Because of 2011...I have hope.

[ConnHuskBask]

I had an adult temper tantrum after the loss to Marquette and thought we were cooked.

Good times.

 

[maineuconnfan]

Basketball is a mental game...can they piece it together mentally is going to be the key. I think they have the experience to to do so, they definitely have enough talent to make a good run....again, give Ollie an opportunity to show what he can do come March.

 

[HomeKing93]

Of course, numbers don't tell the whole story, but since I was curious here are some to review (sorry about the layout):

2010-2011 2013-14 (through 27 games)
72.4 ppg 74.9
64.9 Opp ppg 63.9
39.7 rpg 36.2
13.0 apg 12.6
5.6 bpg 6.3
6.3 spg 7.3
.434 FG% .455
.393 Opp FG% .391
.329 3pt FG% .390
.327 Opp 3pt FG% .322
.763 FT% .772
11.3 TOs 11.2

I agree that this year's team doesn't have Kemba and the 2010-11 team had a tougher schedule, but color me surprised that the numbers are pretty close so far.

 

[Hoophound]

Of course, numbers don't tell the whole story, but since I was curious here are some to review (sorry about the layout): 2010-2011 2013-14 (through 27 games) 72.4 ppg 74.9 64.9 Opp ppg 63.9 39.7 rpg 36.2 13.0 apg 12.6 5.6 bpg 6.3 6.3 spg 7.3 .434 FG% .455 .393 Opp FG% .391 .329 3pt FG% .390 .327 Opp 3pt FG% .322 .763 FT% .772 11.3 TOs 11.2 I agree that this year's team doesn't have Kemba and the 2010-11 team had a tougher schedule, but color me surprised that the numbers are pretty close so far.

Now show us Kemba and Shabazz side by side if possible. I thought the teams were similar but the numbers you posted are nearly identical. Pretty interesting.

 

[60'sfan]

Every defense was keying on Kemba the way SMU and Larry Brown keyed on Shabazz. Kemba was getting physically beat up and bumped. The freshman Shabazz and Jeremy Lamb and Roscoe Smith and Alex Oriakhi were not ready to step up. What happened was the freshmen stepped up and Lamb's shooting plus Shabazz's ball handling, combined with the other guys becoming the best defensive team in the country, made the team well rounded.

The SMU game was good for us because it shows us the defense we'll see the rest of the way and in the tourney. Now they have to learn how to defeat it. That's a do-able task in the remaining time with good coaching and a good attitude from the players. This team has plenty of offensive talent.

The reason this team isn't likely to go as far as the 2011 team is that the defense is not good enough. SMU should not be able to shoot 47.5%, over 50% in the second half. They are not a great offense. The 2011 team, by the end of the year, routinely held even the best offenses below 40% shooting. This team has a long way to go to match that.

You're right about the defense. I remember in the NC game against Butler, no one would take the ball inside against our defense. JC's teams always played great defense.

 

[UConn_Top_Dog]

I thought I would resurrect this thread to show everyone how foolish some people were after a tough loss last season, and saying "Shabazz is no Kemba" and blah blah blah. Never give up or doubt our Huskies. NEVER!

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

And I'm just bumping to says thanks for a good to-read.

 

[prankster]

...... I was told there was no chance by some of the absolute most respected posters on this board.

Do we even have those?

 

[metsfan2323]

What happened to "Strummer"? He was a good poster who last posted on 9/10/14.

 

[Bonehead]

A few things about that year that will always give me hope about my huskies, especially since there are a few people who played some minutes from that historic years.

1. They were 9-9 in the conference and they did not defeat any teams in the top 7 of the conference until the big east tournament.(I hope this does not continue)

2. They finished the big east season 1-4( I hope this does not continue)

3. They were ranked in the top ten in December, failed miserably at times during the mid-season, especially the St.Johns game

4. Everybody continued to say that Kemba was the only key player, just like they keep saying about bazz

5. Lastly I remember about mid-season when people begin to say there Maui run was a bit of a fluke, kind of like Goodman saying the Florida victory is a fluke

My point is, everyone is down after this loss, especially me, but man o man this team is not done yet, and they still have four more games to learn and grow until it counts. It would be nice to have a higher seed, which is the biggest problem with this loss, but they still can muster a 3 - 6 seed. so lets chill

And they were coached by some other guy, no??

 

[CL82]

What happened to "Strummer"? He was a good poster who last posted on 9/10/14.

I believe he bought a bar and changed his handle to Cheeky. Cheeky's okay, though I enjoyed Strummer's posts more. I was not a big fan of Frank Ivy, however.