Chief’s Briefs - Villanova Edition

[Chief00]

Hurley should have a great idea now, who is in his winning lineup, that should play 70% of the game and primarily together. Ball, Diarra, McNeeley, Reed and Karaban. Next man up is Stewart. Both halves illustrated point advantages with this lineup.

I will also say, I still feel Mahaney could help as a shooter off the bench. Why we had him in the first half as the ballhandler without either Diarra or Ball surprised me. I guess McNeeley was viewed as the other ball handler. At any rate, it did not work.

Johnson should assume the role he played well last year with a few additional minutes.

Tough guys won the game tonight. The most intense were Diarra, McNeeley and Karaban. Reed was a man amongst boys on the boards when he was in there. It was nice to see him play both ways in the paint. That’s winning basketball, not having your center chase a guard around 25 feet from the basket.

We led Villanova in assists 17 to 9 and in rebounds 35 to 29. We were both smart and tough. Reed demonstrated why he should be our starting center shooting 75% (6-8) and 9 rebounds. Reed also did a good job on the nation’s leading scorer, Dixon.

We only shot 21% from 3 pt and Alex Karaban was 0-3. But, Alex showed great leadership from the pregame huddle to the final buzzer and did so much to help us win. 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks, second to Hassan who had 3 blocks. Alex also set screens and played outstanding defense.

McNeeley is our star and he finished with 20 points and 7 rebounds. There’s no quit in that dude. He also laser focused with 9 of 9 from the FT line in a close game. Karaban (2-2) and Diarra (4-4) were also perfect from the line. Ball also added 13 points and 6 dimes.

Teams that pressure us full court don’t like the favor returned. We did that in the last 10 minutes and Villanova did not handle it well.

 

[DMIL]

Agree with your assessment here. The inside game has been open and available all year. With the inconsistency at the 3 point game, a more balanced approach utilizing Reed and Samson in this way will mitigate against scoring droughts and force the opponent to loosen their on ball defense particularly on the perimeter that has often disrupted UCONN's desired motion and rhythm getting open comfortable 3 point shot looks. At this point Ball, McNeeley, Stewart off of the bench and Mahaney (contingent on getting open off of set screens) should have a green light for the 3 ball. Once Karaban's confidence improves with his 3 point shot then he gets the green light as well.

The bottom line is that if they are able to get consistent play on the key phases of the game they do not have to be perfect in every area. Tonight they were good from the free throw line, rebounding, overall FG%, assists and defensively including blocks. UCONN also took care of the ball for the most part and limited their personal fouls. You have to be able to win in different ways and this starts with consistent effort in the areas they can actually control.

I like how they responded to adversity tonight. Turnovers and overreliance on the 3 ball has been their Achilles heal this season. The defense is starting to come around at the right time. Going forward, the inside out game is going to be key along with their overall effort. This is the kind of balance that is needed and it will keep opposing defenses more honest.

 

[husky8273]

no responses to a Chief Brief??

 

[SwingDog]

Hurley should have a great idea now, who is in his winning lineup, that should play 70% of the game and primarily together. Ball, Diarra, McNeeley, Reed and Karaban. Next man up is Stewart. Both halves illustrated point advantages with this lineup.

I will also say, I still feel Mahaney could help as a shooter off the bench. Why we had him in the first half as the ballhandler without either Diarra or Ball surprised me. I guess McNeeley was viewed as the other ball handler. At any rate, it did not work.

Johnson should assume the role he played well last year with a few additional minutes.

Tough guys won the game tonight. The most intense were Diarra, McNeeley and Karaban. Reed was a man amongst boys on the boards when he was in there. It was nice to see him play both ways in the paint. That’s winning basketball, not having your center chase a guard around 25 feet from the basket.

We led Villanova in assists 17 to 9 and in rebounds 35 to 29. We were both smart and tough. Reed demonstrated why he should be our starting center shooting 75% (6-8) and 9 rebounds.

We only shot 21% from 3 pt and Alex Karaban was 0-3. But, Alex showed great leadership from the pregame huddle to the final buzzer and did so much to help us win. 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks, second to Hassan who had 3 blocks. Alex also set screens and played outstanding defense.

McNeeley is our star and he finished with 20 points and 7 rebounds. There’s no quit in that dude. He also laser focused with 9 of 9 from the FT line in a close game. Karaban (2-2) and Diarra (4-4) were also perfect from the line. Ball also added 13 points and 6 dimes.

Teams that pressure us full court don’t like the favor returned. We did that in the last 10 minutes and Villanova did not handle it well.

Good points and no real arguments on any of them. I am surprised you didn't mention Samson at all. Although I agree Tarris has earned what should the lion's share of minutes at the 5, we know Samson gives a different look and has been a major contributor at times. Are you thinking of portioning the minutes as 25 for Tarris and 15 for Samson?

You're right about Alex positively affecting the game his bewildering half-season long shooting slump. I continue to believe he's going to find his stroke again.

As for Mahaney, yeah, I'm thinking he could give a Joey Calcaterra-esque spark off the bench if he can be worked into the offense in spots for some looks from the perimeter. He has shown flashes this year and I have believe he can play a vital if limited role on this team going forward.

 

[Travelman6]

Good write up, that 27-6 in the last 10 minutes is UConn at their most capable. That first 30 minutes was gross. Plus beating Creighton and Marquette on the road, can we bottle those 90 total minutes and have that version of UConn show up for the rest of the season? That version will win a lot of games.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

Hurley should have a great idea now, who is in his winning lineup, that should play 70% of the game and primarily together. Ball, Diarra, McNeeley, Reed and Karaban. Next man up is Stewart. Both halves illustrated point advantages with this lineup.

I will also say, I still feel Mahaney could help as a shooter off the bench. Why we had him in the first half as the ballhandler without either Diarra or Ball surprised me. I guess McNeeley was viewed as the other ball handler. At any rate, it did not work.

Johnson should assume the role he played well last year with a few additional minutes.

Tough guys won the game tonight. The most intense were Diarra, McNeeley and Karaban. Reed was a man amongst boys on the boards when he was in there. It was nice to see him play both ways in the paint. That’s winning basketball, not having your center chase a guard around 25 feet from the basket.

We led Villanova in assists 17 to 9 and in rebounds 35 to 29. We were both smart and tough. Reed demonstrated why he should be our starting center shooting 75% (6-8) and 9 rebounds.

We only shot 21% from 3 pt and Alex Karaban was 0-3. But, Alex showed great leadership from the pregame huddle to the final buzzer and did so much to help us win. 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks, second to Hassan who had 3 blocks. Alex also set screens and played outstanding defense.

McNeeley is our star and he finished with 20 points and 7 rebounds. There’s no quit in that dude. He also laser focused with 9 of 9 from the FT line in a close game. Karaban (2-2) and Diarra (4-4) were also perfect from the line. Ball also added 13 points and 6 dimes.

Teams that pressure us full court don’t like the favor returned. We did that in the last 10 minutes and Villanova did not handle it well.

Well said……I loved how Reed pushed Dickson around, his defense alone helped us win that game not to mention his critical buckets at the other end of the floor. Erasing a 14 point lead showed the NCAA committee what Hurley’s team is made of. Do they want the National Champs of the past two years testing the higher seeds in the big dance, I would have to say absolutely. The only question now is, how many Big East teams make the NCAA’s?

 

[REB1094]

Well said……I loved how Reed pushed Dickson around, his defense alone helped us win that game not to mention his critical buckets at the other end of the floor.

Reed pushed Longino around to get position, sealed him off, got the ball, and slammed a dagger poster dunk on his head

If we create a gameplan where getting him the ball is a featured part, I think we’ll really see his potential break through

edited to say Longino instead of Dixon

 

[Rico444]

Reed pushed Dixon around to get position, sealed him off, got the ball, and slammed a dagger poster dunk on his head

If we create a gameplan where getting him the ball is a featured part, I think we’ll really see his potential break through

Reed playing like he did the last 10 minutes makes this team so much better. He wasn't good in the first half and is our most inconsistent player. Let's hope the lightbulb came on and he plays like that moving forward.

I also want to shout out Diarra. We all know he's a warrior for playing through the tendinitis but he moved around much better today. Getting him back to playing at a high level can make this team pretty damn good.

Finally, holding Nova to 6 points over the last 12 minutes was shocking. What a defensive performance!

 

[Chief00]

Agree with your assessment here. The inside game has been open and available all year. With the inconsistency at the 3 point game, a more balanced approach utilizing Reed and Samson in this way will mitigate against scoring droughts and force the opponent to loosen their on ball defense particularly on the perimeter that has often disrupted UCONN's desired motion and rhythm getting open comfortable 3 point shot looks. At this point Ball, McNeeley, Stewart off of the bench and Mahaney (contingent on getting open off of set screens) should have a green light for the 3 ball. Once Karaban's confidence improves with his 3 point shot then he gets the green light as well.

The bottom line is that if they are able to get consistent play on the key phases of the game they do not have to be perfect in every area. Tonight they were good from the free throw line, rebounding, overall FG%, assists and defensively including blocks. UCONN also took care of the ball for the most part and limited their personal fouls. You have to be able to win in different ways and this starts with consistent effort in the areas they can actually control.

I like how they responded to adversity tonight. Turnovers and overreliance on the 3 ball has been their Achilles heal this season. The defense is starting to come around at the right time. Going forward, the inside out game is going to be key along with their overall effort. This is the kind of balance that is needed and it will keep opposing defenses more honest.

I agree inside out game is key. Otherwise, too many quick threes, that we don’t hit a high percentage of. The Villanova coach post game mentioned how tough Reed is in the paint and at the rim. UConn coaching staff let’s learn from that feedback. “Tough”, for a 6-10 240 guy, is dominating in the paint and at the rim - not chasing around a point guard 25 feet from the basket. And if you send him out there have him play under not over screens. That improves his recover time to get back to the paint.

 

[Chief00]

Good points and no real arguments on any of them. I am surprised you didn't mention Samson at all. Although I agree Tarris has earned what should the lion's share of minutes at the 5, we know Samson gives a different look and has been a major contributor at times. Are you thinking of portioning the minutes as 25 for Tarris and 15 for Samson?

You're right about Alex positively affecting the game his bewildering half-season long shooting slump. I continue to believe he's going to find his stroke again.

As for Mahaney, yeah, I'm thinking he could give a Joey Calcaterra-esque spark off the bench if he can be worked into the offense in spots for some looks from the perimeter. He has shown flashes this year and I have believe he can play a vital if limited role on this team going forward.

Agree, the key for Mahaney is that he’s not our primary ball handler. Last night he was without Diarra or Ball on the court with him for a stretch. I love Samson’s effort and athleticism but the reality is after a few years in the program he doesn’t instinctively make the right decisions on the fly. Maybe he learned the game too late (not as a young kid) so the muscle memory instinct just won’t be there. He is seems more comfortable playing 5 feet past the 3 line rather than in the paint.

 

[Dibbie]

Not bashing Mahaney, but not sure how/why he’d get much floor time outside of our hobbled PG spot. Sure Ball can maybe get a blow for 1-2 minutes each half, but I don’t see him needing much more than that. Kid rarely looks winded

 

[uconnyankee]

Hurley should have a great idea now, who is in his winning lineup, that should play 70% of the game and primarily together. Ball, Diarra, McNeeley, Reed and Karaban. Next man up is Stewart. Both halves illustrated point advantages with this lineup.

I will also say, I still feel Mahaney could help as a shooter off the bench. Why we had him in the first half as the ballhandler without either Diarra or Ball surprised me. I guess McNeeley was viewed as the other ball handler. At any rate, it did not work.

Johnson should assume the role he played well last year with a few additional minutes.

Tough guys won the game tonight. The most intense were Diarra, McNeeley and Karaban. Reed was a man amongst boys on the boards when he was in there. It was nice to see him play both ways in the paint. That’s winning basketball, not having your center chase a guard around 25 feet from the basket.

We led Villanova in assists 17 to 9 and in rebounds 35 to 29. We were both smart and tough. Reed demonstrated why he should be our starting center shooting 75% (6-8) and 9 rebounds. Reed also did a good job on the nation’s leading scorer, Dixon.

We only shot 21% from 3 pt and Alex Karaban was 0-3. But, Alex showed great leadership from the pregame huddle to the final buzzer and did so much to help us win. 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocks, second to Hassan who had 3 blocks. Alex also set screens and played outstanding defense.

McNeeley is our star and he finished with 20 points and 7 rebounds. There’s no quit in that dude. He also laser focused with 9 of 9 from the FT line in a close game. Karaban (2-2) and Diarra (4-4) were also perfect from the line. Ball also added 13 points and 6 dimes.

Teams that pressure us full court don’t like the favor returned. We did that in the last 10 minutes and Villanova did not handle it well.

I don’t understand Stewart’s minutes. He seems to make some things happen when he’s out there.
His outback was exactly what he does.

 

[Hi-Low]

Reed playing like he did the last 10 minutes makes this team so much better. He wasn't good in the first half and is our most inconsistent player. Let's hope the lightbulb came on and he plays like that moving forward.

I think Reed may be mentally tentative in the first half of games because he's wary of picking up fouls. He's more mentally prepared to unleash his inner beast-mode in the 2nd half, especially the last 10 mins of games in which he has a foul "cushion".

 

[Hoops91]

Karaban needs to be Karaban for us to really compete in the tournament. Other guys are slowly stepping up and getting comfortable, if he truly gets back on track they have a chance again.

 

[Fairfield_1st]

He wasn't good in the first half and is our most inconsistent player.

That says a lot on a team of very inconsistent players.

 

[Fairfield_1st]

I don’t understand Stewart’s minutes. He seems to make some things happen when he’s out there.
His outback was exactly what he does.

Go watch the first 2 minutes of the game. Lazy turnover pass that surely raised Dan Hurley's ire. Like most on this team, it just doesn't seem like the effort is where it needs to be. We get those glimpses of really good play, but more often than not, he's a taller Mahaney.

 

[SwingDog]

Karaban needs to be Karaban for us to really compete in the tournament. Other guys are slowly stepping up and getting comfortable, if he truly gets back on track they have a chance again.

Agreed. Alex reminds me of a baseball pitcher who suddenly has difficulty finding the strike zone and then it becomes more of a head game to find it again. I am sure with reportedly being the first in the gym and the last to leave, he's shooting hundreds of shots. Tarris rightly said in the post game presser the game is 80% mental, and that couldn't be more true than than in this case.

 

[gtcam]

I have to scratch my head when I see what Read can do when he isn't doing that ridiculous Dan Hurley high hedge. I am sure Dan Hurley isn't blind or stupid but man if he can't see the difference between being a true 5 battling/rebounding/scoring at the rim versus being 20 feet out on the perimeter. Danny - enough already.

the first 2/3 of the game was a total crap show - the rotations sucked, the energy sucked and both Dan Hurley and his team looked, coached and played scared. Dan Hurley was totally out coached the 1st half and then for some reason, Neptune lost his team during the last 15 minutes. Unreal that a senior laden team like Nova can wilt as they have done numerous times this season.

The fact that UConn had another subpar performance for a better part of the game is troubling and doesn't bode well for the NBE and perhaps the NCAAs. They can't afford to play uneven like they have. I understand that the roster make-up is not that good and hopefully the staff can take a step back and realize it just didn't work from a portal and recruitment perspective this season. It's important that they cut down the swings and misses.

One of the secrets revealed was when UConn decides to defend and to do it with aggressiveness and intelligence, they will get the calls. Not all the calls against UConn are bad calls - most are because they don't play D with their feet and are caught sticking hands where they shouldn't and bodying up from behind. The refs made the calls because they had to. They weren't swayed by Dan Hurley's antics at all. This team will still suffer from anti Dan Hurley whistles and lack of calls.

It was a great win but doesn't need to be this hard. Perhaps this could be a springboard game for the team going forward. Many thought that the win over Creighton would turn the tide and then came Seton Hall. Is this team and staff capable of putting together a run through the rest of the season and the NBE tournament? 50/50 is the best I can say at this point in time. I feel if they can get into the Dance and nab a 7 or higher seed this team could make some real noise.

On to the Garden and a game that this team needs to win (for seeding reasons alone)

 

[boog204]

I don’t understand Stewart’s minutes. He seems to make some things happen when he’s out there.
His outback was exactly what he does.

Who's minutes should he take? We need Liam to play 35-40mpg. AK is tired but is still a superior player to Stew in all facets and needs 30-35mpg. Solo is our best shooter and 2nd best scorer so he's going to be out there 30-35. Seriously, where does Stew get his minutes? He got a minute in the first half and had three mistakes in a 15-second span.

To his credit, his energy replacing AK helped turn the tide and put us in a position to make it a 2-3 possession game.

 

[boog204]

I have to scratch my head when I see what Read can do when he isn't doing that ridiculous Dan Hurley high hedge. I am sure Dan Hurley isn't blind or stupid but man if he can't see the difference between being a true 5 battling/rebounding/scoring at the rim versus being 20 feet out on the perimeter. Danny - enough already.

It's just insane to me at this juncture. The crazy high hedge has been an issue for many years. It worked okay last year because you had very intelligent (and tough) players who could rotate and hold ground so Samson could get back. We don't have that this year. So a team with any clue can get either an open paint look or an open three because our guys are so poor in their rotations. Just play basic help defense. I mean, how many times did the nation's leading scorer get wide-open looks because Samson was running around guarding the PG 30 feet out?

 

[CONN78SEJ]

I don’t understand Stewart’s minutes. He seems to make some things happen when he’s out there.
His outback was exactly what he does.

He’s not perfect but he is a good 3 point shooter. I myself can’t remember seeing him miss one.

 

[Drfla]

He’s not perfect but he is a good 3 point shooter. I myself can’t remember seeing him miss one.

He is shooting 37% on threes. The NCAA average is 35.5% so he is just above average on low volume.

 

[Chief00]

I don’t understand Stewart’s minutes. He seems to make some things happen when he’s out there.
His outback was exactly what he does.

I agree, one of the 3 coaching evaluation miscalculations this preseason was elevating Ross over Stewart. Mahaney over Diarra and Johnson over Reed were the other two. So 6 of the top 9 players were involved in miscalculations vs. other players. Then add in the Karaban shooting slump. It is a lot of disruption. Only McNeeley and Ball played out as the coaches expected.

 

[Chief00]

I have to scratch my head when I see what Read can do when he isn't doing that ridiculous Dan Hurley high hedge. I am sure Dan Hurley isn't blind or stupid but man if he can't see the difference between being a true 5 battling/rebounding/scoring at the rim versus being 20 feet out on the perimeter. Danny - enough already.

the first 2/3 of the game was a total crap show - the rotations sucked, the energy sucked and both Dan Hurley and his team looked, coached and played scared. Dan Hurley was totally out coached the 1st half and then for some reason, Neptune lost his team during the last 15 minutes. Unreal that a senior laden team like Nova can wilt as they have done numerous times this season.

The fact that UConn had another subpar performance for a better part of the game is troubling and doesn't bode well for the NBE and perhaps the NCAAs. They can't afford to play uneven like they have. I understand that the roster make-up is not that good and hopefully the staff can take a step back and realize it just didn't work from a portal and recruitment perspective this season. It's important that they cut down the swings and misses.

One of the secrets revealed was when UConn decides to defend and to do it with aggressiveness and intelligence, they will get the calls. Not all the calls against UConn are bad calls - most are because they don't play D with their feet and are caught sticking hands where they shouldn't and bodying up from behind. The refs made the calls because they had to. They weren't swayed by Dan Hurley's antics at all. This team will still suffer from anti Dan Hurley whistles and lack of calls.

It was a great win but doesn't need to be this hard. Perhaps this could be a springboard game for the team going forward. Many thought that the win over Creighton would turn the tide and then came Seton Hall. Is this team and staff capable of putting together a run through the rest of the season and the NBE tournament? 50/50 is the best I can say at this point in time. I feel if they can get into the Dance and nab a 7 or higher seed this team could make some real noise.

On to the Garden and a game that this team needs to win (for seeding reasons alone)

As you know, I agree about a paint/rim 5, rather than a high hedge 25 feet from the basket 5 chasing guards. Johnson actually overplays over the hedge not under, which makes it even worse. It creates mismatches and fouls and guys caught in no man’s land.

 

[Chief00]

Who's minutes should he take? We need Liam to play 35-40mpg. AK is tired but is still a superior player to Stew in all facets and needs 30-35mpg. Solo is our best shooter and 2nd best scorer so he's going to be out there 30-35. Seriously, where does Stew get his minutes? He got a minute in the first half and had three mistakes in a 15-second span.

To his credit, his energy replacing AK helped turn the tide and put us in a position to make it a 2-3 possession game.

Stewart can backfill for up to 3 positions, depending on the game plan. I could see him playing 25 minutes per game depending on matchups. .