NC_UBfan

Not sure how I feel about this game. Got the win which can’t be discounted especially on the road but man it was ugly. Lots of things to work on starting with FTs. Freshman KLW and Davis did a good job drawing fouls but combined 6-14 will cost a game. I’m sure Coach Burke and staff will have that conversation. The ball moment was good the first quarter but after that it was almost nonexistent. They defended the 3pt line really well only 4 made NIU avg 8 3pt makes a game. Build off this and be ready for Western Michigan Saturday

Unexpected start feeding Johnson. All shots have been within 10ft plan seems to be work inside and inside some more.

The teams play is night and day compared to non-conference.

Creativity, passion and support is the only thing stopping Alnutt. Most of the schools in MAC have functioning collectives supporting NIL deals for their student athletes except for UB. This is an old school 80s arms race and being left behind will lead to basement dwelling in all the majors sports….

I like where you are going I think your general point is corporate sponsorship and if Alnutt and Tripathi can get them on board to contribute to a collective

😮‍💨 gritty win!!! Not sure what else can be said about Watson she is a difference maker. Great team defense plenty of things to clean up but for this young team great win!

Good first half effort on the boards gave up a few possessions but breaking even with the size of Zips is a win. It was bound to happen Watson shots are not dropping but Ogden 3/4 from 3 is finally getting shots to drop. Great defense rotation let’s close them out!!

Broken record need 3rd/4th scoring options to off set what Watson and Lewis-Williams will make. Hopefully playing at home helps the shooting confidence. Need the same level of intensity on the defensive end and rebounding they had against Ball St. Bass and Riley crash the boards hard and draws lots of fouls so our front court needs to box out and guards crash weak side. It’s been proven we can compete with the top teams so every game is winnable.

Had a day to digest and can agree w/the sentiment this team is on the verge of being very good. Definity can agree we need a 3rd/4th consistent scoring options and its up to Coach Burke to put those players in the best situations to succeed. If they can quickly figure that out this is 11-14win team and all bets are off in the conference tournament. The rebounding and hustle for 50/50 plays has significantly improved. I can appreciate the level of intensity and passion they play with makes it fun to watch and follow.

I don't think you can script a better first quarter!!!!

Ball St is a very good team and will be a tough match up. First and foremost BB has to have the team prepared to with stand the press off makes, inbounds and misses. Our guards will be under constant pressure with reigning 2xDPOY Nyla Hampton so making good decisions will be a premium. Ball will turn us over but if we can limit it to less than 12 we could call that a win. Execution of half court sets once they break the press will be interesting will probably only have 15-18s to figure it out. Ball St will try to negate Watson so I think having the offense run through Lewis-Williams at the high post puts pressure because she is a willing passer and can finish at the rim. Need to have both Ogden and Rana making 3s scoring 20+ combined. Defending the 3pt line and rebounding to limit the possessions is always key for this team. Lots of variables but I think this will be a competitive game.

In principle totally agree but for this team lightly contest the 3 because CMU does not shoot it well and focus on rebounding no second chance points. 5/17 is ok because two of those were bricks that should have cracked the back board🤣. Being -2 rebounding against the size CMU has is good. Up 5 with Watson only 5-14 is a good half let’s stay out of foul trouble and close this out!!

Not sure if there could be a worse first half of play. Seemed like everything there was challenge by the player to do all the things to lose a game leave shooters open, poor communication, weak passes, feeble box outs, poor shot selection or not shooting. And once the hole was dug turn everything on its head and almost win. For the first time in a while Lewis-Williams played like freshman. Inconsistent with securing the ball 5TOs. Only taking 3 shots the entire game as the secondary scorer. Freshman Davis had by far her best game of the year when the ball went to her after halftime. Ogden’s and Rana’s inconsistent shooting was agin on display.Rana did make a few 3s the second half but Ogden was 2-13 1/9 3p The other two freshmen guards Wangolo and Lopez played tough defense when they got in the game during second half. Neither had a offensive impact but the communication picked up when they were in Watson made this is a respectable game but counting on daily 30pt performances is not ideal. If they only put together 3 decent quarters this could have been a come from behind win. Young team they have a quick turnaround game on the road Saturday can only hope they flush this one and get ready for CMU

Sabol is unconscious!!

With the non conference schedule completed (6-4) the identity of this team has kind of taken shape. Coach Burke has this group playing very tough defense in the half court and transition. The guards/wings are disruptive but our post presence has been pain point. Better communication has helped weak side rotation but defensive rebounding requires size and athleticism which we lack. Offensively transition scoring off defensive stops and as of late much improved half court execution. Here is my quick spin on The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. The Good Chellia Watson the kid can score in bunches but efficiently (21ppg 48%fg 47%3fg) Coach Burke eluded to how special she was and she picked up Player of the week honors The entire 2023 class, guess they can be called The Replacements. Jokes aside this is a solid class that has been productive and will be leaned upon. The development of Lewis-Williams, Davis and Lopez will be fun to watch. If Lewis-Williams keeps rolling (12.8 ppg 47%fg 6reb 3.1ast 1.3 stls) should be in the FOY conversation come March. The Bad As a team shooting only 67%FTs which is 7th in the MAC but lead MAC in FT attempts per game (21). This can cost us a game or two. https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/conferences/mac/women/2024.html Inconsistent scoring from Ogden, Rana and Johnson. Would like to see two of them avg 10-15ppg during conference play. The Ugly The seemingly inability to win the rebounding battle. I get the roster is limited from a post perspective but as a team this has to get better or it will cost them more than a few games. 0-3 on the road, would have been nice to come away with at least one win I think the team has been trending in the right direction. Between the talent on the roster and coaching can see them finishing with 12+ conference wins.

Solid win for the Bulls should have won by 15+ but still for where they are as a team not bad. Has to be said Watson is special such an efficient scorer. The 28pts came off 11/22 52%FG 6/9 66% 3P which crazy good. The half court offense looked better with the ball going through Lewis-Williams at the high post. High ball IQ made the right reads and had a career high 5ast which could have been more if either Ogden or Rana got going in the first half. Speaking of Ogden what confidence by the players and coaching to keep feeding her the ball going 0/5 at half to 6/10 all made 3Pt in the second half. Need to get both of them to score consistently. FTs as a team looked bad but it was freshman Davis going 4/12. She does a great job offensive rebounding and attacking the rim this will get better as she plays more. The overall team rebounding performance was just bad -17. Too many times our player were just out of position to make a play on the ball. Not sure how this gets improved but I’m sure Burke will be working on it. On the flip side only 6 TOs credit to the team for executing nearly mistake free. Now on to conference play!

And just like that Ogden shoots herself out of the slump!!

Not sure what is going on with Ogden 0-5 and Rana 0-6 in the first half. This is a blow out if either made half their shots.

Reading the upcoming game article posted by the team https://ubbulls.com/news/2023/12/29/womens-basketball-bulls-conclude-non-conference-action-on-saturday.aspx "Lewis-Williams currently ranks 13th in the MAC in scoring (12.7 ppg) and ninth in rebounding (6.0 rpg) and is first among all rookies in the league in both categories." I knew the freshman Lewis-Williams was doing well but she could be in contention for ROY with those numbers plus she is second in AST pg (2.9) behind missed recruit Page Kohler (3.5). There has to be a site that provides better conference wide metrics than the MAC site.

That is a very good question last I can recall seeing her was on the bench at the ODU game. Even when players like Take and Craig were injured they still sat on the bench for home games. Just hope its not a family issue or anything serious. I guess that explains why freshman G Lopez playing time had picked up. Which btw is brining her development forward she is very skilled.

Coming off Christmas break for the last game of 2023 looking forward to a dub to start the new year. Team rebounding and wining 50/50 plays are the two main things I’m looking for improvement both of which are up to player attitude. Solving the stagnant half court offense is kind of up there which is all on Coach Burke to resolve. More motion, off ball screens get the ball moving please!!! Getting plays that get Ogden going is absolutely needed as well. She doesn’t seem to have the ability or confidence to create for her self like Rana, Lewis-Williams or Watson, only 25% from 3pt so just hanging at the corner three is not working. More mid-post action give her option to get down hill draw fouls pull few ORebs and put backs. If she gets going and the rest of the team plays to their average this team will win and make noise during conference play.

Nice achievement from committed 6' 3' F Brianna Barr-Buday. https://buffalonews.com/sports/high-school/nichols-brianna-barr-buday-reaches-rare-1-000-points-and-1-000-rebounds-milestone/article_2799f680-9fa6-11ee-b4be-c714ceb0167e.html

Spot on Ogdens offensive production is crucial. She has been playing real tight these last three losses hope the break helps. The rebounding and 50/50 balls has got to be extremely frustrating for Burke because that’s just pure effort which you can’t coach that’s a pride thing. Crazy that an under sized post in Davis another freshman is out playing the upperclassmen post players.

Nah no affiliation just making great points! But seriously the team is actually not bad they have a NET ranking of 232/360. The two bad losses are Drexel and Le Moyne had every opportunity to win so blame can be laid at poor execution by the players and poor adjustments by the coach. The other two losses Stony Brook NET 63 and Old Dominion NET 100 are very good mid major programs. Unfortunately there is not a lot of metrics out there for the women’s game so all I really have to go by is NET. Realistically the goal should be finish top 3 in conference and make noise in the conference tournament.

That is not actually fair considering they did great St. Bonaventure,Niagara and Canisius. The only lopsided loss was to Stony Brook which is very good. A fair criticism would be the lack of cohesive half court execution or prolonged scoring droughts or lapses of defensive communication or intensity. All of which are fixable with the understanding the team is relying on crucial contributions from a freshman Lewis-Williams starting and two freshmen Davis and Lopez coming off the bench. Once they really get comfortable balancing school and basketball this team will be different. Until then there will be a learning curve highs and lows