forums

Final Four vs. UCONN - 4/1 8:49pm EDT on CBS

GladeCane said:
Yeah, they are a very good team.

I want to hear from the UCONN fans, those who have annointed their team as far and away the greatest team this year, what happened during a long stretch of the season where they were just ok.
Click to expand...
I am a UConn fan who has never anointed my team as the greatest. I am surprised and grateful for UConn to be in the Final Four. The UConn fans I know have nothing but respect (and some fear) for what Miami has accomplished and for the challenge they'll present. The best answer to your question was well summarized in a story appearing earlier this week.

Athletic Article

Basically, teams were defending UConn by sagging off of (dorking) Andre Jackson who is not a great shooter. UConn's offense stalled, Jackson was taking too many long shots, and we were losing. I think McDermott & Creighton tried it first, Miller and Xavier used it as well as others (like Pitino in the 1st round). It took Hurley a little bit to solve it, and he has with a number of strategies that the article details, and since then UConn is 13 and 2 with the Marquette BET loss due, in large part, because AJ only played 16 minutes due to foul trouble.

Answering since you asked...and UConn is undefeated against non-conference opponents. I do agree though, with a common theme on this thread, that UConn has never faced a team quite like Miami yet this year.
 
Advertisement
GladeCane said:
Yeah, they are a very good team.

I want to hear from the UCONN fans, those who have annointed their team as far and away the greatest team this year, what happened during a long stretch of the season where they were just ok.
Click to expand...
UCONN fan here that has NOT anointed them the greatest...well, I do think we are the best team on any given night, but certainly not unbeatable by any stretch. And I do feel Miami will be the toughest match up by far in this tournament.

To answer your question, and to summarize a Hurley press conference from today:

He said basically three things happened:

1. He admittedly made mistakes coaching. Not only in X's and O's - he couldn't figure out what to do with Andre Jackson to save his life, and if Andre was any less of a competitor, I swear the kid would've quit basketball, that's how bad it got. Also, the way he behaved towards the refs and others. I will say this, he has certainly grown a lot this season. It felt like in the past year and a half, this guy was a technical foul waiting to happen. Ever since we righted
the ship, he really has gotten his emotions under control.

2. Defense. We were an elite defense in the first 14 games where we went undefeated and beat everyone by double digits. All of the sudden, Hurley said they forgot how to play - maybe complacency? Regardless, they've since got back to what they were doing and you saw what they did to the number one offense in the country in Gonzaga.

3. The schedule. This ALMOST sounds like an excuse but the 6 losses in 8 games were: at Xavier, next at Providence, next at Marquette. Then they lost 2 clunkers and then another loss to Xavier. It was a tough stretch and the league was very good this year.

Im looking forward to an amazing game tomorrow.
 
Advertisement
GladeCane said:
Yeah, they are a very good team.

I want to hear from the UCONN fans, those who have annointed their team as far and away the greatest team this year, what happened during a long stretch of the season where they were just ok.
Click to expand...
Honestly, I don't think the majority of UConn fans think the team is far and away the greatest team. I chalk it up to youthful exuberance. They're rabid fans so it's to be expected. If puffing out ones chest feathers makes them feel more comfortable, so be it. That's fandom. I respect all opponents, Miami in particular. Games are decided on the court, not on fan forums. Truth be told, I don't think your fans on this board are any different than UConn fans on thier board. They're all predicting a win, as are your fans. We'll know who wins after the game. People can predict outcomes all they want, but that's not how I roll. Predicting blowouts is disrespectful to any team still playing at this stage of the season. The talking heads and self-proclaimed media "experts" aren't helping matters any. They're stoking the fire.
 
NC_Canes_11 said:
Pretty sure Omier is also under 30 minutes a game this year.
Click to expand...
Omier is probably a better rebounder even with the variance in minutes played. That being said, I saw a stat today that said UCONN has more balanced rebounding. I think it said Miami has 3 guys that avg 4 boards a game, where UCONN has 6 guys. I think you may be surprised at how well UCONN guards can grab rebounds. Hawkins can get up there (assuming he isnt pooping himself come game time) and our PG Newton has actually had not one, but two triple doubles this year. Jackson at forward is an athletic freak who will grab them in bunches as well. I will fully admit Omier is impressive as ****
 
Advertisement
ewecon said:
Can't explain it. Very strange year for UConn..... they start 14-0, then go 2-6, then 13-2. Hurley took some of the blame for the 2-6 stretch by saying he went away from doing what UConn does best. They definitely shouldn't have lost some of the games they did. But, they did. Personally, I don't really look back on the regular season. To me, it only matters how they're playing now. They're very fickle. Never sure which team will show up, Will they be the 27-2 team, or the 2-6 team? I guess we'll find out tomorrow night. I don't make predictions. I'll only predict that it will be far from an easy game for us.
Click to expand...
Fair enough. Some of Miami's losses were head scratchers. They had leads where they seemed to freeze at the end.
 
Friendlyrival said:
Omier is probably a better rebounder even with the variance in minutes played. That being said, I saw a stat today that said UCONN has more balanced rebounding. I think it said Miami has 3 guys that avg 4 boards a game, where UCONN has 6 guys. I think you may be surprised at how well UCONN guards can grab rebounds. Hawkins can get up there (assuming he isnt pooping himself come game time) and our PG Newton has actually had not one, but two triple doubles this year. Jackson at forward is an athletic freak who will grab them in bunches as well. I will fully admit Omier is impressive as ****
Click to expand...
That’s a better argument to make. But I’m sure they also get more opportunities bc they hold teams to 60 points a game, compared to Miami’s 70. Over 30+ less steals on the season for Uconn as well. I believe Miami holds a decent edge in turnover % per possession overall as well.

There’s more factors that go into to the numbers than just 6 guys average “X amount” compared to 3 guys.
 
NC_Canes_11 said:
That’s a better argument to make. But I’m sure they also get more opportunities bc they hold teams to 60 points a game, compared to Miami’s 70. Over 30+ less steals on the season for Uconn as well. I believe Miami holds a decent edge in turnover % per possession overall as well.

There’s more factors that go into to the numbers than just 6 guys average “X amount” compared to 3 guys.
Click to expand...
100%, I was just throwing out a stat. And you're right, you guys definitely will turn us over more than the other way around. We play defense more with size / blocks than with strips / steals.
 
Welcome to the huskie fans who’ve taken time to post! Some good analysis & respect for us. You guys are favored for a reason. We will have to do some things better than we have all year to win. I’m hopeful we play our best and not afraid to say, if it takes you guys not playing your best….I’m all for it!
 
Advertisement
Advertisement
Southern Man said:
I am a UConn fan who has never anointed my team as the greatest. I am surprised and grateful for UConn to be in the Final Four. The UConn fans I know have nothing but respect (and some fear) for what Miami has accomplished and for the challenge they'll present. The best answer to your question was well summarized in a story appearing earlier this week.

Athletic Article

Basically, teams were defending UConn by sagging off of (dorking) Andre Jackson who is not a great shooter. UConn's offense stalled, Jackson was taking too many long shots, and we were losing. I think McDermott & Creighton tried it first, Miller and Xavier used it as well as others (like Pitino in the 1st round). It took Hurley a little bit to solve it, and he has with a number of strategies that the article details, and since then UConn is 13 and 2 with the Marquette BET loss due, in large part, because AJ only played 16 minutes due to foul trouble.

Answering since you asked...and UConn is undefeated against non-conference opponents. I do agree though, with a common theme on this thread, that UConn has never faced a team quite like Miami yet this year.
Click to expand...
Thanks! Exactly what I was looking for. Good luck tomorrow and may the best team win.
 
Advertisement
Back
Top