Chief’s Briefs - Hartford Edition

[Chief00]

I cannot understand the bucket full of files committed 30 ft plus from the hoop. Bouknight and Cole are going to be our offensive leaders so they cannot take themselves off the floor early on. The referees were consistent. They were calling the hand check files and we didn't adjust.

Polley is going to have games like the other night and he's going to have games like tonight. He just doesn't have the foot speed to play smaller players that far from the basket.

Whalley and Sanogo really make a nice two-headed monster at the five spot. A DNP for Carlton in a game where Akok is not in uniform is telling. As long as our top two centers stay out of foul trouble, we may see a series of DNPs for Carlton.

Gaffney was a real bright spot tonight. There was a time in the second half with both Bouknight and Cole on the bench with four fouls that his offense was essential to holding off Hartford's charge.

Jackson picked up a few silly fouls early, took a very ill advised three-pointer, and then Hurley parked him on the bench. The adjustment to the college game come to different speeds for different freshmen. He did have some nagging injuries which have slowed him. He's going to be a huge contributor this year.

I thought Martin played pretty well. He was somewhat deferential at first but kind of settled in. I think he'll be a very steady contributor. At the risk of drawing some criticism here, I see a lot of Donny Marshall in him.

As good as Bouknight was in the first half, he was as bad in the second half. I think he knows that he is the offensive focal point and tonight he felt the need to try put the team on the back early in the second half and get team going. He forced a couple shots and then committed some silly files after forcing some shots. With that being said, it's going to be so much fun to watch him all season.

All in all, If you told me before the game they were going to hold Harford to 57 points, I would have gladly signed for it. Considering the lack of practice time that they have had, this is a nice 2-0 start. I look forward to next week.

I agree on Gaffney being solid.

 

[huskypantz]

[QUOTE="Stlh8L8ner, post: 3750519, member: 10653”]
I almost spit out my jack n Cole when the color commentator said this game was a city rivalry game. Lol
[/QUOTE]
Didn’t he say “inner city rivalry” game?

 

[Chief00]

Boutknight and Cole combined for 1 assist and 4 turnovers.

 

[Mooch82]

2 games in and we’ve yet to see 2 bigs on the floor at the same time (aside from garbage time w Springs/Brown against Central). Really interesting. Not sure why we’re recruiting so many bigs if we’re only going to play 1 at a time.

Would like to see Sanogo/Whaley out there together a bit. We should’ve dominated down low tonight and didn’t bc we insisted on playing small ball for 40 minutes. I get the positionless basketball thing and playing quicker, more athletic players...but it clearly didn’t work tonight.

Adams was awful. Not sure if he contributed one positive thing tonight. No clue why he saw the minutes he did.

I know Jackson had the fouls, but was disappointed he didn’t play more.

I liked what I saw from Polley last game but he was back to invisible Polley tonight. I know he didn’t play much due to fouls (which were mainly due to him not moving his feet) but even before the foul trouble he looked tentative.

Our 6 best guys are Cole, Gaffney, Bouk, Martin, Sanogo, Whaley. Jackson should be next up minutes wise, then Polley and Adams. Neither of those guys should get more than 15 minutes most nights. Would also like to see Carlton play more; hopefully we use 2 bigs at times going forward and then Carlton can spell one of them.

Will take a while for Danny to figure out the best rotation, but I found myself scratching my head quite a bit tonight.

 

[Ajs120102]

2 games in and we’ve yet to see 2 bigs on the floor at the same time (aside from garbage time w Springs/Brown against Central). Really interesting. Not sure why we’re recruiting so many bigs if we’re only going to play 1 at a time.

Would like to see Sanogo/Whaley out there together a bit. We should’ve dominated down low tonight and didn’t bc we insisted on playing small ball for 40 minutes. I get the positionless basketball thing and playing quicker, more athletic players...but it clearly didn’t work tonight.

Adams was awful. Not sure if he contributed one positive thing tonight. No clue why he saw the minutes he did.

I know Jackson had the fouls, but was disappointed he didn’t play more.

I liked what I saw from Polley last game but he was back to invisible Polley tonight. I know he didn’t play much due to fouls (which were mainly due to him not moving his feet) but even before the foul trouble he looked tentative.

Our 6 best guys are Cole, Gaffney, Bouk, Martin, Sanogo, Whaley. Jackson should be next up minutes wise, then Polley and Adams. Neither of those guys should get more than 15 minutes most nights. Would also like to see Carlton play more; hopefully we use 2 bigs at times going forward and then Carlton can spell one of them.

Will take a while for Danny to figure out the best rotation, but I found myself scratching my head quite a bit tonight.

You hit the nail on the head with everything. That’s what I was thinking. You recruited like 3 or 4 bigs, but you’re playing small ball. Maybe he will change it around with bigger teams but It’s not fair to the other bigs if it’s Whaley and rotating two centers.

 

[Chief00]

What an absurd take on Martin. Outside of Bouknight's explosion in the first 5 minutes Martin was probably the best on the court tonight.

If our “best on the court tonight” scores 6 points it’s going to be a long season. LOL

It’s interesting last game I was criticized for shorting Polley by saying his timing and movement were a little off, but tonight others are saying similar things. Martin played well with 10 rebounds but when I said he did not blend in yet, I stand by that oberservation. He was open several times and did not get the ball or really demand it. He did not seem to be a part of the offense - he had 6 points snd 0-2 from the line. When I said Jackson brings more defensive energy, I stand by that too. Martin had 0 blocks and 0 steals. Granted he rebounded well and stayed in front of his man more than others did.

 

[Chief00]

Gaffney was the biggest plus coming out of that game for me. 15pts, 2 assists (not enough), 2 rebounds, 2 blocks and 2 steals. But most importantly...ZERO turnovers in a TON of minutes

I believe Gaffney has 1 turnover all season.

 

[Ricker]

I don't understand playing with 1 big and then sending that big out to the 3 point line to hedge or double team. The lane was wide open time after time. I agree with Chief00 that we create mismatches that work against us. I like playing with 1 big for segments to see if we can speed up the game, but count me in the camp that wants a second true big on the court a lot. We are not going to be able to play long stretches this way against 7 footers like Haarms with BYU, or against the 2 Seton Hall bigs, and similar teams. When we were failing to dictate the game with our 4 guard lineups, why would we not even try a second low post big tonight at all? (Polley doesn't count)

I never bothered to watch more than a few minutes of Martin at URI so I was interested to see him play. I thought he did some good things but I guess I need to watch again because I didn't see the audition as the starting 4 that others did. I liked his rebounding in terms of contributing from the 3 position, but I watched a bunch of teams the last few days that I can't see Martin matching up with at the 4. I really think the team hurts itself to go the whole game with Polley or Martin at the 4. Whaley extends to the 3 point line with Haarms in the post and Martin is supposed to switch? I don't think so. Akok will be our answer but I see clearing him as far more important than I did earlier.

I also think If Gaffney or Cole picks up an early foul, we should quickly go to 1 point guard. We need them both more at the end of the games when ball handling and foul shooting might be key. It doesn't make sense to me to risk foul trouble in the first half, and the need to play one or the other for long stretches without a break.

 

[Chin Diesel]

I don’t believe Gaffney has a turnover all season.

It doesn't matter what you believe.

He has 1 TO in 60 minutes.

 

[auror]

When I said Jackson brings more defensive energy, I stand by that too. Martin had 0 blocks and 0 steals. Granted he rebounded well and stayed in front of his man more than others did.

Jackson converts that potential energy into kinetic energy and hits his man on defense.

 

[Chin Diesel]

I don't understand playing with 1 big and then sending that big out to the 3 point line to hedge or double team. The lane was wide open time after time. I agree with Chief00 that we create mismatches that work against us. I like playing with 1 big for segments to see if we can speed up the game, but count me in the camp that wants a second true big on the court a lot. We are not going to be able to play long stretches this way against 7 footers like Haarms with BYU, or against the 2 Seton Hall bigs, and similar teams. When we were failing to dictate the game with our 4 guard lineups, why would we not even try a second low post big tonight at all? (Polley doesn't count)

I never bothered to watch more than a few minutes of Martin at URI so I was interested to see him play. I thought he did some good things but I guess I need to watch again because I didn't see the audition as the starting 4 that others did. I liked his rebounding in terms of contributing from the 3 position, but I watched a bunch of teams the last few days that I can't see Martin matching up with. I really think the team hurts itself to go the whole game with Polley or Martin at the 4. Whaley extends to the 3 point line with Haarms in the post and Martin is supposed to switch? I don't think so. Akok will be our answer but I see clearing him as far more important than I did earlier.

I also think If Gaffney or Cole picks up an early foul, we should quickly go to 1 point guard. We need them both more at the end of the games when ball handling and foul shooting might be key. It doesn't make sense to me to risk foul trouble in the first half, and the need to play one or the other for long stretches without a break.

Good points. I think you can pair up Polley and Martin at the forward position. You can decide which one is the 3 and which one is the 4.

 

[husky8273]

[QUOTE="Stlh8L8ner, post: 3750519, member: 10653”]
I almost spit out my jack n Cole when the color commentator said this game was a city rivalry game. Lol

Didn’t he say “inner city rivalry” game?
[/QUOTE]

and he called us "Connecticut State" numerous times

 

[Chief00]

It doesn't matter what you believe.

He has 1 TO in 60 minutes.

Yeah, I looked up up a few seconds after I wrote that and corrected it before I saw your post since I knew there might have been 1 my eye test may have missed.

 

[JB75]

First 8 or so minutes I thought Bouk was going to drop a 40 piece and we'd win by 30. My kid and I do addition/subtraction as we're watching but it was tough early on. He said we were up by 21 when it was only 19 so I'm talking to his teacher on Monday.

Foul trouble really took a couple of guys out of their game (Polley, Andre). Refs were brutal but there were some pretty dumb fouls.

Beginning of the game we moved the ball well but we then fell back into too much one on one offense and struggled when UHa started to wake up.

When Cole picked up his 4th foul and had to sit I legit got a little bit nervous. Gaff had a solid game but there is a certain calm that RJ brings.

Sanogo's post moves are really impressive given his age. If he goes to Kareem's Big Man Camp (is that still a thing?) next summer, he might be unstoppable next year.

I almost spit out my jack n Cole when the color commentator said this game was a city rivalry game. Lol

Me too. I was watching it with my pops and almost spit out the leftover stuffing I had fir dinner. We were dying laughing. City rivalry ? Lol. I swear these announcers say anything sometimes. As a side note , bouk looked scary good first 5 mins. I too thought 30 or 40 for him tonight.

 

[444JR]

Gonna leave this here. The last question he breaks down the scouting report on UConn and highlights the players he believes will be most pivotal to our success in conference play(aside from Bouk)

 

[444JR]

Hurley Postgame interview

 

[Jbirdp5]

On a normal night I don’t think m hurley subs out bouk when he did in the first half. He would have kept riding the hot hand. Bouk was not the same the rest of the game.
I’ve never been a huge adams guy in general but tonight wasjust disappointing. The worse he played the more he tried to do more offensively. Hurley give a him a much longer leash than almost anyone for some reason.
Through 2 games I feel like Cole has been very sloppy with the ball when passing on the perimeter. Love his jumper though.

 

[UconnFanDC]

What was polley’s stat line, one assist in about 20 minutes?

Martin will be starting by the end of December.

No, Martin needs to start next game. Polley needs to take a seat. Period!

 

[Chief00]

Sanogo at the 5 and Whaley at the 4?

I agree with various posters who want more effective size. Thus far, Polley hasn’t exhibited much mobility. Without him in the flow, we are going to struggle shooting, especially when Bouknight is cold. Chief ideally likes to have 3 shooters in the game, and doesn’t appear we will have that without Polley and Akok recovering from injuries.

 

[Chief00]

On a normal night I don’t think m hurley subs out bouk when he did in the first half. He would have kept riding the hot hand. Bouk was not the same the rest of the game.
I’ve never been a huge adams guy in general but tonight wasjust disappointing. The worse he played the more he tried to do more offensively. Hurley give a him a much longer leash than almost anyone for some reason.
Through 2 games I feel like Cole has been very sloppy with the ball when passing on the perimeter. Love his jumper though.

I agree, Cole has shot a little better and passed a little worse than anticipated.

 

[Hankster]

Martin was a beast tonight Chief. Did you watch the same game as me?

I want more Sanogo and Jackson vs Adams and Polley right now.

Wouldn't be against some mimutes with Whaley/Sanogo together vs big teams if we're going to shoot like crap anyways.

I agree on Whaley. He was everywhere tonight. Proving he deserves it. Polley was kind of no show. Sanogo needs to be out there. Took awhile for him to step on the hardwood as far as I am concern.

 

[Hankster]

2 games in and we’ve yet to see 2 bigs on the floor at the same time (aside from garbage time w Springs/Brown against Central). Really interesting. Not sure why we’re recruiting so many bigs if we’re only going to play 1 at a time.

Would like to see Sanogo/Whaley out there together a bit. We should’ve dominated down low tonight and didn’t bc we insisted on playing small ball for 40 minutes. I get the positionless basketball thing and playing quicker, more athletic players...but it clearly didn’t work tonight.

Adams was awful. Not sure if he contributed one positive thing tonight. No clue why he saw the minutes he did.

I know Jackson had the fouls, but was disappointed he didn’t play more.

I liked what I saw from Polley last game but he was back to invisible Polley tonight. I know he didn’t play much due to fouls (which were mainly due to him not moving his feet) but even before the foul trouble he looked tentative.

Our 6 best guys are Cole, Gaffney, Bouk, Martin, Sanogo, Whaley. Jackson should be next up minutes wise, then Polley and Adams. Neither of those guys should get more than 15 minutes most nights. Would also like to see Carlton play more; hopefully we use 2 bigs at times going forward and then Carlton can spell one of them.

Will take a while for Danny to figure out the best rotation, but I found myself scratching my head quite a bit tonight.

Right now I agree with the Sonogo Whaley show. Give it a try Danny. They both have upsides right now. We cannot go into Vandy and play like last night. Hartford drove to the hoop with ease the second half. they looked faster. Batter have a good mindset for Tuesday.

 

[Doctor Hoop]

Polley will take some time to regain aggression and trust his knee. Also, you lose explosion but also endurance after an ACL. Those take time to rebuild, and rehab alone doesn’t do it. The game 2 nights earlier likely made last night tougher on him than you know. That will improve with PT.

He’s a really solid shooter, be patient.

 

[XLCenterFan]

If we play like this next week we go 0-3.

For all the hype, Cole is not impressing me.
Sanogo is a gem - he is performing above his hype.
Bouk thinks he can just show up and be the man.
Jackson cannot shoot at all.
Gaff needs more minutes and looks - I wouldn't mind if he started at point for a few games.
Whaley is a beast in spurts - let's get him more involved.
Martin can be good.
We need fewer guys getting more minutes, and a more cohesive unit on the floor.

 

[dennismenace]

Didn’t he say “inner city rivalry” game?

and he called us "Connecticut State" numerous times
[/QUOTE]
Anyone have a clue who the color commentator was? Said he played for John Thompson at Georgetown and was later a coach ("I knew the firing squad" when referencing fired coaches).