1st Game 1st Thoughts

[CardiacAndre7]

Ya never really learn much from games like these, but I think we certainly learned that Adama will be a monster, DC can play at this level and will get good minutes, and Diarra is going to be huge for us, specifically on the defensive end.

Initial observations:

The Good:

1. Adama, Diarra, DC, Karaban.
2. Karaban specifically is going to be important with his shooting. We will improve overall but the amount of open misses wasn’t ideal.
3. Thought Samson and Alleyne brought great energy, they are both gonna play their part.
4. Interior defense was great
5. Free throw shooting looks to be strong

The Not-As-Good

1. Joey C doesn’t fully look up to it, but could’ve just been an off game. He is tiny and very slight, and not sure he’ll be able to handle the physicality of the BE. Also, his defending was pretty poor. He can shoot though.
2. I’ve been saying for a few years I want to see more drives to compliment our post game, our half court offense may be pretty one dimensional.
3. Newton was pretty meh. This is a game you’d expect him to show out in, especially with how much he has the ball. Getting to the line a lot is great, but not making a field goal against a team like this is…ooph.
4. Obviously Hawkins. Really, really feel for the kid. Seeing him tearing up after that fall is gutting. He’s had multiple concussions, he needs to and will be sidelined for an extended amount of time. Just awful to see.

Overall it was fine, saw some really good things, and definitely some things that need work. I thought the coaching was fine as well, but as some others mentioned in the chat, I want to see some more designed plays and things that get the guards going, rather than just post ups.

Work in progress!

 

[navery12]

Newton had 9 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists. If that's what he's going to bring on a night he doesn't make a FG sign me up for that as our starting PG right now. Not gonna be many nights where he doesn't hit a shot. And that's nothing against Diarra, he looked great and they can definitely play next to each other

 

[CardiacAndre7]

Newton had 9 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists. If that's what he's going to bring on a night he doesn't make a FG sign me up for that as our starting PG right now. And that's nothing against Diarra, he looked great and they can definitely play next to each other

Yeah that’s why overall I don’t think he is bad. But this is low competition, you gotta expect a couple buckets from him

 

[Candyman]

Yeah that’s why overall I don’t think he is bad. But this is low competition, you gotta expect a couple buckets from him

He got fouled on shots he would have easily made. 12 free throws is no joke. How many times that happen to anyone last year. He’s legit. I love a guy who can get to the line.

 

[MJKI]

-Newton looked in control majority of the time. Calm. I loved that look
-Diarra reminds me so much of Taliek. Heart in his throat every play. Gonna piss you off when he runs full speed and throws up a wild shot but will back it up with 2 plays that are amazing.
-Joey C will be good until PK85. He’s overmatched physically and his instinct just isn’t there for this level. You can see him throwing passes a second after the gap was there, and he’s flat footed on defense
-Johnson reminds me of Akok. Can do some things great sometimes. Other times I forget he’s on the court.
-DC is gonna play and he’s gonna be good. You can’t teach size and I love that he finished everything with a slam
-AK is just smooth. I’m gonna love this kid.
-prayers up for Hawk, let him ease back because rushing from another concussion will do so much worse than good.

Overall a decent effort. Bad shooting but first game, jitters and all and an empty arena is harder to shoot in than a packed one. Not worried about AK, Newton, or Alleyne come crunch time. Don’t even need to say anything about Sanogo because he was the same All-American level contributor we know we have. On to BU

 

[navery12]

Yeah that’s why overall I don’t think he is bad. But this is low competition, you gotta expect a couple buckets from him

Yeah definitely not great that he didn't get any FGs, just wouldn't really overreact to 1 game like that. Jackson had 0 FGs in 20 minutes against Coppin State last year but ended up having a great year

 

[auror]

Getting to the line is a big part of Newton's game. He hits 88% from there, too.

Normally from 3 he shoots a short hop jumper, but he did it once off movement and that's never going to go in, not enough time for his body to square. Either has to change his form off movement or not take those shots.

 

[upstater]

Not sure if you guys caught Hurley being interviewed afterward, but he was really forthcoming. Said Karaban is important but needs to play stronger (on boards?), Diarra shows real pop and has a UConn attitude but makes too many mistakes, Newton played poorly, outside shooting is a real problem especially in a game like this, when he saw the stat 5 from 25 from 3, he said he doesn't want to even think about.

Basically said without Andre and Hawkins they are in real trouble.

Oof

 

[AZHuskiePop]

Our shooting was not the greatest , and we’re were out of control
when we settled into an offense we showed some things I was looking for . No one seemed to be in control of the offense
running off the ball, hitting the open me.
Cligan‘s effort was very good , and he showed some foot movement on D . That‘s a good sign.
Wheter Johnson can actually play the four is still in question
or wheter he is an another athletic 5 remains to be seen.
Karaban will play significant minutes .

 

[husky429]

Not sure if you guys caught Hurley being interviewed afterward, but he was really forthcoming. Said Karaban is important but needs to play stronger (on boards?), Diarra shows real pop and has a UConn attitude but makes too many mistakes, Newton played poorly, outside shooting is a real problem especially in a game like this, when he saw the stat 5 from 25 from 3, he said he doesn't want to even think about.

Basically said without Andre and Hawkins they are in real trouble.

Oof

Coaches always say this stuff after a blowout. It's coach speak my man. Trying to hold the team accountable against a team most of their high schools would've beaten.

 

[Greg]

Ya never really learn much from games like these, but I think we certainly learned that Adama will be a monster, DC can play at this level and will get good minutes, and Diarra is going to be huge for us, specifically on the defensive end.

Initial observations:

The Good:

1. Adama, Diarra, DC, Karaban.
2. Karaban specifically is going to be important with his shooting. We will improve overall but the amount of open misses wasn’t ideal.
3. Thought Samson and Alleyne brought great energy, they are both gonna play their part.
4. Interior defense was great
5. Free throw shooting looks to be strong

The Not-As-Good

1. Joey C doesn’t fully look up to it, but could’ve just been an off game. He is tiny and very slight, and not sure he’ll be able to handle the physicality of the BE. Also, his defending was pretty poor. He can shoot though.
2. I’ve been saying for a few years I want to see more drives to compliment our post game, our half court offense may be pretty one dimensional.
3. Newton was pretty meh. This is a game you’d expect him to show out in, especially with how much he has the ball. Getting to the line a lot is great, but not making a field goal against a team like this is…ooph.
4. Obviously Hawkins. Really, really feel for the kid. Seeing him tearing up after that fall is gutting. He’s had multiple concussions, he needs to and will be sidelined for an extended amount of time. Just awful to see.

Overall it was fine, saw some really good things, and definitely some things that need work. I thought the coaching was fine as well, but as some others mentioned in the chat, I want to see some more designed plays and things that get the guards going, rather than just post ups.

Work in progress!

Game one is always fun. But I never take much stock in it except for minutes played if game is reasonably close.

 

[Palatine]

Newton had 9 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists. If that's what he's going to bring on a night he doesn't make a FG sign me up for that as our starting PG right now. Not gonna be many nights where he doesn't hit a shot. And that's nothing against Diarra, he looked great and they can definitely play next to each other

Hurley's post game comments sounded like they were directed at Newton. He was not pleased.

 

[alphasigko]

20% from 3, and 69% from the Line

Certainly not good

 

[JustbrewitMan]

I am probably one of the most optimistic people in this crazy place. That being said, I am getting pretty sick of scrub teams running better offense sets with more flow leading to wide-open shots then we can do. I was really hoping to see lots of good ball movement leading to wide open threes but it pretty much never happened.

Edit: I do know that some of it had to do with the type of D that Stonehill played versus us but with the athletes that we have I would have thought we could disrupt even their zone D enough to get great looks

 

[superjohn]

I don't normally pay much attention to coach speak in the offseason but things Hurley said align with what I saw on the floor tonight.

This is a very different team than last season especially with no Andre out there. We are going to be a way better passing/ball movement team than last year but we lost force and physicality with Martin, Whaley, and Cole leaving. Diarra is a bulldog and a huge upgrade over Gaffney though.

We gained depth, ball movement and shooting I think (even though shots didn't fall tonight) but we lost physicality and athleticism with the departures. Newton is an ordinary athlete at this level, Alleyne is as well but his D looked pretty good, Joey C. is going to be overmatched in against top competition, Karaban just knows how to play and can shoot but nothing like the physical presence Whaley and Martin brought.

Unfortunately Hawkins is really slight to the point where it seems to impact his entire game since he's been here. Some of it is bad luck but he often looks like he's on ice skates out there. We all know he has a beautiful shot and played great D at the end of last year but it still looks like physicality can knock him off the ball. I think we're all saying a prayer or have our fingers crossed for his basketball future. If we're not going to have him for a long time we may have to adjust some of our expectations but what's most important is his health and future.

The good, Diarra looked a lot better all around than I was expecting. Clingan will be a big part of the team this year and will be a beast a little down the road. I'm so high on this kid, he has unique things about him you just can't teach and he's further along than anyone should expect. I love the kid. Sanogo is going to be one of the best players in the country. He's added to his game and he's bouncier than he was last year. Karaban is an all around player who can shoot it, I expect he'll be starting.

Our ball movement, feeding the post, and post player passing looks like it will be night and day over what it was last year and we don't have Jackson yet.

Jordan Hawkins, get well soon. We are all pulling for you.

 

[shizzle787]

I don't normally pay much attention to coach speak in the offseason but things Hurley said align with what I saw on the floor tonight.

This is a very different team than last season especially with no Andre out there. We are going to be a way better passing/ball movement team than last year but we lost force and physicality with Martin, Whaley, and Cole leaving. Diarra is a bulldog and a huge upgrade over Gaffney though.

We gained depth, ball movement and shooting I think (even though shots didn't fall tonight) but we lost physicality and athleticism with the departures. Newton is an ordinary athlete at this level, Alleyne is as well but his D looked pretty good, Joey C. is going to be overmatched in against top competition, Karaban just knows how to play and can shoot but nothing like the physical presence Whaley and Martin brought.

Unfortunately Hawkins is really slight to the point where it seems to impact his entire game since he's been here. Some of it is bad luck but he often looks like he's on ice skates out there. We all know he has a beautiful shot and played great D at the end of last year but it still looks like physicality can knock him off the ball. I think we're all saying a prayer or have our fingers crossed for his basketball future. If we're not going to have him for a long time we may have to adjust some of our expectations but what's most important is his health and future.

The good, Diarra looked a lot better all around than I was expecting. Clingan will be a big part of the team this year and will be a beast a little down the road. I'm so high on this kid, he has unique things about him you just can't teach and he's further along than anyone should expect. I love the kid. Sanogo is going to be one of the best players in the country. He's added to his game and he's bouncier than he was last year. Karaban is an all around player who can shoot it, I expect he'll be starting.

Our ball movement, feeding the post, and post player passing looks like it will be night and day over what it was last year and we don't have Jackson yet.

Jordan Hawkins, get well soon. We are all pulling for you.

Agree with the bigs. They both looked great.

Samson Johnson shouldn't see the floor again. He's not skilled (which echos what Dauster has been hearing).

Karaban is a solid player. He reminds me of Likosius (Butler) or Kolek (Marquette). He'll score 12 a game.

Our frontline overall is solid. It's our backline that worries me. Hawkins will come back but he needs to avoid further injury. Jackson IMO should play the 3, but that still leaves our PG situation in shaky hands. If it is Diarra, he is solid, but I don't trust anyone on this team to run an iso play with 5 seconds left and make a clutch shot. That is a problem.

 

[HooperScooper]

20% from 3, and 69% from the Line

Certainly not good

You've now posted the exact same thing in 3 different threads.

 

[Ricker]

This looked like a first game and I'm glad we have 5 winnable games to get our act together. At the end of the game we went to a zone with Clingan in the paint!! Never believed we would see zone from Danny. Maybe he has some flexibility after all? Come on guys hit 3's at 35%+. All our 80%+ foul shooters and we shoot 69%. Pleased that Clingan got off to a good start. Lots for the team to work on. Won by a solid margin in spite of many errors. Heck, Creighton was down 57 to 56 to St Thomas with 9 minutes left before closing it out with a run. This is better.

 

[ValleyGuy]

Clingan is definitely better than Olander
Clingan size should be helpful against Cockbrenner and Nunge - who have given Sanogo trouble

Not sure how Joey California will see many minutes

Newton looked lazy at times which will not sit well with Hurley. Especially that last play before he was taken out for the night. First game of the year thought he’d be more interested. Very disappointing

 

[ClifSpliffy]

I don't normally pay much attention to coach speak in the offseason but things Hurley said align with what I saw on the floor tonight.

This is a very different team than last season especially with no Andre out there. We are going to be a way better passing/ball movement team than last year but we lost force and physicality with Martin, Whaley, and Cole leaving. Diarra is a bulldog and a huge upgrade over Gaffney though.

We gained depth, ball movement and shooting I think (even though shots didn't fall tonight) but we lost physicality and athleticism with the departures. Newton is an ordinary athlete at this level, Alleyne is as well but his D looked pretty good, Joey C. is going to be overmatched in against top competition, Karaban just knows how to play and can shoot but nothing like the physical presence Whaley and Martin brought.

Unfortunately Hawkins is really slight to the point where it seems to impact his entire game since he's been here. Some of it is bad luck but he often looks like he's on ice skates out there. We all know he has a beautiful shot and played great D at the end of last year but it still looks like physicality can knock him off the ball. I think we're all saying a prayer or have our fingers crossed for his basketball future. If we're not going to have him for a long time we may have to adjust some of our expectations but what's most important is his health and future.

The good, Diarra looked a lot better all around than I was expecting. Clingan will be a big part of the team this year and will be a beast a little down the road. I'm so high on this kid, he has unique things about him you just can't teach and he's further along than anyone should expect. I love the kid. Sanogo is going to be one of the best players in the country. He's added to his game and he's bouncier than he was last year. Karaban is an all around player who can shoot it, I expect he'll be starting.

Our ball movement, feeding the post, and post player passing looks like it will be night and day over what it was last year and we don't have Jackson yet.

Jordan Hawkins, get well soon. We are all pulling for you.

' and a huge upgrade over Gaffney though.'

jmoney just finished his first game with his new team.
10 points (tied for second most between both teams), 2-3 on 3's (which he is encouraged to shoot), 4 boards, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 tos. his squad won by 40. for now, looks like he's the 6th man.

as promised, 'it would be prima facie coaching malpractice iffn donno doesn't play early and often.' nice to see some/many here removing they heads from they butts on his 'prospects.' he led the team in boards and blocks. 9 points, too.
as promised, well, lets just say "alex.'
mr newt repped well. real well. stevie d said "believe.' i believe.
alleyne came here just to shoot. typo2? let's hope not. empty boxscore other than 4 steals.
no previous opinion on hassan. good energy, good showing, great boxscore.
i luv hawks potential, but his record of injury precludes him from being in many boxscores. woody allen said '90% of success is just showing up.' true dat. get well soon, and rest comfortably in the knowledge that dr. boneyard will be diagnosing ur case for a week. he needed a new patient.
samson still a ghost. nice free throw stroke tho. cf 'alex' on 'not a ghost.' 13 points, 4 boards, 3 assists, 1 steal.

i said, to zero response months ago, just give me newt, hawk, ajax, adama, donno, and alex, and i'll win a dang 1st round tourney game.
haven't seen anything to change my mind. i think danny played alleyne so much (the most! 31 minutes) becuz he is trying to figger out the guy. we have to assume that he learned something from the typo debacle.
31 minutes, 0 fer 3's, 0 fer o boards, o fer d boards, 0 fer assists, 0 fer blocks, 2 to's. 8 points, against a team playing its very first d1 game.
mebbe he'll get better, idk.
5/24 team on 3's, 'bbut we're stacked on shooting 3s!' no, a couple of players look like they can be consistent 3 ballers (pre this game), yet we're hardly stacked. hawk is our best, and now he's going for vacay for a bit.
the whole 2nd half was unsettling, and not becuz of some scoreboard result. becuz of the whole 'who stands where' thing.

 

[MrSec224]

Joey is going to settle into his role of “when you need shooting and offense off the bench”

He will be overmatched in some games yet excellent in others. Good part about depth.

 

[MrSec224]

They def had the yips from 3. Karaban finding the stroke was nice. But yeah thats the problem with a 4 out model, when your shots arent falling you will have to start to drive to the hoop which I think I liked what I saw there. Work in progress

 

[karstenkibbe]

Karaban is everything that I hoped for and @Ricker predicted. This kid can do everything well. While his shooting percentage wasn’t great, a few of those shots rimmed out. But as he got more comfortable in the second half, he didn’t settle for 3’s and drove to the rim. He had a few exceptional passes, was active on the boards, and clearly understands positioning and floor spacing. Loved the corner 3 after he peeled off his defender under the basket and drifted into the corner. I do think he needs to add more strength, but Alex has the potential to be a complete basketball player. I believe that come January, there will be games where he is our leading scorer. He has to start at the 4 until Andre returns and get mucho minutes.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

I liked how much Newton got to the line. That’s a sign of a really good player. He looked pretty in control of the game and made some great passes. He can look great once we get Hawkins and Jackson back. Ideal PG for this squad.

Clinigan is huge out there and I like the early returns so far (as one of his huge critics). I’d like to see how he does against the teams like Oregon but so far so good.

This team is so much better at passing the ball this year it’s crazy. Love to see it. It’s even rubbed off on Sanogo.

Hard to tell too much after this one. Don’t think we’ll get a full sense of the team until Oregon and hopefully everyone is healthy for that.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

richy played one minute, grabbed 2 boards. cf 'alleyne'
i just don't understand anything aboot this whole springs thing with danny.
none of it. every time he gets on the floor, he shows real desire.
can he be useful? i don't know becuz he never plays. 3 years in.
i don't get it, and its getting weird.