Diarra was the MVP

[Hans Sprungfeld]

Yea … as he should?

Can't have it both ways.

You already chose a point of emphasis in your first post.

 

[MilliniumPrince]

Nice return to form for AK

 

[August_West]

Karaban is awesome but Samson will absolutely help. Even at a minimum he will give Karaban a rest which will be big during the Big East grind. Having a 6'10 guy with a lot of athleticism and talent will be a help and there will be times where he is needed.

He’s in a great spot when he comes back. I’m rooting for him to make the most of it.

 

[ValleyGuy]

Can't have it both ways.

You already chose a point of emphasis in your first post.

I disagree

 

[Deleted at users request]

Karaban is awesome but Samson will absolutely help. Even at a minimum he will give Karaban a rest which will be big during the Big East grind. Having a 6'10 guy with a lot of athleticism and talent will be a help and there will be times where he is needed.

Yeah in certain games Samson will be needed when teams have 2 bigs. He’ll help out a lot defensively. Kinda expect it to take time though since he pretty much has no playing experience at this point coming in cold during the middle of the season.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Yeah in certain games Samson will be needed when teams have 2 bigs. He’ll help out a lot defensively. Kinda expect it to take time though since he pretty much has no playing experience at this point coming in cold during the middle of the season.

Yep. Even if Johnson is just giving 6-10 minutes of running hard, hustling and rim running, he's wearing down someone on the opposing team.

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

I disagree

OK

 

[jibsey]

Diarra just has tenacity on defense. He has to make free throws.

 

[Chin Diesel]

He destroyed Daniels defensively. He was not having of that back me down crap. Two straight games hes played well. All he needs to do is play D, run the offense and take whatever shots are given when they are there. No need to look for his shot. Just do what he did tonight and last game and our pg concerns go away. He was excellent tonight.

Daniels was whining a bunch. In second half he had one of his back down the defender offensive "plays" and kept backing Hawkins down. Eventually Daniels decided to try and shoot and Hawkins just stood there and the shot went no where. Daniels immediate reaction was to throw up both hands and look to the refs for a foul. Next possession Diarra blows by him and Daniels clearly brings his arm down across Diarra as Diarra goes up for the lay up. I think that was Daniels' fourth foul. Again, Daniels looks at the ref incredulously.

 

[CL82]

I don’t know that I would give Diarra the MVP, but I would definitely give him the Clingan’s Tooth Award for toughness.

Clingan’s Tooth was cracked, knocked out, bonded back together, and shoved back into his mouth. Some teeth are just tougher than others.

 

[HooperScooper]

Karaban is awesome but Samson will absolutely help. Even at a minimum he will give Karaban a rest which will be big during the Big East grind. Having a 6'10 guy with a lot of athleticism and talent will be a help and there will be times where he is needed.

I agree. Karaban surprisingly, or maybe unsurprisingly, leads the team in minutes played. Having a different type of player come off the bench at the 4 (much longer and athletic) to spell him can only help and gives Hurley something different to use.

The team just has so many different looks to employ. It's a great luxury.

 

[navery12]

Yea … as he should?

You don't get to complain about the bad things and then say the good ones don't matter

 

[ValleyGuy]

You don't get to complain about the bad things and then say the good ones don't matter

I believe I just did..

 

[XLCenterFan]

Diarra is a problem for the opposition. They might think they are getting a “backup” PG. What they get is a ferocious defender who can handle the ball and drive, draw, and dish. He can also hit a shot here or there. At the open scrimmage, I felt he was the best PG on the team.

 

[jibsey]

I didn’t realize Diarra was this good as little time that he has played. He’s a John Gwynn insert but a “defense microwave”.

 

[JustbrewitMan]

It’s pretty clear that the staff pulled the heist of a lifetime in the Transfer Portal.

Diarra, Newton, Alleyne, Cali all have helped to make this team phenomenal.

 

[Rico444]

It's really hard to have 9 or 10 guys that are good enough to play high level basketball, because they're going to have to buy into not playing as many minutes as they may deserve. Hurley has done an incredible job getting everyone to commit to being ready to play their role, even if it means they go a few games without playing much. Joey last week, Diarra tonight, Alleyne a few weeks ago...they all come in despite sitting the bench most of the time and give us a burst of energy. This is huge, because no matter how good your team is your great players are going to have an off night here and there. Newton is a little off defensively? No problem, bring in Diarra and let him do his thing. Karaban has a rough 2nd half against Georgetown? No problem, Joey C is here to make you pay.

 

[tentoes4rings]

He has been absolutely invaluable, especially lately. I forgot he was a 4 star recruit, top 75 guy who starred at Putnam Science. Has another year after this year. I wouldn’t be surprised if he starts at some point. What a fantastic under there radar pickup by the staff getting this guy.

 

[husky429]

It’s pretty clear that the staff pulled the heist of a lifetime in the Transfer Portal.

Diarra, Newton, Alleyne, Cali all have helped to make this team phenomenal.

Their success is going to help us snag some top-tier transfers this year again too.

Assuming Jordan and Joey are both gone, we will definitely need to find another couple shooters in the portal. If Alleyne and/or Newton leave, we'll need a couple more bodies as well.

 

[REB1094]

Daniels was whining a bunch. In second half he had one of his back down the defender offensive "plays" and kept backing Hawkins down. Eventually Daniels decided to try and shoot and Hawkins just stood there and the shot went no where. Daniels immediate reaction was to throw up both hands and look to the refs for a foul. Next possession Diarra blows by him and Daniels clearly brings his arm down across Diarra as Diarra goes up for the lay up. I think that was Daniels' fourth foul. Again, Daniels looks at the ref incredulously.

Villanova basketball

 

[Get a Job]

He has been absolutely invaluable, especially lately. I forgot he was a 4 star recruit, top 75 guy who starred at Putnam Science. Has another year after this year. I wouldn’t be surprised if he starts at some point. What a fantastic under there radar pickup by the staff getting this guy.

Does he not have 2 years of eligibility left after this year?

 

[Conndog]

He’s our best defender outside of Andre. His long arms help a lot there.

Second Half MVP

He is super quick, has active hands, keeps his position properly- just nasty!

 

[Hey Adrien!]

Diarra, like Alleyne, are like silent ninja warriors.

We might not hear much from them for a few games and then BAM they finish a game as one of the top players. Same could be said for so many players on this team: they can't all have big games every game, but with this depth, it'll be a different guy or two each game. So many X-factors.

For those who forgot, Diarra hit a lot of big shots for Texas A&M, especially towards the end of the season:

Diarra's last 14 games at Texas A&M:

8.2 points, 1.9 assists, 1.6 turnovers, 45.5 2p%, 1.0 3PM, 37.8 3p%, 2.9 FTA, 80.5 ft% in 18.9 mpg

 

[Icehawk]

I wouldn't worry too much about his FT%, historically he's a lot closer to 70 than 50. I'll go with "lack of reps in game as a Husky" for why his #s are where they are.

Wow, for the smallest guy on the team he sure plays hard plus he's fast and crafty. He's come in a few times recently and really made a difference, I think we're all saying the same thing - damn, our team is DEEP.

 

[dennismenace]

Daniels was whining a bunch. In second half he had one of his back down the defender offensive "plays" and kept backing Hawkins down. Eventually Daniels decided to try and shoot and Hawkins just stood there and the shot went no where. Daniels immediate reaction was to throw up both hands and look to the refs for a foul. Next possession Diarra blows by him and Daniels clearly brings his arm down across Diarra as Diarra goes up for the lay up. I think that was Daniels' fourth foul. Again, Daniels looks at the ref incredulously.

Yes, he thought the refs didn't understand that he was to inherit the never-at-fault mantle from Gillespie. Sorry, that ship has sailed. Party is over.

 

[dennismenace]

Diarra is a problem for the opposition. They might think they are getting a “backup” PG. What they get is a ferocious defender who can handle the ball and drive, draw, and dish. He can also hit a shot here or there. At the open scrimmage, I felt he was the best PG on the team.

Take a look at the minutes played by Villanova (ESPN box score). Dan Hurley brings Diarra in for the last 10 minutes and turns up the defensive pressure led by Diarra. What a nightmare.

 

[g_smith]

His ability to speed up the ball handler and force turnovers is crucial in grit and grind games like this. Gonna be a key player in march for sure.

Diarra reminds me of this March madness star

 

[tentoes4rings]

Does he not have 2 years of eligibility left after this year?

From what I read, he’s a junior but would get the extra COVID year, can anyone confirm that? Two more years would be awesome.

 

[Get a Job]

From what I read, he’s a junior but would get the extra COVID year, can anyone confirm that? Two more years would be awesome.

You're right (and I'm right, kind of). I recalled hearing that he had 2 years, but that includes this year. So yes, next year is his senior year, and he has the possibility of coming back the following year because of the covid year.

 

[Punkbo]

I agree. Karaban surprisingly, or maybe unsurprisingly, leads the team in minutes played. Having a different type of player come off the bench at the 4 (much longer and athletic) to spell him can only help and gives Hurley something different to use.

The team just has so many different looks to employ. It's a great luxury.

Somewhat surprising that he leads the team in minutes played since he’s a freshman, but due to his versatility, I believe he should be a Top 3 minutes played guy alongside Jackson and Hawkins. Sanogo would be next since he has Clingan to spell him and Newton would be fifth.