AK - most complete game of his UConn career, and a great litmus for him seizing that leadership role. He looked like a pro and at a different level than the rest of the floor.
Ian - active and fearless scorer. Lived up to the hype.
Tarris - glimpses of what he’s capable of once he refines. Great game as he’s so athletic for his size, with good hands.
Solo - great shooting night but still lacks activity on the overall. No reason a kid that long and athletic isn’t a constant disruptor. He stands around as an onlooker way too often. Needs to be more than just a jump shooter, especially if he wants to play in the league.
Samson - I thought he played well when he wasn’t fouling, which continues to be a massive issue for him. Offensively he showed things he’s never done. His FT form looked much improved. That said, he should be coming off the bench soon enough.
Mahaney - most disappointing Husky of the night. Things seemed to stall with ball in his hands. Didn’t really have much presence out there, felt a little stunted at the pace of action. Him throwing a donut up as a starter against SHU can’t happen. Can only go up from here, but the PG position is one to watch. Had a hard time staying in front as a defender at times.
Hassan - tough shooting night. Did have 6 assists and the team generally looks better with him out there at PG, as he pushes pace and is so active, and defends. It almost felt like he may have been pressing on the shot as it’s clearly one of the reasons he doesn’t start.
Stew - still waiting for the light bulb to go off and to understand his identity in the rotation. He continues to miss threes, yet constantly fades to the three point line waiting for a kick out which leaves him away from where his real value is. He did get into the paint more on the very back end of the game to grab a couple rebounds.
Other frosh looked good in limited back end minutes.
Great win to start the season, without Ross. All is a work in progress but great to see some of the core pieces show their stuff. The offensive complexity and precision will only go up from here.
