If you were coaching, who is your Gopher " starting 5"?

And why? I'll ring in at the end.

Hubbard
Wagner
Starr
Hedstrom
Edwards

Starr's toughness would play very well with the other 4.

PG: Brunson-I think her handles and I think she has good toughness and ability to drive. I feel learning on the fly could benefit her.
SG: Bell- While I know her turnovers have been a topic of discussion, her scoring is needed for this team. I think if she could focus more on just scoring and not running the team, maybe the turnovers would go down. Plus she is still a ball handler and her and Brunson could break full-court press with speed.
SF: Wagner-this kid is our leader. I know we cant expect 38 point games all the time but we need at least 20 a game I feel for team to have success
PF: Starr-I feel Starr has more toughness and ball handling at this position that Hedstrom and if Marlene insists on running a 4 guard lineup, I would pick Starr over Hedstrom
C: Edwards-Seems more comfortable and effective this season. She wont blow away anyone with Speed or leaping ability but she solid and improved.

off bench:
6th person/SG/SF: Hubbard would be a good spark off the bench. I thought about having her instead of Starr start but then most our offensive fire power would be in the starting 5.
SF/PF: Hedstrom: I may be alone but I don't like Hedstrom starting. too limited in ability to be a starter in Big Ten conference. I could see her also as spark off bench with rebounding and 3-pt shot
PF: Tinjum: Love her game, seems steady and not easily rattled. also would consider her in at PF instead of Starr and ahead of Headstrom
C: Fernstrom, While she didn't explode onto the scene like I hope, she does rebound and Block, I think as she continues to wear off the rust Edwards and her could be a nice Center combo.

All the rest would only play in garbage time if it was up to me. Maybe T.Bello more minutes simply due to athleticism but outside that, nobody.

I'd like to see somebody replace Bell as PG if she can't improve her TO situation right quick. The problem with Brunson is that she's so much like Bell.

"Run and gun" is just a concept with this team. The best run and gun teams are good rebounding or disruptive defensive teams. Get a deflection and run with it. That's not the Gophers.

They could improve the rebounding by having both Edwards and Ferstrom on the floor at the same time. Has it ever happened yet, even for a little bit? I kinda like the concept of those two guarding the paint while other three are taking more chances on defense, jumping passing lanes getting more deflections.

Otherwise I think they should just resign to being a half court team and consider having Starr as the PG. That was her position in high school. You've seen some nice passing from her.

This is specific to Illinois. We really should take control early.


PG: Bell remains the best option Marlene needs to coach her. Start with telling Kenisha to stop driving into three defenders, falling down and rolling the ball out of bounds. And tell her teammates it's okay to move into a passing lane when Bell is in trouble.
G: Wagner
G: Hubbard-we need the deflections and scoring. If the Illini start dropping threes then sub in Hedstrom to add some height and knock down threes..
C: Fernstrom-I don't want Wittinger to get off to a good start. Edwards will rotate in regularly.
F: Tinjum-Repeat: I don't want Wittinger to get off to a good start. If Hubbard is playing well, then Hedstrom rotates in here.

I think the Illini usually play zone; although, after Matt Bollant watched the Gophers struggle against Thome hedging on screens, maybe he'll play some man with Wittinger hedging. One of the most annoying plays against Michigan was when Thome hedged out on Bell and Kenisha bounced the ball around Thome's left side (toward mid-court) and ran around Thome's right side to recover the ball. This left Kenisah near the sidelines staring at the Michigan bench. I've never figured out why we think it's so important to get to the side line instead of passing to, say, Fernstrom at the foul line being defended by a guard.

My lineup is identical to Iggy's, at least for Illinois. I agree with bball in saying that Hedstrom might be best coming off the bench. I agree with Shades in saying that Brunson and Bell have similar games (and Bell is a better scorer). I also agree totally with Shades in saying that the Gophers "run and gun" style is more concept than execution, as they don't create enough turnovers to get many transition baskets, especially in conference play. And Iggy is right in saying that it was particularly annoying to see the way Thome was able to bother Bell and disrupt the offense. I'll admit that I'm losing patience with Bell at the point and if she can't get it together soon, I'd be open to giving Brunson a shot, especially if you come to a final conclusion that Bell can't play the point because of all the turnovers. I opt for Fernstrom over Edwards, but not by much. Fernstrom seemed to do a better job of clogging up the middle on defense against Thome. Either way, I think both posts can be functional, although not great offensive threats. And both posts seem to be slow to the ball in rebounding, despite the fact that they get their share of rebounds. I'm a bit confounded at the lack of PT for Starr. Has she been healthy? She's not a great scorer, but she runs the break well and she certainly rebounds well for her size.

I agree with a couple of combo's listed. Bell intrigues me as a power forward. She can leap out of the building and I think releasing her of point guard duties would allow her to play better defense and inside rebounding. I realize that is a big switch this time of the year , but in a run and gun offense would it be that tough for her to adjust?