quality point guards. We have two very good point guards on this team."

From the clip, it was interesting to see some of the match-ups that Lisa was running. Also saw Ally posting down low and Megan apparently playing wing.
 
Megan has the ability to hit the 15 footer. Whit then went to the baseline and hit the jumper. I liked Chase's box out on that shot. She looks more solid and stronger.
 
Agree Oak.

It will be good for Chase to have to practice everyday against Megan.

They have a chance to be very good again this year. Just need to stay healthy, especially at the 1 and 5. Lots of interchangeable parts at 2,3, & 4 spots.
 
oakhawk said:
The good news is everyone is healthy and practicing. Christina and Tania included. Sounds like a lot of good competition.
http://www.hawkeyesports.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/100515aaa.html
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It looks to me like Peschel starts at the #4 and Ally @ #3 initially. Put the 2 pt. guards in the starting back court. Talk about matchup problems for the opponents.

It would really help if Claire could stay healthy for her Sr. season. She puts mental and physical toughness on the court.

There is no doubt Lisa will have a lot of options.

They will be vulnerable to teams that are big and experienced in the front court.

This team could really have some good depth by mid-season if the youngsters can come along and they stay healthy.
 
I think Ally got snubbed by the media. The way she played last year with the bad hand, she was better then a couple on the list.
 
I think Ally got snubbed by the media. The way she played last year with the bad hand, she was better then a couple on the list.
 
Media Swarm!
CRXuVGhUEAAXX3o.jpg
 
INXS83 said:
It looks to me like Peschel starts at the #4 and Ally @ #3 initially. Put the 2 pt. guards in the starting back court. Talk about matchup problems for the opponents. It would really help if Claire could stay healthy for her Sr. season. She puts mental and physical toughness on the court. There is no doubt Lisa will have a lot of options. They will be vulnerable to teams that are big and experienced in the front court. This team could really have some good depth by mid-season if the youngsters can come along and they stay healthy.
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What about Alexa? I was thinking she might start.
 
I don't think it really matters who starts. Very clear that those 3 girls will get most all of the minutes at the 1 & 2 spot.
 
91hawki said:
I don't think it really matters who starts. Very clear that those 3 girls will get most all of the minutes at the 1 & 2 spot.
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I agree. Other than these three, only Ally and Christina are possible at the "2", and I think they are ideal at the "3". It seems to me that they are short by at least one off guard in the 5'8"-5'10" range, while at the same time stacked at the forward positions, especially PF.
 
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PG- Davis & Whitney
SG- Whitney & Alexa
SF- Ally & Christina (and perhaps Alexa if you wanted to go small). I think Larson is a redshirt candidate if Christina is healthy.
PF- Kali & Mohns/Stewart/Claire
C- Megan & Chase & Claire

So, obviously a fairly deep team except that both Davis and Whitney must stay healthy (and the true posts (Megan and Chase) must stay healthy. I really think Chase is more of a 4 than a 5 but it is what it is.

Lisa has a lot of different options and interchangeable parts.
 
cyberhawk said:
What about Alexa? I was thinking she might start.
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I was on campus last week and got the opportunity to attend some practices for both the men and women.

Davis moves at a different gear than the rest of the guard court and ran circles around Kastanek. If the season were to start tomorrow the starters would be

1-Davis
2-Jennings
3-Distherhoft
4-Peschel
5-Coley/Gustafson (depending on matchups)

Kastanek was carrying some extra weight and looked really sluggish. Without going into detail, her nutrition over the summer and in Italy hasn't been the best, and she hasn't exactly been going as hard in her weight room and conditioning work as she should. I would expect her to get back in gear over the next 3 weeks.
 
91hawki said:
PG- Davis & Whitney
SG- Whitney & Alexa
SF- Ally & Christina (and perhaps Alexa if you wanted to go small). I think Larson is a redshirt candidate if Christina is healthy.
PF- Kali & Mohns/Stewart/Claire
C- Megan & Chase & Claire

So, obviously a fairly deep team except that both Davis and Whitney must stay healthy (and the true posts (Megan and Chase) must stay healthy. I really think Chase is more of a 4 than a 5 but it is what it is.

Lisa has a lot of different options and interchangeable parts.
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Three players to rotate at the two guard positions is good in game situations (as long they stay healthy). However, looking at the roster from a practice scrimmage point of view, they really need another off-guard. Although Ally is listed as a guard and could undoubtedly play the "2", I think she is best suited as a small forward. On the other hand, Christina is listed as a forward and is [in my opinion like Ally] well suited to play small forward but could also play off-guard. In that respect, I think they could be listed as G/F's (or "Wings") on the roster. Regardless, at least one of the two (if not both) will need to play the "2" in practice scrimmages. In games, I believe Whitney will play "1" and "2", Alexa "2", and both Ally & Christina will play the "3" but could possibly see time at "2" also.
As far as the four PF's you mention, at least one if not two will need to play SF in practice scrimmages. My question (not only to myself but also to anyone here) is whether either Kali and/or Carly have the skills to play SF? (Lisa has mentioned Carly's name multiple times in her recent press conferences for Carly's improvement from last year.) I think it's interesting that Lisa commented last week about playing three PG's (presumably Alexa at the SF) or a single PG with three PF's (2, 3 & 4). Maybe Lisa is sending a message to the team that some of those PF's on the roster are competing for time at the SF position.
I also agree with you about Chase. I think she would be an ideal stretch 4. Also, in my opinion, Megan could be considered a F/C. However, in Lisa's run & gun style, I believe it makes sense to have them at the "5".
Finally, the PG and C seem to be the main positions to stay healthy as the other three have so many players that can fill in.
 
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non-poster said:
I was on campus last week and got the opportunity to attend some practices for both the men and women.

Davis moves at a different gear than the rest of the guard court and ran circles around Kastanek. If the season were to start tomorrow the starters would be

1-Davis
2-Jennings
3-Distherhoft
4-Peschel
5-Coley/Gustafson (depending on matchups)

Kastanek was carrying some extra weight and looked really sluggish. Without going into detail, her nutrition over the summer and in Italy hasn't been the best, and she hasn't exactly been going as hard in her weight room and conditioning work as she should. I would expect her to get back in gear over the next 3 weeks.
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I was hoping [more than anything else] that Alexa would be ready to step up to the next level. I thought that she was playing very good last summer in the GTL, at least from a shooting standpoint. (If I remember correctly, I believe Lisa had singled-out Alexa for her progress in one of her quotes around the time of their summer foreign tour.) The one negative statistic from GTL that I noticed was her rebounding. Both Whitney and Tania had much better rebounding numbers than did Alexa. This is only my observation from the box scores (which perhaps were not all that accurate) as I did not actually see the games, so it is impossible to determine how her defense was. I am still hoping she can make a greater contribution to the team this year.
 
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Alexa is actually in better shape this year. But not in top shape. She lost conditioning the last two seasons with all her foot and ankle problems and hasn't gotten back to form.
Tania will run circles around a lot of players, she is extremely quick. And Whit is even quicker. They would make a back court that will give other teams fits.
Carly could be a 3. She shoots the three well. But it is better to have her at the 4 to take advantage of her rebounding.
Megan and Chase both can step out to 15 for the jump shot. Meagan has more low post moves. After watching highly ranked Sidney Cook and Maddie Treece this summer, I think Megan is just as good. I have been pleasantly surprised with her agility and shooting touch.
Iowa could use Chase and Megan together in a Doolittle-Johnson type of line-up. But I think the coaches are worried about depth at the post so it isn't likely.
Lisa has stated with their offense they need a PG and a post, the other three spots can be any type of player.
Ally can play Point, and did last year in order to take forwards and wings off the drive. So they have that option. She played a lot of point in HS and GTL. But, again, they need her rebounding.
They have a ton of good options at the Forward spots.Besides Carly, Hannah Stewart, Claire till, Kali Peschel, Tagyn Larson, and Christina Buttenham can all play some form of wing forward.
 
Cyber, I would expect (as do the coaches) that Kastanek will be in better game shape come the season opener.

Oak, the written word is tougher to decipher than the spoken, but your comment sounded like you felt the need to defend Lex. No one is attacking her, but having played, coached and still working with college level talent in various settings my observation was confirmed by talking to multiple coaches and strength and conditioning. At the time I saw her she was not in basketball ready shape and it has nothing to do with her foot or Davis.

Other insight in talking with the staff:

Mohns is the most improved player on the roster from last year. It took her a while to get the offense down. She is much more comfortable at the 4, but has a better grasp of the 5 if she was needed for some reason. Her footwork/defense would not make her a good choice to play the 3. As Oak said, this team needs some rebounding help in the front court and she can provide it. Peschel has great shooting range as a stretch 4 and there are some sets in the offense that can take advantage of that.

Expect more athletic teams to press this year given the shot clock rule change. One player that I saw work very well against press drills was Buttenham. She has played against some high level international competition. She is physical and her ball handling could give Iowa another option when bringing it up the court.
 
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On the Lex front....she had made some progress on the conditioning whe I saw her a few weeks ago. Still not where she needs to be. She could be quicker and less prone to foot and ankle problems if she dropped some weight. They had been starting her in Italy, but if she is backsliding it will cost her minutes. Not defending her, just posting observations.
Carly played good defense this summer, guarding some guards in the back court. Her three point shooting was more relaxed and not hurried like last season.
I think Buttenham and Mohns could be the x-factors this coming year.
 
UNC had at least 4 players transfer out. Maryland has a very fertile reciting area. They have had a couple very good seasons and have it rolling. OSU is becoming transfer central. They got UNC's leading player for one, and I think3 others.
 
oakhawk said:
On the Lex front....she had made some progress on the conditioning whe I saw her a few weeks ago. Still not where she needs to be. She could be quicker and less prone to foot and ankle problems if she dropped some weight. They had been starting her in Italy, but if she is backsliding it will cost her minutes. Not defending her, just posting observations.
Carly played good defense this summer, guarding some guards in the back court. Her three point shooting was more relaxed and not hurried like last season.
I think Buttenham and Mohns could be the x-factors this coming year.
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Trying to remember but I think it was Lisa who said during prep for Italy trip that in scrimmages, Alexas team usually won. That was a positive statement but means nothing now for regular season. Think she said that before Davis injury too

Am I remembering right??
 
With Tania out for the Italian tour, Iowa started Lex and Whit, Kali and Ally, and Chase.
Les also made it to the Championship game of GTL.
Her GTL stats: 25.8 ppg, 6.6 reb, 5 assists, FG pct 63%, 3pt 27%, FT 89%.
 
oakhawk said:
With Tania out for the Italian tour, Iowa started Lex and Whit, Kali and Ally, and Chase.
Les also made it to the Championship game of GTL.
HHer GTL stats: 25.8 ppg, 6.6 reb, 5 assists, FG pct 63%, 3pt 27%, FT 89%.[/Q
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Has Iowa had media day? For some reason I can't remember them having it, maybe because they haven't?
 
IamHawkeye said:
Has Iowa had media day? For some reason I can't remember them having it, maybe because they haven't?
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It might have been on Oct 15th? Anyway, go to hawkeyesports.com and Women's BB and - news - and there are 3 articles since Oct 15th.
 
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