Let's hear it for Queen Egbo

34,427 Views | 139 Replies | Last: 4 yr ago by Chibears2
Onward Go
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mimi25408 said:

Queen was excellent on her free throws. There was one play in particular at the end where she is posting up in front of her man and screaming for the ball, Not once but twice. Caitlin Clark precedes to ignore her both times and pass the ball elsewhere . Queen looked so agitated at that point. Couldn't help but think that Mulkey would have put Clark on the bench quick, fast, and in a hurry.
Completely agree. I found myself thinking that it's good for Queen that she plays at a school and for a coach that utilizes post play. Some of it might just be the experience of the girls playing, but it seemed like the aim was to mostly have the guards doing the shooting.
slimecap
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Onward Go said:

I found myself thinking that it's good for Queen that she plays at a school and for a coach that utilizes post play. ... it seemed like the aim was to mostly have the guards doing the shooting.


Louisville coach Jeff Walz is the U19 team head coach.
Ask Erin DeGrate whether Walz favors guards or posts.
WacoKelly83
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Is that Joe Biden? Creepy Dad photo
slimecap
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WacoKelly83 said:

Is that Joe Biden?
Jeff Walz, Louisville head basketball coach
slimecap
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QUEEN EGBO 20 July 2019 vs Australia

MIN PTS 2PTS 3PTS FT
15:35 10 3/8 0/0 4/4

OREB DREB TREB AST PF TO STL BLK
1 2 3 0 2 0 2 0
Chibears2
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I thought Queen could have posted up a little harder and could have worked a little harder for rebounding position, but she certainly was as good as anyone else on the court. I think the next step for her is just to go flat out 100% every play regardless of the circumstances and without having to be prodded by a coach yelling "motivation." I say that, and then remind myself that putting forward your best even when no one is requiring you to is "life" maturity, and something I was still learning long after I graduated college, and here I am critiquing Queen during an under 19 event. Under 19! She will get there, I have no doubt, especially with Coach Mulkey as her "life" coach.

On the flip side, I thought she posted up big and asked for the ball much better in the second half, and you could see her when she was running out to play defense on perimeter, breaking down and putting her hands up just like they do in their defensive drills. And, as mentioned, her free throw shooting was stellar. Not only did she make them, but she looked smooth and relaxed stroking them in. I believe, barring anything unforeseen, that Queen and NaLyssa will have the ability to lead us to another Final Four as upperclassmen.
willtalk
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Unless they are not in a high profile program, it is often better for players to pass up "Team USA" opportunities. Playing year-round does them no long term good. And often they are too dependent on the coaches system to give them an opportunity to shine. Other than just getting one's foot into the system for future opportunities it is not really that much of an advantage for someone in a program like Baylor's. It's more to the advantage of players in mid-major programs who need the exposure.
GarlandBear84
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Why do you think she only played 15 minutes? Is there a better post player in front of her? Thanks for sharing your comments on the game.
Chibears2
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I think Van Lith was the only non committed player on roster. UConn's top recruit was there, as were two Stanford commits, a Maryland and a Louisville recruit. Joens from Iowa State was on there, as well. There was an Oregon recruit playing for Australia. Perusing the rosters for the other national teams, I was surprised to see how many were either already playing, or were slated to play, in the States at the D-1 level.

On a side note, Van Lith stood out for her hustle and motor. She is already a very good player, but has room for lots of improvement. High floor/high ceiling. I think Lady Bear fans would love watching her game grow over four years under Mulkey's tutelage.
WacoKelly83
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Caitlyn Clark is almost uncommitted
Chibears2
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GarlandBear84 said:

Why do you think she only played 15 minutes? Is there a better post player in front of her? Thanks for sharing your comments on the game.
They try to get everyone in on a rotation. Fifteen minutes was pretty close to average. She didn't start, so starting post got like two more minutes. The starter, Howard, I think, played a little less tentatively. Really, Queen was just as good as everyone else, I just know how hard she has been taught to post up, and I thought she didn't show that like I thought she would. I was yelling at the screen, "You've posted up Kalani Brown everyday in practice! No one on Australia's team is that good! Post her up!" When they did get the ball into her, her post moves were very smooth and natural. I just thought she would have gotten the ball more if she had gotten low and wide and held them off with off arm.

If you have YouTube, just search FIBAU19 and you'll see game listed. All of the games played already, in fact. Got it on my tablet and mirrored to TV.

(BTW, Walz didn't go easy on them. One particular timeout, you can hear him really chewing someone out as they came off the court.)
Chibears2
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WacoKelly83 said:

Caitlyn Clark is almost uncommitted
Hmmm.... Curious what you mean here. A reference to the way she played (fewest minutes and not particularly impressive when on court), or inside knowledge on recruitment. She was lanky; she was long limbed, but seemed physically immature, as if her body is still trying to get coordinated with its length.... I think she has potential, but it might be potential that doesn't materialize. Hard to tell at this juncture. But as we always say, can't coach height, and she is going to play under a good coach.
Dcheetah
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Saw an interesting vido on the USA site interviewing Fran Belibi. She was asked her 5 favorite Bball players. She listed Lebron, Steph, 2 WBNA players and HVL. Thought that was a very nice shout out.
BleedGreen214
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LMAO.... I guess you think Trump is better? #brainwashed.
WacoKelly83
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Oops. Autocorrect got me. No hidden meaning. Supposed to be "also" Doh.
WacoKelly83
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Never said anything about Trump. Nor implied it. Relax Joe.
setshot
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I have already posted my view that Van Lith is a difference maker for the program lucky enough to get her commitment. I have no idea where Baylor stands with her, nor with Sarah Andrews, who the Lady Bear staff has courted for four or five years. Those two point guards are top quality, and Baylor needs at least one of them in the worst way. Great point guard play is essential to national championships, and we were very fortunate last year to see Chloe Jackson develop so rapidly at that position after winning SEC honors at the SG position. We are hopefully in the same situation this year with Cooper.

I tend to agree with willtalk about the national team experience for players already in an elite program. The ones coming out of or still in high school benefit from international play and the preparation that prepares them for it. The elevation in self esteem for a young player and the association with basketball players of equal or superior ability is a life long experience to be recalled and enjoyed. For players who have already had such an experience and are already in a major college program, it is a bit of a risk and one of lesser value to spend the time and effort that such a commitment represents. Year round competitive basketball wears a player down and leaves little time to work on individual skills.

National teams, like All Star teams, often work to the disadvantage of team-oriented players, most particularly those playing in the interior, as they favor the ball handlers and perimeter shooters. The WNBA is a perfect example of that in the women's game. Britney Griner has rarely been used properly because the guards and wing shooters are going to get their quota of shots, no matter how many times she posts up and is open for a pass. It is just the nature of the game, and we are seeing a similar trend now in the NBA and college games because of the three point shot and the analytics that it has inspired. The development of skilled interior players has yielded to spreading the floor and putting up the three point shot.

Mulkey has always favored an inside/out game and in Bill Brock she has the ideal assistant to complement her favored style of play. He is a fine coach of interior play at both ends of the court and even when Baylor has not had overly talented interior players, the Lady Bears have continued to have success with that style of play.
Give Brock superior talent to work with and we have seen the results: three national championships.

Mulkey has needed, but not always had, outstanding play at the point. Great point guards are capable of scoring, particularly when the regular offense is stagnating, but their first obligation is to make the players around them more successful. National and All Star teams are rarely able to build that into the team's character and style of play for obvious reasons.

Egbo is not yet at a place in her development where she is going to consistently command the ball, but at Baylor she will be rewarded when she works hard enough to get position in the deep paint. Both Mulkey and Brock drill that into the players around the interior. When it is working, as it often is, it is beautiful to watch. When other teams over compensate to stop it, the perimeter players have ample opportunities to demonstrate their complementary skills and that is an absolute necessity for championships.
Polarbear
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Thank you, Setshot. A few additional observations from watching the game replay today.

1. There's a significant difference in body maturity between the college Sophomores (Egbo, Howard, Joens, Hillmon) and the younger players (especially Brink, Bueckers, and Clark). Those extra two years of development and strength/conditioning work are noticeable.
2. The exceptions to that were Aliyah Boston and Hailey Van Lith. Boston is a load in the paint, and Van Lith has a really mature and developed body for a 17 year old.
3. I am sold on Hailey Van Lith as a prospect, and crossing my fingers she chooses Baylor. She's a great ball handler, good floor vision, she's scrappy and competitive, and seems to have an advanced i.q. for the game. I'm not sure if she or her family have made the connection yet, but in many skills and traits Van Lith is a descendant of Mulkey herself as a player. Would be fun to watch Mulkey coach and develop her.
4. Don't worry about Queen's minutes on this team. It was pretty clear to me that they're trying to spread minutes to all 12 players on the team, and they have four interior players in Egbo, Boston, Brink, and Hillmon who are sharing the load. She will probably average 15 to 20 minutes per game in this tournament, and that's fine.
5. I thought Queen was just fine today. Hard to evaluate in a game like this, which is much looser and closer to pickup in style than a full season D1 team. However, all the good things you'd expect from Queen were there. Athletic, active, good speed, good hands, some good defensive awareness on picks and fast breaks. I am eager for her to get back into the gym for another year with Coach Brock, because there are always little development things to iron out. I'm hoping to see her improve footwork and leverage on defense so she maintains better position. Hoping she develops better sense of when to aggressively go for block or strip, as opposed to getting big and standing her ground to make players shoot over her. Hoping she develops higher % on her low post offensive moves. In fact, would it violate NCAA rules if we all kicked in and raised money so she could spend next summer working with Hakeem Olajuwon? Kidding. Sort of.
6. Final thought. As I watched Queen and thought of the things I'd like for her to improve, I realized how much we've been spoiled by Kalani and Lauren, and Griner before them. How rare for a college program to have three All American talents like that come through a program in the same decade. Wow. I'm hoping that we don't set expectations too high for Queen, or NaLyssa, or Gusters, or other post players who come through. Odds are that none of them reaches the same level as Griner or Kalani or Lauren, but that's ok. We need to support them and cheer for them, and give them space to develop into their own best version of themselves. And you know what? That version just might be good enough to win some more Big 12 championships, or win more National Championships, and that would be awesome. I just hope we don't fall into the trap of comparing the next generation of post players to the legends that preceded them.
slimecap
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QUEEN EGBO
21 July 2019
USA 89 vs South Korea 67

MIN PTS 2PTS 3PTS FT
14 14 6-8 0-0 3-4

OREB DREB TREB AST PF TO STL BLK
7 4 11 0 4 2 1 1

GarlandBear84
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Wow, 14 and 11 in 14 minutes!
Chibears2
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I will just put this out there in the universe. I REALLY liked seeing Haley Van Lith and Queen Egbo on the court together! I think I could really enjoy watching them in green and gold ..... Just saying!
mimi25408
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Its amazing that Kim sent Coach Messer to Bangkok for Van Lith. Baylor really wants her. Also nice for her to see Queen play.
Chibears2
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mimi25408 said:

Its amazing that Kim sent Coach Messer to Bangkok for Van Lith. Baylor really wants her. Also nice for her to see Queen play.
Saw her tweet from Thailand and thought the same thing, Mimi! Wonder if any other programs have coaches over there?

Coach Messer can keep an eye on Egbo, help her feel comfortable and supported.

Van Lith can feel wanted and prioritized.

Messer can scout top international talent while there.

Win, win, win!
Eball
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Queen has played well both games. Just a lot of talent on the team. We want HVL!
Dcheetah
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https://twitter.com/usabjnt/status/1152654407517052928/photo/1
setshot
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That is classic Queen Egbo play.....no one will outwork her, and with that physical dynamism and her year of experience on a national championship team, she sets a high bar for the younger players.

I wondered if the Baylor staff was represented in the Asia arena, since we have a player and a highly recruited player there. I have a feeling about this and I hope I am not wrong......
Dcheetah
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HVL getting a lot of negative comments on UConn board about overdribbling, looking for her shot too much, slow release, not seeing open players... I have not been able to watch films today at work. Sour grapes I expect?
DFW Bill
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Setshot "...........Sytia Messer is in Bankok, Thailand to follow HVL and watch Queen Egbo.
GrizBear
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Dcheetah said:

HVL getting a lot of negative comments on UConn board about overdribbling, looking for her shot too much, slow release, not seeing open players... I have not been able to watch films today at work. Sour grapes I expect?

Yeah ... we'll take her, "flaws" and all, and see if we might be able to make something out of her. lol
Chibears2
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Dcheetah said:

HVL getting a lot of negative comments on UConn board about overdribbling, looking for her shot too much, slow release, not seeing open players... I have not been able to watch films today at work. Sour grapes I expect?
Pretty sure the other guard getting the most time besides Haley was UConn's recruit... Bueckers.
They probably wanted to see more of her like I wanted to see more of Haley.

Haley did dribble a lot...all the guards did. She needs refinement, but she has no college experience.

We definitely would like to have her!
Polarbear
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Gotta keep perspective about this group. Only four players with college experience, the rest coming out of or still in HS. Gotta give latitude for mental and tactical mistakes. Any nitpicking over HVL is absurd; she's learning and developing every day. She'll be fantastic in college, and any team would be thrilled to have her.
blueeyedbear
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GarlandBear84 said:

Wow, 14 and 11 in 14 minutes!
Also 4 personal fouls and 2 turnovers - Good opportunity for her to work on that vs international talent
Chibears2
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setshot said:

That is classic Queen Egbo play.....no one will outwork her, and with that physical dynamism and her year of experience on a national championship team, she sets a high bar for the younger players.

I wondered if the Baylor staff was represented in the Asia arena, since we have a player and a highly recruited player there. I have a feeling about this and I hope I am not wrong......


Whatever your feeling is, I hope you're not wrong, either, Setshot!
slimecap
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Front row, far right Hailey Van Lith & Queen Egbo

2019 USA U19 World Cup Team Tours the Grand Palace in Bangkok, Thailand
July 22, 2019
Chibears2
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I noticed Queen and Haley slapping hands in congratulations, several times after a good play. I took that as a good sign!

(Of course, the whole team was pretty much doing that, but don't dash my hopes!)
 
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