Hawkeye Women's Hoop season
- Thread starter IowaNiceHawk
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Turnovers 18-7 Iowa with less than a minute to go, and it seems at least half have to be lazy or oblivious pass attempts to the paint. They fed Monika tonight which worked because Northwestern had no answer for her, but the sloppy play and consistent late defensive collapses kept Iowa from coming back.
Had to turn the channel. Really sloppy basketball for Iowa. Really tough to watch women’s basketball and when they play like this it’s unwatchable. Clark had an off night and Iowa just went away from her. Kept pounding inside late in the game and it was turnover after turnover.
Most of the women’s games I’ve watched have just been brutally officiated and you seen obviously many more than I have. It’s like junior high or early high school bad. Sadly I’ve just gotten used to it but I don’t know how coaches don’t get tossed at half dozen times a year or more. It’s too bad because it certainly has en effect in flow and sometimes outcomes.
Big game this afternoon against #15 Ohio State. Iowa hasn't lost at Carver in almost two years so that streak is on the line. I think Iowa comes out motivated especially after their mistake-filled sloppy loss to Northwestern.
I think you meant three years. Last home loss in Jan. 2018. Tough game today. OSU killing Iowa on offensive glass in 3rd qrt. Close game heading to the 4th.
Caitlin Clark out there throwing little tantrums. Kinda lookin' like a bit of a crybaby.
They play pretty poor, sloppy basketball. Clark is like 1 step forward, 1 step back. Lots of turnovers and forcing up shots.
They mentioned Iowa has had one of the easiest schedules to this point, and it's certainly showing.
Here's my recap of the Ohio State loss. One of the more frustrating losses of the last few years, because they had the game nearly won multiple times. A lot of uncharacteristic mistakes in the 2nd half from poor press breaks to missed free throws to head-scratching late game coaching decisions.
https://www.goiowaawesome.com/iowa-.../15-ohio-state-84-iowa-82-throwing-away-a-win
https://www.goiowaawesome.com/iowa-.../15-ohio-state-84-iowa-82-throwing-away-a-win
Well, now teams know how to beat Iowa, by taking either Czinano or Clark out of the game.
I feel the 5th foul by Czinano in OT was Clark's fault. She led Czinano straight into a charge with her pass, without checking where a defender might be. Czinano was looking backwards to receive the pass so couldn't see in front of her, but Clark had the full view and should anticipate where the defender might be going.
I feel the 5th foul by Czinano in OT was Clark's fault. She led Czinano straight into a charge with her pass, without checking where a defender might be. Czinano was looking backwards to receive the pass so couldn't see in front of her, but Clark had the full view and should anticipate where the defender might be going.
I don't think Clark's FG attempt at the end of regulation was bad coaching. When the shot went up Bluder angrily threw her arms up and grabbed her head. Clark shooting with that much time on the clock was obviously not the plan. Maybe they were told to take an easy shot if they had one...but it wasn't an easy shot.
I just went back and watched the replay of that possession. Clark begins to attack with more than 20 seconds on the shot clock. The play just never looked like one of our typical last second shot plays. Usually Clark gets the ball and dribbles far away from the basket until the last few seconds. This time, Marshall got the inbound and didn't dribble out. Clark then went and got it and attacked a second or two later. Maybe Clark just went rogue, but there's nothing in the players actions that tell me a last second shot was planned. Clark executes the last second shot plays at least once or twice a game and all in far less important situations.
My take on Bluder's reaction is that she just realized that we left too much time and Ohio State had a chance at the win. She didn't put her hands over her head until Ohio State got the rebound.
Anyone else think double dribble should have been called on OSU when the ball rolled to half court and was picked up and dribbled? Should not have come down to that play, but seemed like a clear double dribble.
I did. That absolutely was double dribble. She lost control of her dribble, used both hands to regain control, then immediately began dribbling again. But she ‘got away’ with it.
A really good article from 538 here discussing some of the best freshman in the country with Clark featuring prominently. One big stat I took away is that the offense this year is averaging 113.7 points per 100 possessions. Last year Iowa's offense averaged 106.9 per 100 possessions.
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/womens-basketball-is-awash-with-standout-freshmen/
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/womens-basketball-is-awash-with-standout-freshmen/
Do the last 2 games alter your optimism, at least for this season? If the Hawks lose to Purdue, the schedule potentially sets up for a long losing streak. Watching the last 2 games, I don’t see a single player who is quick to the ball, and very few players who are strong with the ball. Last year Doyle and Ollinger were quick to the ball. This year there is no one. Clark is a phenom, but the team has some real shortcomings. Curious what the other WBB fans think.
Not really. I think it's added some clarity about where we stand in the conference (lower end of the upper half). Part of the problem is the conference has more depth at the top this year than in past years. I don't think last year's team was great, but got better results than we expected because of that lack of depth.
Overall I'd say the offense is better than I expected. The article from 538 I just posted shows the offense is scoring at a better rate this year, even with the careless turnovers. I also think this team rebounds better than I expected. It's a problem sometimes, but I was worried it would be a problem all the time. Clark's helped with that.
Defense has been the big issue. I thought it would be coming into the year, but it's been worse than expected. Czinano is a bad defender. So is Clark, though I think a decent chunk of that is effort. I'd say most of the other regulars are below average. Marshall can get a few good steals, but I haven't seen anything else to make me think she's a good all-around defender.
This team's ceiling moving forward (like the men's team now) will be about defensive effort. They've shown in some of their big comebacks that they can play passible defense. They just need to put the effort in to make defensive rotations faster. Our 2-3 zone shouldn't be nearly as bad as it normally is.
Very, very young team. Two close losses on the road to ranked teams. OT loss at home to #16 team in the country who had a fresh legs and a week to prepare. I think we're doing OK.
I was looking at the box score from last night, it surprised me. Iowa out rebounded OSU by 8, both teams had the same number ORB 13. Iowa also shot a better percent from 3-pt and ft, they made 5 more ft and 1 more 3-pt than them. The big difference and it was big, OSU was +20 in fast break, second chance, and points off turnovers.
Defense, rebounding, and turnovers have plagued Iowa for years, this year it seems to be magnified by the youth and it seems that 2 of those deficiency's show up in every game which makes it hard to over come. And it doesn't seem that Lisa is all that concerned about fixing these deficiency's. She did start pulling Clark during the Rutgers game when was making bone-head plays.
I'm beginning to believe Lisa recruits academics first than basketball ability, and its a good thing that Clark has both. Because she for the most part is the team, the team goes as she goes. I just hope she doesn't get too frustrated and decides to transfer.
Braydon is right Czinano can't play defense, and it affects the whole team. They pack it in inside leaving the outside wide open, so then you have Czinano of all players running out to the 3-pt line to defend the 3. I've never been a fan of zone defense, I call it a poor mans defense. It is ok to mix it in some with man.
Defense, rebounding, and turnovers have plagued Iowa for years, this year it seems to be magnified by the youth and it seems that 2 of those deficiency's show up in every game which makes it hard to over come. And it doesn't seem that Lisa is all that concerned about fixing these deficiency's. She did start pulling Clark during the Rutgers game when was making bone-head plays.
I'm beginning to believe Lisa recruits academics first than basketball ability, and its a good thing that Clark has both. Because she for the most part is the team, the team goes as she goes. I just hope she doesn't get too frustrated and decides to transfer.
Braydon is right Czinano can't play defense, and it affects the whole team. They pack it in inside leaving the outside wide open, so then you have Czinano of all players running out to the 3-pt line to defend the 3. I've never been a fan of zone defense, I call it a poor mans defense. It is ok to mix it in some with man.
Iowa State wins at Baylor. Could have had that longest home winning streak.
Here's my recap of the Purdue win. Adding on a bit: Clark and Czinano might be our two worst defenders, but for entirely different reasons. Most of Clark's issues are about ball-watching and effort. She needs to make rotations much faster, and needs to work harder to keep the ball in front of her. I think if she puts more effort and focus into defense, she could substantially improve even this season.
Monika's issues are mostly physical. She's not quick laterally and doesn't jump very high. Today's game was a great example. She couldn't defend the high ball screen because she couldn't get back to her defender quickly enough. I don't think she'll ever be a good defender because there's not much she can do to get faster.
Unfortunately, I think Clark's issues are making Monika's worse. 2-3 zone should be the team's best defense. It allows Monika to guard the zone closest to the basket and doesn't require her to move around much. But teams have been shooting too well from deep against the 2-3, in part due to Clark's rotation issues. To combat the three-point shooting we go man or triangle and two, but that forces Monika to guard a lot more space, making the defense weaker overall.
https://www.goiowaawesome.com/iowa-...1/01/5132/iowa-87-purdue-81-defensive-changes
Monika's issues are mostly physical. She's not quick laterally and doesn't jump very high. Today's game was a great example. She couldn't defend the high ball screen because she couldn't get back to her defender quickly enough. I don't think she'll ever be a good defender because there's not much she can do to get faster.
Unfortunately, I think Clark's issues are making Monika's worse. 2-3 zone should be the team's best defense. It allows Monika to guard the zone closest to the basket and doesn't require her to move around much. But teams have been shooting too well from deep against the 2-3, in part due to Clark's rotation issues. To combat the three-point shooting we go man or triangle and two, but that forces Monika to guard a lot more space, making the defense weaker overall.
https://www.goiowaawesome.com/iowa-...1/01/5132/iowa-87-purdue-81-defensive-changes
I was looking at the team's stats tonight and thought it might be interesting to compare this year's team so far to last year's team. One caveat: the sample size this year is a lot smaller, and Iowa also hasn't played a particularly difficult Big Ten schedule yet. At the same time, last year's team benefitted from some cupcake games this year's team won't get to play.
The stats are: this year's team---last year's team
PPG: 88.8---79.5
Opponent PPG: 80.0---70.5
FG% 50.5---48.5
Opponent FG% 43.7---40.1
3-point % 38.5---37.2
3s made per game 8.8---7.9
Opponent 3 % 32.9---30.8
Opp. 3s made per 8.8---6.8
Rebounds per 39.3---36.4
Opp. Rebounds per 34.7---37.4
Assists per 19.8---20.0
Turnovers 15.3---15.7
Some of these numbers track the eye test. This year's offense has been better than last year's, but the defense has been considerably worse. One stat that really jumps out is the number of threes that opponents make. Opponents are shooting slightly better from three against this year's team, but they're also making 2.0 more threes per game. That's a fairly big difference.
I was a little surprised at how much better this year's team is at rebounding, but Clark has helped with that pretty substantially. It's actually been a strength this year for the most part. I was also surprised that the turnover numbers are lower this year. Part of my surprise, I think, is that this team is very streaky with turnovers. Sometimes they have 7 or 8 a quarter, then have a quarter later with 1 or 0.
The stats are: this year's team---last year's team
PPG: 88.8---79.5
Opponent PPG: 80.0---70.5
FG% 50.5---48.5
Opponent FG% 43.7---40.1
3-point % 38.5---37.2
3s made per game 8.8---7.9
Opponent 3 % 32.9---30.8
Opp. 3s made per 8.8---6.8
Rebounds per 39.3---36.4
Opp. Rebounds per 34.7---37.4
Assists per 19.8---20.0
Turnovers 15.3---15.7
Some of these numbers track the eye test. This year's offense has been better than last year's, but the defense has been considerably worse. One stat that really jumps out is the number of threes that opponents make. Opponents are shooting slightly better from three against this year's team, but they're also making 2.0 more threes per game. That's a fairly big difference.
I was a little surprised at how much better this year's team is at rebounding, but Clark has helped with that pretty substantially. It's actually been a strength this year for the most part. I was also surprised that the turnover numbers are lower this year. Part of my surprise, I think, is that this team is very streaky with turnovers. Sometimes they have 7 or 8 a quarter, then have a quarter later with 1 or 0.
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I wonder if Clark's defensive issues come from conditioning. She looks to me to be VERY skinny. Maybe with her playing college minutes instead of high school she gets worn out running the team the whole game. Because with here height and quickness she has the ability to guard almost any other guard in the B1G, I think. Thoughts?
Clark played a lot of minutes in HS as well. I don't think it's conditioning though some of the issues could be tired legs and the need to improve hip flexibility and lateral movement. Playing defense puts a strain on a players body. She played in an offense oriented system in HS and now again in college. It takes time in the weight room to develop the muscle groups for fluid hip movement and to move quickly back pedalling or laterally.
Clark is tall and slender, but it's not a lack of muscle. She's just has a lean body build like a ballerina or other dancer. She does need to add bulk to her frame and that will take time in the weight room and at the training table.
However, other than tired legs (considering she's playing 30+ minutes in a very fast past paced offense) most of the defensive issues are awareness. Knowing when to help, when to double team, late close outs, etc. Defense is more about timing and awareness than anything. One of the reasons, Iowa was able to go a huge run against Purdue without Clark on the floor was the defensive awareness of the unit that was on the floor. We'll begin to see how good Clark can be as a defender after she has a year under her belt.
Also, when the opposing team is getting offense rebounds, forcing players to play defense for stretches between 1-2 minutes instead of 20-30 seconds, it really takes a toll on the defenders body. I suspect that in addition to limited defensive awareness, Clark's legs probably feel like falling off at the end of games. I imagine once the adrenaline wears offs she's probably feeling pretty banged up from all the driving and numerous collisions. She's tough but you see some of the abuse her body took against Purdue as she struggled to get off the floor a few times after being fouled.
