Is UConn Back?

It was a cold night in Storrs, Connecticut this past Wednesday, but the Huskies weathered the storm and took down #15 Baylor on their home floor. This came about a week after dropping three straight games to unranked opponents at the Maui Invitational which left the college basketball world wondering if UConn’s dominant run had finally come to an end. Hurley and company had other plans, even without their star Alex Karaban.

The first half was mostly all Baylor. They dominated on the defensive end, holding the Huskies to mainly three point shots and some of them well contested. UConn’s offense the past few seasons has been built on lots of ball screens and dribble handoffs, so Baylor came into the game auto switching everything. This proved to be effective due to UConn’s lack of a true point guard/ball handler like they had in their First Team All American Tristan Newton the last two seasons. Baylor led by as many as 11, and then in the words of Dan Hurley, “Aidan Mahaney rose like a phoenix out of the ashes”. He entered the game and hit two big threes to cut down the lead and gave the Huskies some life. Prior to this game he was not playing like the guy he was at St. Mary’s but this seemed to be his coming out game as a Husky. 

With Karaban out, Hurley debuted a new lineup featuring both Tarris Reed Jr. and Samson Johnson. It was very important for these two to stay out of foul trouble because they couldn’t in Maui and it became an issue. This lineup did alright especially in countering the length and size that Baylor has. What this squad was lacking was taking advantage of the auto switching from Baylor which led to a lot of possessions where a guard was on one of these bigs in the post, but UConn failed to get them touches which would have led to easy baskets. UConn’s defense has been their calling card in their back to back National Championship run but it’s been a weakness this season. Baylor’s guards (who need more national attention) had no problem beating their man off the dribble and finishing at the rim. Even with Baylor’s 5 star freshman VJ Edgecombe out, Jeremy Roache and Robert Wright III got whatever shot they wanted. Even with some bonehead turnovers from Jayden Ross and Baylor’s efficiency on offense, UConn scratched and clawed their way to a one point deficit at halftime.

Although Mahaney had a few big momentum switching plays, this was the Liam McNeeley show. All season we have seen the passion and desire to win from McNeeley on the court and it makes sense why Hurley wanted him so badly. He crashes the boards hard and is always on the mix on loose balls. Even though he came into college being known as a shooter, he has proven he can get the ball inside, draw contact, and finish with both hands. A good sign for UConn is McNeeley really hasn’t shot all that well from three and I expect that shot to start falling more often. Speaking of shooting, Solo Ball has been one of UConn’s best. You cannot give him an inch of space especially on the catch because he will turn and shoot when given the chance and he hasn't been missing often. 

What I liked from UConn in the second half was two things. First on defense they played the best they have all year. Baylor had a lot of success in the pick and roll and UConn started to blitz that screen and double teamed the ball handler, pushing him away from the basket while their weak side defender came in for help on the roller. By pushing that guard away from the basket it makes that pass to the screener very difficult and forces Baylor to reset. Secondly on offense they got their big men involved. There was one half court set that I loved and I’m not sure why it took them over 30 minutes of game time to run it. It got Samson Johnson the easiest basket of his life on a slip screen off the ball. 

Even with UConn looking much better in the second half Baylor did not go away. Robert Wright III had a game high 22 points and showed he can be a key piece for this program for the remainder of the year. What killed Baylor was losing Jeremy Roache to an injury. The game came down to free throws and Hassan Diarra sealed the deal for the Huskies, winning 76-72. It was exactly what UConn needed and it should give them some confidence as they continue a difficult stretch in their non-conference schedule with Texas and #7 Gonzaga up next.