The Hurley Effect: Everything Is Different
The Story: UConn hosts Arizona at the XL Center on Sunday. It is a bit of a transition year for the Wildcats under Sean Miller, but it still remains a big game for the Huskies as they look to break back onto the national scene. They will do it with a style that is averaging 86.9 points per game and is reminiscent of UConn’s fastbreak teams of the early Jim Calhoun era.
COACHING MATTERS: In college basketball, the coach chooses the style and tone, and we can look no further than what Dan Hurley has accomplished in seven games at UConn to see the difference. We are going to be honest here — we love Kevin Ollie. This isn’t past tense. We still love Ollie and think he can be a good coach in the NBA.
Being honest, the style of play in the Ollie era left a lot to be desired (OK, we’re being nice here). The pace of play is the big change; UConn has capitalized upon its athleticism and superior guard play with Jalen Adams, Alterique Gilbert and Christian Vital thriving in the open court. Hurley wants a fast pace, a fast offense, and a ferocious defense. The Huskies have scored 90 points in three straight games with nearly the exact same roster as a year ago. This isn’t struggling to score 50 points against Yale or Northeastern.
HOW BIG A DIFFERENCE? Let’s check the numbers:
UConn Scoring 80+ Points:
This Season – 6 of 7 games
Last Season – 4 of 32 games— Katie Sharp (@ktsharp) November 28, 2018
In 65 games over the previous two seasons, the Huskies combined to score more than 90 points three times. This year, UConn has scored 90 points in four games. Again, there is no major influx of talent into the program on the floor, only on the sidelines.
Across the board, the numbers for the Huskies are shockingly better offensively:
- Scoring is up nearly 20 PPG from 68.2 to 86.7;
- Field goal percentage is up from 41.6 percent to 49.6 percent;
- Assists per game are up from 10.4 to 15.9.
The Huskies are scoring more, at a better efficiency and with a better shooting percentage. That is incredible offensive improvement from the same lot of players.
PACE OF PLAY WAS THE CURE: The Huskies aren’t scorching the nets this year from the outside. The 3-point shooting still is streaky and they are hovering at 34.6 percent from 3. It is the points in the paint and the sheer amount of shots they are taking and scoring. UConn is getting more than eight steals a game and is scoring 18.6 points off turnovers this year. UConn averaged 57.2 shots a game last year and 18.5 free throw attempts. This year, UConn is averaging 65.4 shots a game and 20.7 free throw attempts a game. More shots, better shots, easier shots. Speed kills on a basketball floor and the Huskies have athleticism and speed on the floor. If we can dream, imagine if Terry Larrier was manning the 4 spot this year?
BOTTOM LINE: Sometimes it’s the players. Sometimes it’s the style. We are leaning more towards style than talent for the Huskies’ improvement early in the season. We’ll see if it holds up this weekend.
Women’s Hoops An Underdog?
The Story: Can the UConn women avenge last year’s double-overtime loss to Notre Dame in the Final Four? This is the game of the year in women’s basketball. UConn has lost 12 games since the start of the 2011-2012 season with seven of those losses against Notre Dame, including two victories in overtime at the Final Four.
NO. 1 VS. NO. 2: UConn has not lost a regular-season game since December 2014, when it fell at Stanford. So, this is a potentially historic game on all accounts. Notre Dame just put up 105 points on No. 14 Iowa last night to match UConn’s 99 points in a destruction of No. 16 DePaul on Wednesday.
HOW BIG A RIVAL IS ND? Well, the Irish were always UConn’s foils in the old Big East and there was a book written off the Sue Bird game. So we say pretty big. In fact, we strongly feel that UConn-Notre Dame is the best rivalry in the women’s game. UConn-Tennessee has atrophied and there just isn’t any juice yet for UConn-South Carolina while UConn-Stanford never really delivers.
Still don’t believe us? Well, the rivalry does have a Wikipedia page.
WHO TO WATCH OUT FOR: The Irish are loaded. Arike Ogunbowale is a favorite for national player of the year and hit the winning shot to beat UConn last year. She is averaging 25.3 PPG on the young season. Jackie Young and Jessica Shepard are averaging 17.9 PPG and 17.0 PPG. Brianna Turner, who sat out last season with an ACL injury, is back and averaging 14.0 PPG.
WHO NEEDS THE BENCH? The five starters for Notre Dame all average in double figures. Its top reserve, Danielle Patterson, averages 4.3 PPG. For UConn, all five starters average in double figures and top reserve Olivia Nelson-Ododa averages 4.5 PPG.
DON’T WORRY, IT’S DECEMBER: We are going to go out on a limb here and predict the teams will get a rematch in March.
Morning Read
WILSON REVIEW: Sidney Wilson played five minutes, but in those five minutes we get a review of his game from The UConn Blog. The read takes longer than his playing time in Game 1, but it’s a good synopsis. (The UConn Blog)
HURLEY ON THE COACHES SHOW: Dan Hurley talks on his weekly coaches show. It’s sponsored by Buffalo Wild Wings, though they can’t be happy with the scoring this year at home. Three straight games the Huskies have scored over 82 points and earned ticket-holders free wings. We just want to know why J. Timothy’s Taverne doesn’t sponsor that deal. (UConn on Facebook)
#ICEBUS HEADS TO AMHERST: UConn takes on No. 3 UMass-Amherst on Friday night. The game is on NESN and probably worth the view. (UConnHuskies.com)
INJURY ISSUES FOR WOMEN: Batouly Camara (MCL sprain) and Lexi Gordon (hamstring) didn’t play on Wednesday against DePaul. Geno Auriemma didn’t give a timetable for their return, but with such a thin bench, it just further exacerbates the depth issues. (Hartford Courant)
THE END OF GENO’S DOMINANCE? That’s too far a bridge to take. But UConn was shut out of all top women’s recruits this year and that will have some consequences down the line. (Hearst Connecticut Media)
TALKIN’ HUSKIES PODCAST: Courant writer Dom Amore visits with Jake Storiale and Katie Sharp to talk Huskies as they preview Arizona. Check out the podcast on Android and iPhone.
