Reviewing UConn
Posted: Sat Apr 04, 2020 2:58 amI've read and enjoyed Omaha Guy's team-by-team reviews. It was a good way to get a feel for the state of UConn's new conference foes. In the interest of completion, I've decided to do an Omaha Guy-style review of the newest (old) member of the Big East, the University of Connecticut Huskies:
OUT:
*Christian Vital
*Alterique Gilbert (grad transfer to Wichita St.)
STAY:
*James Bouknight
*Tyler Polley
*Josh Carlton
*Isaiah Whaley
*Sidney Wilson
*Jalen Gaffney
*Akok Akok (possible redshirt for 20-21)
*Brendan Adams
IN:
*Andre Jackson
*Javonte Brown-Ferguson
*RJ Cole (transfer from Howard)
*Richie Springs (redshirt)
My 0.02: It was a tale of two seasons for UConn and its second-year head coach Dan Hurley. OOC games and the first half of the American slate saw the Huskies struggle to 11-10 with three bad losses (St. Joe's at home; blowout @ Cincy; blowout @ So. FL) and one big win vs. Florida. Entering February, the team was best characterized by its lack of outside shooting (lone marksman Tyler Polley was lost to an ACL), inconsistent bigs, and a preternatural ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory under two minutes. After a loss to Nova in Philly on 1/18, Coach Hurley said he felt the program was close to turning a corner after four dark years, and that teams had "better get us now." It was the bravado and hope that POSD (Post-Ollie Stress Disorder)-inflicted fans-- some of whom were beginning to question whether Hurley was the right man for the job-- needed to hear.
The wins indeed followed. UConn ran off 8 of their last 10, including back-to-back upsets of an AAC leader (Tulsa, then Cincy), and big wins against top-25 teams Memphis and Houston. Christian Vital (1st Team All AAC) played like a Naismith contender down the stretch as the Huskies ascended to #52 in KenPom and emerged as The Team no one wanted to see in the AAC Tourney. Most impressive was that UConn surged without starter Polley and talented Frosh Akok Akok (Achilles), relying on a seven-man rotation. In retrospect, UConn might not have hit its stride but for the injuries, as Polley beget Bouknight (3rd Team AAC) and Akok beget Isaiah Whaley, a late-season revelation.
For the first time in a long time, there is promise and excitement in Storrs. The Huskies ended last season one of the hottest teams in CBB, Bouknight looks special, and we're coming home to the BE! Even though UConn graduates two big names in Vital and Gilbert, the names arguably outweigh their value, as the Ollie holdovers were never a great fit in a Hurley system (Hurley proved to be unfailingly loyal to his step-children, refusing to jettison or recruit over them). Fans are hopeful that Polley and Akok make a healthy return some time next year. Incoming Frosh Andre Jackson could be as exciting Bouknight, transfer RJ Cole can fill it up, and UConn is expected to add a grad transfer (likely a Big). Whaley looks like he can emerge into a double-double threat, something that has sorely been missing from Storrs since the early '10s.
OUT:
*Christian Vital
*Alterique Gilbert (grad transfer to Wichita St.)
STAY:
*James Bouknight
*Tyler Polley
*Josh Carlton
*Isaiah Whaley
*Sidney Wilson
*Jalen Gaffney
*Akok Akok (possible redshirt for 20-21)
*Brendan Adams
IN:
*Andre Jackson
*Javonte Brown-Ferguson
*RJ Cole (transfer from Howard)
*Richie Springs (redshirt)
My 0.02: It was a tale of two seasons for UConn and its second-year head coach Dan Hurley. OOC games and the first half of the American slate saw the Huskies struggle to 11-10 with three bad losses (St. Joe's at home; blowout @ Cincy; blowout @ So. FL) and one big win vs. Florida. Entering February, the team was best characterized by its lack of outside shooting (lone marksman Tyler Polley was lost to an ACL), inconsistent bigs, and a preternatural ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory under two minutes. After a loss to Nova in Philly on 1/18, Coach Hurley said he felt the program was close to turning a corner after four dark years, and that teams had "better get us now." It was the bravado and hope that POSD (Post-Ollie Stress Disorder)-inflicted fans-- some of whom were beginning to question whether Hurley was the right man for the job-- needed to hear.
The wins indeed followed. UConn ran off 8 of their last 10, including back-to-back upsets of an AAC leader (Tulsa, then Cincy), and big wins against top-25 teams Memphis and Houston. Christian Vital (1st Team All AAC) played like a Naismith contender down the stretch as the Huskies ascended to #52 in KenPom and emerged as The Team no one wanted to see in the AAC Tourney. Most impressive was that UConn surged without starter Polley and talented Frosh Akok Akok (Achilles), relying on a seven-man rotation. In retrospect, UConn might not have hit its stride but for the injuries, as Polley beget Bouknight (3rd Team AAC) and Akok beget Isaiah Whaley, a late-season revelation.
For the first time in a long time, there is promise and excitement in Storrs. The Huskies ended last season one of the hottest teams in CBB, Bouknight looks special, and we're coming home to the BE! Even though UConn graduates two big names in Vital and Gilbert, the names arguably outweigh their value, as the Ollie holdovers were never a great fit in a Hurley system (Hurley proved to be unfailingly loyal to his step-children, refusing to jettison or recruit over them). Fans are hopeful that Polley and Akok make a healthy return some time next year. Incoming Frosh Andre Jackson could be as exciting Bouknight, transfer RJ Cole can fill it up, and UConn is expected to add a grad transfer (likely a Big). Whaley looks like he can emerge into a double-double threat, something that has sorely been missing from Storrs since the early '10s.