Hurley found out one thing last night...

[HooperScooper]

Koroma & Karaban will split post time. It will all depend on the pace of course.

No thank you. I hope you think more about that because that just doesn't work.

 

[UCan3]

I am not saying he is a bad player. Alex is the glue to this team. But let's get real. If he was truly first round or early 2nd round NBA material, then why is he back for another year?

Because he is not. His best decision was to stay in school and collect NIL Had he left he might already being in europe playing bball.

Alex is Alex. He is a senior playing up to his full potential, every game. A great Husky! Hurley knows this and that's why he plays 35 mins a game.

 

[willstafa24]

I definitely hear you on all that and don’t disagree, but my perspective on reffing has come around to this: it’s a nearly impossible job and overall I prefer them to err on the side of fewer whistles. I also saw plays where I was sure they were gonna call against UConn and didn’t, but then again the off ball holding probably goes unnoticed a lot more.

This. When touching your opponent is both legal and illegal you will get degrees of calls. So, in my opinion, calling fewer fouls is always preferable. I don't like to hear from announcers that the refs are calling fouls as a way to control a physical game. If the players don't mind then neither should the refs. Only when players start to take offense and raise the animosity should refs feel that they need to step in.

I don't need to see a hand-check foul 35 feet from the basket. I don't really like loose ball fouls and I hate off-ball fouls so much.

 

[willstafa24]

Because he is not. His best decision was to stay in school and collect NIL Had he left he might already being in europe playing bball.

Alex is Alex. He is a senior playing up to his full potential, every game. A great Husky! Hurley knows this and that's why he plays 35 mins a game.

I think the difference between a great college player and a nba regular is about athleticism; something Alex lacks. His deadly shot from 3 and crazy intelligence, plus his size are the reason he is so damn good. However, he doesn't have the athleticism to get his own shot and therefore doesn't have the confidence to do it. Personally, I would like to explore posting him up occasionally as he will be guarded by a smaller player who can chase him around.

 

[Hunt for 7]

One thing that I have found interesting and once again shows that you really can’t draw any conclusions from the player highlight videos, is that Smith is about the same level shooter that Diarra was. His form looked so much better on his video than what I have seen in games this year.

Maybe it’s better to phrase it that at times he shows nice rhythm and mechanics on his shot then there are times his right elbow is completely out of position as he starts his shot. I was hoping he would be a more reliable three point shooter but now that I have watched he may just be a little quicker but smaller version of Hassan. But it appears Hassan was a much better free throw shooter.

And this kid had a game against us last year wish we could get that version of him more than the one we have seen.

That makes him an ok back up but we cannot expect much more from him and as I feared with his size once he gets into the lane he has difficulty getting his shot off and he has missed too many make able shots at the rim because he worries to much about his shot getting blocked.

 

[Iluvsuebird]

if we have to play koroma for any substantial time....we're in big trouble. Bro has a LONG way to go.

I must have watched a different game. Korona was competitive, fighting for boards, bodying people and being aggressive. Is he skillful? No. But he brought an energy to the game. Now, he needs to make some darn FT’s for sure.

 

[HooperScooper]

I must have watched a different game. Korona was competitive, fighting for boards, bodying people and being aggressive. Is he skillful? No. But he brought an energy to the game. Now, he needs to make some darn FT’s for sure.

I do think you were watching a different game. He may have been fighting for boards and being aggressive but it wasn't very productive. 12 minutes, 2 rebounds, 0 field goals, 2-6 from the FT line, 3 fouls, and no rim protection. He did have 2 steals and 2 assists but overall I would say the less Koroma we see the better. Little spots when there is foul trouble is fine but nothing more.

 

[TheRealKBuks]

Last year's season came down to playing a top team tough the entire game, and coming up short in winning time. Just like the other night. Who on this team can we count on to get a bucket in the big spot? I think Alex is more Sylvio than Tony.

The only conclusion you can draw from the Arizona game is that our team this year hobbled is as good as our team last year. At full strength I have all the confidence we are the best team in the country

 

[UCan3]

I think the difference between a great college player and an nba regular is about athleticism; something Alex lacks. His deadly shot from 3 and crazy intelligence, plus his size are the reason he is so damn good. However, he doesn't have the athleticism to get his own shot and therefore doesn't have the confidence to do it. Personally, I would like to explore posting him up occasionally as he will be guarded by a smaller player who can chase him around.

I think you make valid points. I will only add that - that doesn’t change anything about how much I appreciate Alex’s contributions to the team. I think he’s doing the best he can and at the end of the day, that’s all any of us can do.

I likee to think about myself in the same manner. I may not be the best but I’m always trying - like Alex

 

[CL82]

One thing about Reibe is that he can play outside, as we witnessed when he made a couple of threes. I could see him and Reed playing together at times.

Love to see him get more comfortable taking that shot. He sure looked like he has the range.

 

[CL82]

I definitely hear you on all that and don’t disagree, but my perspective on reffing has come around to this: it’s a nearly impossible job and overall I prefer them to err on the side of fewer whistles. I also saw plays where I was sure they were gonna call against UConn and didn’t, but then again the off ball holding probably goes unnoticed a lot more.

The problem is our system is heavily dependent on movement. The scout on us is to hold our players and dare the refs to call every foul. They won't.

 

[navery12]

I do think you were watching a different game. He may have been fighting for boards and being aggressive but it wasn't very productive. 12 minutes, 2 rebounds, 0 field goals, 2-6 from the FT line, 3 fouls, and no rim protection. He did have 2 steals and 2 assists but overall I would say the less Koroma we see the better. Little spots when there is foul trouble is fine but nothing more.

I couldn't disagree more. I'm not saying I want him to get minutes when Reed is back, but he was very productive against Arizona. I hesitate to use +\- because it's a flawed stat but in the 2nd half against Arizona Reibe was -9 and Koroma was +7. We made our huge run and had our best defensive possessions with Koroma on the court. Do I wish he had more offense or was a little bigger? Sure. But if either of those things were true he's not coming to UConn as a 3rd C

 

[freshler40]

I must have watched a different game. Korona was competitive, fighting for boards, bodying people and being aggressive. Is he skillful? No. But he brought an energy to the game. Now, he needs to make some darn FT’s for sure.

Like Korona's toughness. It's useful in games against bigger teams such as AZ. We seemed smaller at every position during that game.

 

[Waquoit]

The only conclusion you can draw from the Arizona game is that our team this year hobbled is as good as our team last year. At full strength I have all the confidence we are the best team in the country

We are in the top tier. But every UConn team that won the whole thing had someone who shot daggers. Some teams had two. We don't have one yet. Of course we can win without someone like that but it would be a first.

 

[Ewekon]

Yes , Mullins could have. Hopefully he comes back next week and proves you right. That would be most welcomed.

Mullins will start making his mark on the team in game 2 or 3 playing post injury. He is really good and AK will benefit because Mullins will have to be guarded out to the 3 line and Alex can get his best looks, feet set in corner for the 3.

Mullins is a Danny kind of player, aka plays both ways. "Tenacious D" and keeps his head up from the inbound foul line to the finish or the 3. He's a top tier freshman on a top tier team. I think his 3 pt. % will be equal to or higher than Solo's. I haven't watched this much tape on a true freshman since Clingan's senior HS year....

 

[T-Squared]

Not sure why you arbitrarily picked Jordan Hawkins and not the recruits we've had over the past few years who were actually ranked similarly to Mullins. But we're also talking about a guy who put up 16 points against SEC champion Auburn in his 3rd game that season, so by any comparison yes I think we can safely say Braylon Mullins will make a difference

I hope that Mullins will be a significant contributor. The Huskies will need him to be if they are to get to the Final Four.

 

[superjohn]

We are in the top tier. But every UConn team that won the whole thing had someone who shot daggers. Some teams had two. We don't have one yet. Of course we can win without someone like that but it would be a first.

Why do you say this? I remember Solo shooting plenty of daggers last season. Silas averaged over 19 ppg his last 10 games last season going through the SEC and the NCAA tournament, he hit plenty of daggers and he iced the game against BYU for us. Tarris is basically an automatic bucket when we throw it into him. AK is more a complimentary connector type of player but he's hit plenty of daggers throughout his career. We've yet to see Braylon play in a regular season game but he's often called the best shooter in this loaded class.

 

[SCNCHuskie]

Last year's season came down to playing a top team tough the entire game, and coming up short in winning time. Just like the other night. Who on this team can we count on to get a bucket in the big spot? I think Alex is more Sylvio than Tony.

Love the reference.

 

[NewBlood]

I hope that Mullins will be a significant contributor. The Huskies will need him to be if they are to get to the Final Four.

He’s a five star freshman with a shot stroke that is god made per Hurley. If he is just dangerous from 3 this team is dangerous

If Solo gets back to his act from 3, we will be playing in late March

 

[Iluvsuebird]

Like Korona's toughness. It's useful in games against bigger teams such as AZ. We seemed smaller at every position during that game.

of course. I am not suggesting that he should be in the rotation. But he plays hard and brings energy, if not a lot of skill.