UConn's most embarassing performance of the season came at the KFC Yum! Center a little over a month ago, in a loss to Louisville.
Thursday night's 77-64, "second-round" NCAA tourney loss to Iowa State may not have equaled that 80-59 thumping on Feb. 6 in terms of a blowout, but it may have even been more embarassing.
There was Roscoe Smith's latest bizarre, unnecessary long heave with 3.7 seconds left in the half. There was Jeremy Lamb's completely unnecessary windmill dunk attempt in the final seconds of the game (aptly, he missed).
But here's the number that sticks out to me, more than ISU's hot early shooting (not a shock), Royce White's early ability to whir by any UConn player who guarded him ("We got caught as being nothing more than a street sign as they went by us a thousand miles an hour in that first 10 minutes," said Jim Calhoun), or anything else: Iowa State outrebounded UConn, 41-24.
“I feel like we wanted it more,” said ISU guard Chris Allen, who led the team with 20 points. “When I say wanted it more, I mean rebounds. We out-rebounded them by almost 20. That’s a great stat line.”
It sure is.
It's not worth dissecting this game too much more than that. Iowa State wanted it more. It was obvious. It sounds like a cliche, but it was true.
So now, we look to the future. Andre Drummond and Jeremy Lamb could be lottery picks in June. Other players may want to transfer if UConn remains barred from next year's NCAA tournament. And, of course, there's the annual question of whether Calhoun will return.
Here's what everyone had to say after the game (Warning: it's not much).
Drummond: “I’m not worried about that right now. That’s in the future. I’m not really thinking about that right now.”
Lamb: "“I’m not even thinking about that. I was thinking about the game today. I didn’t step up and do the things we needed to do to win.”
Calhoun: “I’m going to get on the plane (today), go home, and do what I usually do, and meet up with the team on Monday. So as far as my own personal thing, I don’t think it has any relevance here, to be honest with you.”
Said Napier, simply: “Some people could leave, some people could stay. I’m not sure.”
I asked him if he thought Drummond should return for another season.
“That’s not my decision," Napier replied. "That’s him, his family, what he believes. That’s all up to him. If he decides to go, I’m behind him 110-percent. Decides to stay, behind him 110-percent.”
Drummond did have this to say, when asked if UConn has enough talent to do some damage next season (provided its eligible for the postseason):
“This team has so much talent, which has blessed it and cursed it at the same time. We have so much talent, sometimes we don’t know what to do it. All we’ve got to do is channel it the right way throughout the off-season, get a feel for each other even more, and I have no doubt in my mind we’ll be back here again.”
Personally, I think there's a sliver of a chance Drummond returns. Doubtful, but I'd say more of a chance Drummond is back than Lamb.
*** It’s just the second time in 18 appearances under Calhoun that UConn has lost its NCAA tourney opener. The only other time was in 2008, when A.J. Price sprained his ACL shortly before halftime and the third-seeded Huskies got popped by San Diego.
*** Calhoun was asked if perhaps his own squad looked ahead to a potential rematch of last year’s Final Four with the top-seeded Wildcats.
“If they did, they made a hell of a mistake,” Calhoun said. “I don’t think they did.”
*** Asked to summarize the season, Lamb simply said: “Ups and downs. That’s all I can say about it. Ups and downs.”
Indeed.
Showing posts with label Shabazz Napier. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shabazz Napier. Show all posts
By now, you probably know: UConn has earned the No. 9 seed in the South Region, and will play No. 8 seed Iowa State in an NCAA tourney "second-round" game on Thursday at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville.
Win -- hardly a given -- and the Huskies will play top-seeded Kentucky. In Kentucky, obviously. Calhoun vs. Calipari, rematch of last year's Final Four. It'll be fun ... if it happens.
But don't book that game just yet. And no, I don't believe Kentucky will lose its game with either Mississippi Valley State or Western Kentucky. The Huskies will have their hands full with the Cyclones, who toss up over 24 3-pointers a game and make 38 percent of them. Iowa State hit 16 treys in a game earlier this season and have hit over 10 in a game 14 times in 31 games.
And, of course, guarding the three-ball has been a bugaboo of UConn's all season.
That said, there's no reason why the Huskies can't win this game. Here's some of what Jim Calhoun & Co. said Sunday at Gampel after learning their NCAA tourney fate:
Calhoun:
"We haven’t played a team that has shot 36 3’s in a game and averages 24 3’s a game. They shoot it at 38 percent, that’s as good as anybody I’ve heard of in quite some time ... We’re going to have to chase them off the 3-point marker ... Obviously, they shoot the heck out of the basketball.”
He noted that UConn will experiment with some smaller lineups, and the four position will be "a tad more flexible for this game."
Said Andre Drummond: "I like running around, chasing people."
Calhoun, cont'd: “Would we like to get to Saturday and see Kentucky? Absolutely. But right now, anybody in our camp isn’t thinking about anything but beating a very, very good Iowa State team.”
(Calhoun said he knows ISU coach Fred Hoiberg pretty well, and pointed out that Kevin Ollie was a teammate of Hoiberg's in the NBA).
“My only plans right now are to say hello to Fred and try to get them off the 3-point line," Calhoun said.
Calhoun admitted that UConn needed its come-from-behind, Big East tourney win over West Virginia on Wednesday.
“Deep in my heart, I knew a game we had to win to solidify things. I didn’t want to come in here with a bad stomach.”
Calhoun -- believe it or not -- feels some sympathy for UK coach John Calipari, who probably figured he'd get a better 8-9 opponent as the tourney's top overall seed.
“They protect 1’s always have, always will … then they try to match them up, based upon how good you are. If they’re the best 1, are we the weakest 8-9? Not from what I saw. They may think they’re the team that can handle it the best ... I don't mind being an underdog."
How's Calhoun feeling?
UConn suffered its most embarassing loss of the season at Louisville a little over a month ago.
Shabazz Napier:
Ryan Boatright:
(asked if getting away from the Big East will be like a breath of fresh air)
Drummond, when asked the same question: “The Big East is a very tough conference, one of the toughest in the country. To actually be out of the conference and play some non-conference teams, it’s going to be great.”
But don't book that game just yet. And no, I don't believe Kentucky will lose its game with either Mississippi Valley State or Western Kentucky. The Huskies will have their hands full with the Cyclones, who toss up over 24 3-pointers a game and make 38 percent of them. Iowa State hit 16 treys in a game earlier this season and have hit over 10 in a game 14 times in 31 games.
And, of course, guarding the three-ball has been a bugaboo of UConn's all season.
That said, there's no reason why the Huskies can't win this game. Here's some of what Jim Calhoun & Co. said Sunday at Gampel after learning their NCAA tourney fate:
Calhoun:
"We haven’t played a team that has shot 36 3’s in a game and averages 24 3’s a game. They shoot it at 38 percent, that’s as good as anybody I’ve heard of in quite some time ... We’re going to have to chase them off the 3-point marker ... Obviously, they shoot the heck out of the basketball.”
He noted that UConn will experiment with some smaller lineups, and the four position will be "a tad more flexible for this game."
Said Andre Drummond: "I like running around, chasing people."
Calhoun, cont'd: “Would we like to get to Saturday and see Kentucky? Absolutely. But right now, anybody in our camp isn’t thinking about anything but beating a very, very good Iowa State team.”
(Calhoun said he knows ISU coach Fred Hoiberg pretty well, and pointed out that Kevin Ollie was a teammate of Hoiberg's in the NBA).
“My only plans right now are to say hello to Fred and try to get them off the 3-point line," Calhoun said.
Calhoun admitted that UConn needed its come-from-behind, Big East tourney win over West Virginia on Wednesday.
“Deep in my heart, I knew a game we had to win to solidify things. I didn’t want to come in here with a bad stomach.”
Calhoun -- believe it or not -- feels some sympathy for UK coach John Calipari, who probably figured he'd get a better 8-9 opponent as the tourney's top overall seed.
“They protect 1’s always have, always will … then they try to match them up, based upon how good you are. If they’re the best 1, are we the weakest 8-9? Not from what I saw. They may think they’re the team that can handle it the best ... I don't mind being an underdog."
How's Calhoun feeling?
“Tired, but I’m going to be tired for the next month, they tell me. But I wasn’t tired when I saw our name on the board. That gets the adrenaline going.”
UConn suffered its most embarassing loss of the season at Louisville a little over a month ago.
“I wasn’t there … can’t speak to that," Calhoun said with a smile. "It was awful (watching at home). I would have rather been there, really.”
On getting out of the Big East: “Over the years it’s been good for us. Particularly this team, we are not a physical team. The only guy right now who’s been a physical player, Alex Oriakhi, in the past 10 games. We’re not a physical team, and we’re in a very physical league. Personally, I thought that probably should help us.”
Shabazz Napier:
“I feel as though we’ve got a great deal of momentum. That’s a great deal for us. It was great for us to get on that three-game winning streak. To know that we can play with the No. 2 team in the country, that gives us confidence.”
Ryan Boatright:
(asked if getting away from the Big East will be like a breath of fresh air)
“Definitely. I don’t feel like the teams were’ going to be going against are going to be as physical as the Big East is. The Big East is a crazy conference, so to actually see another team that you don’t see that much is kind of like (a breath of) fresh air.”
Drummond, when asked the same question: “The Big East is a very tough conference, one of the toughest in the country. To actually be out of the conference and play some non-conference teams, it’s going to be great.”
It had to be asked. Still, you could see Jim Calhoun readying to pounce as soon as the reporter started asking: “Do you feel like you’ve done enough to make the NCAA tournament?”
“Well, let’s see …” Calhoun began, and what followed was his now daily dissertation on the Huskies’ No. 3 strength of schedule, their 22 games against top-100 RPI teams (and don’t forget tourney-bound UNC-Asheville!), etc., etc.
Bottom line: UConn is in the NCAA tournament. The Huskies may have cinched it with Tuesday’s win over lowly DePaul. If not, Wednesday’s victory over West Virginia likely sealed the deal.
“I’m not going to make a pitch for it,” Calhoun said. “I trust the basketball committee.”
Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim not only has the Huskies in – he’s got them going to the Sweet Sixteen, if not further.
“I would be shocked if (the Huskies) don’t win two games in the NCAA tournament at the minimum,” Boeheim said. “At the minimum.”
Entering Thursday, UConn was ranked No. 33 in the RPI and No. 3 in strength of schedule. Both rankings may have raised despite the loss to the Orange, who boast the No. 1 RPI.
Bottom line: the Huskies are likely looking at a No. 9 or 10 seed for the Big Dance.
“I feel confident the way we’ve played the last couple of days in this tournament have pretty much solidified a spot in the tournament,” said Tyler Olander. “If it doesn’t, we’ll go from there, that’s kind of out of our hands.”
Added Calhoun: “I don’t know what else we have to prove that we’re probably one of the top 30 teams in the country. We’re certainly not one of the top 10, 20, but we’re one of the top 30 teams in the country. I don’t make those decisions, but I know who we are. I’ve seen who we’ve beaten.”
Still, Shabazz Napier will be nervous watching the Selection Show on CBS on Sunday.
“I was nervous last year, and I knew we were making it in (after winning the conference tourney),” he said. “I’ll probably be nervous again, that’s just how I am.”
*** Andre Drummond's massive, one-handed putback jam of a Napier missed trey was truly awe-inspiring. It also gave UConn an eight-point lead with 14:02 left, causing Boeheim to burn a timeout.
The Orange clamped down on defense, went ahead for good about 6 ½ minutes later and held on for the 58-55 win over the Huskies – their third win over UConn in the past 26 days.
“Nothing bothers us,” Boeheim said afterwards. “If things were bothering us, we wouldn’t be 31-1.”
Syracuse went ahead for good (48-47) on a Dion Waiters 3-pointer with 5:41 left, led by seven with 26.7 seconds left, then survived a near-miracle UConn comeback.
Napier hit a layup and was fouled with 16.9 ticks remaining, missed the free throws, but Drummond scored on a putback. James Southerland hit a pair of free throws, Drummond countered with a reverse layup with about five seconds left, and the Orange managed a long inbounds pass to run out the clock.
Close but no cigar for a third time meant little to the Huskies.
“That’s our third time playing them, we fell short every time,” Jeremy Lamb pointed out. “First time, OK, we played them (well). Second time, alright … but if you lose again, you can’t get confidence out of that.”
Still, Calhoun – a man who almost never finds satisfaction in a loss – was extremely proud of his team.
“Did we shoot great? No,” he said. “Did we make great decisions? No. Did we play with great heart and great intensity and did we play for us and each other? Without a doubt, and I couldn’t be prouder of them.”
Waiters led all scorers with 18 points. Napier led the Huskies with 15, Drummond had 14 points and 10 rebounds and Lamb netted 10. After surrendering 26 offensive rebounds to West Virginia the day before, UConn outrebounded the Orange, 46-34. Tyler Olander grabbed eight boards.
“We were going to rebound today,” Calhoun said. “Did we have a hard practice to do that? No, we just kind of all collaborated on it last night.”
Last year, of course, behind the heroics of Kemba Walker, UConn won an unprecedented five games in five days to win the tournament championship. The Huskies were hoping for a repeat run, but fatigue – mental, not physical – hindered them. The Hall of Fame coach had returned to coach the team in practice on Friday after missing the previous month on medical leave and undergoing back surgery on Feb. 27.
“Fatigue is the most over-written about thing in sports,” Calhoun said. “Mental fatigue, though, I felt we had a little bit at the end. Emotionally, we’ve been through seven – and we’re going back to Friday – Saturday’s game against Pittsburgh was very emotional and traveling Monday and playing Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and they stood up to it all. We came up a little bit short. Once again, I love them and I’m proud of them.”
Personally, I think it's a bit of a blessing for UConn that it lost Thursday. Now, the Huskies have a few days to collect themselves, take a breather before (almost certainly) getting ready for the NCAA tournament. This team was a bit tired, either mentally or physically, and playing another night or two in New York may not have behooved them as much as getting their legs (and minds) back a little.
*** Calhoun took the loss hard, not for himself but for his players.
“I’m really, really anguished in many, many ways because when I arrived last Friday in the gym, not knowing after four weeks what was going to happen, little did I know that I’d find a new team,” he said. “Not that we were bad or anything else before, but just who we were and what we were was different.”
Napier concurred.
“We’re starting to have fun,” the sophomore point guard said. “We’re out there smiling, no matter what. Team chemistry comes from having fun and doing things that friends do. We all finally started having fun when Coach came back because we all started feeling like a big family again.”
*** Olander had four points, four assists and eight rebounds (his highest total since mid-November). Still, he placed blame on himself for the Huskies’ loss.
“I feel I played well until when it mattered,” he said, “then kind of broke down a little bit, and I think maybe cost us the game a little bit with mental mistakes that can’t happen.”
Down the stretch, Syracuse was playing its guards far out on the perimeter to keep Napier and Jeremy Lamb in check. UConn wanted to get the ball to Olander at the high post, where his passing and shooting ability could be a weapon against the Syracuse zone. But apparently, there were some breakdowns at key spots.
“We just didn’t run the play we were supposed to run,” Napier said of one sequence. “We were supposed to run a quick-pick play. We were unable to do that, so I stood out there forever trying to figure out what we were going to run. We were just confused. It’s my fault, I’m the point guard, I’ve got to tell my team this is the play we’re running, especially in those situations. The moment got too big for me, I guess.”
*** Boeheim was asked about the NCAA investigation into reports that Syracuse had allowed players to practice and play with the team in prior years even after having knowledge that they'd flunked school-administered drug tests.
"This was reported five years ago, and we're waiting for them to finish the process," he said.
He later added: "This is a media, this is you people's thing. This doesn't bother our players or our team or me. This is a media thing, period ... I'm much more concerned aobut my wife being mad at me than I am anything else, to tell you the truth."
Then, he quipped: "I think that Manning should really come to the Jets, too."
*** Many of the usual suspects were at the game cheering on UConn: Andrea Walker (Kemba’s mom), Craig Austrie. Donyell Marshall wasn’t there but was obviously watching, as his frequent Tweets would indicate. New UConn athletic director Warde Manuel was in the house, as was Geno Auriemma – a close friend of Jim. That’s Jim Boeheim, it should be noted.
The feeling, apparently, is mutual with Calhoun.
"I love Jim Boeheim like a brother," he said, "and through everything else, includding other things that have gone on, he's done an incredible job coaching his team and being unselfish and giving to each other."
*** UCoonn-Syracuse is like Red Sox-Yankees of '03-04: two teams utterly incapable of playing a nice, normal, tidy game. Today wasn't as crazy as normal, but still pretty entertaining.
Sad that it could soon be a thing of the past.
*** Oh, and I'm not crazy about the Orange in the NCAA tourney. Don't you kinda need that star player who's going to lead you and take over when you need it most? Is Dion Waiters that guy? Maybe. But I'd hardly be shocked if the Cuse is done before the Final Four.
“Well, let’s see …” Calhoun began, and what followed was his now daily dissertation on the Huskies’ No. 3 strength of schedule, their 22 games against top-100 RPI teams (and don’t forget tourney-bound UNC-Asheville!), etc., etc.
Bottom line: UConn is in the NCAA tournament. The Huskies may have cinched it with Tuesday’s win over lowly DePaul. If not, Wednesday’s victory over West Virginia likely sealed the deal.
“I’m not going to make a pitch for it,” Calhoun said. “I trust the basketball committee.”
Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim not only has the Huskies in – he’s got them going to the Sweet Sixteen, if not further.
“I would be shocked if (the Huskies) don’t win two games in the NCAA tournament at the minimum,” Boeheim said. “At the minimum.”
Entering Thursday, UConn was ranked No. 33 in the RPI and No. 3 in strength of schedule. Both rankings may have raised despite the loss to the Orange, who boast the No. 1 RPI.
Bottom line: the Huskies are likely looking at a No. 9 or 10 seed for the Big Dance.
“I feel confident the way we’ve played the last couple of days in this tournament have pretty much solidified a spot in the tournament,” said Tyler Olander. “If it doesn’t, we’ll go from there, that’s kind of out of our hands.”
Added Calhoun: “I don’t know what else we have to prove that we’re probably one of the top 30 teams in the country. We’re certainly not one of the top 10, 20, but we’re one of the top 30 teams in the country. I don’t make those decisions, but I know who we are. I’ve seen who we’ve beaten.”
Still, Shabazz Napier will be nervous watching the Selection Show on CBS on Sunday.
“I was nervous last year, and I knew we were making it in (after winning the conference tourney),” he said. “I’ll probably be nervous again, that’s just how I am.”
*** Andre Drummond's massive, one-handed putback jam of a Napier missed trey was truly awe-inspiring. It also gave UConn an eight-point lead with 14:02 left, causing Boeheim to burn a timeout.
The Orange clamped down on defense, went ahead for good about 6 ½ minutes later and held on for the 58-55 win over the Huskies – their third win over UConn in the past 26 days.
“Nothing bothers us,” Boeheim said afterwards. “If things were bothering us, we wouldn’t be 31-1.”
Syracuse went ahead for good (48-47) on a Dion Waiters 3-pointer with 5:41 left, led by seven with 26.7 seconds left, then survived a near-miracle UConn comeback.
Napier hit a layup and was fouled with 16.9 ticks remaining, missed the free throws, but Drummond scored on a putback. James Southerland hit a pair of free throws, Drummond countered with a reverse layup with about five seconds left, and the Orange managed a long inbounds pass to run out the clock.
Close but no cigar for a third time meant little to the Huskies.
“That’s our third time playing them, we fell short every time,” Jeremy Lamb pointed out. “First time, OK, we played them (well). Second time, alright … but if you lose again, you can’t get confidence out of that.”
Still, Calhoun – a man who almost never finds satisfaction in a loss – was extremely proud of his team.
“Did we shoot great? No,” he said. “Did we make great decisions? No. Did we play with great heart and great intensity and did we play for us and each other? Without a doubt, and I couldn’t be prouder of them.”
Waiters led all scorers with 18 points. Napier led the Huskies with 15, Drummond had 14 points and 10 rebounds and Lamb netted 10. After surrendering 26 offensive rebounds to West Virginia the day before, UConn outrebounded the Orange, 46-34. Tyler Olander grabbed eight boards.
“We were going to rebound today,” Calhoun said. “Did we have a hard practice to do that? No, we just kind of all collaborated on it last night.”
Last year, of course, behind the heroics of Kemba Walker, UConn won an unprecedented five games in five days to win the tournament championship. The Huskies were hoping for a repeat run, but fatigue – mental, not physical – hindered them. The Hall of Fame coach had returned to coach the team in practice on Friday after missing the previous month on medical leave and undergoing back surgery on Feb. 27.
“Fatigue is the most over-written about thing in sports,” Calhoun said. “Mental fatigue, though, I felt we had a little bit at the end. Emotionally, we’ve been through seven – and we’re going back to Friday – Saturday’s game against Pittsburgh was very emotional and traveling Monday and playing Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and they stood up to it all. We came up a little bit short. Once again, I love them and I’m proud of them.”
Personally, I think it's a bit of a blessing for UConn that it lost Thursday. Now, the Huskies have a few days to collect themselves, take a breather before (almost certainly) getting ready for the NCAA tournament. This team was a bit tired, either mentally or physically, and playing another night or two in New York may not have behooved them as much as getting their legs (and minds) back a little.
*** Calhoun took the loss hard, not for himself but for his players.
“I’m really, really anguished in many, many ways because when I arrived last Friday in the gym, not knowing after four weeks what was going to happen, little did I know that I’d find a new team,” he said. “Not that we were bad or anything else before, but just who we were and what we were was different.”
Napier concurred.
“We’re starting to have fun,” the sophomore point guard said. “We’re out there smiling, no matter what. Team chemistry comes from having fun and doing things that friends do. We all finally started having fun when Coach came back because we all started feeling like a big family again.”
*** Olander had four points, four assists and eight rebounds (his highest total since mid-November). Still, he placed blame on himself for the Huskies’ loss.
“I feel I played well until when it mattered,” he said, “then kind of broke down a little bit, and I think maybe cost us the game a little bit with mental mistakes that can’t happen.”
Down the stretch, Syracuse was playing its guards far out on the perimeter to keep Napier and Jeremy Lamb in check. UConn wanted to get the ball to Olander at the high post, where his passing and shooting ability could be a weapon against the Syracuse zone. But apparently, there were some breakdowns at key spots.
“We just didn’t run the play we were supposed to run,” Napier said of one sequence. “We were supposed to run a quick-pick play. We were unable to do that, so I stood out there forever trying to figure out what we were going to run. We were just confused. It’s my fault, I’m the point guard, I’ve got to tell my team this is the play we’re running, especially in those situations. The moment got too big for me, I guess.”
*** Boeheim was asked about the NCAA investigation into reports that Syracuse had allowed players to practice and play with the team in prior years even after having knowledge that they'd flunked school-administered drug tests.
"This was reported five years ago, and we're waiting for them to finish the process," he said.
He later added: "This is a media, this is you people's thing. This doesn't bother our players or our team or me. This is a media thing, period ... I'm much more concerned aobut my wife being mad at me than I am anything else, to tell you the truth."
Then, he quipped: "I think that Manning should really come to the Jets, too."
*** Many of the usual suspects were at the game cheering on UConn: Andrea Walker (Kemba’s mom), Craig Austrie. Donyell Marshall wasn’t there but was obviously watching, as his frequent Tweets would indicate. New UConn athletic director Warde Manuel was in the house, as was Geno Auriemma – a close friend of Jim. That’s Jim Boeheim, it should be noted.
The feeling, apparently, is mutual with Calhoun.
"I love Jim Boeheim like a brother," he said, "and through everything else, includding other things that have gone on, he's done an incredible job coaching his team and being unselfish and giving to each other."
*** UCoonn-Syracuse is like Red Sox-Yankees of '03-04: two teams utterly incapable of playing a nice, normal, tidy game. Today wasn't as crazy as normal, but still pretty entertaining.
Sad that it could soon be a thing of the past.
*** Oh, and I'm not crazy about the Orange in the NCAA tourney. Don't you kinda need that star player who's going to lead you and take over when you need it most? Is Dion Waiters that guy? Maybe. But I'd hardly be shocked if the Cuse is done before the Final Four.
All the New York City pickpockets working their craft a few blocks away in Times Square were upstaged by a kid from Boston on Wednesday afternoon.
Shabazz Napier stole the show – quite literally – in UConn’s latest how-did-that-happen, Big East tournament win at Madison Square Garden. The sophomore point guard went on a personal 9-0 run – paced by a pair of crafty steals – over an 87-second span late in regulation to tie the game, and his teammates survived without him after he fouled out in overtime.
Jeremy Lamb’s 3-pointer with a little over a minute left in the extra period put the Huskies ahead for good in a 71-67 victory that ousted West Virginia from its final Big East tourney appearance and set up UConn’s third matchup with Syracuse in the past month.
It also essentially clinched a return trip to the NCAA tournament for the defending champions, who are now 20-12 overall.
With less than four minutes left in regulation on Wednesday, however, it appeared the Huskies might not have that chance. The Mountaineers led by nine (63-54) after a Darryl “Truck” Bryant inside bucket with three minutes, 57 seconds left. Napier, however, wasn’t dismayed, and assured his teammates as much at the time.
“I knew we were going to win,” he said. “It’s weird, you just have that instinct, that feeling … I told Alex (Oriakhi), ‘We’re going to win this game.’ I just felt that. When you feel something, you’ve got to go with it.”
Did he ever. Napier canned a 3-pointer, Bryant missed the front end of a one-and-one, and Napier hit a pair of free throws. Then, he swiped a Dominique Rutledge pass near midcourt and cruised in for a finger roll. After a West Virginia timeout, he picked Gary Browne’s pocket off an inbounds pass and again sailed in for a layup, tying the score with 2:10 left.
“One of them, I kind of gambled on,” said Napier. “I just felt like Rutledge was going to be lazy on the pass to Browne, and I just went for it and stole it. And one time, Browne thought I was going to stay with Bryant, and I just came from behind and stole it. Sometimes, you’ve got to take those risks and hope for the best.”
Browne countered with a lane jumper, but UConn got the ball up the floor quickly and Drummond ank a short baseline jumper. Browne turned the tables on Napier by stealing the ball form him near midcourt with 42.2 seconds left, but Andre Drummond blocked a Rutledge shot, Napier missed an 18-footer at the buzzer, and it was on to overtime.
Napier scored the first points of the extra period with a pair of free throws, but wound up picking his fourth and fifth fouls in the span of 24 seconds. Bryant hit a pair of freebies to tie it, but Lamb canned his wing trey to put the Huskies ahead for good.
“I knew we needed a score,” Lamb said, “and in the game (Tuesday), Coach told me to shoot and I didn’t take a shot. Coach was just saying, “I want you shooting the ball.’ So today, they ran a play for me, set great screens, and I was able to get wide open. I had a little time to set my feet and I just shot it with confidence, and thank God it went in.”
It wasn’t over yet, as Ryan Boatright missed three straight free throws within the final 33 seconds. But he finally hit the fourth with 19.2 seconds left, and West Virginia couldn’t score again.
"Boat is always there for us," said Napier. "Go back to the first game he came and knocked down three free throws we needed (to beat) Florida State. That's what he gives you, he gives you a lot of heart no matter what."
The Mountaineers missed all 11 of their field goal attempts in overtime.
“I couldn’t be prouder of our kids,” said coach Jim Calhoun. “I think for a team that obviously has had its ups and downs – no coach, no Boatright, all the various things that have happened to us – those are things that happen and they happen to other teams. But I can only judge my family, my guys, and my guys have come back, won three in a row, and I truly believe that a coach couldn’t be prouder.”
Napier scored 22 of his 26 points in the second half and overtime. Lamb added 22 – 12 in the first 12 minutes of play – and Boatright had 10 off the bench. Napier also had six assists, four turnovers and three blocks (!).
*** UConn-Syracuse. Madison Square Garden. Big East tournament. Doesn’t get much better than that, does it?
Not in recent years, anyway.
The last four times these two powerhouse rivals have met in the Big East tournament, three have been decided in overtime. Among those, of course, was the classic six-overtime battle in 2009 eventually won in the wee hours of the morning by the Orange, 127-117.
More recently, Syracuse has beaten the Huskies twice over the last month, pulling away in the final minutes at the Carrier Dome for an 85-67 win on Feb. 11, then eking out a 71-69 triumph two weeks later in Storrs. Calhoun was on medical leave and not on the sidelines for either game, but he’ll be there for Thursday’s noon quarterfinal-round battle.
“We’re playing, in my opinion – along with Kentucky – the best team in the country (Thursday),” he said after UConn’s 71-67, second-round win over West Virginia.
The old adage says it’s hard for a good team to beat another good team three times in a row. Throw in the fact that the second-ranked Orange are a sure-shot No. 1 NCAA tourney seed with nothing to play for, while the Huskies have momentum, and it’s understandable why Drummond promised: “It’s going to be hard for (Syracuse), I can tell you that now. We’re going to come out with fire.”
Added Lamb: “We’ve just got to come out strong. When we played them at home, we didn’t start off (well). We’ve got to come out as hard as we can.”
*** Despite the victory, UConn had to be concerned about its rebounding – or lack thereof – on Wednesday. The Huskies were outrebounded, 47-31. Worse, they allowed a whopping 26 offensive boards to the Mountaineers.
Strangely, Calhoun wasn’t overly concerned.
“You also remember that six or seven of (the offensive boards) are blocked shots,” he pointed out. “They seemed to get every blocked shot that we had. Not that it’s misleading, but we played defense a little bit different than maybe some other teams, and down the stretch it did help since we blocked two of their layups.”
Calhoun was particularly happy with the defensive play late in the game of Drummond, who blocked Dominique Rutledge’s potential game-winner in the final seconds of regulation.
Drummond also locked down WVU star Kevin Jones late in the game. Jones dominated much of the game from both the inside and outside and finished with 25 points. However, following a pair of free throws with 6:17 left in regulation, he didn’t score again.
Said Huggins: “Well, it’s been a good run. We’ve enjoyed it, most of it anyway. I mean, there’s nothing like coming to the Garden to play in the tournament.”
West Virginia finishes 12-15 all-time in Big East tourney games, winning the title in 2010 and reaching the finals twice.
The Big East announced on Wednesday that Temple will officially be joining the conference, for football only in 2012 and all other sports in 2013.
“I always thought Temple would be a great addition, being in Philadelphia,” Calhoun said. “They’ve got a tremendous coach, it’s a great city for basketball.”
Calhoun couldn't resist a chance to needle longtime rival Rick Pitino, who has been publicly campaigning for the Owls to join the Big East for a while now.
"I can't get a word in edgewise with Rick praising Temple," Calhoun quipped. "That's not against Rick. I don't Twitter or Tweet or any of those things. You know what I'm talking about."
*** Lamb has hit double figures in all seven of his career Big East tourney games.
*** UConn has won 13 straight postseason games and seven straight in the Big East tourney, tying Georgetown for third-longest winning streak in the event's history.
Shabazz Napier stole the show – quite literally – in UConn’s latest how-did-that-happen, Big East tournament win at Madison Square Garden. The sophomore point guard went on a personal 9-0 run – paced by a pair of crafty steals – over an 87-second span late in regulation to tie the game, and his teammates survived without him after he fouled out in overtime.
Jeremy Lamb’s 3-pointer with a little over a minute left in the extra period put the Huskies ahead for good in a 71-67 victory that ousted West Virginia from its final Big East tourney appearance and set up UConn’s third matchup with Syracuse in the past month.
It also essentially clinched a return trip to the NCAA tournament for the defending champions, who are now 20-12 overall.
With less than four minutes left in regulation on Wednesday, however, it appeared the Huskies might not have that chance. The Mountaineers led by nine (63-54) after a Darryl “Truck” Bryant inside bucket with three minutes, 57 seconds left. Napier, however, wasn’t dismayed, and assured his teammates as much at the time.
“I knew we were going to win,” he said. “It’s weird, you just have that instinct, that feeling … I told Alex (Oriakhi), ‘We’re going to win this game.’ I just felt that. When you feel something, you’ve got to go with it.”
Did he ever. Napier canned a 3-pointer, Bryant missed the front end of a one-and-one, and Napier hit a pair of free throws. Then, he swiped a Dominique Rutledge pass near midcourt and cruised in for a finger roll. After a West Virginia timeout, he picked Gary Browne’s pocket off an inbounds pass and again sailed in for a layup, tying the score with 2:10 left.
“One of them, I kind of gambled on,” said Napier. “I just felt like Rutledge was going to be lazy on the pass to Browne, and I just went for it and stole it. And one time, Browne thought I was going to stay with Bryant, and I just came from behind and stole it. Sometimes, you’ve got to take those risks and hope for the best.”
Browne countered with a lane jumper, but UConn got the ball up the floor quickly and Drummond ank a short baseline jumper. Browne turned the tables on Napier by stealing the ball form him near midcourt with 42.2 seconds left, but Andre Drummond blocked a Rutledge shot, Napier missed an 18-footer at the buzzer, and it was on to overtime.
Napier scored the first points of the extra period with a pair of free throws, but wound up picking his fourth and fifth fouls in the span of 24 seconds. Bryant hit a pair of freebies to tie it, but Lamb canned his wing trey to put the Huskies ahead for good.
“I knew we needed a score,” Lamb said, “and in the game (Tuesday), Coach told me to shoot and I didn’t take a shot. Coach was just saying, “I want you shooting the ball.’ So today, they ran a play for me, set great screens, and I was able to get wide open. I had a little time to set my feet and I just shot it with confidence, and thank God it went in.”
It wasn’t over yet, as Ryan Boatright missed three straight free throws within the final 33 seconds. But he finally hit the fourth with 19.2 seconds left, and West Virginia couldn’t score again.
"Boat is always there for us," said Napier. "Go back to the first game he came and knocked down three free throws we needed (to beat) Florida State. That's what he gives you, he gives you a lot of heart no matter what."
The Mountaineers missed all 11 of their field goal attempts in overtime.
“I couldn’t be prouder of our kids,” said coach Jim Calhoun. “I think for a team that obviously has had its ups and downs – no coach, no Boatright, all the various things that have happened to us – those are things that happen and they happen to other teams. But I can only judge my family, my guys, and my guys have come back, won three in a row, and I truly believe that a coach couldn’t be prouder.”
Napier scored 22 of his 26 points in the second half and overtime. Lamb added 22 – 12 in the first 12 minutes of play – and Boatright had 10 off the bench. Napier also had six assists, four turnovers and three blocks (!).
*** UConn-Syracuse. Madison Square Garden. Big East tournament. Doesn’t get much better than that, does it?
Not in recent years, anyway.
The last four times these two powerhouse rivals have met in the Big East tournament, three have been decided in overtime. Among those, of course, was the classic six-overtime battle in 2009 eventually won in the wee hours of the morning by the Orange, 127-117.
More recently, Syracuse has beaten the Huskies twice over the last month, pulling away in the final minutes at the Carrier Dome for an 85-67 win on Feb. 11, then eking out a 71-69 triumph two weeks later in Storrs. Calhoun was on medical leave and not on the sidelines for either game, but he’ll be there for Thursday’s noon quarterfinal-round battle.
“We’re playing, in my opinion – along with Kentucky – the best team in the country (Thursday),” he said after UConn’s 71-67, second-round win over West Virginia.
The old adage says it’s hard for a good team to beat another good team three times in a row. Throw in the fact that the second-ranked Orange are a sure-shot No. 1 NCAA tourney seed with nothing to play for, while the Huskies have momentum, and it’s understandable why Drummond promised: “It’s going to be hard for (Syracuse), I can tell you that now. We’re going to come out with fire.”
Added Lamb: “We’ve just got to come out strong. When we played them at home, we didn’t start off (well). We’ve got to come out as hard as we can.”
*** Despite the victory, UConn had to be concerned about its rebounding – or lack thereof – on Wednesday. The Huskies were outrebounded, 47-31. Worse, they allowed a whopping 26 offensive boards to the Mountaineers.
Strangely, Calhoun wasn’t overly concerned.
“You also remember that six or seven of (the offensive boards) are blocked shots,” he pointed out. “They seemed to get every blocked shot that we had. Not that it’s misleading, but we played defense a little bit different than maybe some other teams, and down the stretch it did help since we blocked two of their layups.”
Calhoun was particularly happy with the defensive play late in the game of Drummond, who blocked Dominique Rutledge’s potential game-winner in the final seconds of regulation.
Drummond also locked down WVU star Kevin Jones late in the game. Jones dominated much of the game from both the inside and outside and finished with 25 points. However, following a pair of free throws with 6:17 left in regulation, he didn’t score again.
“It took me longer than it should have,” Drummond confessed. “I should’ve realized that earlier (and said), ‘Alright, today’s not an offensive game for you, Dre, so you just need to lock up on defense to make sure no one scores.’ It took me until the last 10 minutes to realize, we’re going to lose this game if I don’t lock this kid Jones up. Coach told me, final play, play him hard or he’s going to sub me out and I’m not going to play. So I looked at him and said, ‘Alright, he’s not scoring anymore.’”
Said Calhoun: “With 10 minutes to go, he grew up a little bit and played a hell of a player and did a wonderful job.”
*** The Mountaineers are moving to the Big 12 next season, so Wednesday’s loss was their final appearance in the Big East tournament.
“It’s sad in many, many ways,” said Calhoun. “I’m going to miss them greatly. I’m going to miss Bobby (Huggins, WVU’s coach), going got miss the competitiveness … (Huggins) is heading on his way to being a Hall of Fame coach. I don’t think this league needs to be losing Hall of Fame coaches.”
Said Huggins: “Well, it’s been a good run. We’ve enjoyed it, most of it anyway. I mean, there’s nothing like coming to the Garden to play in the tournament.”
The Big East announced on Wednesday that Temple will officially be joining the conference, for football only in 2012 and all other sports in 2013.
“I always thought Temple would be a great addition, being in Philadelphia,” Calhoun said. “They’ve got a tremendous coach, it’s a great city for basketball.”
Calhoun couldn't resist a chance to needle longtime rival Rick Pitino, who has been publicly campaigning for the Owls to join the Big East for a while now.
"I can't get a word in edgewise with Rick praising Temple," Calhoun quipped. "That's not against Rick. I don't Twitter or Tweet or any of those things. You know what I'm talking about."
*** Lamb has hit double figures in all seven of his career Big East tourney games.
*** UConn has won 13 straight postseason games and seven straight in the Big East tourney, tying Georgetown for third-longest winning streak in the event's history.
Depending on who you listen to, UConn is either solidly in the NCAA tournament already, win or lose to DePaul tomorrow, or in need of two, maybe three wins in this week's Big East tourney to punch its ticket. Or somewhere in between.
George Blaney sides with the former.
“I would be really, really disappointed if we’re not in the NCAA already," he said at practice Monday. "I don’t see how we’re not. But I would always rather not leave it up to anybody in a committee room. I’d like to have it done where there isn’t any question.”
Jim Calhoun pointed out: “We had some good wins this year, no doubt. Looking back on it, Florida State was a very good win. We beat some good people. When you play the No. 2 schedule in the country – give us the No. 20 schedule. So now we’ve got, what, 23 wins?”
Of course, Blaney and Calhoun are a bit biased. Let's put it this way: if the Huskies lose to 16th seed DePaul (12-18, 3-15 Big East) on Tuesday, they will be sweating it out on Selection Sunday. Big time.
Calhoun missed practice Sunday but was back on Monday, looking and feeling pretty good. He said that on Sunday, after making his return to the sidelines the day before just four days after back surgerh, he felt "tired. But that’s to be expected. Going through the process, that’s the way it’ll be. But I’m trying to time everything right so that I’ll be there tomorrow at noon.”
But he noted that his own fatigue isn't that big a deal for UConn moving forward.
“Me, personally. It’s not important, really. I thought Jeremy (Lamb) played very fatigued in the second half (Sunday). It’s more important if Jeremy’s fatigued.”
Then he quipped: “Somebody said, ‘It’ll be great to have you there. I said, no, it’d be better if Kemba was there.”
Calhoun said that for about two weeks prior to surgery, he was extremely limited physically -- walking with a cane for a time -- so it's really been about three weeks without doing much.
"(Sunday) I walked couple of miles, probably did a little too much. But more importantly, (I'm just) trying to recapture my body a little bit. Once we get to gametime, I’ll be fine.”Could he handle three, four (or dare we say, five) games in five days again?
“I’d love it. Give me a chance.”
Andre Drummond said of his coach: “That’s the toughest person I’ve met in my whole life, by far. Besides my mother, he’s up there.”
*** Calhoun said he watched a lot of basketball during his monthlong medical leave -- with the volume turned off.
“I didn’t hear a lot of basketball. A lot of people saying, ‘I’m sorry about what I said on TV.’ Doesn’t make any difference.”
*** Shabazz Napier sat down a few seats away from Calhoun during Monday's media availability and asked the coach, "Did you see what Rondo did yesterday?"
Calhoun nodded, but quickly added: “He had two against us. When we played him in the NCAA tournament (in 2006)."
*** As always, Napier was as blunt as ever when assessing his team.
“I see a lot of greatness, a lot of players destined for a lot of extraordinary things," he said. "But one thing I don’t see is leadership. And, 100-percent chemistry. But that Pittsburgh game, that’s what it was – leadership from the coach, 100-percent chemistry from everybody. That’s what I wanted to see, and that’s what I saw in that game. I hope we’ll take that win and keep moving forward for the DePaul game.”*** Although he grew up in Mount Vernon, N.Y., moved to Middletown about 10 years ago and has toured the country in AAU ball, Drummond has never played a game in Madison Square Gardn. Been to a few Knicks games, but never played there. Obviously, he's excited for Tuesday.
Is he a Knicks fan?
“Eh, I wouldn’t say that. I’m not really a fan of any team, I just watch basketball.”
“It’s just another step for me to work hard to get to first team Big East," he replied. "I’m just going to use that as a stepping stone to work hard, each and every day, to get National Player of the Year or something bigger than that.”
Sometimes, listening to the big guy talk, it really does sound like he might be back for at least another season at UConn. You never know.
Roscoe Smith had 14 points and seven rebounds on Saturday, but perhaps his most important statistic didn’t show up on the postgame score sheet: one charge.In fact, the charge Smith picked up on Pitt’s J.R. Moore with 1 minute, 33 seconds left appears to be the first taken by any UConn player this season. Seriously.
“First charge we’ve taken in six months, I think,” associate head coach George Blaney quipped after UConn's 74-65 win over Pitt. He wasn’t kidding.
“We’ve been trying to get a charge out of anybody this whole season,” added point guard Shabazz Napier. “We (would) tell each other, ‘First one to get a charge, I kid you not it’s going to be big.’ And he got that charge and I couldn’t help my emotions but to jump on him and grab him and tell him, ‘You did it! You got that first charge!’ That was a big moment, a big key because we needed that stop to prevail.”
Indeed, the Panthers – particularly Moore – had been driving to the hole incessantly throughout the second half, turning a 15-point deficit into, at one point, a one-point lead. UConn led 63-61 when Smith took the key charge on Moore.
“It felt good,” Smith said. “They normally hurt, but I didn’t feel any pain. Everybody was very happy. We were kind of competing to get the first one. It was right there for me, I just stepped right in there and took it.”
Napier hit a 3-pointer on UConn’s ensuing possession, and the Huskies never looked back en route to a 72-65 win.
“That’s what you have to do, if people are driving the ball that hard,” Blaney said of Smith’s charge. “They’ve got five or six guys that can put it on the deck and put it to the rim. That remains the most difficult thing to defend in the game, the dribble-drive. To be able to step in and take the charge is very important.”
Smith has now scored in double figures in three straight games as his playing time – and confidence – increases more and more.
“He got a lot of consistent minutes last year, but he was a freshman,” Blaney pointed out. “You expect more out of a sophomore. He still was making mistakes early in the year. He’s getting saner with the ball, not turning it over.”
Added Andre Drummond: “I’m proud of that kid, man. Seriously. He played really well today.”
*** The Huskies were energized by Jim Calhoun's return to the sidelines.
“To have him on the sideline,” Napier said, “words can’t explain what he means for this team.”
Said Jeremy Lamb: "He was fresh out of surgery and still he came to coach us and gave it his all. It meant a lot, so we wanted to play hard for him."
Added Blaney: “It’s why he’s in the Hall of Fame, it’s why he understands a team, how to motivate a team. They were practically crying in the locker room, because he told them he loved them, and that’s why he came back.”
Blaney handled postgame press conference responsibilities as Calhoun, just five days removed from lower back surgery, was simply too exhausted (and emotional) to do so.
While not as active on the sidelines as usual, Calhoun was certainly animated at times – yelling at officials several times, and his players at others. Drummond knew the 26th-year, Hall of Fame head man was truly back when he heard him scream his name after Drummond took an ill-advised baseline jumper midway through the latter half.
“Oh, there he is,” Drummond thought at the time.
Calhoun’s surgeon was at the game, and afterwards told him he was concerned “when you were running up and down the sidelines,” according to Blaney.
“He was clear-headed, emotional when he had to be,” Blaney said of Calhoun. “To me, the only thing he did different was we put a chair out for him to sit in during timeouts … He is exhausted right now. The game’s exhausting, anyway, but to be coming off of surgery, that really can get you.”
But Calhoun told his players on Friday that he’d do anything he could to be there for them, and he came through.
“Coach Calhoun brought a lot of motivation, a lot of energy,” said Smith. “We definitely could feel it out there. It was electrifying when he first walked into practice. He definitely gave us that extra push we needed.”
Added Drummond: “It was great seeing him on the sideline. It gave us that extra spark, knowing that he was out there. Just hearing his voice again, it makes you play that much harder.”
“Should’ve listened to me the first time," he quipped. "I never doubted it.”
*** Barring a possible NIT game, Saturday was the final game at Gampel in the careers of walk-ons Kyle Bailey, Ben Stewart and P.J. Cochrane. All three, along with four senior team managers, were honored in a pregame ceremony, with Jim Calhoun presenting them gifts at midcourt.
Calhoun walked out from the locker room for the ceremony about 15 minutes before the opening tap, to a large, standing ovation from the assembled crowd. It was his first public appearance as UConn’s head coach since a Feb. 1 loss at Georgetown, and his first appearance at a UConn home game since a Jan. 29 loss to Notre Dame in Hartford.
*** Among the visiting recruits at Gampel Saturday was Sam Cassell, Jr., a Class of 2012 guard out of Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg, Mass., and the son of the longtime NBA star.
*** Napier led UConn with 23 points in what Blaney called “one of his best games of the year.” Lamb added 14 points, Alex Oriakhi had eight and Drummond seven to go with four blocks (all in the first half). Moore led Pitt with 16 of the bench.
*** As of right now, there's still a remote chance of UConn being the No. 9 seed for next week's Big East tourney and playing Tuesday at noon. DePaul would have to beat Seton Hall tonight at 6 for there to be any chance of that happening.
More likely, the Huskies will be the 10th seed and play Tuesday at 7. They can't finish as the eighth seed.
*** We'll have some video up around 6:30 p.m.
The familiar figure was back at Gampel Pavilion Friday afternoon: arms crossed, furrowed brow, that characteristic, bow-legged gait, raising his voice at his players a few times.
For the first time in nearly a month, Jim Calhoun was back at UConn’s practice.
Calhoun, on medical leave with spinal stenosis for nearly a month, returned to help his team prepare for Saturday’s regular season-ending bout with Pittsburgh – against his doctor’s orders.
“I just couldn’t stay home any longer,” Calhoun, appearing a bit weary, his voice hoarse, said. “I didn’t know what I was going to do. I was going to come in (Thursday), but physically I just couldn’t do it. More fatigue than anything else.”
But the 26th-year Hall of Fame head coach still isn’t sure if he’ll be on the sidelines for today’s noon bout with Pitt.
“I’ll see how I feel (Saturday) when I get up, to see if I can get to the game,” he said. “It’s not a mystery thing, I just that I want to feel that I can give my kids my best at noon (Saturday).”
If he can’t, Calhoun expects to return to practice on Sunday and feels he’ll be able to coach the team in next week’s Big East tournament, which will likely begin on Tuesday for the Huskies.
But after seeing his head coach return to practice just four days after surgery, freshman center Andre Drummond is confident Calhoun will be coaching the team on Saturday.
“He will be back,” Drummond said. “There’s no doubt in my mind he’ll be back on the bench (Saturday).”
Calhoun went on medical leave on Feb. 3 to deal with spinal stenosis, a lower back condition, and has missed UConn’s last eight games. He had surgery on Monday morning at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City and returned to his Pomfret home the following day.
The Huskies have gone 3-5 since Calhoun went on medical leave. He also missed three games to start the Big East season on NCAA suspension. UConn went 2-1 in those games.
Associate head coach George Blaney has piloted the Huskies through the 11 games Calhoun has missed this season.
“You could see it in their eyes, they were happy to see him,” Blaney said of the players on Friday. “Shabazz (Napier) and Andre, in particular, came over and gave him a big hug and welcomed him back. That was great to see.”
Added Drummond: “That’s a dedicated man right there. He doesn’t quit.”
“I didn’t know he was here, then I saw him, I looked again and ran over to him to see how he was doing.”
For the first time in nearly a month, Jim Calhoun was back at UConn’s practice.
Calhoun, on medical leave with spinal stenosis for nearly a month, returned to help his team prepare for Saturday’s regular season-ending bout with Pittsburgh – against his doctor’s orders.
“I just couldn’t stay home any longer,” Calhoun, appearing a bit weary, his voice hoarse, said. “I didn’t know what I was going to do. I was going to come in (Thursday), but physically I just couldn’t do it. More fatigue than anything else.”
But the 26th-year Hall of Fame head coach still isn’t sure if he’ll be on the sidelines for today’s noon bout with Pitt.
“I’ll see how I feel (Saturday) when I get up, to see if I can get to the game,” he said. “It’s not a mystery thing, I just that I want to feel that I can give my kids my best at noon (Saturday).”
If he can’t, Calhoun expects to return to practice on Sunday and feels he’ll be able to coach the team in next week’s Big East tournament, which will likely begin on Tuesday for the Huskies.
But after seeing his head coach return to practice just four days after surgery, freshman center Andre Drummond is confident Calhoun will be coaching the team on Saturday.
“He will be back,” Drummond said. “There’s no doubt in my mind he’ll be back on the bench (Saturday).”
Calhoun went on medical leave on Feb. 3 to deal with spinal stenosis, a lower back condition, and has missed UConn’s last eight games. He had surgery on Monday morning at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City and returned to his Pomfret home the following day.
The Huskies have gone 3-5 since Calhoun went on medical leave. He also missed three games to start the Big East season on NCAA suspension. UConn went 2-1 in those games.
Associate head coach George Blaney has piloted the Huskies through the 11 games Calhoun has missed this season.
“You could see it in their eyes, they were happy to see him,” Blaney said of the players on Friday. “Shabazz (Napier) and Andre, in particular, came over and gave him a big hug and welcomed him back. That was great to see.”
Added Drummond: “That’s a dedicated man right there. He doesn’t quit.”
“I didn’t know he was here, then I saw him, I looked again and ran over to him to see how he was doing.”
Sorry folks, but I just don't see how UConn is an NCAA tournament team right now.
I don't care what Joey Brackets says. I don't care what their RPI is, or whether they (somehow) still have the nation's No. 1 strength of schedule. I don't care if the ol' "last 10 games" aren't supposed to matter much, if at all.
They should matter. The Huskies have lost nine of their last 12 games. Their only three wins over the past 1 1/2 months came against a Herb Pope-less Seton Hall, last-place DePaul and 14th-place Villanova.
It's all well and good that UConn beat Florida State back around Thanksgiving -- before Florida State was the Florida State that beat both Duke (on the road) and North Carolina in consecutive weekends. It's nice the Huskies have won at USF and at Notre Dame.
It's nice that UConn has played, in February alone, five games against Top 25 teams. The Huskies lost all five of them.
I'm sorry, but getting an NCAA tourney invite shouldn't be based beating a few good teams two months earlier, then playing a lot of really good teams and losing to all of them. There are too many hungry mid-major teams that, while perhaps not as talented, are more likely to make a better showing in the NCAA tourney than the Huskies.
UConn still, believe it or not, can play its way into the Big Dance. I'm not going to get into the scenarios of how for the 900th time, but it's still possible.
But sorry ... right now, UConn does not belong in the NCAA tournament. Not in my eyes.
*** A few revealing quotes from tonight:
A couple of players were just about speechless after the 72-70 loss to PC.
“I’m not sure,” Jeremy Lamb said as he tried to explain how the Huskies had collapsed. “It’s very frustrating. I don’t know.”
Asked why such a talented team has now lost nine of its last 12 games and fallen to 17-12 overall, 7-10 in the Big East, the normally effusive Roscoe Smith shook his head, took a long pause, and simply replied: “I don’t know. No comment, I don’t know.”
But perhaps Shabazz Napier gave the most revealing answer to UConn’s failure to put away the Friars (15-15, 4-13).
“No disrespect to them, but this is one of those games that you put a ‘W’ by it before you even play it,” the sophomore point guard said. “But they came out real hard … and they took this one away from us.”
*** Andre Drummond was hit with a technical after apparently throwing the ball back at ref Roger Ayers with too much force after Drummond had been called with an elbow foul.
“I told (Ayers), ‘It’s Andre Drummond, he doesn’t know how to do that. He’s too nice a person,’” associate head coach Geroge Blaney explained. “I can’t imagine that would be intentional. He just misread it, I don’t know.”
Drummond agreed: “I tossed it to him. I guess he wasn’t prepared for it, and he thought I tried to throw it at him. I usually just toss the ball to the ref. I guess he wasn’t looking and it looked like a cheap shot.”
But Drummond wasn’t about to use the call as an excuse.
“That’s part of the game. I’m not going to complain about the refs and how they officiate the game. They made a call.”
*** Drummond had 12 first-half points – including four alley-oop dunks, three of them in the first 3 ½ minutes – as PC had no answer for the 6-foot-10, athletic freshman.
But after a transition alley-oop dunk to start the second-half scoring, Drummond went scoreless the rest of the way.
“I think we went away from what we were doing in the first half,” Drummond said. “They also did a great job on defense. They went on a really big run, came back and took the game.”
Napier took responsibility for UConn’s inability to get the ball inside in the latter half.
“I just think I didn’t run the ball like I usually do,” he said. “It’s not Andre’s fault, I didn’t run the ball at all. When I did run the ball, Andre had open lanes, alley-oops. In the second half, I didn’t run the ball quick enough.”
*** Jim Calhoun was released from New York’s Beth Israel Medical Center on Tuesday and is back home after undergoing lower back surgery on Monday. Calhoun will recuperate at home and be monitored by his personal physician. The hope is that he will be back on the sidelines for Saturday’s regular-season finale against Pittsburgh, but it’s still too early to tell.
I don't care what Joey Brackets says. I don't care what their RPI is, or whether they (somehow) still have the nation's No. 1 strength of schedule. I don't care if the ol' "last 10 games" aren't supposed to matter much, if at all.
They should matter. The Huskies have lost nine of their last 12 games. Their only three wins over the past 1 1/2 months came against a Herb Pope-less Seton Hall, last-place DePaul and 14th-place Villanova.
It's all well and good that UConn beat Florida State back around Thanksgiving -- before Florida State was the Florida State that beat both Duke (on the road) and North Carolina in consecutive weekends. It's nice the Huskies have won at USF and at Notre Dame.
It's nice that UConn has played, in February alone, five games against Top 25 teams. The Huskies lost all five of them.
I'm sorry, but getting an NCAA tourney invite shouldn't be based beating a few good teams two months earlier, then playing a lot of really good teams and losing to all of them. There are too many hungry mid-major teams that, while perhaps not as talented, are more likely to make a better showing in the NCAA tourney than the Huskies.
UConn still, believe it or not, can play its way into the Big Dance. I'm not going to get into the scenarios of how for the 900th time, but it's still possible.
But sorry ... right now, UConn does not belong in the NCAA tournament. Not in my eyes.
*** A few revealing quotes from tonight:
A couple of players were just about speechless after the 72-70 loss to PC.
“I’m not sure,” Jeremy Lamb said as he tried to explain how the Huskies had collapsed. “It’s very frustrating. I don’t know.”
Asked why such a talented team has now lost nine of its last 12 games and fallen to 17-12 overall, 7-10 in the Big East, the normally effusive Roscoe Smith shook his head, took a long pause, and simply replied: “I don’t know. No comment, I don’t know.”
But perhaps Shabazz Napier gave the most revealing answer to UConn’s failure to put away the Friars (15-15, 4-13).
“No disrespect to them, but this is one of those games that you put a ‘W’ by it before you even play it,” the sophomore point guard said. “But they came out real hard … and they took this one away from us.”
*** Andre Drummond was hit with a technical after apparently throwing the ball back at ref Roger Ayers with too much force after Drummond had been called with an elbow foul.
“I told (Ayers), ‘It’s Andre Drummond, he doesn’t know how to do that. He’s too nice a person,’” associate head coach Geroge Blaney explained. “I can’t imagine that would be intentional. He just misread it, I don’t know.”
Drummond agreed: “I tossed it to him. I guess he wasn’t prepared for it, and he thought I tried to throw it at him. I usually just toss the ball to the ref. I guess he wasn’t looking and it looked like a cheap shot.”
But Drummond wasn’t about to use the call as an excuse.
“That’s part of the game. I’m not going to complain about the refs and how they officiate the game. They made a call.”
*** Drummond had 12 first-half points – including four alley-oop dunks, three of them in the first 3 ½ minutes – as PC had no answer for the 6-foot-10, athletic freshman.
But after a transition alley-oop dunk to start the second-half scoring, Drummond went scoreless the rest of the way.
“I think we went away from what we were doing in the first half,” Drummond said. “They also did a great job on defense. They went on a really big run, came back and took the game.”
Napier took responsibility for UConn’s inability to get the ball inside in the latter half.
“I just think I didn’t run the ball like I usually do,” he said. “It’s not Andre’s fault, I didn’t run the ball at all. When I did run the ball, Andre had open lanes, alley-oops. In the second half, I didn’t run the ball quick enough.”
*** Jim Calhoun was released from New York’s Beth Israel Medical Center on Tuesday and is back home after undergoing lower back surgery on Monday. Calhoun will recuperate at home and be monitored by his personal physician. The hope is that he will be back on the sidelines for Saturday’s regular-season finale against Pittsburgh, but it’s still too early to tell.
Nothing normal about Gampel Pavilion today.
The ESPN College GameDay crew is here setting up. Digger Phelps and Jay Bilas are conducting interviews with their media brethren. Students are getting ready to camp out outside the building.
Hard to think of a more eagerly-anticipated game in recent years at Gampel than Saturday night's bout between UConn and second-ranked Syracuse. Texas two years ago comes to mind, when the Longhorns were No. 1 in the nation (ironically, also a George Blaney-coached game). But the Longhorns proved to be a fraudlent No. 1 the rest of the way.
Plus, this is Syracuse -- arguably UConn's biggest rival, and one that's only exacerbated by the fact that the Orange are heading to the ACC soon and this could be the last time they ever play at Gampel.
Oh, and Syracuse is no fraud like Texas was.
“I’ve been saying all week, and I hope Jimmy (Boeheim) doesn’t get mad at me for saying this, but this possibly could be his best team," Blaney said. "He has four guys on his team that could average 20 points per game, so he has answers and depth. Now, it remains to be seen what they do in the tournament, but at this point, from what I’ve seen, it’s his best team.”
UConn trailed by just three points with about six minutes to go two weeks ago up in Syracuse, before the Orange pulled away for an eventual 18-point win.The Huskies are hoping the home crowd can put them over the top this time.
“It’s gonna be rockin’ and rollin’," said Blaney. "The kids know it, we know it."
“Gampel's gonna be like our sixth man out there," added Alex Oriakhi. "The students are out there already. You know it’s a big game when kids are camping out there. It’s gonna be crazy.”
Part of the Huskies' game preparation will consist of watching clips from other rowdy games at Gampel over the years, to show them "what it can be like here."
Ostensibely, that Texas game will be included in those clips ("I thought it carried us," Blaney said of the crowd that day). Jeremy Lamb said last year's win over Villanova (on Kemba Walker's game-winning shot) was "the loudest I've ever seen Gampel. But (Saturday), it's gonna be a white-out, it's gonna be packed and sold-out. It's gonna be loud out there."
Said Blaney: "Syracuse games here have been monstrous, a couple of North Carolina games ... Gampel brings out electricity. It’s one of the great venues I’ve ever been in, from a coaching standpoint. It’s a fabulous place to play."
*** Blaney said Shabazz Napier has been practicing all week and is "fine, ready to go." However, Napier likely won't be in the starting lineup Saturday.
*** Asked about Jim Calhoun, who'll undergo back surgery on Monday, Blaney said: “I continue to check the door every minute, because I’m waiting for him to come back, and I know the team is. I hope, more than anything, that he takes care of the pain. The pain has been tough for him – for anybody – but for him, because he doesn’t acknowledge pain."
*** Digger seems to think it's time for Calhoun to retire.
"Jim, you're 70 years old (in May), what more do you want to do?," Phelps said. "But, it's his call."
*** Lamb and Oriakhi will be participating in ESPN College Gameday's "Know Your Teammate" routine.
The ESPN College GameDay crew is here setting up. Digger Phelps and Jay Bilas are conducting interviews with their media brethren. Students are getting ready to camp out outside the building.
Hard to think of a more eagerly-anticipated game in recent years at Gampel than Saturday night's bout between UConn and second-ranked Syracuse. Texas two years ago comes to mind, when the Longhorns were No. 1 in the nation (ironically, also a George Blaney-coached game). But the Longhorns proved to be a fraudlent No. 1 the rest of the way.
Plus, this is Syracuse -- arguably UConn's biggest rival, and one that's only exacerbated by the fact that the Orange are heading to the ACC soon and this could be the last time they ever play at Gampel.
Oh, and Syracuse is no fraud like Texas was.
“I’ve been saying all week, and I hope Jimmy (Boeheim) doesn’t get mad at me for saying this, but this possibly could be his best team," Blaney said. "He has four guys on his team that could average 20 points per game, so he has answers and depth. Now, it remains to be seen what they do in the tournament, but at this point, from what I’ve seen, it’s his best team.”
UConn trailed by just three points with about six minutes to go two weeks ago up in Syracuse, before the Orange pulled away for an eventual 18-point win.The Huskies are hoping the home crowd can put them over the top this time.
“It’s gonna be rockin’ and rollin’," said Blaney. "The kids know it, we know it."
“Gampel's gonna be like our sixth man out there," added Alex Oriakhi. "The students are out there already. You know it’s a big game when kids are camping out there. It’s gonna be crazy.”
Part of the Huskies' game preparation will consist of watching clips from other rowdy games at Gampel over the years, to show them "what it can be like here."
Ostensibely, that Texas game will be included in those clips ("I thought it carried us," Blaney said of the crowd that day). Jeremy Lamb said last year's win over Villanova (on Kemba Walker's game-winning shot) was "the loudest I've ever seen Gampel. But (Saturday), it's gonna be a white-out, it's gonna be packed and sold-out. It's gonna be loud out there."
Said Blaney: "Syracuse games here have been monstrous, a couple of North Carolina games ... Gampel brings out electricity. It’s one of the great venues I’ve ever been in, from a coaching standpoint. It’s a fabulous place to play."
*** Blaney said Shabazz Napier has been practicing all week and is "fine, ready to go." However, Napier likely won't be in the starting lineup Saturday.
*** Asked about Jim Calhoun, who'll undergo back surgery on Monday, Blaney said: “I continue to check the door every minute, because I’m waiting for him to come back, and I know the team is. I hope, more than anything, that he takes care of the pain. The pain has been tough for him – for anybody – but for him, because he doesn’t acknowledge pain."
*** Digger seems to think it's time for Calhoun to retire.
"Jim, you're 70 years old (in May), what more do you want to do?," Phelps said. "But, it's his call."
*** Lamb and Oriakhi will be participating in ESPN College Gameday's "Know Your Teammate" routine.
Busy couple of days for Shabazz Napier. On Saturday, he publicly lambasted his teammates for lacking heart. On Sunday, he missed practice after re-aggravating a strained ligament in his right foot, and appeared "highly doubtful" to play Monday vs. Villanova.About four minutes before the game, it was decided Napier could play. He didn't start the game, but he sure did finish it -- with a 30-foot 3-pointer that scorched the nets with 0.6 seconds left to play, giving UConn a badly-needed, 73-70 win.
All in a couple days' work.
Here's what Napier had to say about his injury:
“(Trainer James Doran said on Monday morning) it was highly doubtful (I'd play). I told him, give me some pills, some Ibuprofen, and I think I’ll be alright. It was still hurting, but I was able to play with it. I didn’t play at 100-percent, but I played enough.”
"I told my teammates, 'If I can get out there, no excuses.'"
On his game-winner:
“I looked up, I saw Jeremy had his hands up in the air, but I was like, ‘I’ve gotta take this last shot.’
"I had a flashback. I used to do that a lot in high school, a lot of game-winners. Usually I hit them from real, real deep. I just shot it, and I was able to make the shot."
“In that situation, you don’t take the best shot, you take the most open shot. (Dominic) Cheek was playing me far back. If I got a little closer, he might have come up.”
And, of course, on how his teammates reacted to his postgame quotes:
“They react in their own way. They understood where I was coming from. I probably said too much, and you guys (the media) probably led it to a different point, but I understand. I just want my teammates to go out there and give there all. Today, they did. I can’t complain. We had a lot of problems today, and we stuck with it.”
Never good when we're called "you guys." But I digress ...
Never good when we're called "you guys." But I digress ...
His teammates didn't completely understand where Napier was coming from.
“At the end of the day, we definitely didn’t need that from Shabazz, or from anyone," said Roscoe Smith. "But, I kind of think he knew that he messed up. But, as a team, as a unit, we didn’t have any type of judgment on him. We still accept him with open arms, continue to keep our heads up.”
Added Jeremy Lamb: “The team looked at it as, ‘Let’s just respond.’ We didn’t try to dwell on it.”
Asked if Napier's criticism was accurate, Lamb simply said: "Not sure, not sure.”
Said George Blaney: "Shabazz speaks a lot, all the time. (His teammates) knew, in most cases, he was probably right."
*** Lamb, obviously, steppe dup big time with a career-best 32 points, including 10 of UConn's 13 in overtime.
"I think No. 3 was just OK tonight," Blaney dead-panned.
“Jeremy played terrific,” Napier said. “I think he could play like that most of the time. Today, he had to go the extra step, because I wasn’t 100-percent. Once he saw that, I think he really went at it and had to be an offensive threat.”
Roscoe Smith finished with seven points and five rebounds but dozens of hustle plays, including a huge play with 25.8 seconds left in OT when he fought Pinkston for a rebound and knocked it off the Villanova forward out-of-bounds, keeping the ball in UConn’s possession after a Ryan Boatright missed free throw. Lamb followed by knocking down a pair of freebies to give the Huskies a 69-66 lead.
Andre Drummond added eight points and 11 boards for the Huskies.
It’s worth noting that Villanova (11-16, 4-11) was without the services of its leading scorer, Maalik Wayns, who’s out with a sprained MCL in his right knee. The short-handed Wildcats had squandered a 20-point lead to Notre Dame two days earlier, also losing in overtime by a 74-70 tally.
It’s also worth noting that the first 12 minutes of the game were unquestionably UConn’s worst 12 minutes of its season.
At one point midway through the opening half, UConn went 11 straight possessions without scoring – 10 missed shots and three turnovers. Villanova scored 12 points during that span, opening up a 26-8 advantage, and it appeared the Huskies had hit rock-bottom.
But Lamb converted a conventional 3-point play to finally end UConn’s 7 ½-minute drought, and the floodgates opened. The Huskies outscored Villanova 22-4 over the final 8:06 of the half – keyed by 10 points from Lamb – and somehow found themselves tied at the break.
The 18-point deficit was the largest UConn has overcome to win a game this season, trumping a comeback from 13 points down to Coppin State back on Nov. 20.
*** With about four seconds left in the first half, Drummond grabbed a defensive rebounded and unleashed a fullcourt shot. Though there was about a five-second difference, it conjured up images of Roscoe's fullcourt heave with about 10 seconds left in regulation at Texas last season.
“Someone said, ‘Yeah Roscoe, yeah Roscoe,'" Napier reported. "He didn’t see there was a lot of time left. Then, when he got the ball at .9 seconds, he didn’t want to shoot it. It was like, ‘Why didn’t he shoot that one.’ It was a funny moment.”
*** The Committee on Academic Performance met on Monday but didn't come to a conclusion on whether it will use APR scores from 2010-11 and 2011-12 (rather than 2009-10 and 2010-11) to determine whether teams can qualify for the 2013 tournament.
Shabazz Napier speaks from the heart.Here's what Napier had to say about his teammates:
"I've got to question a lot of these guys' hearts. Just simple stuff like allowing alley-oops at the end of the game, just quitting ... it doesn't look like UConn basketball. You don't quit. It doesn't look like basketball at all. Where I'm from, you ain't getting that alley-oop at the end of the game. You won the game, you won the game. Don't try to embarass us. That's just a measure of your heart. If you've got to knock somebody out of the air, you knock them out of the air. The other team's not going to beat you up physically. It can't happen. It looked like we gave up at the end. That's tough to say, because we're a great team. For those words to be coming out of my mouth, it's just horrendous."
He continued:
"When push comes to shove, it's who's out there and who's not giving it back. Some guys don't want to give it back. Some guys get punched and want to throw a pillow at somebody. It's basketball, you're supposed to go out there and give it your all. This is team basketball, it's not tennis, it's not golf, it's not a one-player sport. You get punched, and some guys are throwing pillows back. You're not supposed to throw pillows back, you're supposed to lock up on defense and do the necessary things to get the win."
"I'm blunt. I told guys all the time what I feel, but sometimes I hold a lot back in ... I don't want to say the wrong things. But at the end of the game, I told the guys, 'I've got to question a lot of your hearts.' You're not giving your all. I make mistakes, but at the same time, I learn from my mistakes, I make sure I apologize for my mistakes, and I tell guys, 'I'm not perfect.' The only reason I'm speaking out is because I'm the captain, and at the end of the day, I"m the only one who wants to speak out. Everybody else, when they get in the locker room, they're so quiet, like we just died."
Napier specifically called out Tyler Olander.
"Tyler can be real good for this team. He can knock that mid-range shot down. I don't think any other big can shoot like him. He gets out there and plays timid. We try to tell him all the time, 'Do the things you do in practice, you'll be a good player.' He's timid. We don't understand why he wants to throw a bounce pass three feet away from his other teammate, rather than shoot that mid-range shot."
So there you have it, from UConn's captain. A lot of what he says is true (though defending late-game alley-oops is the least of the Huskies' problems; stopping Marquette's early-game fast break would have been far more vital).
I don't think UConn lacks heart, but when compared to the fire and heart and veteran leadership and smarts displayed by Marquette today, the Huskies sure fell short on just about all counts.
And it should be noted: Marquette is good. A team that can defend like that, with two terrific senior players in Darius Johnson-Odom and Jae Crowder, with the ability to shoot (10 3-pointers) and run the floor, has got to be dangerous come NCAA tourney time.
I know I'll have them advancing pretty far in my bracket, for whatever that's worth.
As for UConn: Yeah, they're still in the Big Dance, based on their RPI and strength of schedule. But do they really pass the eye test right now? Are they truly a deserving tourney team, after losing nine of their last 13 games?
It was halftime of tonight's eventual 80-54 rout of awful DePaul, and the funniest thing happened: normally mild-mannered George Blaney decided to get all Jim Calhoun on the Huskies.
He had just watched UConn squander a 16-point lead down to 10 as it got sloppy and caught up in DePaul's ugly, frenetic style, and he wasn't happy.
"I really got on them pretty good at halftime," Blaney said. "It was all about just playing harder and harder and harder."
And make no mistake, Blaney's definition of "getting into them pretty good" wasn't too different from Calhoun's, according to all involved.
“He got into it,” Shabazz Napier reported. “You sit back and you’re like, ‘Wow, he’s yelling.’ Because Blaney doesn’t yell. I got guys in the hall and said, ‘Do y’all realize what just happened,’ because Blaney doesn’t usually yell at us, so we’ve got to play hard and give that extra effort. For him to be yelling, that means something must be going wrong. He really chewed us (out).”
Added Jeremy Lamb: "When we see him yell at us, we say we're definitely doing something wrong. So, we definitely tried to pick it up."
They did, outscoring DePaul 19-5 to start the latter half and never looking back. UConn's first 10 baskets of the second half were all either dunks or layups. Andre Drummond had five dunks alone in that span; the Huskies wound up with 10 overall for the game.
They actually had fun tonight, and it showed. When Drummond hit a rare free throw, the Gampel Pavilion crowd let out a mock cheer and Alex Oriakhi couldn’t contain the wide grin spread across his face.
Later, little-used 7-footer Enosch Wolf tipped in a missed shot for his first field goal of the season, again eliciting rowdy cheers from the student section.
Smiles, good times and alley-oops ruled the night.
“This is the way it should be,” Napier said after scoring 14 points and doling out a season-high 11 assists, several of them alley-oop hurls to Drummond. “Basketball is a sport where you can have fun. Win or lose, at the end of the day, you’re supposed to have fun playing it.”
“It was nice,” agreed Lamb. “Now, we’ve just got to focus on keeping it going.”
Lamb finished with a game-high 18 points, Drummond had 15 points and nine boards and Oriakhi notched just his second double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds. (He had 11 double-doubles last season).
Ryan Boatright dished out seven assists (UConn had 23 as a team on 33 baskets), and DeAndre Daniels, who didn’t play at all against Syracuse, knocked down a quick pair of 3-pointers and finished with eight points off the bench.
"I'm very pleased with his effort," Blaney said of Daniels. "He gives you that length, and the ability to rebound and block shots around the basket. He deserves more time based on his play today."
Blaney was effusive in his praise for Drummond, who was "the runner/jumper we all think he is ... and check this out: he guarded (Cleveland) Melvin the whole game and did a great job. That's a 6-11 guy playing a three-man who happens to play the four position."
"He's like Gronkowski," Blaney added, "he catches everything."
As for Napier: "I'm liking the way he's handling things on the floor. He's talking to peopl, keeping people in the game. More imprtant, he's pushing the ball at people. If he and Ryan can push the ball so much at people, that puts them back on their heels."
Said Napier: “I’m not here to pad my stats, I’m not here to claim my frame. I’m here to be a role player, to help the team win. When we win, we all look good … You can be the 12th man, the assistant coach, the trainer, the weight-lifting trainer. At the end of the day, everybody looks good because UConn looks good.”
UConn outrebounded DePaul 50-27, outscored it 44-26 in the paint and shot 63-percent (19-for-30) in the second half.
Oh, and it's worth saying again: DePaul really is awful. Some thought they'd be better this season. Not really.
He had just watched UConn squander a 16-point lead down to 10 as it got sloppy and caught up in DePaul's ugly, frenetic style, and he wasn't happy.
"I really got on them pretty good at halftime," Blaney said. "It was all about just playing harder and harder and harder."
And make no mistake, Blaney's definition of "getting into them pretty good" wasn't too different from Calhoun's, according to all involved.
“He got into it,” Shabazz Napier reported. “You sit back and you’re like, ‘Wow, he’s yelling.’ Because Blaney doesn’t yell. I got guys in the hall and said, ‘Do y’all realize what just happened,’ because Blaney doesn’t usually yell at us, so we’ve got to play hard and give that extra effort. For him to be yelling, that means something must be going wrong. He really chewed us (out).”
Added Jeremy Lamb: "When we see him yell at us, we say we're definitely doing something wrong. So, we definitely tried to pick it up."
They actually had fun tonight, and it showed. When Drummond hit a rare free throw, the Gampel Pavilion crowd let out a mock cheer and Alex Oriakhi couldn’t contain the wide grin spread across his face.
Later, little-used 7-footer Enosch Wolf tipped in a missed shot for his first field goal of the season, again eliciting rowdy cheers from the student section.
Smiles, good times and alley-oops ruled the night.
“This is the way it should be,” Napier said after scoring 14 points and doling out a season-high 11 assists, several of them alley-oop hurls to Drummond. “Basketball is a sport where you can have fun. Win or lose, at the end of the day, you’re supposed to have fun playing it.”
“It was nice,” agreed Lamb. “Now, we’ve just got to focus on keeping it going.”
Lamb finished with a game-high 18 points, Drummond had 15 points and nine boards and Oriakhi notched just his second double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds. (He had 11 double-doubles last season).
Ryan Boatright dished out seven assists (UConn had 23 as a team on 33 baskets), and DeAndre Daniels, who didn’t play at all against Syracuse, knocked down a quick pair of 3-pointers and finished with eight points off the bench.
"I'm very pleased with his effort," Blaney said of Daniels. "He gives you that length, and the ability to rebound and block shots around the basket. He deserves more time based on his play today."
Blaney was effusive in his praise for Drummond, who was "the runner/jumper we all think he is ... and check this out: he guarded (Cleveland) Melvin the whole game and did a great job. That's a 6-11 guy playing a three-man who happens to play the four position."
"He's like Gronkowski," Blaney added, "he catches everything."
As for Napier: "I'm liking the way he's handling things on the floor. He's talking to peopl, keeping people in the game. More imprtant, he's pushing the ball at people. If he and Ryan can push the ball so much at people, that puts them back on their heels."
Said Napier: “I’m not here to pad my stats, I’m not here to claim my frame. I’m here to be a role player, to help the team win. When we win, we all look good … You can be the 12th man, the assistant coach, the trainer, the weight-lifting trainer. At the end of the day, everybody looks good because UConn looks good.”
UConn outrebounded DePaul 50-27, outscored it 44-26 in the paint and shot 63-percent (19-for-30) in the second half.
Oh, and it's worth saying again: DePaul really is awful. Some thought they'd be better this season. Not really.
When he crumpled to the floor after diving for a loose ball with 14 minutes, 19 seconds left in Saturday’s game, Andre Drummond thought he had broken his right ankle.
“It was hurting like crazy,” he recalled.
So were UConn’s chances of pulling off an upset of No. 2 Syracuse at the Carrier Dome.
Drummond was helped off the floor by trainer James Doran and reserve Enosch Wolf and eventually taken back to the UConn locker room, with the Huskies trailing by five.
By the time he emerged a short while later, UConn’s deficit was nine with about 9 ½ minutes to go. More importantly, however, Drummond re-entered the game and, though playing with a noticeable limp and going scoreless the rest of the way, appears to have avoided any major injury.
“It’s a little sore, but I’m not gonna stress out,” the 6-foot-10 freshman center said after UConn’s 85-67 loss to the Orange. “I’m gonna get back to school and take care of it.”
Added associate head coach George Blaney: “I hope it’s not serious, and I hope that it wasn’t the difference (in the game), but it certainly would have been nice to have him that stretch when he was out.”
Indeed, after a poor first half, Drummond came out in the latter and established himself as a major presence down low. He scored eight of the Huskies’ first 10 points on a variety of dunks, spin moves even a couple of free throws. It all came about after some impassioned advice from the coaching staff at halftime.
“We talked about attacking the rim,” Blaney reported. “Andre’s been kind of reluctant to attack the rim. The first half, he put up a couple of soft shots. We started screaming at him, ‘You’ve got to go two-handed, full-force, and rip it down.’ He was much, much better the second half.”
Drummond wound up with 13 pints and a team-high seven rebounds, but was disappointed his injury prevented him from more.
"It’s frustrating,” he admitted. “I was just getting it going, too. We could have had this game. It really killed everything. We had the momentum going, and it slowed us down a little bit.”
Blaney was happy with Drummond’s toughness in returning to the game despite the injury.
“I love that part about him. What’s interesting about his character is that he’s learning. He’s never had to compete before, he’s always been the biggest, strongest, most natural athlete in any game he’s ever been in. Now he’s learning how to compete at this level. You have to do things: take peoples’ legs out, run the court, finish strong at the rim, get people off you so you two-handed dunk rather than one-handed dunk. He’s picking it up and getting better and better as we go along.”
*** Jeremy Lamb led UConn with 18 points but was just 2-for-10 on 3-pointers and, too often, seemed to pas up on open shots.
“I would have liked to have Jeremy a little bit more ready to pull the trigger,” Blaney said. “I think he passed up probably four or five shots. I don’t think he thinks he’s shooting the ball well, and so I think he’s passing up to try to get a better shot. I don’t care, I want him shooting open shots. I don’t care whether he makes them or doesn’t, at this stage, I want him shooting open shots.”
Lamb has now made just 7 of 33 3-pointers (21 percent) over his last four games.
“I’m not hesitant,” he insisted, “it’s just sometimes, I try to move the ball a little too much. I don’t want to take quick shots, that’s what their defense is predicated on. There were probably a couple of shots I could have taken that I didn’t realize I had, but I’ve just got to realize that.”
*** Jim Calhoun missed his third straight game with spinal stenosis, and his return to the sidelines still is in question.
“He’s still in a lot of pain,” said Blaney. “He’s been talking to doctors in New York, Boston and at UConn. The problem with backs is that there are all different supposed solutions, and you have to pick the right one at the right time. That’s what he’s trying to decide. His brother, the heart surgeon, is kind of monitoring everything, and I think they’ll come to some kind of decision shortly.”
Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim said he talked to Blaney about Calhoun before the game.
“You can’t get out of bed, you can’t coach,” Boeheim shrugged. “It’s obvious he’s one of the great coaches of all time. If he’s not there, it makes a difference.”
*** Shabazz Napier had 11 points and seven assists for UConn.
“Probably, as far as leadership was concerned, it was the best Shabazz has been since he’s been with us," said Blaney. "I thought he kept us all together and pushed the ball great.”
*** UConn's probable exclusion from the 2013 NCAA tournament doesn't appear to be weighing on the players' minds
“I don’t even think anybody on this team knew about that," said Ryan Boatright. "At least I had no idea until you just told me. We’ve got this year right now. This is the year we’ve got to worry about. We need to concentrate on getting wins and turning the season around.”
Drummond was asked if the penalty might figure in his decision on whether or not to turn pro after this season.
"Honestly, I don’t know," he said. "I’m focusing on this season. I’m not going to focus on what’s happening next season. We’re right here and now, playing for a national championship. I don’t care what’s going to happen next year.”
“It was hurting like crazy,” he recalled.
So were UConn’s chances of pulling off an upset of No. 2 Syracuse at the Carrier Dome.
Drummond was helped off the floor by trainer James Doran and reserve Enosch Wolf and eventually taken back to the UConn locker room, with the Huskies trailing by five.
By the time he emerged a short while later, UConn’s deficit was nine with about 9 ½ minutes to go. More importantly, however, Drummond re-entered the game and, though playing with a noticeable limp and going scoreless the rest of the way, appears to have avoided any major injury.
“It’s a little sore, but I’m not gonna stress out,” the 6-foot-10 freshman center said after UConn’s 85-67 loss to the Orange. “I’m gonna get back to school and take care of it.”
Added associate head coach George Blaney: “I hope it’s not serious, and I hope that it wasn’t the difference (in the game), but it certainly would have been nice to have him that stretch when he was out.”
Indeed, after a poor first half, Drummond came out in the latter and established himself as a major presence down low. He scored eight of the Huskies’ first 10 points on a variety of dunks, spin moves even a couple of free throws. It all came about after some impassioned advice from the coaching staff at halftime.
“We talked about attacking the rim,” Blaney reported. “Andre’s been kind of reluctant to attack the rim. The first half, he put up a couple of soft shots. We started screaming at him, ‘You’ve got to go two-handed, full-force, and rip it down.’ He was much, much better the second half.”
Drummond wound up with 13 pints and a team-high seven rebounds, but was disappointed his injury prevented him from more.
"It’s frustrating,” he admitted. “I was just getting it going, too. We could have had this game. It really killed everything. We had the momentum going, and it slowed us down a little bit.”
Blaney was happy with Drummond’s toughness in returning to the game despite the injury.
“I love that part about him. What’s interesting about his character is that he’s learning. He’s never had to compete before, he’s always been the biggest, strongest, most natural athlete in any game he’s ever been in. Now he’s learning how to compete at this level. You have to do things: take peoples’ legs out, run the court, finish strong at the rim, get people off you so you two-handed dunk rather than one-handed dunk. He’s picking it up and getting better and better as we go along.”
*** Jeremy Lamb led UConn with 18 points but was just 2-for-10 on 3-pointers and, too often, seemed to pas up on open shots.
“I would have liked to have Jeremy a little bit more ready to pull the trigger,” Blaney said. “I think he passed up probably four or five shots. I don’t think he thinks he’s shooting the ball well, and so I think he’s passing up to try to get a better shot. I don’t care, I want him shooting open shots. I don’t care whether he makes them or doesn’t, at this stage, I want him shooting open shots.”
Lamb has now made just 7 of 33 3-pointers (21 percent) over his last four games.
“I’m not hesitant,” he insisted, “it’s just sometimes, I try to move the ball a little too much. I don’t want to take quick shots, that’s what their defense is predicated on. There were probably a couple of shots I could have taken that I didn’t realize I had, but I’ve just got to realize that.”
*** Jim Calhoun missed his third straight game with spinal stenosis, and his return to the sidelines still is in question.
“He’s still in a lot of pain,” said Blaney. “He’s been talking to doctors in New York, Boston and at UConn. The problem with backs is that there are all different supposed solutions, and you have to pick the right one at the right time. That’s what he’s trying to decide. His brother, the heart surgeon, is kind of monitoring everything, and I think they’ll come to some kind of decision shortly.”
Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim said he talked to Blaney about Calhoun before the game.
“You can’t get out of bed, you can’t coach,” Boeheim shrugged. “It’s obvious he’s one of the great coaches of all time. If he’s not there, it makes a difference.”
*** Shabazz Napier had 11 points and seven assists for UConn.
“Probably, as far as leadership was concerned, it was the best Shabazz has been since he’s been with us," said Blaney. "I thought he kept us all together and pushed the ball great.”
*** UConn's probable exclusion from the 2013 NCAA tournament doesn't appear to be weighing on the players' minds
“I don’t even think anybody on this team knew about that," said Ryan Boatright. "At least I had no idea until you just told me. We’ve got this year right now. This is the year we’ve got to worry about. We need to concentrate on getting wins and turning the season around.”
Drummond was asked if the penalty might figure in his decision on whether or not to turn pro after this season.
"Honestly, I don’t know," he said. "I’m focusing on this season. I’m not going to focus on what’s happening next season. We’re right here and now, playing for a national championship. I don’t care what’s going to happen next year.”
UConn's intense practice the day after its regular-season ending loss to Notre Dame last season will go down in the annals of program history.
The way Jim Calhoun and others have described it, that practice is what kick-started the team's miraculous, 11-game run to Big East and NCAA tournament championships.
Could a players-only meeting called by Alex Oriakhi before Friday's practice yield a similar season turnaround? No one's suggesting the Huskies are going to go unbeaten the rest of the way, but everyone involved believes the emotional meeting will have a big impact. It certainly appeared to in Saturday's whitewash of an admittedly slumping, shorthanded Seton Hall.
Here's what Oriakhi and his teammates are saying about 'The Meeting':
“I told guys, ‘It really hurts not to make the tournament,'" Oriakhi said. "We weren’t playing together, so I told guys I’m willing to give up my minutes, I don’t care anymore. I don’t care if I’m on the bench, I’ll be the biggest cheerleader, I just want to win. When I said that, you could see in the guys’ eyes, they really bought into it. I said, ‘Either we’re in or we’re out.’ Everybody said we’re in. I think that really helped. It’s crazy when you change everybody’s mindset, what can happen.”
He continued:
"I just told guys, I apologize for being selfish, too much thinking about my minutes, this and that. I think it’s what we needed. My freshman year, we didn’t have that. If I’m the captain of the team, I have to take responsibility of what happens, whether I’m playing or not.”
Oriakhi said his parents, Alex and Angela, as well as assistant coach Kevin Freeman were all pleading with him to call a team meeting.
“If I’m hearing it from all different directions, I’m wrong if I don’t," he said. "I really think that meeting was all the difference in the world. It’s crazy what a few words will do.”
Oriakhi isn't necessarily a natural leader, he admits. But ...
“That’s what this team needs, that’s what I have to do. I’m new to this, as well. I’ve always been the guy in the backseat. It’s definitely something new to me, I’m willing to do it, though.”
He said Roscoe Smith also addressed the team during the meeting.
"He said he wanted to apologize for being selfish, as well, worrying about minutes. He told us, ‘When we win, we all look good.’ I asked him, ‘How many points did you score in the national championship game?’ He said, ‘None.’ I said, ‘Do you care?’ He said, ‘No.’ When guys heard that, they all bought into it. I looked into everybody’s eyes, and you could see they were willing to make a change. Guys bought into that, and it really, really showed on the court.”
The meeting went down right after George Blaney had held a meeting of his own with Oriakhi, Jeremy Lamb and Shabazz Napie.
“That’s what leaders do," Blaney said of Oriakhi. "That’s a good job.”
UConn players agreed:
“It was a good meeting," said Jeremy Lamb. "He really got serious with us. If he talks, aother people got stuff off their minds. We just told everybody we needed everybody on the team. In these hard times, everybody’s got to come together. It really meant a lot to the team. I appreciate him for doing that.”
Added Ryan Boatright: “It was real emotional. Alex and the upperclassmen felt like they had to get some stuff off their chest. Being a freshman, I just sat back and listened to what everybody had to say. We had a great practice, and it carried over to the game.”
We'll have some video shortly ...
A few more details from today:
*** Blaney said he spoke with Calhoun after the game, and that Calhoun watched the game with the volume turned down so that he could focus on the team's energy.
"He felt that Alex was the key to the first half," Blaney said.
He added: "There was a little bit of jump in his voice that wasn’t there this morning or yesterday. I was happy we were able to make him feel better.”
*** About the only excitement in the second half (aside from some thunderous Andre Drummond dunks) came late in the game, when Napier and SHU's Jordan Theodore started jawing after Theodore was called for a foul on Napier.
“He said Jordan was fouling him the whole possession," Boatright reported. "I guess when he went for the ball, he kinda scratched his neck. They were just tangled up. Just two dudes with emotion going on. They shook hands when we came out of our timeout."
However, SHU coach Kevin Willard wasn't pleased with the call (or, in particular, referee Gene Steratore) and was ejected from the game after getting consecutive T's.
Willard didn't mince words afterwards:
"I thought the refs called a good game. To be honest with you, there is one of them I don't get along with. I wanted to wish him a happy Valentine's Day. He didn't like that, and that was the end of that ... I don't mind getting blown out. I do have an issue when the refs enjoy the blow out. And I don't think they should be smiling or enjoying one team getting their butt kicked and another team not ... That's what I saw."
*** New Haven's Freddie Wilson, a Hillhouse product and Seton Hall frosh, scored just two points in 20 minutes but is making strides with the Pirates.
UConn is going with an eighth different starting lineup today -- and let me be the first to say, I like it.
The Huskies are going with a three-guard look: Ryan Boatright, Shabazz Napier and Jeremy Lamb. Andre Drummond's the center and Tyler Olander the power forward.
I think this is the best lineup to get an offensive flow going, especially against a zone defense. Boatright makes things happen, as we saw before he got into foul trouble at Georgetown. He can make Drummond very happy getting him the rock.
Ditto for Olander, the team's best big-man passer who sees the floor well when he gets the ball at the high post and can also pop in a 15-footer.
Not to say Roscoe Smith, Alex Oriakhi, Niels Giffey and DeAndre Daniels don't still have roles on this team, but this starting lineup may be UConn's best right now.
*** The Huskies catch a break as Seton Hall top scorer, rebounder Herb Pope won't play after bruising his rib Tuesday night against Marquette. If UConn doesn't win today ...
*** Karl Hobbs has been bumped up to assistant coach while Jim Calhoun is out. He'll be able to coach the team during practices and, obviously, during games during this span.
*** I wouldn't expect Calhoun to make the trip to Syracuse. Getting on airplanes is one of the worst things for his back right now. (Oh, and so is the stress from losing. Yeah, Syracuse might not be a good remedy).
The Huskies are going with a three-guard look: Ryan Boatright, Shabazz Napier and Jeremy Lamb. Andre Drummond's the center and Tyler Olander the power forward.
I think this is the best lineup to get an offensive flow going, especially against a zone defense. Boatright makes things happen, as we saw before he got into foul trouble at Georgetown. He can make Drummond very happy getting him the rock.
Ditto for Olander, the team's best big-man passer who sees the floor well when he gets the ball at the high post and can also pop in a 15-footer.
Not to say Roscoe Smith, Alex Oriakhi, Niels Giffey and DeAndre Daniels don't still have roles on this team, but this starting lineup may be UConn's best right now.
*** The Huskies catch a break as Seton Hall top scorer, rebounder Herb Pope won't play after bruising his rib Tuesday night against Marquette. If UConn doesn't win today ...
*** Karl Hobbs has been bumped up to assistant coach while Jim Calhoun is out. He'll be able to coach the team during practices and, obviously, during games during this span.
*** I wouldn't expect Calhoun to make the trip to Syracuse. Getting on airplanes is one of the worst things for his back right now. (Oh, and so is the stress from losing. Yeah, Syracuse might not be a good remedy).
Shabazz Napier, George Blaney talk about Jim Calhoun's medical leave and how the team will miss him.
Napier also discusses how he felt about not being in the starting lineup Wednesday at Georgetown.
And here's a Jim Calhoun career slideshow:
Napier also discusses how he felt about not being in the starting lineup Wednesday at Georgetown.
And here's a Jim Calhoun career slideshow:
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