STrib's Kent Youngblood's 9 October 2018 Update

Ignatius L Hoops

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http://www.startribune.com/breaking-lindsay-whalen-s-gophers-still-undefeated/496343011/

Some highlights including Staples and Hubbard updates:



-- Whalen has already instituted a lot of Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve’s drills and practice norms into her scheme. For example: Reeve starts every practice with a competitive shooting drill, which sets the tone for the day. Whalen does the same with her team. The goal is to make every practice as competitive as possible, Whalen said.

-- The process of working on man-to-man defense – something Whalen has vowed to add to the Gophers arsenal this season – has been an up and down process. “We’re adjusting, getting there,’’ Whalen said. “But there are better days than others. Yesterday wasn’t one of our better days.’’

-- Whalen said the Gophers will have to mix up their defense, using both man-to-man and zone. “We’re going to have to make sure we’re keeping people on their toes,’’ Whalen said.

...

-- Whalen is counting on junior forward Taiye Bello to take a big jump in her game. She and Annalese Lamke will play the majority of the post minutes for the Gophers this year.

-- Freshman Mercedes Staples, injured a week ago – she spent most of that practice watching with a walking boot on her left ankle – was back at practice Monday. Whalen is counting on Mercedes to play a lot in her first year. She and Bell, according to Whalen, are two of the best on the team playing off the bounce, shooting in rhythm. Meanwhile, guard Gadiva Hubbard rode a bike with a brace on her right foot/ankle.
 

Love the weekly updates, from the coach and from the media. Interesting to note that Youngblood has the byline for the article, but they have Marcus Fuller's profile and photo after the article. It doesn't matter to me who's doing the writing, as long as they continue to cover. Whalen has already made a number of references to Taiye Bello and how she is being counted on to ramp up her game. If Bello can do that and if she can stay away from the foul trouble she had often last year, the Gophers should be an athletic team. Whalen has also made some previous references to Brunson and I'm getting the feeling that she'll get a chance to contribute more this year than she did last year. And one more note, it seems that Whalen is introducing a lot of the things that Cheryl Reeve used. No surprise there.
 

Last season, for a while, Hubbard also wore a boot on her right foot for a time.
 




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