That should keep the board quiet

[Pudge]

These are the years that can be rewarding to watch.

That's a counterintuitive take ...

We had 11 kids & only 4 of them really played for UConn before Nov 2016. This was going to be a year of development. Then 3 are gone. The number 9-11 included Durham & Vital; and now they play - Vital 20 minutes plus. You were going to need Facey & Enoch to play quite a bit; and as we see with Facey, they get better with minutes. The Team is playing smarter. We talk about Basketball IQ? More smart plays every game. That's coaching.

We didn't bring in a 5th yr Grad. This is Ollie comfortable with his guys and his capacity to teach. And I think ... contra to some BY wisdom, we can see solid talent through all 8 guys playing. And look forward to the next years.

 

[Matrim55]

These are the years that can be rewarding to watch.

That's a counterintuitive take ...

We had 11 kids & only 4 of them really played for UConn before Nov 2016. This was going to be a year of development. Then 3 are gone. The number 9-11 included Durham & Vital; and now they play - Vital 20 minutes plus. You were going to need Facey & Enoch to play quite a bit; and as we see with Facey, they get better with minutes. The Team is playing smarter. We talk about Basketball IQ? More smart plays every game. That's coaching.

We didn't bring in a 5th yr Grad. This is Ollie comfortable with his guys and his capacity to teach. And I think ... contra to some BY wisdom, we can see solid talent through all 8 guys playing. And look forward to the next years.

As usual, your posts are a breath of fresh air.

 

[Danzz]

Welsh made an interesting point about Facey improving from game to game. I think he has. He looks more confident. (Wagner and Northeastern wouldn't have stood a chance today.)

A lot of what he did today can be done against better teams. Obviously he's not going to score 20 a night (if ever again) but 8 a game would help immensely. He has nice touch.

Enoch looked good, too. He just needs to realize he's 6'11", 250 and that nobody should be able to stop him from doing basic things offensively.

Agree on Facey and I never liked him as a player. In fact the Facey/Samuels recruiting class may have been one of our worse. But something has happened to Facey this year. He is more aggressive on the boards, plays better D and has found some offense. No, he won't be putting up 20 in conference play but he has shown that he can contribute on both ends of the floor and that is a huge improvement. Happy to see his new confidence and production. He seems like a great kid.

 

[SouthBayHusky]

It's also nice to see Ollie and staff more engaged and willing to switch it up both offensively and defensively. Rather than doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different results, it seems staff is really working individually with what we got and embracing the zone D albeit somewhat out of necessity, but the willingness to embrace, practice and use during games shows some positive coaching growth. And switching it back to man on man every now and again seems effective. It's also clear they're doing more on the offensive end by limiting the pass around til the end of the shot clock and launching 3's, and instead trying to feed the Biggs, working more on movement, cuts, dishes, etc. I definitely see positive change on that front as well. Keeping my fingers crossed.

 

[polycom]

People still engage JSM?

 

[HuskyHawk]

Agree on Facey and I never liked him as a player. In fact the Facey/Samuels recruiting class may have been one of our worse. But something has happened to Facey this year. He is more aggressive on the boards, plays better D and has found some offense. No, he won't be putting up 20 in conference play but he has shown that he can contribute on both ends of the floor and that is a huge improvement. Happy to see his new confidence and production. He seems like a great kid.

I really wonder what his issue has been for the last three years. He was a pretty highly regarded 4* I believe. I know he put on about 25 pounds in the offseason, an it shows. But why did he wait for his senior year? He was always a good rebounder, and is a quick leaper. His offense wasn't bad...certainly compared to Brimah. Yet he never got much time and rarely made the most of it. Probably defensive lapses keeping him off the floor.

I predicted he'd be our most improved player this year, because I thought he had a lot of untapped ability. I'm glad to see it happening, but I still wonder what took so long.

 

[pepband99]

These are the years that can be rewarding to watch.

That's a counterintuitive take ...

We had 11 kids & only 4 of them really played for UConn before Nov 2016. This was going to be a year of development. Then 3 are gone. The number 9-11 included Durham & Vital; and now they play - Vital 20 minutes plus. You were going to need Facey & Enoch to play quite a bit; and as we see with Facey, they get better with minutes. The Team is playing smarter. We talk about Basketball IQ? More smart plays every game. That's coaching.

We didn't bring in a 5th yr Grad. This is Ollie comfortable with his guys and his capacity to teach. And I think ... contra to some BY wisdom, we can see solid talent through all 8 guys playing. And look forward to the next years.

Great post. Exactly how i feel about 96-97 (although if you asked me after the Pitt game in the BET I would have answered differently).

This group will continue to get better, and those on board will enjoy it. We can only hope this year ends up fostering years like 97-98 and 98-99 for these kids.

 

[Palatine]

This is what the offense would have looked like if we still had Hamilton. He would have scored 20 had 5 assists and 7 boards a game in the middle of the offense. And we would be scoring closer to 80 than to 50 a game.

If Facey can knock down the 12 foot jumper 4 or 5 times a game, it changes the offense completely. We also need someone else who can play at the foul line. Jackson has the skill set to do it. But he needs to mature and get smarter to pull it off. Durham might be able to do it for short spells.

The key is the key to our offense

 

[Pudge]

I really wonder what his issue has been for the last three years. He was a pretty highly regarded 4* I believe. I know he put on about 25 pounds in the offseason, an it shows. But why did he wait for his senior year? He was always a good rebounder, and is a quick leaper. His offense wasn't bad...certainly compared to Brimah. Yet he never got much time and rarely made the most of it. Probably defensive lapses keeping him off the floor.

I predicted he'd be our most improved player this year, because I thought he had a lot of untapped ability. I'm glad to see it happening, but I still wonder what took so long.

This isn't that hard to answer. And at Kansas - just last year - you saw a Big step up. It just takes some Big kids longer. My eye says that Kentan Facey was never a Tyler Olander or a Alex Oriakhi; he needed to find his game in a structured college game. Learn to play with teammates (I am willing to bet he never threw a lob to another big until he landed in 06268). I think you will see him get incrementally better over this season ... and play beyond college. Somewhere.

 

[Pudge]

This is what the offense would have looked like if we still had Hamilton. He would have scored 20 had 5 assists and 7 boards a game in the middle of the offense. And we would be scoring closer to 80 than to 50 a game.

If Facey can knock down the 12 foot jumper 4 or 5 times a game, it changes the offense completely. We also need someone else who can play at the foul line. Jackson has the skill set to do it. But he needs to mature and get smarter to pull it off. Durham might be able to do it for short spells.

The key is the key to our offense

Facey has a better form on his jump shot from the free throw line than Hamilton. Consistent correct elbow and good release.

 

[Palatine]

Facey has a better form on his jump shot from the free throw line than Hamilton. Consistent correct elbow and good release.

That goes back to the old saying, it's not how, it's how many, remember Delray Brooks? IMO, I would much prefer Hamilton's jump shot to Facey's.

That said, Facey looks pretty competent from 12 feet, he just needs to be consistent with it.

 

[pnow15]

While the first 2 losses are inexcusable and with Larrier and Gilbert still there, I think the shock of the 3 season ending injuries has worn off a bit and denial has led to acceptance. Beat Orange flu at MSG and had the lead in the second half at OSU. We fouled too much but the refs were homers too IMHO. Today looked as a real UConn team would by beating up a bad team. I think/hope the players realize this is what they have and for Vital in particular what he has is an opportunity.

But please AB, stay on the floor against a team like North Florida.

Sometimes you can have too many choice. Could explain early season losses.

 

[RichZ]

I really wonder what his issue has been for the last three years. He was a pretty highly regarded 4* I believe. I know he put on about 25 pounds in the offseason, an it shows. But why did he wait for his senior year? He was always a good rebounder, and is a quick leaper. His offense wasn't bad...certainly compared to Brimah. Yet he never got much time and rarely made the most of it. Probably defensive lapses keeping him off the floor.

I predicted he'd be our most improved player this year, because I thought he had a lot of untapped ability. I'm glad to see it happening, but I still wonder what took so long.

There have been flashes of brilliance every year. But most of the time, his game was very tentative. He didn't want to make mistakes that would send him to the bench. That's no longer a concern. When he moves with authority, he's a pleasure to watch.