Butler the First Step for the Huskies
The Story: The No. 3-ranked men’s basketball team begins Big East play tomorrow against Butler in the first game of what could be a special conference run (7 p.m., FS1).
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: UConn was picked to finish fourth in the Big East before the season, but as the only ranked team in the conference with a case for being No. 1 in the country, the Huskies’ Big East performance will determine if they are contenders or pretenders for the national title.
• The Huskies have been off for a week for finals and will see if the time off helped or hurt them against a very solid team led by former Ohio State coach Thad Matta.
• The Huskies have earned their highest AP ranking since 2009. UConn is No. 1 in the NCAA’s NET ranking and the KenPom ranking and are favored in every remaining game. Will the Huskies finish 31-0? We hope, yes, but probably not.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR: UConn will be going into a hostile environment for only the second time this season, and we want to know how well the Huskies’ game holds up on the road.
• Adama Sanogo has lived up to his billing as preseason Big East Player of the Year by averaging a conference-leading 18.3 points per game while shooting 62 percent
• Can the Huskies continue to dominate inside with Sanogo and freshman Donovan Clingan? UConn has found tremendous success with a lineup that has four players on the perimeter and one inside, and having shooters like Alex Karaban and even do-everything Andre Jackson at the four has helped loosen the paint for the big guys.
BUTLER COMES IN HOT: Playing Butler in Indianapolis could be perhaps the Huskies’ biggest test of the season. UConn has had only one true road game, at Florida, and the Bulldogs (8-3) are coming off an 82-45 domination of California.
• The Bulldogs have won four straight and could move into the top 25 with a win over UConn. They aren’t a deep team but they do have five players averaging double figures in scoring, led by guards Jayden Taylor (14.9 points per game) and Chuck Harris (14.5).
BOTTOM LINE: Beating Butler, ranked No. 70 by KenPom, would be a good win for the Huskies, especially given the road atmosphere. We are sure Hinkle Fieldhouse will be electric.
Will Reinforcements Arrive By Sunday?
The Story: The No. 9-ranked women’s basketball team will have had six days to figure out how to carry on without injured guard Azzi Fudd when it faces Florida State on Sunday in the Basketball Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase at Mohegan Sun. (1 p.m., ESPN)
IS THAT ENOUGH TIME? The Huskies looked good for the first half of their 85-78 loss at then-No. 20 Maryland last weekend and would have probably held up better if they were stronger behind the perimeter and controlled the ball better. But it’s not like they’ve spent six days practicing because they’ve been locked down all week for final exams, so we’ll see what happens against a team that could provide a challenge.
• UConn shot 3-for-10 from 3-point range and allowed Maryland to go 12-for-30. It also committed 22 turnovers that led to 21 points, though surprisingly, two of the Huskies’ wings — Caroline Ducharme and Aubrey Griffin — combined for half of them.
IS ANYONE BACK? We don’t want to get our hopes up. Geno Auriemma speaks to reporters the day before the game and that would be tomorrow, so we don’t know for sure.
• It’s plausible Nika Muhl could have recovered after she was concussed against Princeton on Dec. 8, and Dorka Juhasz could finally return from a broken left thumb after she’s been practicing for nearly two weeks.
• Either player’s return would give the Huskies a tremendous lift. Muhl’s an excellent defender and would provide more protection on the perimeter, and Juhasz can help Aaliyah Edwards keep a strong rebounding team off the glass and restore the formidable frontcourt UConn has had for just two games.
ABOUT FLORIDA STATE: The Seminoles (11-1) destroyed Presbyterian 98-37 last night, with freshman guard Ta’Niya Latson, the No. 14-ranked high school player last season, leading six players in double figures in scoring with 25 points.
• Latson is averaging 25.5 points per game for Florida State, which is the fourth highest-scoring team in Division I at 88.4 points per game. It likes to run, with its 79.7 possessions per game good for ninth, and it will crash the boards, with its 47.6 rebounds per game ranking fifth.
• Sophomore forward Makayla Timpson enters Sunday’s game averaging 13.1 points and 9.6 rebounds per game, and four of the Seminoles’ five players who have started at least nine games are averaging at least 4.9 rebounds per game.
Mora Ready for Myrtle Beach
The Story: The football team traveled to South Carolina yesterday afternoon as it begins preparation for the Myrtle Beach Bowl, in which it will face Marshall on Monday afternoon.
A BIT OF SWAGGER: The Huskies’ completely unexpected bowl appearance has given Jim Mora a bit of pride, as he spoke about how his first season has given him vindication after the way he left UCLA.
• Mora told The Athletic he took exception to then-Liberty coach Hugh Freeze‘s assertion that the students storming the field after the Huskies won last month meant the Flames had reached the big time. “I read the quote and my message to Hugh Freeze would be, ‘Settle down, big dog. It wasn’t about you,’” Mora said. “It was about winning six games, doing things we’d never done here. It didn’t matter who we beat that day.”
• He also hung former coach Randy Edsall out to dry for the 2020 season. “This was the first team to cancel football for [COVID-19], right off the bat, and the head coach left for eight months and went to Florida. These kids told me they didn’t see him for eight months. They were up here stuck in dorms and working out in pods, eating by themselves and they didn’t have any games. They won one game last year and the coach is gone. I wanted them to feel love from the fans.”
WHAT ELSE DID MORA SAY? “I appreciate that people are excited about what we’re doing. I think we want to celebrate the progress we’ve made, but I don’t want, nor do I want anyone affiliated with this program, to be satisfied with 6-6. That’s not our goal. So, the tone you talk to people with is really important because you want to recognize that they’re excited and we’re excited and our players, who have never been to a bowl game, are excited.
“But at the same time, it’s important that you send a message that this is only the start. This can’t be the norm. Six has to be the minimum. We have to build from here. I think our players, especially the ones who are coming back, have that same mindset.”
DON’T EXPECT A CROWD: The Huskies have sold roughly 2,500 tickets, and some have been purchased and donated to UConn students and local middle school and high school teams. The game will be held at Coastal Carolina’s stadium, which seats 20,000, and only 6,500 attended the Myrtle Beach Bowl last year.
ASSISTANT HIRED: UConn announced the hiring of Antonio Wilcox as its next running backs coach. Wilcox, who played at Furman from 2014-17, spent the last two seasons in that position at his alma mater. He’ll replace E.J. Barthel, who joined Matt Rhule‘s staff at Nebraska.
Top photo: Tristen Newton looks to pass in the Huskies’ season opener against Stonehill. (Ian Bethune for The UConn Daily)
