Boat deserved better

[joober jones]

This is the first time I can recall, as a fan of any sport, where I've felt worse for a single player than for the team loss as a whole. Terrible no-call on the last second shot.

 

[joober jones]

Not to say that was the sole reason we lost - far too many missed shots from 3 feet out and closer.

 

[Stainmaster]

Hate to say it, but as I've mentioned elsewhere he needed to hold up his end of the bargain tonight. 4-13 from the field, missed layups, 2 assists and 3 turnovers is not the Boat that could've led this team to a win.

 

[willyd24]

I'm not going to feel bad for Ryan. Did he deserve a win here? Sure he did, however it's been like this all season long, he hasn't had much of a supporting cast all season and the same thing happened in this game. He wanted to take the final shot as he should have, the winning shot was in his hands and he missed. I'm pretty sure that Ryan isn't busy blaming others for this loss so I'm not going to blame anyone else either.

 

[amory]

man people sure do love having a pity party for ryan boatright, huh?

we got some decent home cooking tonight and still lost. and boat didn't exactly set the world on fire

 

[HuskiesAllDay]

well he didn't exactly do anything down the stretch of this game. And I'm not talking about the last shot either. But the last five min our offense completely fell apart and we barely got any good shots off (if any). That's when we need him to deliver and he didnt.

That's the thing that made shabazz and kemba so special. When we needed a hoop they literally always delivered. Not even talking buzzer beaters but when we needed a hoop to stop a run or just get our offense going they always did. At the end on about six straight possessions we desperately needed a hoop and boat didnt do much

Now I'm Not blaming him at all but people always blame everyone else. Boat had five points in the second half and I don't think any in the last eight min or so. He had a chance to seal his senior night and he didn't do it

 

[joober jones]

It's the sum total of his career, not his performance in this one game that has me feeling bad for Boatright.

 

[HuskiesAllDay]

It's the sum total of his career, not his performance in this one game that has me feeling bad for Boatright.

He's a national champion. Was a part of one of the greatest runs in ncaa history. He started for three years for the best basketball program in the country. And he has a shot to play in the NBA.

Wtf do you feel bad about?

 

[joober jones]

He's a national champion. Was a part of one of the greatest runs in ncaa history. He started for three years for the best basketball program in the country. And he has a shot to play in the NBA.

Wtf do you feel bad about?

I feel bad about his last game at Gampel going down the way it did after all he's given us throughout his career. Connect the damn dots.

 

[Gurleyman]

I feel bad about his last game at Gampel going down the way it did after all he's given us throughout his career. Connect the damn dots.

Ricky can console him and let him know that losing on Senior Day doesn't mean anything.

 

[HuskiesAllDay]

I feel bad about his last game at Gampel going down the way it did after all he's given us throughout his career. Connect the damn dots.

He shot 4-13 last night . Aside from a 30 second stretch at the end of the first half, he shot 2-11 for 5 pts with 2 ast the other 39 minutes. And he did absolutely nothing in the last 6 min of the game when we needed him most. I have connected the dots and I don't understand what your bit**ing about.

Boat is a very good player. And I love watching him. But this board overvalues him so much. Hes not bazz, kemba, khalid, ben g. etc etc. Heck I doubt we would be having the season we are if AJP was running the show (think about it, its true).

Clearly Boat is the last one on this team to be blamed for the season, but he makes his fair share of bonehead plays and has had more than a few "meh" games this year.

 

[Shabazzkets]

I don't feel that badly for Boat. He won a NC here, but he was never good enough to carry a team Kemba-style. He needed support, and hasn't gotten it, which is a bummer. He's given max effort, which I appreciate. UConn gave him a lot, and he's probably improved his draft stock, and hopefully he gets a degree. He had a great career here. I know he wanted to be a legend, but he's Top 10 in some important categories and will always be remembered for helping seal title #4.

He was never as good as he thought he was, so a bit of humble pie could serve him well. What I like most about him is how he transformed from a greedy freshman to a senior leader. This season could help him improve his attitude even further.

 

[Candyman]

I know most of the BY will disagree because they think we were robbed last night but... no way on that last shot do you call that foul if your a ref. It was a wild drive and crazy shot. He may have been hit a little but not enough to decide the game. Didnt we get enough calls yesterday. They went to the line once maybe twice the whole game. It was bad shot attempt that he should have passed to an open Dham or Purvis and yes he had time to pass for a quick shot by one of them.

That didnt decide the game though, bad shooting at Gampel once again caused us to lose another home game. Missed open shots, missed layups, bad decisons and that killer shot clock violation is the reason we lost.

 

[Gurleyman]

He shot 4-13 last night . Aside from a 30 second stretch at the end of the first half, he shot 2-11 for 5 pts with 2 ast the other 39 minutes. And he did absolutely nothing in the last 6 min of the game when we needed him most. I have connected the dots and I don't understand what your bit**ing about. Boat is a very good player. And I love watching him. But this board overvalues him so much. Hes not bazz, kemba, khalid, ben g. etc etc. Heck I doubt we would be having the season we are if AJP was running the show (think about it, its true). Clearly Boat is the last one on this team to be blamed for the season, but he makes his fair share of bonehead plays and has had more than a few "meh" games this year.

Boat has faced way more gimmick defense this year than any of those guys ever did. Memphis face guarded him yesterday, left other guys wide open and dared them to beat them. In some ways, it's similar to what Mouring dealt with as a senior - he saw more box and ones than Ray or Rip, just because nobody feared Taliek or Caron (yet) from the perimeter. Khalid and the team struggled his last year without Rip and Ricky. Ben always had Emeka and Rashad. AJP was more of a cog on a good team with five guys averaging in double figures than a lead guy having to carry a team of inconsistent teammates (I'm disregarding his first season since I don't think he was healthy).

Florida actually threw a defensive scheme at Bazz last year in the FF to effectively take him out of the game (consistent hard doubles off of high screens - Bazz only took six shots) and DD stepped up to carry us. Alas, DHam isn't ready for that or he would have dropped 30 yesterday the way he was defended. Nobody was ever leaving Giff and DD open the way our guys are left open this year. And late in the NC game last year, Boat was making as many plays in the last five minutes as Bazz.

Boat may indeed come up a hair short of some of those other guys on our pantheon of greats, and that's probably fair, but he's carried a heavy burden this year - we ask him to harass folks on defense far more than we've asked of our past stars. KEA, Bazz, Ben, would save energy at that end. Kemba would too sometimes depending on the opponent, but I think he's a level above everyone else on your list anyway.

 

[HuskiesAllDay]

Boat has faced way more gimmick defense this year than any of those guys ever did. Memphis face guarded him yesterday, left other guys wide open and dared them to beat them. In some ways, it's similar to what Mouring dealt with as a senior - he saw more box and ones than Ray or Rip, just because nobody feared Taliek or Caron (yet) from the perimeter. Khalid and the team struggled his last year without Rip and Ricky. Ben always had Emeka and Rashad. AJP was more of a cog on a good team with five guys averaging in double figures than a lead guy having to carry a team of inconsistent teammates (I'm disregarding his first season since I don't think he was healthy).

Florida actually threw a defensive scheme at Bazz last year in the FF to effectively take him out of the game (consistent hard doubles off of high screens - Bazz only took six shots) and DD stepped up to carry us. Alas, DHam isn't ready for that or he would have dropped 30 yesterday the way he was defended. Nobody was ever leaving Giff and DD open the way our guys are left open this year. And late in the NC game last year, Boat was making as many plays in the last five minutes as Bazz.

Boat may indeed come up a hair short of some of those other guys on our pantheon of greats, and that's probably fair, but he's carried a heavy burden this year - we ask him to harass folks on defense far more than we've asked of our past stars. KEA, Bazz, Ben, would save energy at that end. Kemba would too sometimes depending on the opponent, but I think he's a level above everyone else on your list anyway.

I agree Boat has shouldered a huge load this year and has given it his all and played great at times. He certainly doesnt have the supporting cast that those guys had. And its no shame to be below guys like Kemba, Shabazz etc. Doesnt mean he isnt a very good player.

But this notion that the board seems to have that Boat has put the team on his back at all times and has been flawless all year is far from true.

Hes shooting 40% from the field this year. 17.5 pts 4 boards, 4 ast is a nice stat line, but its also against AAC competition. Obviously being the only true offensive threat makes it easier to slow him down, but hes had his fair share of stinkers this year. And i would say that D-Ham has been our best all around playmaker as far as setting other guys up. He kicks it out for open threes and gives Brimah and Facey far more easy hoops than Boat does.

As great as he can be individually, I often wonder if he actually hurts the team in some ways. He just sits at the top of the key and pounds the ball for 10, 15 even 20 seconds at a time. Just through the legs, behind the back dribbles over and over and over. Look at the second to last play last night; epitomizes that perfectly. I don't think you can argue that at times that kills our offense (just like in many other times he is our only offense).

I love Boat. Hes a great player. Hes been a warrior and has given it his all for our Huskies. So im not killing him. Hes had close to a very good season, but its far from great and he isn't blameless in the season unfolding the way it has as the majority of posters seem to think.

 

[UCweCONN]

Is it just me, or do we rarely lose on Senior Day? Granted Boat didn't have a strong game and forced a lot but he deserved to go out a winner. Hopefully, they can go on a run in the AAC and he can still leave on a winning note. I couple things on the game, man does Calhoun have an ugly, unconventional shot! He shoots line drives and his release is so low. No elevation at all. Who coached him when he was young? Second, between Purvis and Calhoun, this game had some of the ugliest shots I can remember seeing in a UCONN game. Third, close home loses are on the coach. Very questionable offensive sets down the stretch. Last season, we pulled out the close ones, this year it's the other extreme.