A House of Horrors Awaits at Tulsa
The Story: The men’s basketball team (10-7, 1-3 AAC) will take on Tulsa (11-6, 1-3) tonight in Oklahoma (7 p.m., ESPNews). The Golden Hurricane is a slight favorite (-1) and the Huskies have never won in four games at Tulsa, which holds a 5-4 lead in the all-time series but was blown out by SMU on Saturday.
CHANGING OF THE ‘POINT’ GUARD? UConn has asked for Alterique Gilbert to be the distributor and not a primary scorer, but with Jalen Adams in foul trouble against Cincinnati, we liked what we saw offensively from Gilbert. The former McDonald’s All-American has shaken off the court rust from two years of inactivity and has had 18, 19 and 18 points in his last three games.
We love when Gilbert is driving the lane for the pass, but the Huskies should utilize a surprising part of his game — his 3-point shooting. Gilbert is shooting 42 percent from the perimeter, making him the most consistent outside shooter on the team, but has struggled to finish when going to the basket as he has made less than 40 percent of his 2-point attempts. He’s also a near 80 percent free throw shooter, and we like when the ball is in his hands. If teams are going to key on Adams, Gilbert should make them pay.
Tulsa likes to play zone and we would like to see Adams on the ball and maybe Gilbert off it, spotting up for 3-point shots off those drives. He has to become a consistent scoring threat to help Adams out.
TIME FOR THE NEXT STEP: UConn was competitive against Arizona, UCF and Cincinnati, and for a half against Villanova, showing it has mettle — but being competitive gets you nowhere. It’s time for some victories. Dan Hurley knows that good teams win on the road. Being competitive is the minimum expectation.
“I feel a lot better about week two of conference play than week one,” Hurley said. “I feel like we showed improvement and look to be a team progressing in the right direction. We defended well in both games, took care of the ball better. Obviously, [we] had chances to win the Saturday game against a very good Cincinnati team on the road, so a lot to learn from there. … Just trying to keep this thing improving and get ready for a very good Tulsa team.”
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW: Tulsa, expected to compete for an NCAA tournament bid, is 9-1 at Reynolds Center this season with wins over Oklahoma State, Kansas State, and USF. Its lone home loss was in overtime aganist Cincinnati. (The Huskies, meanwhile, have not won either of their true road games.)
DaQuan Jefferies has scored a team-high 13.4 points per game and Martins Igbanu is second, averaging 12.2 points. Tulsa plays an aggressive matchup zone defense and is a physical and veteran team.
It May Not Be ‘Big Easy’ at Tulane
The Story: The No. 2-ranked women’s basketball team (14-1, 3-0) will face Tulane tomorrow in the 11th meeting all-time between the teams. UConn has won each of the previous 10. (8 p.m., CBS Sports)
HO HUM: You may be right to think so, considering the Huskies have rolled to three relatively easy conference wins already this season, but they’ll face a different kind of challenge in the Green Wave. We’ve addressed it in this space before, but second place in the AAC could be Tulane’s as soon as March, with a youth movement making it perhaps the most intriguing team in the conference.
Six of the 10 players in the Green Wave’s rotation are underclassmen, and they account for two-thirds of their team’s scoring. Chief among them is sophomore forward Krystal Freeman, who is averaging 13.2 points and 6.9 rebounds per game and shooting 50.8 percent. Sophomore guard Kaila Anderson is third in the conference with 5.1 assists per game, a nearly identical average to Crystal Dangerfield.
A SLOW GRIND: Only one team in the conference is just as good at shooting, and just as good at defending shooting, than the Huskies, and yep, you guessed it — it’s Tulane (because why else would we bring it up?).
Rather than explaining it, just check out this handy chart:
| UConn | Tulane | |
| FG Percentage | 49.3 | 43.1 |
| 3-Point Percentage | 37.3 | 37.5 |
| FG Defense Percentage | 34.0 | 34.0 |
| 3-Point Defense Percentage | 26.9 | 23.6 |
STRANGER THINGS: Only once have the Huskies won a conference game by fewer than 10 points. That was back in 2017, when they beat Tulane 63-60 on the road. We’re not saying this one is going to be a grind — it probably won’t — but it’s not impossible that the Green Wave gives UConn a run for its money.
“I’ve always said, right around this time, it sucks because [players have] been sitting around for a long time in hotels, their apartments, [not] going to school, nothing,” Geno Auriemma said. “They don’t do anything. I think it catches up to you after a while.”
Morning Read
OLLIE RESPONDS: Kevin Ollie opposed UConn’s motion to dismiss his racial discrimination lawsuit with a claim filed in court yesterday. (Hartford Courant)
GET YOUR NIT BETS IN: When it comes to winning money, there is no shame in winning it on the NIT. Caesar’s Palace has released odds to win the tournament and the Huskies are 100-1. That’s a future bet that could pay off handsomely if the Huskies turn things around towards the end of the season. We’re serious. UConn would be motivated to play in the NIT with a first-year coach. Why not? Now, if only the state sets up that online book… (Matt Lindeman on Twitter)
GAFFNEY GETTING BETTER: Guard Jalen Gaffney has shown in several recent AAU tournaments that he could be an impact freshman for the men’s basketball team next season. (247Sports.com)
‘IS THIS ANY GOOD OR NOT?’ Noted wine consumer, if not connoisseur, Geno Auriemma puts his pretension on the line in an entertaining short quiz with Rebecca Lobo. (ESPN)
NEW DC NEAR? The Huskies still need a defensive coordinator after firing Billy Crocker, and reports indicate that former UCLA defensive coordinator Lou Spanos could be the guy. (Matt Zenitz on Twitter)
HOMEWARD BOUND: The men’s hockey team will play its first game at XL Center since early December when it hosts RPI tonight. (UConnHuskies.com)
MBACKE THIAM TURNS PRO: After not being chosen in the MLS draft, forward Abdou Mbacke Thiam signed a professional contract with Louisville City, the back-to-back champions of U.S. soccer’s top minor league. (UConnHuskies.com)
WIMBUSH TO UCF: Former Notre Dame quarterback Brandon Wimbush, who started 12 games in 2017 and three this past season, will transfer to UCF and be eligible to play next season as a graduate transfer. It’s a boost for the Knights with McKenzie Milton‘s status up in the air, but it’s bad news for the rest of the conference. (ESPN)
