Great win BUT

[scrappy2.0]

I really thought this was a multi dimensional offensive team--where if one player had an off night 3 others would step up. GREAT defense I mean great---but my goodness we'll be in trouble if we have 1 guy go off and 4 others go 2-8. This has to stop here. Deandre needs more intensity and focus in his game. He went from being a lock low to mid 1 to showing inconsistent play in a stacked draft that will send him back to Uconn---Boatright as well--unless they dont want to get drafted. KO had to scream at Kromah for not taking a wide open shot--he s a senior have confidence and knock the shot down. Next game is important to get back to the basics --becausee that is the only lower level team left on the schedule where we can work on things like getting everyone involved in a non intense fashion. EVERYONE needs to help offensively Nolan needs 2-3 buckets inside I mean where is my man that ended the season last year--he was good where is he????? Daniels needs to give us 17 a game OC needs to take better shots and move the ball if its not there Giffey has to create seperation and use interior play as well s the three ball. Boatright needs less flash with the dribble and more concentration on taking a good shot--no excuse we have too many good offensive players to play like that. Again great D awesome D great win--but we cant live with that offensive effort--guys need to look in the mirror we need consistency on that end--come on guys do yourself's a solid--no NBA team is interested in players who dont bring it every night.

 

[boog204]

I realize we were playing better competition, but the ball/player movement completely stopped the last two games. There are at least 5-6 possessions a half it seems where either Boat or Bazz decide they are going to show off their ballhandling skills and are forced to take a tough shot or commit a turnover. Bazz is good enough that he can hit those really tough shots, Boat is not. But it is awful basketball. No rhythm, no flow. They remind me of a late 90s Brazilian soccer player (anyone remember Denilson?) w/ every trick in the book who shows off said tricks and very rarely accomplished anything. Add to that that DD and Omar (they have 5 assists combined in 10 games) are essentially black holes and we have an offense with no cohesion. As a team we have 12 total assists in the last two games. Last night, 3 players on our team had an assist and Nolan's came in the first 3 minutes of the game. Indiana had 7 players. No ball movement, no player movement; it's been all isolation and so very predictable. I have to admit that the one reason I was happy that JC was retiring is that I thought KO would bring in a new offensive mindset. Not only is it basically the same, but KO in my opinion gives Bazz and Boat an unlimited leash. JC would've punched Boat/Bazz in the face after watching a 10 second dribbling exhibition that led to a turnover.

We played great D but it is getting really old watching Bazz and Boat get beat off the dribble or simply try for wraparound steals. We do have guys who can block shots, but Brimah is not Okafor/Thabeet yet and funneling players into the lane is not a great idea as Brimah is a foul machine. There were two or three plays down the stretch where Bazz put in zero effort on d and it led to an open look b/c of rotations. This hasn't killed us yet, but it will if it continues.

 

[sparky]

Very Good win. Bazz scares me on the foul line, especially on the front end of a 1-1. Otherwise, give him the ball in clutch time. I thought the D was good, but we need to box out. Our rebounding will carry or bury us.

 

[husky91]

IU would lose by 20+ to the elite teams, MSU, UK, KU, Puke, Ville.

 

[selles]

IU would lose by 20+ to the elite teams, MSU, UK, KU, Puke, Ville.

No they wouldn't.

 

[ibleedhuskyblue]

Very Good win. Bazz scares me on the foul line, especially on the front end of a 1-1. Otherwise, give him the ball in clutch time. I thought the D was good, but we need to box out. Our rebounding will carry or bury us.

Bazz is an 86% FT shooter. He was off last night, but that is one thing that we don't have to worry about going forward

 

[mauconnfan]

IU would lose by 20+ to the elite teams, MSU, UK, KU, Puke, Ville.

Wrong because those same "elite" teams wouldn't have played D like UConn did last night.

 

[mauconnfan]

Agree with boog big time....overall tremendous D last night.....but at the point we need our guys to keep theirs in front and full focus Bazz let's the younger brother blow by him as he as flatfooted and not ready- that was ugly! But overall tremendous effort particularly Kromah who was simply ruining the life of Yogi! He was co-MVP with Bazz no doubt last night.....

 

[UConnSwag11]

we did have 12 steals and 6 blocks believe... not every game is going to be peachy, some games are going to be ugly and some games were going to need to scrap to win but at the end all that matters is who got the W... im loving this team, so much energy and passion, they play for everyone else besides themselves... i believe ollie will figure out what to do like calhoun did when teams used to take thabeet and our shot blockers away from the lane to free up those slip screens etc... would've liked to see some facey last night...teams are now doubling as soon as Daniels gets the ball in the post, imo thats why he does put up consistent numbers, he did hit that big 3 last night...if they double then we have many other weapons to beat them, case in point shabazz had to do his thing last night

 

[Kitaman]

IU will get better and we will too. This team will not simply 'walk over' good Div 1 teams.

The team requires every Ollie euphemism. Outwill, ten toes in, look in the mirror not out the window, etc...

As long as this group of players keep buying in and play hard accordingly we will be in every game with a chance to win. This team requires seatbelts, but they are so fun to watch. Its definitely now Ollie's team and no longer JC's.

 

[UConn990411]

I really thought this was a multi dimensional offensive team--where if one player had an off night 3 others would step up. GREAT defense I mean great---but my goodness we'll be in trouble if we have 1 guy go off and 4 others go 2-8.

If you want to make a deep run in the tourney, you need to win games in many different ways. This was the first time UConn had to win a game exclusively with its defense, and they did it against a pretty good team to boot.

Sure, I want to see the ball movement and 80-plus-point scoring come back, but I'm having trouble seeing last night's win as anything but a positive step.

 

[willie99]

we're playing pretty good competition very early in the season and winning.

I have no problem winning ugly, did some people forget that's what Jimmy was doing for most of his 26 years here?

We play great D, which usually doesn't take a night off, and we're deep with multiple options on offense.

Bazz will always be a constant, DD will be by the end of the year, Boat will be Boat and we have other guys who will take turns stepping in and stepping up. Giffey has been very good, Kromah is very good and he too will improve, while Brimah's stock is going to rise quickly. When Brimah becomes an offensive threat down low, and he shows signs, everything is going to open up.

Relax and enjoy the ride

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

We play great D, which usually doesn't take a night off, and we're deep with multiple options on offense.

I was worried about the quality of defense we were playing leading up to this game, but last night was encouraging on that front.

As for the offense, it's been inconsistent, but it's clear that when it works, it works at a very high level. I think Napier first and Boatright second are responsible for that. I have faith they'll continue to get better at maintaining a rhythm and flow to the offense.

There's a lot to like about this team.

 

[mauconnfan]

I was worried about the quality of defense we were playing leading up to this game, but last night was encouraging on that front.

As for the offense, it's been inconsistent, but it's clear that when it works, it works at a very high level. I think Napier first and Boatright second are responsible for that. I have faith they'll continue to get better at maintaining a rhythm and flow to the offense.

There's a lot to like about this team.

The offense is as simple as Boat and Omar making some shots - that will make it better.........all good!

 

[Scoe]

Wrong because those same "elite" teams wouldn't have played D like UConn did last night.

those teams mentioned are not unbeatable btw

 

[Marty Jackson]

IU would lose by 20+ to the elite teams, MSU, UK, KU, Puke, Ville.

hmmmmm... they just lost to an elite team last night by 1.

 

[sledog]

At 1 sec mark with loose ball before Gif grabbed and slid out-of-bounds, who touched last? Ind or Bazz?? Still don't know. If it was Ind, UConn would have had the ball with no drama had Gif not grabbed it.

TO's steal at 1 min was monumental.

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

Early season, against good competition, a second year coach is figuring out rotations from among many options. The team is 6-0.

I loved seeing KO's 'passion' when Kromah didn't take the open shot. And I really loved that the game stalled under 60 points, which reminded me of when the 1999 team would say, "No" and not let the other team catch up . . . even if it made me anxious and not the most pleasant company. Many of last night's missed shots will fall on another night . . . and we have quite a senior leader.

 

[Gurleyman]

I realize we were playing better competition, but the ball/player movement completely stopped the last two games. There are at least 5-6 possessions a half it seems where either Boat or Bazz decide they are going to show off their ballhandling skills and are forced to take a tough shot or commit a turnover. Bazz is good enough that he can hit those really tough shots, Boat is not. But it is awful basketball. No rhythm, no flow. They remind me of a late 90s Brazilian soccer player (anyone remember Denilson?) w/ every trick in the book who shows off said tricks and very rarely accomplished anything. Add to that that DD and Omar (they have 5 assists combined in 10 games) are essentially black holes and we have an offense with no cohesion. As a team we have 12 total assists in the last two games. Last night, 3 players on our team had an assist and Nolan's came in the first 3 minutes of the game. Indiana had 7 players. No ball movement, no player movement; it's been all isolation and so very predictable. I have to admit that the one reason I was happy that JC was retiring is that I thought KO would bring in a new offensive mindset. Not only is it basically the same, but KO in my opinion gives Bazz and Boat an unlimited leash. JC would've punched Boat/Bazz in the face after watching a 10 second dribbling exhibition that led to a turnover.

We played great D but it is getting really old watching Bazz and Boat get beat off the dribble or simply try for wraparound steals. We do have guys who can block shots, but Brimah is not Okafor/Thabeet yet and funneling players into the lane is not a great idea as Brimah is a foul machine. There were two or three plays down the stretch where Bazz put in zero effort on d and it led to an open look b/c of rotations. This hasn't killed us yet, but it will if it continues.

At times (not nearly often enough, but at times) we ran some good stuff. We started the game with a pin down screen to get DD a wide open 18 footer, a screen and roll to get Omar a wide open 3 at the top of the key. Second half, we ran a misdirection play to get Omar a wide open three from the left corner and a nice cut to get DD the ball on the low block against a mismatch. They missed. And they continued to miss. When the guys you run most of your set plays for are ice cold, you stop calling their number. When Giffey or DD have been hot, we've been pretty good at getting them repeated looks. We don't seem to do anything where Bazz is off the ball (like we did for Kemba) which would be nice to see, though. But our most effective offense was clearly just Bazz creating his own shot, so that was what we went to. Boat seems to be forgoing the catch and shoot to attack all the time, which has led to some bad possessions (the back to back turnovers/fouls won't go in his personal highlight film) but that seems to be his mindset - maybe to try to take advantage of the new rules or look more like a point guard. He really doesn't finish at the rim well at all right now, though (the one twisting one notwithstanding). He either makes it more difficult than it needs to be, or he tries to draw a foul without putting up a shot that has any chance of going in.

Our assist total was partially low because guys missed the catch and shoot shots they should make. Boat set up Omar on a platter a couple times in the first half. Bazz found DD in rhythm a couple times. Brimah didn't catch the ball to go up and finish. TO missed spot up shots with his feet set, and he couldn't post up their point guard on a switch. And we blew chances to get them on the break. Then when we needed buckets, it was the "here you go, Bazz" offense, which hopefully we won't have to rely on exclusively any more if at least one of our other guys is on his game. They all sucked yesterday on offense - Kromah, Giff, TO - we tried everyone.

Happy JC was retiring? Them's hanging words!

 

[HuskyBballFan]

Those teams don't play games in the 50s or wouldn't struggle against a terrible BCU team.

Why the heck are you (and plenty others on this board) so miserable? We have the only 6-0 team in America. We have arguably the best guard in America. We just won a preseason tourney for the first time in 3 years. Stop and smell the roses for crying out loud.

Seriously, how insufferable will you be if, God forbid, we lose a game this season?

 

[Waquoit]

Why the heck are you (and plenty others on this board) so miserable? We have the only 6-0 team in America. We have arguably the best guard in America. We just won a preseason tourney for the first time in 3 years. Stop and smell the roses for crying out loud.

Seriously, how insufferable will you be if, God forbid, we lose a game this season?

You notice that the guy deleted the post you referenced. But he's just plain wrong besides being a troll. Already this year top teams have struggled against bad teams. MSU had a tough time against Columbia, the team picked to fininsh last in the Ivy League.

 

[boog204]

Happy JC was retiring? Them's hanging words!

Happy isn't the right word. I was looking forward to the prospects of a more exciting half court offense orchestrated by a 13 year NBA point guard. We basically still run the same stuff. That's what I meant.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

IU would lose by 20+ to the elite teams, MSU, UK, KU, Puke, Ville.

You just say dumb **** for the hell of it I think. Consistently the biggest clown on the board.

 

[August_West]

The offense is as simple as Boat and Omar making some shots - that will make it better.........all good!

That's really all it is too. Omar is not burying his open looks. If he did last night it is a very different game.

 

[Gurleyman]

Happy isn't the right word. I was looking forward to the prospects of a more exciting half court offense orchestrated by a 13 year NBA point guard. We basically still run the same stuff. That's what I meant.

Just giving you a hard time!

I think our offense will evolve based on the effectiveness of our personnel. When KO calls a timeout to get someone a shot off a play, or starts the game or the half with a play, it is usually a pretty good set (DD gets wide fricking open sometimes - the shot to start the game is Exhibit A). We're capable, but the guys have to hit the shots to keep getting the ball. With the new rules and the effectivess Bazz has in creating his own shots, that's our default option if nothing else is going.

If there's a day when Bazz is facing a Ricky-esque defender and is ineffective, while Omar and DD are hitting their shots, I think we'll look different and have more motion. And if we get a post scorer in future years, we'll look different still. We can't work inside-out without a back to the basket scorer.