[2006alum]

[quote author=BobK link=topic=14661.msg157464#msg157464 date=1456769923]
You mention our top 3 defensive players win. What drop off on D are you talking about?

There seemed to be an implication that playing McPhee in place of Robertson and moving Thompson to the 1 would be a defensive dropoff.  Or did I misread that?
[/quote]

The closest I can think to this idea is that I seem to recall someone mentioning a chalk talk where one of the assistant coaches had cited to McPhee's ball handling and turnovers as a liability (and a reason for why she wasn't a starter even during our awful offensive outputs vs. Arizona St. and UCLA). I think at the start of the season, the coaches' view was that McPhee's offensive output wasn't sufficient to outpace her defensive liabilities (in terms of creating fast breaks or extra shots for the opposing team). So not so much that she didn't provide sound defense, but that it created too many opportunities for the opposing offense.  I think that's a really hard claim to make given recent results, especially as Bri has dropped off and Marta still hasn't developed a consistent jump shot.

[2006alum]

[quote author=BobK link=topic=14661.msg157464#msg157464 date=1456769923]
You mention our top 3 defensive players win. What drop off on D are you talking about?

There seemed to be an implication that playing McPhee in place of Robertson and moving Thompson to the 1 would be a defensive dropoff.  Or did I misread that?
[/quote]

The closest I can think to this idea is that I seem to recall someone mentioning a chalk talk where one of the assistant coaches had cited to McPhee's ball handling and turnovers as a liability (and a reason for why she wasn't a starter even during our awful offensive outputs vs. Arizona St. and UCLA). I think at the start of the season, the coaches' view was that McPhee's offensive output wasn't sufficient to outpace her defensive liabilities (in terms of creating fast breaks or extra shots for the opposing team). So not so much that she didn't provide sound defense, but that it created too many opportunities for the opposing offense.  I think that's a really hard claim to make given recent results, especially as Bri has dropped off and Marta still hasn't developed a consistent jump shot.