Marquette Post Game Thread

[UCTitleTown]

I don't think he will be, but he bumped the ref so he's gonna be writing a check at a minimum.

Imagine if he does get suspended for a game or two in the Big East Tournament? Tall about Dan Hurley taking a crap performance and parlaying it into a crap sandwich.

 

[gtcam]

Stop saying it was a foul. It was a good contest, and Demary didn’t finish.

Silas didn't need to charge into the mass of bodies - he should have pulled up for the 10 footer- he's done it all year - drive into the trees . stop, look up and crap his pants.
He is a good guard but IMO, he isn't a polished PG and he isn't a vocal leader. I didn't think TNewton was a vocal leader but he was a screamer compared to Silas.

 

[storrsroars]

100% - Hurley tends to get an idea in his head and goes overboard on it, it seems. You need players that can drive action, attract defenses, not just perch and expect to catch and shoot. You need guys that can create off defense.

Solo was awful at the rim today - has no ability to take the ball strong to the rim, ends up flipping these loose shots up that barely draw iron off the backboard.

Issue is their reliance on the 3. Cold from 3 can happen, hasn't been the first time.

The other conference games where UConn shot <30% from 33
19% @ G'town and won by 2
18% @ Hall and won by 5
21% vs Marquette and won by 5
28% vs St John's and won by 32

 

[ScottVib]

You would think that with an intense coach it wouldn’t be a problem but you need an intense guy on the floor. We don’t have that. Alex is quiet.

This is the thing I've been feeling. Just doesn't feel like they have a leader on the floor that can wake the team up when it doesn't have the intensity necessary. When fully invested, they are a legitimate national title contender, the team that showed up and beat St. John's can beat anyone in the nation. The team that showed up this afternoon, looked like a team that felt like there was nothing to play for and expected to win without breaking a sweat. Then the shots didn't fall, the passes didn't get through... suddenly they're down 12, with 4 minutes to go... they try to wake up, but have already ceded 36 minutes and all the momentum to the opponent.

 

[VUcommodore]

What it comes down to is that this team doesn’t have any dogs. They are talented but they don’t have that guy that’s gonna keep on their asses on the floor. Alex should be that guy but he never was.

Spot on

 

[SwingDog]

Hold your 🐎 s. If we win the BE title we will be 1 seed in the tournament

If we play like this it's going to be a short post season.

 

[FightOnCT]

You wonder why UConn is never considered a Blueblood? If Duke or Kentucky doesn’t make the final Four the season is a failure. Hey at least we got a shot, so does Miami of Ohio!

Most consider UConn a blue blood in 2026

 

[uconngb]

Silas was the only "guy" we had today. Even Tarris disappeared in the 2nd.

Tarris cannot pass himself the ball. It’s criminal he only took 10 shots today

 

[Kolumbo]

 

[uconngb]

It was a bad performance, but the team isn't going to go 3-24 from 3 again for the rest of the season. It sucks we lost the Big East regular season title today, but it is what it is.

I've already moved on. Time for the BET and NCAAT. One performance isn't going to make me lose faith in this team at this point. This is the same team that smashed St Johns a couple weeks ago. As Hurley said a couple days ago, out floor is low but our ceiling is incredibly high. They can still rattle off 6 straight and get the ultimate prize.

Problem is, it isn’t ONE performance. It’s about a dozen. We just happened to win most of them cuz the other teams were really bad.

 

[NewBlood]

This is pretty much where I’m at. All the posters in here who say we aren’t getting out of the first weekend love being negative because that’s their schtick. But deep down we all know we have no idea how this team will respond. When you think we’re falling, we pound Nova and beat St. John’s 72-40. When you think we figured it out we lose to crappy Marquette. No one knows and that’s probably the most frustrating part

I have more concern about the first weekend than the second. So strange but that’s what happens when you have no killers on your team

 

[superjohn]

Tarris cannot pass himself the ball. It’s criminal he only took 10 shots today

They weren't even throwing it into him and he was bottled off and had to kick it back out, they just never threw it to him again after he dominated.

 

[boog204]

You people are insane, making broad statements about how not-good this team is and judging their effort.

We shot 3/24 from 3. A bad shooting day on the road. It can happen to any team. Have a freaking drink and calm down.

The problem is if we have a bad shooting game - which as you stated can happen to any team - we are far too one dimensional to consistently overcome it. Running out a 2, 3, and 4 whose primary positive influences are basically completely dependent on hitting 3’s is, again, an issue in roster construction.

 

[freescooter]

Luck finally ran out !

 

[Tenspro2002]

I have more concern about the first weekend than the second. So strange but that’s what happens when you have no killers on your team

I would absolutely short us getting out of the first weekend, or at the very least bet against us covering those games.

Once we're facing top 20 opponents I think we have as good a chance as anyone outside the top 3.

 

[Jay Ronald]

At this point i wouldnt even mind a second round exit so we can avoid the South bracket. UF is a buzzsaw. Rather face UM or AZ if we get there.

 

[RuffRuff]

I’m salty, but I believe there was some ego involved in regards to just having a system and culture that was superior. He waxed poetically about it to anyone who would listen. But you still need versatile players within that system. We went from having starting lineups with two or three creators to really a lineup with none last year and one this year. You can run the greatest stuff in the world, but you still need players who can make some plays and get down hill. Some said earlier, why didn’t we penetrate and go to the hoop more since our shots weren’t falling? Simple answer is we can’t.

Well said - two years running. I’m finding his current template holding onto something he thinks once worked, along with some of the players.

Unless he’s looking to start a seminary, let’s not also over index on the “great family” utopian thing. It’s nice, but there are also great kids from less than. And those kids may play with the edge and sense and purpose he is sorely lacking in this and last years team. Kind of kid Calhouns teams had a ton of. This team is the most boring 27-4 UConn team I’ve ever seen.

While a great player, not sure what the intention was around Mullins profile when he has AK at the 4 and Solo at the 2. There were alternatives in this deep class that were much more complimentary. 3 guys who are jack 3 first with a brand new portal PG never sounded like a great concept. If anything Malachi disappointing hurt our ability to put two on ball creators out there.

Hurley needs to rethink the recruiting approach.

Portal season is going to be an interesting watch. I’ve lost some faith in Reibe ready to start. We need a 4 that is a difference maker and not the AK profile. I think it’s clear the AK profile is only good in a distant role player role after today.

The problem is if we have a bad shooting game - which as you stated can happen to any team - we are far too one dimensional to consistently overcome it. Running out a 2, 3, and 4 whose primary positive influences are basically completely dependent on hitting 3’s is, again, an issue in roster construction.

Issue is when we can’t hit threes we can’t score.

We have had a high “luck” score on KP all season.

 

[NickDanger]

A "ballon knot" ok I get why it seemed like too much, but there’s context. Hurley had been watching the same grabbing and physical play go uncalled all night, and that final no call on Demary wiped out a legit chance to tie it in the closing seconds. The reaction was a full game of frustration boiling over, not something random. And honestly, making that point now could carry some weight when it comes time for the BE tournament.

I said something else, and the software filled in "balloon knot" in place of the word I used

 

[Mike Honcho]

Karaban & Mullins were 1-15 from 3 and I’d say 75% of those shots were completely wide open. I’m not even sure that’s possible to replicate a stat like that again.

In the first Georgetown game, they were a combined 3-14 from 3 (and Solo was 0-5 for good measure).

 

[Woof]

I really expected to see this team play really well from now to April. There was no excuse to be "tired" today. We are WAY past January and the early season brutal practices. They just aren't a great team. Good, yes. Very good, sometimes. Feels like another first weekend exit.

 

[IndyLives]

Silas is supposed to be the floor general. The perimeter shots were not falling obviously. The PG needs to take over and penetrate and feed the ball to Reed. He did neither. Our offense is so easy to defend when we settle for jump shots. This was against a terrible Marquette team. Epic Fail

 

[Mike Honcho]

Aside from Demary they don’t have a single player that can do that. We’ve prioritized shooting to the extreme. And I think teams have figured out their intricate offense a little bit better, so we don’t get as many easy buckets either.

Malachi was supposed to be that guy but he has disappeared for the last 2+ months. He looked horrendous out there today which is why he got pulled after just 2 minutes. Our backup PG situation is a mess right now.

 

[Luckyhusky81]

I feel like Silas started to shoot well from distance and mid range earlier in the season, but lately either doesn't shoot or just drives. He busts his butt every game and we are lost with smith out there unfortunately- maybe Adams transferring hurt more than we realize.

Before the season I thought this may be the best shooting UConn team ever given the roster and system. Solos improved driving hasn't offset his worse shooting. Braylon has been good mostly but I don't think that the injuries he has dealt with are an explanation for him not being a dominant freshman at this point. I think he is going to be great, but think about how much more Liam had on his plate last year- he initiated the offense frequently where Braylon is still just a shooter who occasionally will have a nice drive or mid range. I think Braylon could be a superstar next year if he stays and likely help his nba stock, but who knows.

I cannot fathom how we have such difficulty getting it to tarris at this point- especially when we aren't shooting well. I also can't fathom how tarris still struggles to take it strong when not doubled, or pass it to the open shooter when he is doubled.

Karaban is who he is. I love the guy and he loves UConn. He never claimed to be a superstar and the only reason to be negative about what he has brought us is to think he is supposed to be a superstar .

Despite all the negatives and not being a dominant team, we can fully beat any team in a one game situation. So many top teams have had a bunch of close games, especially in conference. I wouldn't say I am confident in getting #7, but it's easy to lose site of the fact that maybe 4-5 teams have a better chance than us- those are decent odds.

 

[Fishy]

The problem is if we have a bad shooting game - which as you stated can happen to any team - we are far too one dimensional to consistently overcome it. Running out a 2, 3, and 4 whose primary positive influences are basically completely dependent on hitting 3’s is, again, an issue in roster construction.

Yep.

We also have a peculiar situation where our worst perimeter shooter is our most prolific perimeter shooter. On March 7th, it is well past time for Solo to be allowed to shoot himself out of a 30-game shooting slump.

Given that he doesn't really do anything else well, he's incredibly expensive when he's out there for 35 minutes with the greenest of green lights, especially when he's pulling shots from guys like AK, BM and SD who actually convert at a rate far higher than Solo's 30.7%.

 

[gsmooth]

You wonder why UConn is never considered a Blueblood? If Duke or Kentucky doesn’t make the final Four the season is a failure. Hey at least we got a shot, so does Miami of Ohio!

UConn is a blue blood plain and simple. Today's game, as bad as it sucked does nothing to change that. Did you miss the graphic they put up with schools with the most titles?
UCLA 11
Kentucky 8
UConn 6
North Carolina 6
....

They just had the most dominant back-to-back titles in the most dominant fashion in the modern era of the NCAAT.