Bryant Post game thread

[KingAG]

What is the evidence that it is a joke? Based on performance--which actually matters, they have not played like a top 10 team.

They beat a top 10 team. And lost to. Top 4 team by 4 down 2 starters. What on Gods green earth are you talking about?

 

[Leebo]

AK is fine if he’s a complimentary piece

Alex strikes me as someone who is always praising his teammates

 

[superjohn]

Also, will AK's minutes go down once we're heathy? I hope so but I kind of have a feeling it's just going to be less minutes for other players.

There's this idea that we only started winning/became a great program again/went back to back once Karaban got here. We hear it from Hurley and it seems like Hurley feels he can't take him off the court. Karaban is an awesome role player but he's just that, a role player. He was the 6th best player on one of those championship teams and the 5th best player on the other. The wheels aren't going to fall off if AK isn't always out there and his great games are mixed in with plenty of stinkers. If he's bricking all his shots or he's putting his head down and driving too much it's okay to plant him on the bench. That's what happens to the other players.

 

[thekollieman]

Again, an astoundingly subpar performance from Karaban and again these threads tiptoe around the truth. He is not helping us and he has not progressed at all since sophomore year.

Boooooooooooo

 

[HooperScooper]

The Bryant coach looked terrified before the game. Was practicing deep breathing before tip off lol

Yeah what was that?

 

[superjohn]

I don’t know if this is the case, but it seems like the staff emphasizes the system and stymies some creativity. It only seems as if players can do their thing in transition or in late shot clock situations. It seems like almost all of Silas’ drives to the hole are late in the clock.

Why not throw in a couple possessions of telling a guy you are free to go get yours without much repercussion? Stewart and Silas are two of the only guys we have that can do that, and that may open up our offense. The system is tremendous, we all recognize that, but throw in a bit of improvisation could help.

I can't remember exactly how he said it but Hurley basically said there would be more improvisation with this team.

 

[RuffRuff]

Also, will AK's minutes go down once we're heathy? I hope so but I kind of have a feeling it's just going to be less minutes for other players.

There's this idea that we only started winning/became a great program again/went back to back once Karaban got here. We hear it from Hurley and it seems like Hurley feels he can't take him off the court. Karaban is an awesome role player but he's just that, a role player. He was the 6th best player on one of those championship teams and the 5th best player on the other. The wheels aren't going to fall off if AK isn't always out there and his great games are mixed in with plenty of stinkers. If he's bricking all his shots or he's putting his head down to much it's okay to plant him on the bench. That's what happens to the other players.

Will be interesting to watch because the only alternative to take him off the floor is Stewart. Hurley doesn't seem comfortable taking him off the floor, even when he's playing poorly.

I think the only way he will is if we're up enough while having Reed & Mullins. I doubt he takes him off the floor much in situations where a game is close.

 

[bendm]

Offense just seems different than is was in 23 & 24. Not quite so elegant with the motion and more passing around the perimeter

In ‘23 our Offense wasn’t humming until well into conference once Murray figured out how to incorporate AJ. We may never see anything like ‘24 in college again

 

[Mr. French]

Yeah what was that?

looks like he's breathing/thinking/focusing. Is this that weird to people or just trying to be funny?

 

[temery]

 

[HuskyHawk]

They went through the motions and didn’t lose. That’s about it. Good practice for Reibe and a few others. Play with that level of intensity on Friday and they get crushed. I sense the team is struggling to find identity without Reed who is so critical to it. Mullins has never played a game here, he’s a nice to have. But Reed is core to who we are.

 

[uconnbill]

I would have them shoot free throws again. I know it was better, but still. Then the three-point shot just isn't dropping even when they are wide open.

 

[Scoe]

Well the fun part is that game is over moving on.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

I would have them shoot free throws again.

I can assure you that the team hasn’t stopped practicing free throws.

 

[Scrutineer]

Ross was a menace on D. Brought the energy, Limited his fouls. Had some drives with purpose and nifty reverse layup. And the dunks, of course.

Every time he was out there, we extended our lead.

He was plus 25! We need him to play well and he seems on the right track.

 

[HooperScooper]

Not to be to critical but bad Free Throw shooting is becoming a big concern.

Silas NEEDS to work on FT's, he will be fouled a lot at the end of games.

They were 17-22 for 77% tonight. And Reibe was 4-4 which is a huge improvement from the Arizona game. Why the big concern after this game?

Demary is now 21-28 from the line for the season. 75%. I'd like him around 80% but 75% after 6 games isn't alarming. It's a relative small sample size and it's not terrible. 1 more make and he's at 78.6%. Last season he was 127-158 which is 80.4%. What are you seeing that makes you believe he needs work on his free throws?

 

[Scrutineer]

OK, I’m home. What happened? 😉

Nothing to write home about....

 

[Scrutineer]

Concerns about Solo are legit….,he has regressed big time.

Could be he's looking at the lineup and worrying about where he fits in when Mullins starts playing.

 

[SwingDog]

Congrats to Silas! 2nd triple double in the past 10 years. But...

Good things about this game:

• It was a win
• Silas 10-10-10
• Reibe 16 points in 19 minutes

There were also stretches of good defense. That was about all. I get Bryant had a tough non-conference, but they are now 1-5. Kinda expected a blowout. Disappointed in Hurley's post game talking about the team "punking out" in the AZ game. Given that (IMHO) over the top reaction, can't imagine what he will say after this game.

Actually, what Hurley said following the Arizona game was they "got punked" on the boards, which was true, as they got outrebounded by 20.

 

[uconn_jack]

Offense just seems different than is was in 23 & 24. Not quite so elegant with the motion and more passing around the perimeter

It's November for chistsakes. The offense in November for those two squads was also different than they ultimately were. We are holding this team to way too high of a standard for November, especially with completely new guys at the PG position, and being down 2 starters most of the season so far. I am actually pleased with the overall offense for this point in the season, averaging 86 points on 19 assists per game thus far, which is actually better than both the '23 and '24 teams. Yeah the assists may drop as we go through the gauntlet the next few weeks, but we had 22 and 15 against BYU and Zona, almost double what they had, so I think we'll be alright. I don't care how "elegant" it is as long as it gets the job done.

 

[DogMania]

They had some good moments. They seem out of sorts and most of our snipers are simply slumping. They also need to finish around the rim more often.

Hopefully they come around. The FT shooting is a tad concerning. Can't shoot like that in a tight competitive or win-or-go-home game and expect to pull them out.

You have to take into account they have not been able to play much of the season with their expected starting five. Once they have their top five playing as a unit where they can bring in some of their key bench pieces when needed, this team has a chance to be very special. Right now they just seem out of sorts. With that said, they need to play better regardless to who is available since the level of competition is sky high the next few weeks.

It's still way to early to worry. They need to get healthy and need to execute and shoot it more consistently. Let's see what happens over the next few weeks before jumping to conclusions.

 

[uconn_jack]

I swear I've been watching different games than most people here. I don't think intensity was an issue tonight. They had 37 rebounds, 12 steals, and forced 19 turnovers (while only commiting 8). Those aren't stats indicative of low intensity. The only bad thing tonight was shooting and finishing. Important of course, but it happens. Other than a that and a few poor shot selections, I think they generally played well.

 

[Muddler]

They beat a top 10 team. And lost to. Top 4 team by 4 down 2 starters. What on Gods green earth are you talking about?

BYU was missing two starters and playing 3000 miles from home. Arizona was a home game. You conveniently forgot that fact,

Other than UMass Lowell, they’ve failed to cover the spread. Your only proof is a 2 pt win against a team missing 40 percent of their starting lineup. Given the preseason hype, the start has been underwhelming.

 

[Scottobot]

One of my biggest fears with Hurley was giving AK too long a leash

Remember like a week ago when he was 4 for 4 from 3pt and scored 21 to beat #8 BYU?

 

[Scottobot]

BYU was missing two starters and playing 3000 miles from home. Arizona was a home game. You conveniently forgot that fact,

Other than UMass Lowell, they’ve failed to cover the spread. Your only proof is a 2 pt win against a team missing 40 percent of their starting lineup. Given the preseason hype, the start has been underwhelming.

They were missing their 5th starter. Their center got hurt during the game and they were down 10 already at the time. BYU had their 3 best players, and those 3 are by far their best players. Reed is UConn’s best player and most important player as the only place UConn lacks depth is at center/ power forward.