Here's your chance, kid.

[Chief00]

I was saying the same thing. He was hanging around the line too much and no one was taking his mind off of it - that's on the coaching staff right there!

Actually, I agree. Coaching staff dropped the ball - odds would have likely been better if they called him over.

 

[UconnU]

Idk if I missed something but it didn't look like the defender even touched D Ham. May have been a make up call for earlier when D ham never even touched the shooters elbow and they called his 4th on him.

 

[Huskyforlife]

I actually don't mind them leaving him alone, you would think that would mental toughness in a freshman, next time I guarantee he will be better prepared for a situation like that. However that being said, no excuse to miss 3 free throws in a row and to shoot 56% as a wing. He needs to work on that.

 

[Gurleyman]

Idk if I missed something but it didn't look like the defender even touched D Ham. May have been a make up call for earlier when D ham never even touched the shooters elbow and they called his 4th on him.

Didn't let him land - got into his landing space with his leg when he lunged at him. It was a good contest high not hitting his arm, but foul was low. You can argue it's soft, and I would if I was a Temple fan, but that's usually called. Jump shooters get protected more than drivers, which is a bit of a flaw in rules enforcement.

 

[UConnDad]

The other four guys letting him think by himself about it was awful. They have to huddle there. Have to.

I agree he was almost at the other foul line. Said to my daughter he looks like a pitcher with a no hitter going the way everyone kept away.

 

[huskiesnyc]

It's funny if everyone huddled around him and he missed there would be posters here saying they should have left him alone to clear his head. I love Dham but he choked those free throws plain and simple. That's on him not the coaching staff or other players to do anything different.

 

[UCweCONN]

The last free throws that were that painful were Donyell in the NCAA tourney. Maybe Ray Allen can give them some free throw instruction....and three point shooting while he's at it.

 

[gtcam]

Two misses - the third one hardly counts as a free throw miss. It counts as a poor play since he didn't draw iron and was in the lane too quickly anyway, but it doesn't count as a real free throw miss. His first one actually hit off the back rim and came straight back to him - means it was right on line, just barely a hair long. I imagine that one probably felt good off his hands (I always kinda thought "uh oh" when I left them short, but usually when I missed long, I thought it was in). But stuff happens - not every shot goes in. He did hit two before that in the final minute of regulation to get it to OT, and there are plenty of other examples of our freshmen not hitting clutch foul shots. I can think of three right off the bat: Kemba 2-9 in the Final Four when we were trailing and needed points, Taliek missing at the end of a one-point Seton Hall loss that doomed us to the NIT, and Ricky at the end of an overtime Iowa loss at the Great Alaska Shootout, etc. Those guys have something else in common, too.

Hamilton has also made several big shots this year already late in close games, so he isn't a kid who's scared under pressure - if I have a beef, he seems to let his last bad play carry over too much (he won't shoot an open shot if he just missed, etc.). But he's certainly been much more consistent and multi-skilled than Lamb was at this stage. Not even close. We just have to hope that he's on an upswing at the end the way Lamb was.

Don't forget that UConn was the worse free throw shooting percentage team in the BE during the 2004-2004 season and look what happened- but I'm not drawing any conclusions!
DHam is as gifted as any freshman we've seen on UConn in a while

 

[ConnHuskBask]

It's funny if everyone huddled around him and he missed there would be posters here saying they should have left him alone to clear his head. I love Dham but he choked those free throws plain and simple. That's on him not the coaching staff or other players to do anything different.

Been thinking the same thing.

He missed. It sucks. It happens.

Huddle or not, I had a bad feeling Hamilton was going to miss the FTs.