What the Providence transfer brings to IU women’s basketball.
Hello Hoosier fans!
Welcome to Crimson Quarry’s 2022 Indiana Women’s Basketball recruiting series! Each week we’ll be selecting one of the squad’s newcomers and what they’ll bring to the floor this fall. First up is former Providence Forward Alyssa Geary:
Backstory
Geary comes to Indiana as a grad transfer after spending four seasons at Providence College. She averaged 9.6 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 2 assists in 26 minutes per game last year with the Friars. Geary started 66 games over the last three seasons, and will bring a much-needed veteran presence to what’s going to be a younger squad this fall.
Breaking it down
Not going to lie, finding Providence film to watch wasn’t super easy, but after checking out a couple of their matchups against UConn (of ALL teams) this season we’ve gained a better understanding of what Geary brings to the floor.
Geary’s biggest asset is unquestionably her height. Standing at 6-4 with a large wingspan, she projects as a solid Big Ten 4. This length obviously means that she can score in the post with ease, but we think she operates best as a passer. Given her ability to see and raise the ball up above the entire defense, Geary transcends traditional passing platforms and creates her own. She can get the ball to any spot on the floor from the top of the key, which forces defenses to stretch and opens up the middle. Expect Geary’s ability as a passer to give Mackenzie Holmes more favorable matchups in the post this season.
Her decisiveness was another trait that stuck out in PC’s games vs. UConn. The rock doesn’t die in Geary’s hands. She receives the ball in the triple threat and immediately drives, passes, or shoots. Geary’s IQ will likely help Indiana play faster in settled offense this season. She sets a mean screen as well. A set or two predicated on Berger/Geary pick and rolls would be really fun to watch.
Defensively she’s exactly what you’d expect. Geary roams the post hunting for doubles and blocks (which she gets). Foul trouble is a bit of a concern. She accumulated at least four fouls in 12 games last year, 5 of which she fouled out of. Hopefully the complement of defensive talent she’ll be playing alongside will result in less of a strain and need for her to foul. She won’t be playing defense all by herself.
Usage and Expectations
At first glance, sitting here and saying that Alyssa Geary will just take over Aleksa Gulbe’s role on the team makes sense. When you dig a little deeper, however, the two do not appear to be as comparable as one would think.
Geary is best-suited to fit IU’s offense as a distributor. Expecting 12 points per game (What AG averaged last year) is probably not realistic. Playing on an objectively better team will help a lot with getting her looks offensively, but there’s just so many mouths to feed on this offense. The Hoosiers might not need double digit points from both starting Bigs.
The looming question mark coming into the season will be durability. Geary averaged 26 minutes per game last year, but with the departure of Gulbe, IU is going to need a full game in the aggregate from Geary, Kiandra Browne, and Arielle Wisne. Browne and Wisne both proved their worth in relief of Mackenzie Holmes last year, but Geary’s level of experience will have Coach Moren wanting her on the court as much as possible. Mona Zaric and incoming Freshman Lilly Meister will also bring intrigue to the Frontcourt rotation, but Geary should be the starter at Forward come November.