Hurley: “seemed like guys confidence was down”

[McLovin]

A quote from the post game presser when talking about the ending possessions of the game really stuck out to me.

“It seemed like guys confidence was down and didn’t want to pull the trigger”

All I can ask is… WHY?!?

Clearly this team has a bunch of mental boogeymen they need to cleanse ASAP. Every time they are in a big or close game they freeze up. The staff needs to figure out how to fix this ASAP.

I don’t care if it’s a tough road environment or what ever other excuse their is, but 3-23 from deep is unacceptable and it seems like once one guy starts missing the rest of the team loses their confidence too.

Their horrific shooting displays isn’t about the Xs and Os. We have been getting a TON of wide open looks all year. Someone needs to step up and start hitting the open shots.

 

[rip7774]

It’s so odd. Hurley is a guy that is a voracious learner and does so much self development, but we still have so much Ollie in a ton of guys, even guys like Gaffney who plays so timid.

Ultimatel, you can’t do anything afraid and so much fear on display last night. I was never big on Cole last year since he’s small and slow relative to what we’re used to at UConn - but thank goodness we have him, he’s so good and so tough mentally and physically. A true warrior. Much props to him.

Also, Play Diggins. He can dribble with both hands unlike everyone but Cole. His moxie will rub off on them, too!

 

[8893]

but we still have so much Ollie in a ton of guys,

Good Lord.

 

[gsmooth]

A quote from the post game presser when talking about the ending possessions of the game really stuck out to me.

“It seemed like guys confidence was down and didn’t want to pull the trigger”

All I can ask is… WHY?!?

Clearly this team has a bunch of mental boogeymen they need to cleanse ASAP. Every time they are in a big or close game they freeze up. The staff needs to figure out how to fix this ASAP.

I don’t care if it’s a tough road environment or what ever other excuse their is, but 3-23 from deep is unacceptable and it seems like once one guy starts missing the rest of the team loses their confidence too.

Their horrific shooting displays isn’t about the Xs and Os. We have been getting a TON of wide open looks all year. Someone needs to step up and start hitting the open shots.

Yeah I think most of us noticed how the guys, except for Cole, wanted no part in shooting late in the game. Or in other instances every move they made was out of fear instead of confidence. Look at the shot clock violation late in the game-Jackson knew the shot clock was low, he wasn't unaware of that, but he was hoping to the maximum that he could sneak a quick pass for someone else to shoot.

Polley is really the wild card in the deck. If he shoots well, he can win the game for UConn, but if he misses his first 2 shots of the game, he most likely will be cold for the rest of the game. He is a streak shooter, not a pure shooter. He has been off since the Auburn game. He had plenty of open looks yesterday and couldn't knock down any of them. Polley catches fire in one game and then the next few you get nothing. Christian Vital was a streak shooter for most of his career at UConn, but I would say he became a pure shooter since the mid Jan 2020 to the last game vs Houston-if he was open the shot was going to be made. Plus, he contributed in so many other ways besides his shooting.

I am not writing off these guys, I believe in them even if it's simply because I am a biased UConn fan, but there is plenty of work to be done and improvement to be made. Here is hoping that happens.

 

[gtcam]

A quote from the post game presser when talking about the ending possessions of the game really stuck out to me.

“It seemed like guys confidence was down and didn’t want to pull the trigger”

All I can ask is… WHY?!?

Clearly this team has a bunch of mental boogeymen they need to cleanse ASAP. Every time they are in a big or close game they freeze up. The staff needs to figure out how to fix this ASAP.

I don’t care if it’s a tough road environment or what ever other excuse their is, but 3-23 from deep is unacceptable and it seems like once one guy starts missing the rest of the team loses their confidence too.

Their horrific shooting displays isn’t about the Xs and Os. We have been getting a TON of wide open looks all year. Someone needs to step up and start hitting the open shots.

The confidence comes from the top DH. Look inside first. All that rah rah stuff perhaps is hollow. Huggy Bear ate you up and spit you out as far as coaching the team is concerned.
Teams have off nights shooting and good coaches make adjustments in sourcing production from other angles. DH stood and watched one ball after another clang off the rims and was bug eyed

 

[wheelerdog]

I like Danny but he makes some head scratching comments after loses.

 

[Umami Zen]

If the ball isn't goin' down.. Confidence is usually affected

 

[UCfor3]

Kids tend to not be so confident shooting when they are 3 for 23. It's human nature. The coach can build a player up all day long but they are college kids and until they see the ball go in, they might be a bit down or reluctant. Remember, most of the players we are talking about are the non Cole players. These kids have not been in the role of one of the main scorers for the most part. They are supporting players that have been thrust into a bigger role because of the two injuries and several were playing their first true road game of their career. We knew this was a roster weakness or concern coming in. Guys had a lot of good looks. They just didn't bury them. It happens. Man, our fanbase does not handle losses well. Some perpective perhaps. Wanting the coaches head and blaming him for everything after every loss is insane. Pace yourself, we will lose more. This is not the 90's or 2000's yet roster wise. We are lacking pieces and offensive versatility. I was shocked when some thought we would be fine until Sanogo and Martin came back. People were already penciling in wins. If expectations are always unreasonable, you will often be disappointed with the results.

 

[UCfor3]

I like Danny but he makes some head scratching comments after loses.

I imagine sitting in front of the press and trying to find creative ways to answer questions about why we lost and shot poorly without outright saying the players couldn't hit water if they were standing in a lifeboat is difficult. That's Boeheim's niche.

 

[dennismenace]

Yeah I think most of us noticed how the guys, except for Cole, wanted no part in shooting late in the game. Or in other instances every move they made was out of fear instead of confidence. Look at the shot clock violation late in the game-Jackson knew the shot clock was low, he wasn't unaware of that, but he was hoping to the maximum that he could sneak a quick pass for someone else to shoot.

Polley is really the wild card in the deck. If he shoots well, he can win the game for UConn, but if he misses his first 2 shots of the game, he most likely will be cold for the rest of the game. He is a streak shooter, not a pure shooter. He has been off since the Auburn game. He had plenty of open looks yesterday and couldn't knock down any of them. Polley catches fire in one game and then the next few you get nothing. Christian Vital was a streak shooter for most of his career at UConn, but I would say he became a pure shooter since the mid Jan 2020 to the last game vs Houston-if he was open the shot was going to be made. Plus, he contributed in so many other ways besides his shooting.

I am not writing off these guys, I believe in them even if it's simply because I am a biased UConn fan, but there is plenty of work to be done and improvement to be made. Here is hoping that happens.

I didn't see any real open looks for Polley. I think they feared him and played him tight. I saw someone in his face every time he had the ball. I saw others left wide open pretty much or they unnecessarily rushed their shot. Clearly they were rattled by the pressure and the god awful noise in that place. Might have also felt less than confident without leadership and toughness of Martin and the presence of Adama. It was a learning experience and I think they (coach and players) can keep that in mind for the future about game prep and how to remain calm under pressure. (Ray Allen: "work hard and stay calm").

 

[jibsey]

I was hoping Polley would be like Neil's Griffey this year for us.

 

[Kolumbo]

If 23 year old guys are having confidence issues after what 4 years of ball, you have to find someone else to rely on. Let the pups run and gun and see who wants to pull the sled.

 

[8893]

I was hoping Polley would be like Neil's Griffey this year for us.

Who?

 

[Ts5034]

I was hoping Polley would be like Neil's Griffey this year for us.

Or Rashard Anderson…

 

[mussels]

Look to the top - Hurley himself gets wound up to the max, and I think that woundupness carries over to his team and gets everyone playing tight. Crunch time loose beats tight.

Hurleys job in those instances is to project calm confidence “everything is under control - we got this”

 

[UCfor3]

Look to the top - Hurley himself gets wound up to the max, and I think that woundupness carries over to his team and gets everyone playing tight. Crunch time loose beats tight.

Hurleys job in those instances is to project calm confidence “everything is under control - we got this”

History is littered with successful maniac coaches. Jim Calhoun had confidence but didn't project anything calmly and he got plenty wound up. He would yank players with a quick hook after one mistake, chew them out right in front of the bench, rip his jacket off. If players can perform under those conditions then they can play for Hurley being a bit wound up. People are really reaching for new things to hang on him.

 

[auror]

It was really two guys who wouldn't shoot that had opportunities at the end - Akok and Jackson. And they're not very proven shooters so the hesitancy makes sense. Polley, Cole and Hawkins were not shy. Whaley and Gaffney didn't really have chances.

Definitely Hurley's job to improve that confidence over the course of the season or not put those players into positions where their lack of confidence will hurt us.

 

[mussels]

History is littered with successful maniac coaches. Jim Calhoun had confidence but didn't project anything calmly and he got plenty wound up. He would yank players with a quick hook after one mistake, chew them out right in front of the bench, rip his jacket off. If players can perform under those conditions then they can play for Hurley being a bit wound up. People are really reaching for new things to hang on him.

I think that prior to 99 and the calming influence of a very unique personality in the person of KEA, Calhoun had several great teams under perform in the tourney because they played too tight.

There are many here who advocate for Hurley to start yanking players for every offense and I think you have to really know who might respond well to that and who won’t. There isn’t a one size fits all solution.

Last night, in the last minutes there were shots of Hurley going wild. It made his players uptight.

 

[McLovin]

Kids tend to not be so confident shooting when they are 3 for 23. It's human nature. The coach can build a player up all day long but they are college kids and until they see the ball go in, they might be a bit down or reluctant. Remember, most of the players we are talking about are the non Cole players. These kids have not been in the role of one of the main scorers for the most part. They are supporting players that have been thrust into a bigger role because of the two injuries and several were playing their first true road game of their career. We knew this was a roster weakness or concern coming in. Guys had a lot of good looks. They just didn't bury them. It happens. Man, our fanbase does not handle losses well. Some perpective perhaps. Wanting the coaches head and blaming him for everything after every loss is insane. Pace yourself, we will lose more. This is not the 90's or 2000's yet roster wise. We are lacking pieces and offensive versatility. I was shocked when some thought we would be fine until Sanogo and Martin came back. People were already penciling in wins. If expectations are always unreasonable, you will often be disappointed with the results.

I mean, I think asking the team to shoot better than 12% from 3 and score more than 53 points is not unreasonable.

I’m not putting the blame on any one player or the coach(es). But simply pointing out that this is something that has plagued this team in close games for years now (even before the Hurley era).

But other teams play with poise and are filled with 18-22 years olds as well. It’s clearly all mental and they need to figure out how to fix that ASAP. Whether it’s bringing in an external psychologist or the coaching staff changing their approach, I don’t care. But status quo will not work.

 

[Madmannsucks]

A quote from the post game presser when talking about the ending possessions of the game really stuck out to me.

“It seemed like guys confidence was down and didn’t want to pull the trigger”

All I can ask is… WHY?!?

Clearly this team has a bunch of mental boogeymen they need to cleanse ASAP. Every time they are in a big or close game they freeze up. The staff needs to figure out how to fix this ASAP.

I don’t care if it’s a tough road environment or what ever other excuse their is, but 3-23 from deep is unacceptable and it seems like once one guy starts missing the rest of the team loses their confidence too.

Their horrific shooting displays isn’t about the Xs and Os. We have been getting a TON of wide open looks all year. Someone needs to step up and start hitting the open shots.

Yeah, no one wanted to take a shot down the stretch.

 

[superjohn]

Players take on the personality of the coach, it's kind of known around college basketball now that Hurley isn't all that adaptable in games and gets tight down the stretch.

 

[bendm]

I was hoping Polley would be like Neil's Griffey this year for us.

Or Rashard Anderson…

more like rashard andreson.he spelled first and last name wrong and added an apostrophe for good measure haha

 

[Improviser]

I mean, I think asking the team to shoot better than 12% from 3 and score more than 53 points is not unreasonable.

I’m not putting the blame on any one player or the coach(es). But simply pointing out that this is something that has plagued this team in close games for years now (even before the Hurley era).

But other teams play with poise and are filled with 18-22 years olds as well. It’s clearly all mental and they need to figure out how to fix that ASAP. Whether it’s bringing in an external psychologist or the coaching staff changing their approach, I don’t care. But status quo will not work.

Good idea on the psychologist. There are sports psychologists and this approach has been helpful for many teams.

Article below shows how UConn during Ollie tenure hired a sports psychologist. The results were positive for the most part. His name was Joe Carr.

Psychologist Helps Huskies Forge Lasting Bonds (Published 2014)

When Kevin Ollie took over as Connecticut’s coach, he brought in a sports psychologist to foster chemistry for his team, which has paid off over the past two seasons.

www.nytimes.com

 

[UCfor3]

I mean, I think asking the team to shoot better than 12% from 3 and score more than 53 points is not unreasonable.

I’m not putting the blame on any one player or the coach(es). But simply pointing out that this is something that has plagued this team in close games for years now (even before the Hurley era).

But other teams play with poise and are filled with 18-22 years olds as well. It’s clearly all mental and they need to figure out how to fix that ASAP. Whether it’s bringing in an external psychologist or the coaching staff changing their approach, I don’t care. But status quo will not work.

The coaches can certainly do better in game but I think it's a personnel issue as well. Tough to score consistently in college basketball with one good guard/perimeter player and questionable shooting. We shot well and were healthy against Auburn. Polley had one his rare hot games. We didn't shoot so well against the other non cupcakes and they were nail biters. We went 1-2 and one of those losses we were missing two starters. It is what it is.

 

[F101Voodoo]

A quote from the post game presser when talking about the ending possessions of the game really stuck out to me.

“It seemed like guys confidence was down and didn’t want to pull the trigger”

All I can ask is… WHY?!?

Clearly this team has a bunch of mental boogeymen they need to cleanse ASAP. Every time they are in a big or close game they freeze up. The staff needs to figure out how to fix this ASAP.

I don’t care if it’s a tough road environment or what ever other excuse their is, but 3-23 from deep is unacceptable and it seems like once one guy starts missing the rest of the team loses their confidence too.

Their horrific shooting displays isn’t about the Xs and Os. We have been getting a TON of wide open looks all year. Someone needs to step up and start hitting the open shots.

I noted the lack of confidence against WV in the team in another thread. So I agree with you in principle.