Chief’s Briefs - Florida Edition

[Chief00]

My goal today was to win and wave good bye to Rick F Pitino. Not to be. A very winnable game but poor shooting, bad decisions, all help shoot ourselves in the foot. No insult to Florida but we beat ourselves with some very bad decisions and sloppy play. A lot of stuff we need to re-evaluate and rethink what we want to do with what personnel we have on the floor.

Tough to win shooting 27% from three compared to 47% from Florida, but somehow we are good and competitive enough to compete against a high #1 seed. If we only cleaned up some things more, we would be a top 4 team in tournament.

Having 4 fouls at the center position in the first half has been an issue all season, many are foolish including Samson going over the back with 37 seconds left in the first half with us in the penalty foul wise and others related to our center defending a guard 30 feet from the basket and the out of position defense that triggers. Too many Casual Fans and even experts confuse an aggressive defensive player with a good one!!!!

Florida had 9 turnovers in the first half but only 2 points off turnovers. Got to shoot better to make them pay.

Diarra came out in the second half very strong but then lost his focus for awhile. Our three top 3 point shooters were 6-26 including some bad shot attempts.

Hurley and the team fell asleep for nearly 7 minutes in the second half when we had trouble making FG’s and made foolish plays. During that period there was a 12 point swing for Florida in a 2 point loss.

What does our coaching staff not understand playing the same defense that gets our two centers in foul trouble every game, not just 5 fouls but 8-10 nearly every game. Either coach up the players propensity to foul or put them at less risk. Maybe them covering guards 30 feet from the basket and the defense that triggers in switches is not the best idea?

 

[Austin316]

Ah! The casual brief from a casual fan.

Great fight but Florida made the right plays at the right time. We made the wrong play at the wrong time. Tale of the season.

Looking forward to building it back next season. Starts now with a post-game pep talk to returning players and making calls to future players.

 

[Kitaman]

If we had won, it would not have been an upset.

That is my honest compliment to this fantastic team!

 

[huskyinfl]

 

[Mets1432]

I thought Mahaney gave us solid minutes again, and he didn't see the floor in the 2nd half. Could of been a difference maker during that 7 minute drought.

 

[bendm]

Proud of our guys. Hell of an effort. Can hold their heads high. Wish Samson and Mahaney could’ve played like this all season. Looking forward to hitting the transfer portal on Monday!

 

[gimber]

If we had won, it would not have been an upset.

That is my honest compliment to this fantastic team!

Agree. The eye test is always best.....Florida was not a better team. The outcome was not acceptable.

 

[Austin316]

Agree. The eye test is always best.....Florida was not a better team. The outcome was not acceptable.

I think when it comes down to it Clayton was the best player on the court today. He made shots when it mattered the most. We probably had the better coached team and won the eye text for 39 minutes. Our best play maker has limited college experience and young by comparison. The experienced play maker won. It happens. That’s all I have to say about that.

 

[District-Husky]

Agreed with your assessments all season, Chief.

 

[NEforceUConn]

Agreed with your assessments all season, Chief.

Umm, not me.

 

[jibsey]

Nothing but compliments to our team and coaching staff, seriously, but what if we had a guard who could drive and pull up for a 2? Our centers had points and boards. Yes our wings shot like masons but we needed that guard that could get their shot.
UConn fans can bank on one thing, which is Hurley will go out and get 2 experienced players that can do that. Lesson learned.

 

[Edward Sargent]

I think when it comes down to it Clayton was the best player on the court today. He made shots when it mattered the most. We probably had the better coached team and won the eye text for 39 minutes. Our best play maker has limited college experience and young by comparison. The experienced play maker won. It happens. That’s all I have to say about that.

We had Clayton type players last year this year not so much

 

[Austin316]

We had Clayton type players last year this year not so much

Yep… that’s ok. I think we know what we’re going to need.

 

[SubbaBub]

The fouls are on the players. Other teams' centers don't seem to have those problems although FL's center did today. I hate how soft the tournament whistle is. Half the fouls wouldn't be called in Big East play.

 

[Chief00]

Ah! The casual brief from a casual fan.

Great fight but Florida made the right plays at the right time. We made the wrong play at the wrong time. Tale of the season.

Looking forward to building it back next season. Starts now with a post-game pep talk to returning players and making calls to future players.

Thank you

 

[Chief00]

Agreed with your assessments all season, Chief.

Thank you. Unfortunately some themes kept repeating this season so the Briefs were redundant at times. Hopefully, we take a fresh look at personal and style of play. Having said that we came close to going to weekend 2 of the tournament going against a #1 seed.
With Hurley the players may think he’s crazy in a good tough way but they also love him. After 2 weeks of promoting the crazy Danny for misguided book PR - it was good to see this weekend some coverage of the appreciation and love our players have for the head coach regardless of transfer activity.

 

[Chief00]

Umm, not me.

Good luck moving up the learning curve. Chief will be cheering you on.

 

[Chief00]

I think when it comes down to it Clayton was the best player on the court today. He made shots when it mattered the most. We probably had the better coached team and won the eye text for 39 minutes. Our best play maker has limited college experience and young by comparison. The experienced play maker won. It happens. That’s all I have to say about that.

McNeeley, ideally should get stronger and be our leader next season.

 

[caw]

My goal today was to win and wave good bye to Rick F Pitino. Not to be. A very winnable game and poor shooting, bad decisions, all help shoot ourselves in the foot. No insult to Florida but we beat ourselves with some very bad decisions and sloppy play. A lot of stuff we need to re-evaluate and rethink what we want to do with what personnel we have on the floor.

Tough to win shooting 22% from three but somehow we are good and competitive enough to compete against a high #1 seed. If we only cleaned up some things more, we would be a top 4 team in tournament.


Florida had 9 turnovers in the first half but only 2 points off turnovers. Got to shoot better.

Having 4 fouls at the center position in the first half has been an issue all season, many are foolish including Samson going over the back with 37 seconds left in the first half with us in the penalty foul wise and others related to our center defending a guard 30 feet from the basket and the out of position defense that creates. Too many Casual Fans and even experts confuse an aggressive defensive player with a good one!!!!

Florida had 9 turnovers in the first half but only 2 points off turnovers. Got to shoot better.

Diarra came out in the second half very strong but then lost his focus for awhile. Late in the second half our three top 3 point shooters were 5-25 including some bad shot attempts.

Hurley fell asleep for 7 minutes in the second half when we had a FG drought and made foolish plays.

What does our coaching staff not understand playing the same defense that gets our two centers in foul trouble every game, not just 5 fouls but 8-10 nearly every game.

Not to nit pick too much but there was no 7 min FG drought. It was from the 7 minute mark to the 2 minute mark. You misheard that. Now they did come back from 55-51 to take the lead during that drought but it wasn't like UConn wasn't scoring at all. That 5 minute stretch was a missed Karaban 3, three possessions of foul shots (all 6 made), then the Ball TO, then TV timeout, then Karaban's missed reverse and Liam's TO. Hurley called a timeout after Liams TO.

Then the Solo made three pointer.

Hurley let exactly three "bad" possessions occur before calling his timeout. I'd argue the sequence to get the shot Karaban got was actually fine, it was just a poorly taken attempt at the reverse which may, or may not have been a foul. The Ball TO and the Liam TO sandwiched it, but there was also a TV timeout right after the Ball TO.

 

[AZHuskiePop]

I thought Mahaney gave us solid minutes again, and he didn't see the floor in the 2nd half. Could of been a difference maker during that 7 minute drought.

He played critical minutes in the second half with us clinging to a lead
he scored 4 points on a drive and went 2/3 when he was fouled on a three point attempt
They were huge minutes and points because they allowed Diarra to sit and return with a small cushion.

 

[Chief00]

Agree. The eye test is always best.....Florida was not a better team. The outcome was not acceptable.

I honestly agree. It would be easier to accept if Florida played better. But, to Kitman’s point, you become your record. The lack of focus and urgency during that second half 12 point swing, which ended with a 8 point deficit with 40 seconds left was very disappointing. Mahaney may have helped us especially given how well he played earlier.
Johnson and Reed play such different styles other than both foul in the high hedge. The team failed to go into Reed in the post enough. That’s the inside out thing that can produce good three looks too.

 

[Chief00]

Not to nit pick too much but there was no 7 min FG drought. It was from the 7 minute mark to the 2 minute mark. You misheard that. Now they did come back from 55-51 to take the lead during that drought but it wasn't like UConn wasn't scoring at all. That 5 minute stretch was a missed Karaban 3, three possessions of foul shots (all 6 made), then the Ball TO, then TV timeout, then Karaban's missed reverse and Liam's TO. Hurley called a timeout after Liams TO.

Then the Solo made three pointer.

Hurley let exactly three "bad" possessions occur before calling his timeout. I'd argue the sequence to get the shot Karaban got was actually fine, it was just a poorly taken attempt at the reverse which may, or may not have been a foul. The Ball TO and the Liam TO sandwiched it, but there was also a TV timeout right after the Ball TO.

In a close game FG droughts like that matter with the other team taking the lead by 8 points 72-64 with 40 seconds left. We were up by 55-51 at 7 minutes per you. So it was a 12 point swing over 6 minutes and 20 seconds to be exact. I did specify FG because converting FT’s was the shooting we did well this season in addition to center shooting. The bottom line is that 6 minutes and 20 seconds cost us the game.
And given Karaban’s poor shooting from three why not play Mahaney more? And Johnson played well on offense and rebounds but I would roll the dice and worse case have Reed end the game with 5 fouls rather than 4.

 

[gtcam]

It's very frustrating to lose a game you had no business losing. I would never had said that if UConn had not forced UF to play a UConn game and it was a NBE game, especially in the 2nd half.
Mistakes and the inability to grab the ball when rebounding killed this team.
Calls went against both teams.
When your McD AA freshman plays like a freshman and your large fish from the portal turns to a minnow things usually don't go your way.
Congrats to Sampson, HD and Alex - thanks for the memories, there certainly were some GREAT ones

 

[huskyharry]

our three best perimeter shooters shot 6 for 26.
Alex needs some work on his mechanics but Solo and Liam have sweet strokes. Hard to explain why they have struggled so much but it is a make or miss game.

 

[giddyup]

Couple of points:

1. All year we struggled closing out and being unable to foot on the neck when we had teams on the precipice. We had a few chances tonight to make some big plays and it didn’t happen.

2. We were generally a slow unauthentic team. It speaks to what Hurley can get out of his team.

3. The high hedge cannot be used all the time. I get the need because it compensates for our penetration vulnerability, we should be getting faster, taller more athletic guards.

4. We need to get out of the BigEast clown conference sooner rather than later, before it drags us under. You can see the writing on the wall with shift to the SEC throwing $$ around getting longer, faster and overall better athletes.

5. Be proud of a hell of an effort against a far more athletic team. We played better team basketball and almost had them.

 

[JohnFSilver]

our three best perimeter shooters shot 6 for 26.
Alex needs some work on his mechanics but Solo and Liam have sweet strokes. Hard to explain why they have struggled so much but it is a make or miss game.

I think it is "move" 3 pointers.

Karaban, McNeeley and Ball are stellar on catch and shoot 3s. But our offense is movement, and I just dont see Karaban as a move 3-point shooter coming off a pick. He needs to park in the corner and catch and shoot.

That'a the one problem of not having a post up offense or a 1-on-1 player to create catch and shoot and put defense in rotation.

The shots UConn takes for 3 are good shots, but they are for the Jordan Hakwkins move shooters of the world, more so than a catch and shoot player like Karaban.

Ball is better stationary catch and shoot as well IMO. They need a drive and kick guy or a post up big who can pass out of the post to stationary guys in the corner.

 

[Chief00]

our three best perimeter shooters shot 6 for 26.
Alex needs some work on his mechanics but Solo and Liam have sweet strokes. Hard to explain why they have struggled so much but it is a make or miss game.

UConn 3 attempts in the dark above, not a pretty picture. I have said for Alex’s entire career that his mechanics were broken or unorthodox. When you still do well and make 3’s at big moments, there’s an argument - if it’s not broken (from an outcome perspective) why try to fix it?
But, in hindsight that was a mistake and hard work using broken mechanics just can make things worse.
When Hurley said today winning can create arrogance - this may be an example - just a few days ago Hurley said Alex was passing up too many shots.

 

[Chief00]

Couple of points:

1. All year we struggled closing out and being unable to foot on the neck when we had teams on the precipice. We had a few chances tonight to make some big plays and it didn’t happen.

2. We were generally a slow unauthentic team. It speaks to what Hurley can get out of his team.

3. The high hedge cannot be used all the time. I get the need because it compensates for our penetration vulnerability, we should be getting faster, taller more athletic guards.

4. We need to get out of the BigEast clown conference sooner rather than later, before it drags us under. You can see the writing on the wall with shift to the SEC throwing $$ around getting longer, faster and overall better athletes.

5. Be proud of a hell of an effort against a far more athletic team. We played better team basketball and almost had them.

Many great points.
Another point is we need to do a better job teaching our guys not to foul /play more fundamental defense and know when to or not to take defensive risks. Some of this is associated with the high hedge issues that I have covered but the Karaban foul on a three point shot comes to mind. To me it did not look like a foul in regards to contact on the replay, but Alex leaning forward creates the trigger to make the call. He should have stayed straight up verticle and taken his chances.
I think Hurley realizes this now, but his time would have been more productively spent coaching foul avoidance to the players rather than the circus with the refs.

 

[zls44]

Today was the best game Dan Hurley's coached here. Period.

 

[caw]

In a close game FG droughts like that matter with the other team taking the lead by 8 points 72-64 with 40 seconds left. We were up by 55-51 at 7 minutes per you. So it was a 12 point swing over 6 minutes and 20 seconds to be exact. I did specify FG because converting FT’s was the shooting we did well this season in addition to center shooting. The bottom line that 6 minutes and 20 seconds cost us the game.
And given Karaban’s poor shooting from three why not play Mahaney more? And Johnson played well on offense and rebounds but I would roll the dice and worse case have Reed end the game with 5 fouls rather than 4.

But there was exactly three possessions where UConn had potential for a FG inside those 5 minutes, as they got FTs the other possessions. They missed one, and had two TOs.

There was a TV timeout after the first TO and IConn got Karaban an open lane to the basket, bad shot, good play.


Then Liam turned it over and Hurley called his timeout. UConn got an open Ball three.


What do you want there. For Hurley to call a TO after a missed layup? Or after the FTs? He got a timeout after each TO, and got good open shots for his two best shooters after those TOs. That’s all he could have done.