To all UConn fans, I say don’t believe what you here. While the team showed a lot of toughness coming back and almost winning in a hostile environment in Friday’s 69-65 loss at Kansas, there is ultimately no such thing as a “good loss”. UConn did not play well against the Jayhawks, with no player having a strong all-around game besides Tristen Newton. In fact, if it wasn’t for an amazing performance by Newton, the team would have been blown out. The Huskies did a putrid job with penetrating the defense and creating easy scoring opportunities for much of the game, looked significantly less athletic than Kansas, and continued to have defensive lapses that ultimately allowed the Jayhawks to go on a decisive rally to end the game. Throw in a lousy performance at the free throw line (8-15) and Cam Stewart injuring both his toes and having it badly affect his shooting performance, and it was all too much for UConn to overcome. While this issues may have been for just one game, they are definitely ones that could affect the team’s performances against North Carolina and Gonzaga.
The Huskies are in a very vulnerable position heading into their game with the Tar Heels at MSG Tuesday night. With Spencer hobbled (the pain in his feet clearly affected his shooting accuracy against Kansas), Donovan Clinigan still dealing with a foot that continues to hurt him and affect his athleticism, and Alex Karaban ‘s injured finger possibly affecting his shooting accuracy as well, it isn’t an ideal time for the team to be facing such tough back-to-back opponents. Dan Hurley even admitted on Monday that Spencer, Clinigan and Karaban have been limited in practice, and that it is not a guarantee that Spencer will play. While Stephen Castle is likely to return against UNC, I am sure he will be on a minutes restriction. Considering that North Carolina has an elite offense that likes to push the ball, you have to hope that one or two of those aforementioned guys as well as Castle can keep up on both ends and be effective. Otherwise, there is a very good chance the Huskies will lose. It would help if Hurley was willing to play any freshman besides Solomon Ball if those players are struggling, even if he is reluctant to. The group did not play one minute against Kansas.
Below, I provide a brief analysis of the areas UConn struggled in against Kansas, and the possible steps they can take to get back on track against UNC. I still believe that the Huskies can be an elite team and beat anyone at their best. Now, it’s time to prove it against the Tar Heels and then Gonzaga.
UConn’s Offense Was Ineffective Against Kansas
There are ugly offenses, and then there was the Huskies offense against Kansas. While the team was ultimately able to get to 65 points and average 1.08 points per possession, those numbers do not tell the whole story. UConn started very cold, allowing Kansas to get out to a 16-5 start, and it remained very inconsistent from there. While a lot of the struggles can be attributed to the Jayhawks suffocating defense and the intensity of the crowd, the Huskies still could have done a lot of things better. Players did not try hard enough to move the ball on the perimeter or help Newton and Spencer by coming to the ball. UConn rarely pushed the ball off rebounds, and took to long to get into offensive sets, leading to low-percentage shots. While players were forced to take a lot of challenging perimeter shots because of Kansas’s ability to pressure the ball, they were still able to get enough open shots that everyone besides Newton should have been a little more effective from beyond the arc. The remainder of the roster shot 5-19 from three, with Karaban and Spencer combining to go 3-14. As tough as it may have been, the Huskies should have tried to attack the basket more and get more opportunities for offensive rebounds and free throws. Only three players reached the line. Finally, UConn had Clinigan setting too many screens instead of focusing on him playing in the low post. The sophomore took just seven 2-pointers and was unable to get enough easy shots, ultimately going just 3-7. UConn should have an easier time scoring against North Carolina. The Tar Heels have allowed every power conference team to score 70 points, struggle at defending the 3-point line and foul frequently.
The Defense Was Poor at the Worst Times
Like its overpowering defense, the Kansas offense was surprisingly efficient, especially at the beginning and end of the game. The Jayhawks jumped out to a 16-5 lead, making everything, and leaving the UConn players gob smacked. While they cooled off somewhat from there, they still went into halftime shooting over 50%. After shooting hot and cold for much of the second half, allowing the Huskies to briefly take the lead, Kansas seized it back by going on an 11-0 run starting with 6:53 remaining that featured three consecutive treys by Kevin McCullar, a subpar 3-point shooter, and Hunter Dickinson. McCullar hit one more backbreaking three to seal the game as UConn furiously tried to come back. Kansas, which had been inconsistent offensively against the best teams on its schedule and does not have great depth and shooters, definitely played its A game offensively at times. Shooting 9-14 from three is an obscene percentage, for instance. Still, the Huskies could have done a lot more to try and slow down Kansas.
My biggest frustration with the defense was that it just didn’t throw in enough wrinkles to try and slow down Kansas. Hurley didn’t have his players ramp up the ball pressure significantly and did not try and trap the Jayhawks until the final two minutes of the game. With the Huskies struggling so much to get good shots and allowing regular fastbreak opportunities off their poor shots, trying to play a defense that could hopefully lead to turnovers and easy baskets would have been a godsend. UConn also never played zone defense when Kansas was hot, and the one time it experimented on D by playing Clinigan and Sampon Johnson together, it blew up in the team’s faces, as the Jayhawks picked the moment to go on the 11-0 run that sealed their win.
While the Huskies decision to focus on guarding the paint instead of the 3-point line made sense at the beginning of the game because Kansas does not take many treys and the defense wanted to slow down Hunter Dickenson, UConn should have began playing the perimeter tighter earlier in the game. Even when they began doing so, players were consistently late on closing out. The defense had a habit of losing guys they were assigned to guard, leading to open jumpers, and were beaten off the dribble way too frequently, especially in the first half. The injury to Spencer did not help, as he is not particularly athletic or a good-on-ball defender even at full strength.
However, Karaban was by far the worst defender. He was abused off the dribble by the bigger and stronger KJ Adams, who finished with 18 points and was probably Kansas’s best all-around player. Once again, Karaban showed that he can be burned defensively by bigger guys, and his inability to keep his hands up while guarding ultimately led to Karaban fouling out. The one player I will give kudos for his defense is Clinigan, who did a great job of denying Dickinson the ball and altering his shots, holding the All-American to 3-8 shooting in the paint while blocking three shots. Hopefully, Hurley came up with some wrinkles to slow down North Carolina in practice while still protecting his hobbled players.
The Injuries Held Back UConn on Both Ends, and Stephen Castle is not Going to be an Immediate Solution
UConn was blessed to not have any long-term injury issues outside of the loss of Johnson, who would have played very little anyway. Maybe the gods are cursing them for their good fortune right now, as the current starting lineup looks like a MASH unit. The most concerning injury is to Spencer. As we saw against Kansas, his injured toes were a big factor in the senior’s 3-pointers constantly being short, affected his ability to play defense and drive to the basket, and even hindered his free throw shooting, as Spencer missed his first two attempts of the season. Spencer is a gamer and I expect him to play at least a little bit against North Carolina, but if his shots aren’t falling and his mobility is limited, I can’t expect Spencer to give UConn much on Tuesday.
While Clinigan has done a valiant job of playing through a foot injury that his still not fully healed, it is still limiting his athleticism and ability to grab rebounds and finish around the rim. Clinigan will again have to face an elite big man Tuesday in UNC’s Armando Bacot, and hopefully UConn’s guards will do a better job of getting him quality shots in the paint. Karban’s hurt finger is seemingly hurting his shot more than expected, as he has been terrible from beyond the arc in the last three games, including 2-7 against Kansas. Hopefully, it will recover quickly and Karaban will be smart by trying to score more at the rim and on free throws instead of 3-pointers. Finally, while I have high expectations for Castle and am glad his knee healed quickly, I don’t expect him to play a ton against North Carolina or to even be highly effective, at least as reflected in the box score. Castle has not yet faced a high-quality opponent, and it is going to take him a little while to get adjusted and get back up to game speed. Hopefully, all these injuries won’t be long term. In the meantime however, UConn will demonstrate their mettle if they can overcome them to beat North Carolina and then Gonzaga.
Extend the Rotation, Coach
This is more of a general issue I have with Hurley than just being focused on the Kansas game. I am never going to understand his reluctance to play most freshman extended minutes, even when it makes sense. UConn had one of the best recruiting classes in the country. With Spencer hobbling around, Karaban struggling on both ends and Solomon Ball mostly invisible against the Jayhawks, why didn’t he bring in Jaylin Stewart and possibly Jayden Ross, even if it had only been for three or four minutes at most. There wasn’t anything to lose, and Stewart has shown promise so far this season and Ross is a quality 3-point shooter. Yes, the freshman might not have been able to handle the intense environment of Allen Fieldhouse. But you don’t know until you try, and Stewart possibly could have made an impact at all against North Carolina and possibly Gonzaga, and will be unprepared for the rigors of conference play when it starts late this month. Hurley has to be willing to give a little rope, especially when the situation calls for it, and the Husky freshman deserve the opportunity to prove themselves. This is not a particularly deep team. Give the freshman consistent minutes as the season goes along, or Hurley may have most of them transfer.
Despite how frustrated I was after the Kansas loss, I believe UConn will beat North Carolina Tuesday. They match up with the Tar Heels better, and I cannot imagine the team will perform so poorly offensively outside of Newton for the second consecutive game. No matter what though, it will be a close game, and the Huskies still must prove they can win those. UConn has a lot of talent on both ends and is an elite offensive team and solid defensive one. It definitely lacks the depth or defensive ability last year’s squad had right now however and is not as good as that group was at this time last year. Against UNC, the Huskies have the chance to prove me wrong.
HUSKY NATION 