UConn men’s basketball hosts Creighton tonight with a new winning streak going, though it hasn’t been the smoothest ride. This will be the second meeting between the Huskies and Bluejays after an 85-58 UConn win in Omaha on Jan. 31.
Since that game, Creighton is 1-3 with a respectable win over Seton Hall despite losses to Georgetown, DePaul (oof), and Villanova as well. Greg McDermott’s team is 77th in KenPom (66th Offense, 122nd Defense), which projects a 79-64 Husky win.
UConn (24-2, 14-1 Big East) is 3-1 in February, losing its first conference game at St. John’s last Friday. They won another close one over Georgetown, with a few key issues raising doubts about the Huskies’ postseason fortitude as the Bracketology picture begins to solidify. Dan Hurley’s squad is on the 2-seed line, but could drop with a couple of league losses.
But first, they have to take care of business in the Big East. Maybe they can get through Creighton with another B-minus performance, but they have to be on point in their next three games, all huge rematches: at Villanova (27th KenPom), St. John’s (21st) in Hartford, and Seton Hall (47th) in Gampel on Senior Day. After that run, they end the regular season at Marquette before the Big East Tournament.
The home stretch of the season is here, but UConn still has some nagging issues. The lack of production from the bench is “not sustainable,” head coach Dan Hurley said. He also pointed out that the starting lineup lacks a “shutdown wing defender,” and mentioned some of the causes of the team’s inbounding issues and challenges against full-court pressure.
When it comes to bench play, Hurley indicated that he’s looking to see more out of the veteran reserves, Malachi Smith, Jaylin Stewart, and Jayden Ross. He repeated a philosophy he has often shared, that “one of the easiest parts of my job is doling out minutes,” and as a result, “We need the bench guys to step up so I can play them more.”
“You don’t get as much leeway as a starting player’s going to get to work your way into a game,” Hurley continued. He added that those guys have won them games, and all of them have had moments where they shine, but consistency has been elusive from this group.
In the case of Smith, Hurley said when the Dayton transfer is “at his best,” he should be playing 15 minutes per game. Stewart and Ross have been with the program for three years; they should not have lapses that prevent them from staying on the court. Freshman Eric Reibe has done quite well, but he can’t be expected to shut down elite post players or shoulder significant scoring responsibilities just yet.
“I got confidence in those guys,” Hurley said. “We gotta help them. I think the responsibility is with these guys, they’re all veteran players…when you get in the game, play well.”
Hurley also took a moment to address some of the commentary he made after the Georgetown game, admitting he was probably frustrated with the way that game ended, like the fans.
“I probably should’ve not had my mind there,” he said, emphasizing that UConn fans have largely been loyal to him. “We almost lost that game inexplicably, and there’s probably a lot of layers to it…There might have been a better way for me to say it. I wasn’t attacking or blasting my fanbase.”
On the positive side, Solo Ball has been rounding into form. But the head coach remains concerned with the defensive strength of his starting lineup.
“You can’t keep a good man down,” Hurley said, adding that Ball’s injured wrist has felt much better. “For him, right now it’s the defensive end of the court. We just had a regression the last three games across the board, and it’s not exclusive to the guards.”
He added that the defensive effort on film reminded him of last season, which is, of course, concerning. They have too much talent and experience across the board to be having lapses like that defensively.
“This team doesn’t start a guy who identifies as a shutdown wing defender…so we need those guys to play good defense, and Tarris has got to protect the rim better…that tandem [with Reibe] has gotta be dominant for us. We can’t get outplayed at the center position.”
And lastly, his squad needs a little bit more wiggle. Hurley said their inbounder, Karaban, who’s a great passer and less twitchy and good at getting open, wasn’t finding people in tight windows. He also said the other guys aren’t fighting enough to get open, and maybe need to cross-train in other sports.
“You gotta want the ball at the end of the game. Can we bring back Christian Vital, CV, if you’re out there? [Also mentions Tristen Newton], they wanted the ball. They wanted those free throws at the end of the game,” Hurley said. “I think we had a little bit of people not wanting to pull the trigger, and we got kids not playing sports…not playing dodgeball or football, not knowing how to get open, not knowing how to juke somebody.”
Tip-off is at 7 p.m. The game will be televised on TNT. Sources say that beers at Gampel are just two dollars, until supplies last.
