That hurt

[8893]

Bazz has done enough in my book to put him in the category of one of the all time UConn greats. He doesn't need to do anything more for me to believe that. You have different criteria. Fine. I just don't get where you see him taking plays off, halves off or games off. The kid leaves it on the floor every game.

No question he's already an all-time UConn great. I fully agree on that. For lack of a better word, I just think he's "cvnty" when things aren't going his way, and that it has a compounding effect on the rest of the team.

 

[superjohn]

I also thought Samuel should have gotten a few more minutes to spell Bazz, Samuel doesn't look out of place out there.

 

[ctchamps]

No question he's already an all-time UConn great. I fully agree on that. For lack of a better word, I just think he's "cvnty" when things aren't going his way, and that it has a compounding effect on the rest of the team.

Each of the players on the team handles adversity differently. I think AB is about the only one who just pops right back into a positive demeanor when things go wrong. And I'm noticing that even he is beginning to change. LK and NG don't pout when they make a mistake but they do become tentative. RB lets a bad play affect him for a while after it happens. He doesn't pout and still goes after it, but a lot less effectively for a few plays. DD goes into funks. OC hasn't come out of a funk since pretty much the start of the season. It's hard to tell the mindset of PN. TO gets into funks. TS seems even keeled but not enough minutes to go by. Same with Facey.

Does pouting on the court influence others? Certainly. Our demeanors have a way of influencing others. These players are who they are. When they're winning they pump each other up. When they're losing or playing badly they compound it with their expressions. They aren't alone. This is a human trait. Just examine this forum for a couple of games.

The best thing about KEA wasn't his pg skills and his terrific court vision. It was his ability to keep the team loose in spite of a demanding coach. Bazz doesn't have this ability. Not many people do. Do I wish he could display it. Certainly. But not many people can be someone they are not.

Kemba was somewhere between Bazz and KEA in terms of keeping his team mates up beat. But that persona isn't the only persona necessary to win. EO was stoic as they come on the court. He wasn't a rah rah guy at all. He led by his play. Bazz leads by his play as well. When he plays poorly his demeanor changes. But it changes when he plays well and his team doesn't. It's his trait and if the players need him to feed off of, then that's as much their problem as his.

 

[CTBasketball]

Each of the players on the team handles adversity differently. I think AB is about the only one who just pops right back into a positive demeanor when things go wrong. And I'm noticing that even he is beginning to change. LK and NG don't pout when they make a mistake but they do become tentative. RB lets a bad play affect him for a while after it happens. He doesn't pout and still goes after it, but a lot less effectively for a few plays. DD goes into funks. OC hasn't come out of a funk since pretty much the start of the season. It's hard to tell the mindset of PN. TO gets into funks. TS seems even keeled but not enough minutes to go by. Same with Facey.

Does pouting on the court influence others? Certainly. Our demeanors have a way of influencing others. These players are who they are. When they're winning they pump each other up. When they're losing or playing badly they compound it with their expressions. They aren't alone. This is a human trait. Just examine this forum for a couple of games.

The best thing about KEA wasn't his pg skills and his terrific court vision. It was his ability to keep the team loose in spite of a demanding coach. Bazz doesn't have this ability. Not many people do. Do I wish he could display it. Certainly. But not many people can be someone they are not.

Kemba was somewhere between Bazz and KEA in terms of keeping his team mates up beat. But that persona isn't the only persona necessary to win. EO was stoic as they come on the court. He wasn't a rah rah guy at all. He led by his play. Bazz leads by his play as well. When he plays poorly his demeanor changes. But it changes when he plays well and his team doesn't. It's his trait and if the players need him to feed off of, then that's as much their problem as his.

Agree on the comparisons, especially the mindset of the players.

But I think this team gets down because of themselves and themselves alone. Not a lot of confidence amongst anyone but Shabazz. And last night we saw Shabazz's worst game since 2012 and he took it out on himself and the refs after. I have no problem doing that, kind of eases the pain of the loss for the guys because they realized Shabazz wasn't on and getting fouls. Ollie isn't a demanding coach and doesn't bring his players emotions/demeanors at all. There isn't any punishment for messing up, so they only get mad at themselves when they mess up. Shabazz and Boat were perfect examples of this last night in the second half.

 

[8893]

Bazz leads by his play as well. When he plays poorly his demeanor changes. But it changes when he plays well and his team doesn't. It's his trait and if the players need him to feed off of, then that's as much their problem as his.

Agree with everything in your post, but it's this last part that's the rub. This is our team and it is what it is, and what it is is our problem when Bazz isn't playing well. He has the ball and, like or not, he controls much of the play. There is no other leader on this team in words or in deeds. He's our guy, warts and all. Most nights, that's enough. But in the one-and-done world of post-season play, an off night from Bazz is likely to mean the end of the road for this team, plain and simple.

 

[aceboon]

Agree on the comparisons, especially the mindset of the players.

But I think this team gets down because of themselves and themselves alone. Not a lot of confidence amongst anyone but Shabazz. And last night we saw Shabazz's worst game since 2012 and he took it out on himself and the refs after. I have no problem doing that, kind of eases the pain of the loss for the guys because they realized Shabazz wasn't on and getting fouls. Ollie isn't a demanding coach and doesn't bring his players emotions/demeanors at all. There isn't any punishment for messing up, so they only get mad at themselves when they mess up. Shabazz and Boat were perfect examples of this last night in the second half.

Ollie isn't a demanding coach? So when Giffey went halfheartedly after a loose ball and Ollie reamed him out, what was he doing then? And I'm not sure how you didn't notice Boat getting pulled for his mistakes yesterday, he definitely got pulled when he was unaware of the D around him and had the ball poked out from him in the open floor. You consistently post out of your ass to the point where I don't even think you believe the stuff you post.

 

[sparky]

Bazz pressed probably because of the matchup with Kilpatrick. I think not having DD really hurt, but NG and Kromah played pretty well. What hurt were missed free throws and Boat had a few bad possessions with the ball. I really thought we had them when Ollie called the TO and set up a play. Unfortunately, Boat didn't execute the play and our spacing was awful. NG was not able to square up to the hoop and thus his shot bricked.

 

[CTBasketball]

Ollie isn't a demanding coach? So when Giffey went halfheartedly after a loose ball and Ollie reamed him out, what was he doing then? And I'm not sure how you didn't notice Boat getting pulled for his mistakes yesterday, he definitely got pulled when he was unaware of the D around him and had the ball poked out from him in the open floor. You consistently post out of your ass to the point where I don't even think you believe the stuff you post.

If you've noticed, Giffey has been the scapegoat of problems all season long. Boat made a dumb mistake and should have been benched, so we knew that was coming. I just don't see how Ollie is a demanding coach when he pretty much lets his players make mistakes and some don't feel consequences.

 

[aceboon]

If you've noticed, Giffey has been the scapegoat of problems all season long. Boat made a dumb mistake and should have been benched, so we knew that was coming. I just don't see how Ollie is a demanding coach when he pretty much lets his players make mistakes and some don't feel consequences.

If you noticed, Giffey stayed in the game after that play, because Ollie knows he can trusts him. Boat has been benched plenty of times, not just last night, he pretty much sat the majority of the stretch run against Indiana in favor of Kromah, probably would've happened again last night given the way he was playing if we had Daniels available. Not sure where you're coming from with Giffey has been the scapegoat all season long, when KO gives him a much more rope than JC ever did. But then again you're also the same dude who posted earlier in the year that Giffey wasn't passed to because he's white, so why should I even bother reasoning with a buffoon. We all know you don't like KO, you've made it plain as day plenty of times, just don't post BS about him not being demanding when guys get pulled and yelled at all the time. If KO wasn't demanding of the players we probably wouldn't have seen the improvement in team rebounding that we have.

 

[CTBasketball]

If you noticed, Giffey stayed in the game after that play, because Ollie knows he can trusts him. Boat has been benched plenty of times, not just last night, he pretty much sat the majority of the stretch run against Indiana in favor of Kromah, probably would've happened again last night given the way he was playing if we had Daniels available. Not sure where you're coming from with Giffey has been the scapegoat all season long, when KO gives him a much more rope than JC ever did. But then again you're also the same dude who posted earlier in the year that Giffey wasn't passed to because he's white, so why should I even bother reasoning with a buffoon. We all know you don't like KO, you've made it plain as day plenty of times, just don't post BS about him not being demanding when guys get pulled and yelled at all the time. If KO wasn't demanding of the players we probably wouldn't have seen the improvement in team rebounding that we have.

I like KO, but I don't put him on a pedestal like most of the people on here. He has the potential to be a good coach, but right now he's an average coach.

He has done a good job with rebounding thus far, but you can't give him all the credit. We've seen Brimah get better every game throughout the season. He's a players coach that lets his guards run the show. But you cannot say he isn't an in-your-face demanding coach. You'd be lying to yourself.

 

[August_West]

The question "how much of a difference would DD have made?" has less to do with how well LK and NG played last night and more to do with "which version of DD would have shown up?"

Agree with this.
Based on historical data I would say chances were better that last night would have been disappearing DD just based on cincinatti's size and physicality.
I think we were actually a net plus with kromah and giffey over DD last night. And I don't mean this to be harsh on DD. Match ups and kromahs really solid skill set made up for his absence.

 

[superjohn]

I like KO, but I don't put him on a pedestal like most of the people on here. He has the potential to be a good coach, but right now he's an average coach.

He has done a good job with rebounding thus far, but you can't give him all the credit. We've seen Brimah get better every game throughout the season. He's a players coach that lets his guards run the show. But you cannot say he isn't an in-your-face demanding coach. You'd be lying to yourself.

"But you cannot say he isn't an in-your-face demanding coach. You'd be lying to yourself." Wait what? You do or don't think Ollie is a demanding coach? Also. did you really say players don't pass to Giffey because he's white?

 

[CTBasketball]

"But you cannot say he isn't an in-your-face demanding coach. You'd be lying to yourself." Wait what? You do or don't think Ollie is a demanding coach? Also. did you really say players don't pass to Giffey because he's white?

I don't think Ollie is a demanding coach because you would see the players get better over the course of the season. If he was a demanding coach he would demand more out of his players, and therefore they would improve. No one has improved this year except for Nolan, Brimah, and Giff, but Giff improved over the summer. Boatright, Calhoun, Napier at times, and Olander have all regressed from last year.

And no.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

No players have improved this year except the players that have improved this year. Got it.

Napier has regressed this year. Got it.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

So when Giffey went halfheartedly after a loose ball and Ollie reamed him out, what was he doing then?

I yelled "goddamnit Giff!" and my secretary closed my office door. Just a lazy play. I don't know if it's a lack of depth or what, but the times when we've got 5 guys on the court flying to loose balls seem relatively rare.

 

[uconnfan68]

Blew it in the 2nd half. Bazz took some bad shots, but he seemed to be the only aggressive one in 2nd. Kromah & Giffey were aggressive in the first half, but in the 2nd half, no one else stepped up. Kromah was a layup machine in the first half.

Brimah was solid. Thought he had more rebounds & blocks than given credit for. His last foul was bogus, thankfully Cinci missed both foul shots. Wish he got more lobs near the rim, since he seems to be solid there. Oh well...

LOTS of bogus calls on our bigs. Nolan wasn't allowed to breathe. Cinci fouls were all well-deserved.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

LOTS of bogus calls on our bigs. Nolan wasn't allowed to breathe. Cinci fouls were all well-deserved.

I honestly have no idea what's a foul anymore and what isn't. Particularly in the backcourt. But I'd be curious to know the basis for that fourth foul on Brimah, the loose ball foul.

 

[CAHUSKY]

I honestly have no idea what's a foul anymore and what isn't. Particularly in the backcourt. But I'd be curious to know the basis for that fourth foul on Brimah, the loose ball foul.

The basis is the ref blew the whistle and was going to call a jump ball but realized the ball had squirted out and had to call something. He decided that would be a foul on Brimah. Ridiculous.

 

[8893]

The basis is the ref blew the whistle and was going to call a jump ball but realized the ball had squirted out and had to call something. He decided that would be a foul on Brimah. Ridiculous.

Yes, that was ridiculous. I was apoplectic, but then they missed both free throws. I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit that, based solely on reading posts on this board, I yelled "Ball don't lie!" when he missed the second one. My daughter was horrified.

 

[joober jones]

LOTS of bogus calls on our bigs. Nolan wasn't allowed to breathe. Cinci fouls were all well-deserved.

The 2nd foul on Phil Nolan might as well have been called against Sarah Michelle Gellar. The two were about equally involved in committing a foul on that play.

 

[David 76]

All I am saying is that I don't see the factual support for the conclusion that there is "no doubt" that we are the better team. I think we have a very good chance of beating them next time, but I still believe they are the better team based on what I've seen to date. I believe we are still improving, but to the extent that Bazz still hasn't figured out how to rise above adversity and lead his team to win even on his off nights, that is somewhat troubling in terms of our post-season prospects imo.

I'm still offering the bet

If NG did great filling in for DD, is 10 points and 4 rebounds great? I would prefer to take my chances with the erratic DD and that is not meant to slight NG but he is not a play maker. We also had to play OC about 14 minutes. That wouldn't have been necessary as NG could have had those minutes.
I also think home court advantage is a benefit. So yeah, I believe Uconn is the better team because we played w/o our second best(?) player out, our best player playing pretty bad on their court and their star had a great game and we still should have won.

 

[superjohn]

Yes, that was ridiculous. I was apoplectic, but then they missed both free throws. I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit that, based solely on reading posts on this board, I yelled "Ball don't lie!" when he missed the second one. My daughter was horrified.

Haha, I yell ball don't lie every time in that situation....thanks Rasheed

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

Haha, I yell ball don't lie every time in that situation....thanks Rasheed

Gary Maxwell, the ref, threatened to kick me out of the Barclays Center when I yelled it after Maryland missed the first free throw after Shabazz's bull____ technical. One of the other refs rolled his eyes and apologized to me.

 

[DogMania]

I thought the voted POY after season, do we not see Cinci again?
It was a tough loss but that is a real tough place to play and Cinci will say UCONN played them the toughest
We left too many points at the ft line, missed 4 breakaway layups and the palming call as well as the breakaway where Giffs whiffed at the ball and Boat gave up were critical plays

Good point about Bazz having another crack at going head to head against Kilpatrick. What does not bode well for Bazz is that Cincy is in great shape to win the AAC, making it an easier path to take the conference POY.

 

[UConnDad]

These road games are difficult. Without a starter and Boat getting pretty beat up twice hurt us too. Need to come out strong tomorrow. Cincy at home should be a great game.

 

[ctchamps]

Ollie isn't a demanding coach? So when Giffey went halfheartedly after a loose ball and Ollie reamed him out, what was he doing then? And I'm not sure how you didn't notice Boat getting pulled for his mistakes yesterday, he definitely got pulled when he was unaware of the D around him and had the ball poked out from him in the open floor. You consistently post out of your ass to the point where I don't even think you believe the stuff you post.

He's a very demanding coach without a doubt. He's just a little more patient and flexible than JC whose patience was very limited. Additionally KO became less patient and flexible as the season progressed. JC actually was more demanding earlier in seasona.

KO is a little more discerning than JC when it comes to mistakes. Not every mistake leads to a quick hook. Furthermore he has a slight variation to how he reprimands players. JC was all or none with most players although there was a time most of us commented that players in his doghouse did not any leeway while his stars could repeat their mistakes several times before he would take them out. The middle of the pack was given the same treatment. They were on a short leash.

When it comes to defense or intensity of playing KO is exactly like JC. There are no excuses for these shortcomings.

Both coaches are intense and demanding. Just slight variations on how they approach things.

 

[mauconnfan]

Biggest shot may have been by the Cincy guard down the stretch going to the hole out of control and banked in a 10 foot brick somehow, that hurt. That was a throw but his prayers were answered……..Huskies played good D on that set.

 

[UConn990411]

I like KO, but I don't put him on a pedestal like most of the people on here. He has the potential to be a good coach, but right now he's an average coach.

He has done a good job with rebounding thus far, but you can't give him all the credit. We've seen Brimah get better every game throughout the season. He's a players coach that lets his guards run the show. But you cannot say he isn't an in-your-face demanding coach. You'd be lying to yourself.

I've been critical of Ollie a lot, but an average coach? Nah.

He's coached exactly one definite NBA player, and he has a 37-15 career record so far (with almost half those games coming in the Big East). He's definitely above average.

 

[CTBasketball]

I've been critical of Ollie a lot, but an average coach? Nah.

He's coached exactly one definite NBA player, and he has a 37-15 career record so far (with almost half those games coming in the Big East). He's definitely above average.

I guess I was being a bit too critical. He has done a nice job thus far, but some things in game make me scratch my head. Probably will fix themselves with experience.