Favorite freshman class

[jayteeman]

Sincere apologies to our faithful alumni who go further back, and also if this is a repeat, but how about those incoming freshman recruits and any favorite bunch that comes to mind

1978/1979

22 Clay Johnson 6-2/190 G Waterbury, CT
5 Mike McKay 6-5/190 G/F Bridgeport, CT
10 Jim Sullivan 6-2/180 G East Boston, MA
52 Corny Thompson 6-8/230 C/F Middletown, CT​

1979/1980

31 Mark Benson 6-3/170 F New Canaan, CT
23 Bruce Kuczenski 6-9/215 C Bristol, CT
20 Glen Miller 6-2/180 G Groton, CT
25 Craig Wood 6-6/218 F Ledyard, CT​

1980/1981

12 Vernon Giscombe 5-10/165 G Bronx, NY
14 Karl Hobbs 5-8/160 G Cambridge, MA
30 Norman Bailey 6-5/190 F West Hartford, CT​

1981/1982

24 Larry Blucher 6-8/205 F Yonkers, NY
44 Brian Buckelew 6-5/198 G Somerville, NJ
35 Mike Vaughan 6-7/207 F Glen Cove, NY​

1982/1983

34 Tim Coles 6-7/225 F Baltimore, MD
5 Len Feroleto 6-1/180 G Westbrook, CT
10 Earl Kelley 6-1/177 G New Haven, CT
22 Eddie Williams 6-6/190 F/G Kenansville, NC​

1983/1984

33 Gerry Besselink 6-8/210 G/F Kingston, Ont.
43 Matt Bremmer 6-10/230 C Guilford, CT
32 Ken Henry 6-6/190 F Rochester, NY​

1984/1985

3 Terry Coffey 6-2/205 G Washington DC
40 Jeff King 6-10/190 C/F Lansing, MI
25 Anthony Moye 6-2/225 G New Haven, CT
30 John Shea 6-6/200 G/F Colcehster, CT
20 Terence Warren 6-5/175 G Irvington, NJ​

1985/1986

25 Phil Gamble 6-4/175 G Washington, DC
00 Cliff Robinson 6-9/210 F Buffalo, NY​

1986/1987

32 Tate George 6-5/190 G Newark, NJ
15 Jeff Lewis 5-9/145 G Gales Ferry, CT
21 Steve Pikiell 6-3/185 G Bristol, CT
44 James Spradling 6-7/210 F Carrollton, TX​

1987/1988

23 Lyman DePriest 6-5/196 F Detroit, MI
50 Bill Lanes 6-8/237 C/F Athens, Greece
20 Murray Williams 6-6/177 F Torrington, CT​

1988/1989

55 Dan Cyrulik 7-0/226 C/F Williamsville, NY
40 Chris Fleming 6-6/186 G/F Forked River, NJ
22 Rod Sellers 6-9/205 F Florence, SC
13 Chris Smith 6-2/168 G Bridgeport, CT​

1989/1990

24 Scott Burrell 6-5/200 F Hamden, CT
40 Nadav Henefeld 6-7/219 F Ramat-Hasharon, Israel
11 Oliver Macklin 6-2/163 G Bridgeport, CT
34 Marte Smith 6-6/178 F Kentwood, MI
42 Toraino Walker 6-6/225 F Orlando, FL​

1990/1991

32 Shawn Ellison 6-7/220 F Hartford, CT​

1991/1992

4 Nantambu Willingham 6-10/233 C Atlanta, GA
33 Donny Marshall 6-6/218 F Federal Way, WA
42 Donyell Marshall 6-9/185 F Reading, PA
12 Kevin Ollie 6-3/170 G Los Angeles, CA
34 Brian Fair 6-3/190 G Phoenix, AZ
23 Rudy Johnson 6-6/181 F Jacksonville, FL
14 Richie Ashmeade 6-3/187 G Queens Village, NY​

1992/1993

45 Eric Hayward 6-7/245 F Alexandria, LA
23 Rudy Johnson 6-6/185 F Jacksonville, FL
40 Travis Knight 7-0/220 C Sandy, UT
3 Jeff Calhoun 6-2/190 G Mansfield, CT​

1993/1994

34 Ray Allen 6-5/195 G Dalzell, SC
10 Ruslan Inyatkin 6-7/218 F West Hartford, CT
32 Kirk King 6-8/215 F Baton Rouge, LA
11 Doron Sheffer 6-5/185 G Ramat Efal, Israel
5 Marcus Thomas 6-0/186 G Houston, TX​

1994/1995

10 Ruslan Inyatkin 6-7/218 F West Hartford, CT
50 Uri Cohen-Mintz 6-10/215 F Tel Aviv, Israel​

1995/1996

21 Ricky Moore 6-2/188 G Augusta, GA
44 Predrag Materic 6-5/195 G Toulouse, France
22 Antric Klaiber 6-10/205 F Silver Spring, MD
3 Rashamel Jones 6-5/195 G/F Port Chester, NY​

1996/1997

15 Kevin Freeman 6-6/224 F Springfield, MA
31 Sam Funches 6-8/205 F Jackson, MS
32 Richard Hamilton 6-6/180 G/F Coatesville, PA
5 Michael LeBlanc 6-6/210 F Sugar Land, TX
43 Jake Voskuhl 6-11/235 C Katy, TX​

1997/1998

23 Albert Mouring 6-3/190 G Preston, MD/Colonel Richardson
42 Khalid El-Amin 5-10/200 G Minneapolis, MN
25 Craig Glazer 6-1/170 G Manalapan, NJ​

1998/1999

4 Ajou Ajou Deng 6-11/205 F London, England
20 Justin Brown 7-0/245 C Perth, Australia/Australian Institute
35 Richard Moore 5-11/180 G Hamden, CT​

1999/2000

32 Tony Robertson 6-2/200 G East Providence, RI/St. Andrew's
35 Mike Woodward 6-5/215 G Rocky River, OH/Rocky River
50 Marcus Cox 6-4/190 G Bridgeport, CT/Kolbe Cathedral
10 Brett Watson 6-0/180 G Wichita, KS
55 Doug Wrenn 6-6/210 G/F Seattle, WA​

2000/2001

2 Robert Swain 6-4/205 G College Park, GA/Tri-Cities
3 Caron Butler 6-7/235 F Racine, WI/Maine Central Institute
12 Taliek Brown 6-1/185 G Corona Park, NY/St. John's Prep
21 Scott Hazelton 6-8/210 F Reading, MA/Central Catholic
30 Shamon Tooles 6-5/210 G/F Coatesville, PA/Coatesville​

2001/2002

4 Ben Gordon 6-2/185 G Mount Vernon, NY/Mount Vernon
5 Chad Wise 6-5/190 G Lonoke, AR/Lonoke
50 Emeka Okafor 6-9/240 F/C Houston, TX/Bellaire​

2002/2003

11 Hilton Armstrong 6-10/210 F/C Peekskill, NY/Peekskill
23 Marcus White 6-8/215 F Chicago, IL/Whitney Young
31 Rashad Anderson 6-5/190 G/F Lakeland, FL/Kathleen
33 Denham Brown 6-5/205 F Toronto, Canada/West Hill Collegiate​

2003/2004

3 Charlie Villanueva 6-11/230 F Brooklyn, NY/Blair Academy (NJ)
5 Marcus Williams 6-3/200 G Los Angeles, CA/Oak Hill (VA) Academy
21 Josh Boone 6-10/230 F/C Mt. Airy, MD/West Nottingham Academy​

2004/2005

12 A.J. Price 6-2/190 G Amityville, NY/Amityville HS
22 Rudy Gay 6-9/220 F Baltimore, MD/Archbishop Spalding HS​

2005/2006

1 Marcus Johnson 6-6/195 F/G Los Angeles, Calif./Westchester HS
4 Jeff Adrien 6-6/225 F Brookline, Mass./Brewster (N.H.) Academy
24 Craig Austrie 6-3/185 G Stamford, Conn./Trinity Catholic HS
25 Rob Garrison 6-2/185 G Niagara Falls, N.Y./Niagara Falls HS​

2006/2007

2 Ben Eaves 6-7/218 F/G Lancashire, England/Worcester (Mass.) Academy
3 Doug Wiggins 6-1/165 G East Hartford, Conn./East Hartford HS
11 Jerome Dyson 6-3/190 G Rockville, Md./Proctor (N.H.) Academy
14 Curtis Kelly 6-9/217 F Queens, N.Y./Rice HS
21 Stanley Robinson 6-9/210 F Birmingham, Ala./Huffman HS
32 Jonathan Mandeldove 6-11/230 C Stone Mountain, Ga./Hargrave (Va.) Military Academy
33 Gavin Edwards 6-9/230 F/C Gilbert, Ariz./Mesquite HS
34 Hasheem Thabeet 7-3/255 C Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania/Cypress Christian School​

2007/2008

2 Donnell Beverly 6-4/190 G Hawthorne, Calif/Leuzinger HS
55 Kyle Bailey 6-3/170 G Lancaster, N.H./White Mountains Regional HS​

2008/2009

15 Kemba Walker 6-1/172 G Bronx, N.Y.​

2009/2010

4 Jamal Coombs-McDaniel 6-7/210 F Dorchester, Mass.
5 Ater Majok 6-11/233 F Sydney, Australia
34 Alex Oriakhi 6-9/240 F/C Lowell, Mass.
24 Darius Smith 6-1/168 G Chicago, Ill.
13 Jamaal Trice 6-5/220 G Los Angeles, Calif.​

2010/2011

25 Michael Bradley 6-10/235 C/F Chattanooga, Tenn.
5 Niels Giffey 6-7/210 G/F Berlin, Germany
3 Jeremy Lamb 6-5/185 G/F Norcross, Ga.
13 Shabazz Napier 6-0/170 G Randolph, Mass.
10 Tyler Olander 6-9/225 F Mansfield, Conn.
22 Roscoe Smith 6-8/205 F Baltimore, Md.
1 Enosch Wolf 7-1/260 C Goettingen, Germany​

2011/2012

4 Brendan Allen 6-3/187 G Windsor, Conn.
11 Ryan Boatright 6-0/160 G Aurora, Ill.
2 DeAndre Daniels 6-8/195 F Los Angeles, Calif.
12 Andre Drummond 6-10/270 C Middletown, Conn.​

2012/2013

21 Omar Calhoun 6-5/192 G Brooklyn, N.Y.
22 Leon Tolksdorf 6-8/220 F Berlin, Germany
0 Phillip Nolan 6-9/203 F Milwaukee, Wis.​

2013/2014

35 Amida Brimah 7-0/217 C Accra, Ghana
12 Kentan Facey 6-9/200 F Trelawny, Jamaica
3 Terrence Samuel 6-4/190 G Brooklyn, N.Y.​

2014/2015

5 Daniel Hamilton 6-7/190 G/F Los Angeles, Calif.
14 Rakim Lubin 6-8/260 F Miami, Fla.​

2015/2016

2 Jalen Adams 6-3/187 G Roxbury, Mass.
13 Steven Enoch 6-11/245 F Norwalk, Conn.
22 Terry Larrier 6-8/195 G/F Bronx, N.Y.​

2016/2017

21 Mamadou Diarra 6-8/215 F Queens, N.Y.
23 Juwan Durham 6-11/207 F Tampa, Fla.
3 Alterique Gilbert 6-0/175 G Richmond, Va.
5 Vance Jackson 6-8/229 F Los Angeles, Calif.
1 Christian Vital 6-2/178 G Queens Village, N.Y.​

 

[upstater]

Giscombe, Hobbs and Bailey was a decent class.
Earl Kelley and Tim Coles were a pretty good duo.
The breakthrough seems to have been the Donyell Marshall class.

 

[Matrim55]

The breakthrough seems to have been the Donyell Marshall class.

It was - we had the second-best class that year, behind only the Fab 5.

Very interested in seeing what our 2019 class is. I think 2018 is likely to be very good, but 2019 can end up as our first top 5 group in a while.

 

[mauconnfan]

jayteeman some great memories thanks - to see some of the names who we've somewhat forogtten is great. For instance:

Jim "Disco" Sullivan
Bruce Kuczenski (played against Bruce in HS when was a soph Ram from BC)
Larry Blucher (hit 2 big FT's at the Dome in an upset)
Terrence Warren
Tex Spradling
Bill Lanes
Chris Fleming (great shooter believe he was on the Spider team that beat the Cuse?)

'91-92 was the breakout year for JC, put recruiting on a whole new map!

Thanks

 

[Matrim55]

And for the record: my favorite freshman class is 2010/11 - the group that first elevated UConn basketball, and then saved it.

And most of you dumb complained about that class when we signed them

 

[superjohn]

Freeman, Hamilton Voskuhl one or Gordon Okafor one. The Donny, Donyell, and Ollie one is awesome because as upstater points out it was the breakthough class, it also brought us Kevin Ollie which is huge. The 2001/2002 class is crazy. With basically a two person class we got the best player in the country and arguably the best guard in the country, #2 and #3 picks in the draft. I knew as soon as I saw them play as freshman that they would win a National Championship at some point. RIP Chad Wise.

 

[upstater]

What about the 2-man class of Rudy Gay and AJ Price?

I think for sheer star power at the time there is no better class. We thought we came away with the best PG and the best SF going to college.

 

[Hugo]

Thanks for putting this together. Really tough to pick a favorite with so many great classes, but I'd go with Emeka and Ben as the overall best class.

 

[InKembaITrust]

Gotta love that 96-97 class. Also 2010-2012, no wonder we put it together in 14'.

Hasn't amounted to anything just yet but on paper it would seem the 16-17 class MIGHT be the most talented....

 

[Husky1]

For me, Calhouns great class with Donyell as first stud recruit would be hard to beat - they had size, speed, athleticism
and skill. I'm 90% sure that Rudy Johnson was also part of that class. He was probably one of the best recruits that we ever had
that due to injuries, didn't live up to expectations. People don't realize that he was actually the Florida player of the year his Junior year and then injuries started effecting his game. He was a high flyer similar to Norman Bailey when he got here but just kept having injury issues with his knees.

 

[Husky1]

Correction, Smitty was probably his first real great get, especially coming from CT

 

[Matrim55]

For me, Calhouns great class with Donyell as first stud recruit would be hard to beat - they had size, speed, athleticism
and skill. I'm 90% sure that Rudy Johnson was also part of that class. He was probably one of the best recruits that we ever had
that due to injuries, didn't live up to expectations. People don't realize that he was actually the Florida player of the year his Junior year and then injuries started effecting his game. He was a high flyer similar to Norman Bailey when he got here but just kept having injury issues with his knees.

Rudy was a part of that class, and was in fact a top 25 recruit. Shame about the injuries for sure!

 

[joober jones]

91-92

 

[Waquoit]

Gordon and Okafor were starting and beating Top 10 teams on the road as freshmen.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Like the 89/90 with Burrell, Henefeld and Walker.

All three of those players were key contributers to the Dream Season that got it all started.

 

[nomar]

For me, it's Okafor and Gordon. NCAA champs, #2 and #3 in the NBA draft. But there are a lot of great classes in there (and some duds).

 

[Danzz]

91-92 was an incredible class but I would have liked to seen 78/79 coached by JC.

 

[Tenspro2002]

The 91-92 class brought this program to a level where it was consistently in contention and made UConn basketball what it would become: starting in 1994 we earned a #1 or #2 seed 10 times in 16 years.

Edit: It's pretty amazing to realize that Rudy and AJP came in as part of the same class.

They never played together and were the defining player of two completely distinct teams.

 

[ucp990411]

So Calhoun first recruit was Lyman DePriest? Perfect. The toughest SOB coach recruits the toughest player he could find. That set the tone. I love it.

 

[FartMan69]

Wow @ the studs that came aboard from 01-05. Good lord.

 

[Huskies4ever]

For me, Calhouns great class with Donyell as first stud recruit would be hard to beat - they had size, speed, athleticism
and skill. I'm 90% sure that Rudy Johnson was also part of that class. He was probably one of the best recruits that we ever had
that due to injuries, didn't live up to expectations. People don't realize that he was actually the Florida player of the year his Junior year and then injuries started effecting his game. He was a high flyer similar to Norman Bailey when he got here but just kept having injury issues with his knees.

As I posted on here before, I was at a game at the civic center and saw Rudy Johnson loaded onto a stretcher, and taken away. The amount of injuries the guy had were insane. Fortunately, he was able to redshirt and had a very solid fifth-year senior campaign in '95-'96 ( around 8ppg and very solid defense as the starting 3).

 

[huskyrob1]

91-92 was an incredible class but I would have liked to seen 78/79 coached by JC.

Nothing against Dominic, but Mike McKay, Corny Thompson, and Norman Baily, and Alexinas and Kuczenski, in JC's hands would have meant at least one FF, back then. JC was the superior recruiter, so maybe Michael Adams might have worn Husky Blue.

 

[gtcam]

1974
Those freshman girls really got into streaking

 

[beakumhawks]

I took Ancient Roman Military History as a Freshman and that was probably my favorite class

 

[cohenzone]

Until the Corny Thompson class, and granted it was a different era, but the class that entered my first year was the best, but couldn't play varsity as freshmen. Wes Bialosuknia, Bill Holowaty, Tom Penders, Ron Ritter, Dick Thompson and PJ Curran. They joined with Toby Kimball for two years and a few other good upperclassmen to give UConn some visibility outside the old Ysnkee Conference.