The Aggie women open their 2021-22 season at against the Urban Knights of the Academy of Art. This is the first ever regular season meeting between these two teams although the Ags beat the Urban Knights 77-34 back on November 3, 2017, in an exhibition game.
Rachel Nagel appearance in one of the DBGHCS photos on Instagram along with a note that she is joining the UCD staff. Doesn't say in what capacity or for how long. :chin:
edit: now I can't find that post. Mysterious!
edit 2: found it! Was on FB.
Day Before (the) Game Half-Court Shot. Don't know when the actual tradition started, but they've been posting pictures on social media for the last 2-3 years now. Team (and coaches) all line up and take half-court shots--if you make it, there's a silly posed photo with everyone. Looks very fun. :)
Worth noting that Trpcic could be somewhat turn-over prone, as well--she definitely had the offense running under her control, though, which will take time for Burns as you say. That said, starters minutes for Burns as a true frosh will be invaluable down the line, I think.
I'm a bit surprised how difficult the first two games have been for the Ags playing two lower division teams at home. We returned just about everyone so we have a lot of experience but we haven't played cohesively yet and that's worrisome. You would have expected that this team would have buried ACA and CSUEB and Jen would have be able to get a lot of minutes from the bench but, instead, we've struggled to pull away in these games. That doesn't bode well for us against much better teams.
It hasn't been the core group playing together much, though--Jen has been subbing early and often. I think she's been seeing what she's got off the bench before the games "count" and playing around with personnel packages. Burns is looking pretty good, but we'll see what happens when the rest of the conference decides to focus on her. Character moment! Shine is looking like she's going to be solid off the bench as a scorer, as well. Obviously, the better Svanholm does off the bench, the less of a drop off the team will have as a whole when Stobbart needs breaks.
I felt Sage looked rather tentative on court. Svanholm definitely showed skills - but seems to not have great hands.
Definitely like the look of Burns. She made some intensely frosh turnovers - cross court passes that might work in HS but not in college. She's had two games to gain valuable experience.
The defense didn't seem to be together. Blocking out wasn't what we've seen in the past. That will come - but it better come fast or St Mary's will have their way with the Ags.
I have enjoyed watching Jen improve as a coach. Remember her first year? Lots of foot stomping and frustration with her players. This year? Lots of positive coaching during the team huddles, the assistants giving one-on-one instruction. She and her entire staff have matured into a group that are fun to watch.
Nice summary, abridge. I think Jen and her staff are as good as any staff in women's college basketball. I'm glad we signed her to a long term contract recently but I still wouldn't rule out some Power 5 program coming after her with big bucks in the offer if she continues to elevate the Aggie program.
The Ags aren't firing on all cylinders yet like you would expect from such an experienced group in the two games they've played so far against lower division teams. There have been some spurts of excellence but there have also been some long stretches of disjointed play. I don't think Jen has been all that happy with what she is seeing at time either. She was pretty animated during a the time out in the game last night when the Ags were in a funk. Like you said, the team will need play much better to win against St Mary's.
Really cool to have Nagel -- I'd argue one of the key players who built the juggernaut -- still involved and providing mentorship. I think Hall may be the only current player who saw the floor with the Splash Sisters? The seasons are blurring together, in a good way.