Good evening. March is lit. Sports, etc. UConn is approximately 12 months away from its 5th national title and we’re approximately now away from blowing your sad, pathetic minds with this mailbag.
Postradamus asks: Since Tre Mitchell cut us out of the final 6 and Precious having a wide open recruitment. Do you believe the rest of this class will be filled out by grad transfers and junior college players?
With Mitchell off the board, there doesn’t appear to be much left in the way of impact recruits in the 2019 class — I’m currently not particularly hopeful UConn landing Precious Achiuwa. With at least one available scholarship, and potentially as many as 3 or 4 available, depending on which members of the current roster choose to continue their careers elsewhere after the season, Danny Hurley is going to have some work to do to fill out the rest of the squad. It’s possible that some currently committed 2019 recruits might shake loose if coaches are fired or what have you, but let’s take a look at some potential transfers who would be able to contribute immediately next year.
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- Rayjon Tucker is the best player currently available, and will likely be the top prize on the transfer market this offseason. The 6-5 swingman averaged 20.3 points and 6.7 rebounds with excellent shooting numbers (.558 2P%, .411 3P%, .777 FT%) for Little Rock in the Sun Belt. He’d be a great replacement for Vital should the junior guard decide to go pro at the end of the season, but would be a lock starter even if Vital returns. Unfortunately, Tucker has been contacted by more than a dozen programs already, and will be a very tough get.
- James ‘Beetle’ Bolden is probably the most recognizable name on this list. The 6-foot guard likes to shoot from deep, and he’s hit 40% of his three-point shots for his career (though that number dropped to 35% last year). Bolden’s numbers aren’t as flashy as some of the others, but averaging 12+ ppg in the Big 12 means he can definitely compete in the American.
- Nate Sestina is a big man from Bucknell. He averaged 15.8 points and 8.5 rebounds, and at 6’9″, 245, he’s a physical presence in the paint. However, Sestina can also step outside and hit the 3, hitting 38% of his long-range shots last year. The level of competition in the Patriot League is questionable, but Sestina would be an ideal backup for Josh Carlton or Akok Akok next year.
- Justin Pierce is a versatile, 6’7″ forward who averaged 15 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists for William & Marry last year, and he remains an excellent finisher around the rim (56% on two-point shots in 2018-19). However, Pierce saw his shooting numbers drop precipitously (3P% went from .416 in 17-18 to .324 last year, FT% from from 79% to 59%). In either case, Pierce’s scoring, rebounding, and playmaking prowess assure that he will be in high demand.
- Daniel Utomi, a 6’6″ wing from Akron, put up 14.2ppg and 5.5rpg last year. Utomi provides a strong outside shooting threat, with a career 39% mark from three. He’s not much of a slasher, however, as the vast majority of his shots were jumpers from the midrange or further. Given UConn’s need for outside shooting, he’d likely see a lot of playing time on next year’s team.
Other players Hurley may target:
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- Derrik Smits, 7’1″ center from Valparaiso, averaged 12.2ppg, 5.7rpg on 59% shooting
- Haanif Cheatem, 6’5″ wing from Florida Gulf Coast, averaged 13.2 ppg, 4.8 rpg on 45% shooting
- Quinton Adlesh, 6-foot guard from Columbia, averaged 13.5 ppg and is a career 41% shooter from three
- Pat Andree, 6’8″ forward from Lehigh, averaged 12.9ppg and 6.2 rpg, career 42% shooter from three
- Emmanuel Ugboh, a 7’0″ center from Iowa Western Community College, averaged 12ppg, 10rpg, 1.5bpg last year.
Nick asks: Should UConn women start a series with Quinnipiac a la their series with Hartford (e.g mostly home games but with one trip to Hamden mixed in)?
I love the idea of UConn wbb scheduling Quinnipiac. They faced each other last year for only the second time ever in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Gampel Pavilion. UConn’s 25 point win was a far cry from the first time they faced each other. In 1998, Quinnipiac’s first season in Division 1, UConn got its biggest margin of victory in program history, winning 117-20. Coach Tricia Fabbri has done a tremendous job building the program, with the Bobcats making the Tournament five times since 2013, including a Sweet Sixteen run in 2017 (you may recall Geno sporting a Quinnipiac shirt during one of his NCAA Tournament press conferences). So yes, I think it would be great to help build that program and have UConn schedule them for an early season in-state match up in Storrs, or even Hartford. Playing in Hamden, though, is really a nonstarter. Their facility, while very nice, seats fewer than 3600 people, and UConn is not going to play an in-state game in a building that small. But hell yeah let’s invite them over, that would be a blast.
Deryl asks: What have you heard about early returns on the March Madness experience at the XL Center? I went to the first 2 rounds in Charlotte last year and it was amazing. Obviously, XL isn’t the Spectrum Center but I’m hoping it’s good so we could land another down the road.
The reviews have been very mixed, unfortunately. We’ve all complained about the crappy old building with its crappy old facilities, but no one likes when someone outside the family makes fun of your weird cousin, so it’s definitely stung a little to hear people from out of town ragging on the old barn. The WiFi is notoriously bad there and apparently it was completely nonfunctional to start the day, and there was some issue with the scoreboards. ESPN radio commentators talking about how the scoreboard they could see wasn’t showing the time made me cringe. And Nicole Auerbach tweeting out a pic of the Fyre Fest-esque dinner the press got (cheese on a bun) because they ran out of hamburgers is not great, Bob!
There’s also the fact that there was almost no one in the building when the second session tipped off. Now, that one is really on the NCAA, who for reasons passing understanding, gave Hartford the latest morning session start time, and an early evening session start. Starting games at 2 and 4 and then having to empty the arena completely before a 7:20 start was never going to work, even if there were infinite people and metal detectors to get patrons in the building. But the XL also did not staff up enough to deal with what was obviously going to be a huge issue (turning over an arena that seats 15K in 50 minutes like wtf were they thinking?).
All that said, outside the arena? It’s been LIT. Pratt Street was filled with people enjoying the pop-up brew pub, TVs showing the games and random yard games. Closing it to vehicle traffic was a brilliant idea, and they managed to fill in empty storefronts with the brew pup featuring local breweries ($6 drink tickets, honestly not a bad price), giant TVs, and on Trumbull Street, a “chill room” with Wifi, couches, more TVs and places to charge your phone. I was down there yesterday and people really seemed to be enjoying themselves. So while the arena experience has not been what we would have hoped, the external experience has been really well done.
— Meghan
Storrs South asks: What would you like to see the UConn AD do with games in Hartford v. Storrs (in an ideal world and in a more realistic scenario, if they differ at all)?
In an ideal world, college sports would be played solely on college campuses. Obviously UConn has a complicated relationship with Hartford that goes back to the school’s Big East origins, includes a labyrinth of political considerations and, newly, an entire satellite branch of the university on Front St. in downtown. Despite some recent bad publicity (see Meghan’s answer above) and a contract that makes no sense for UConn, ending a relationship with the XL Center likely won’t end up being the university’s choice.
If you made me guess, I’d bet the state legislature agrees to some half-measure XL Center renovation this year or next that will add high-priced seating in the lower level and fix some of the long-standing mechanical issues with the arena. The problem, as really should be obvious to anyone with basic math skills, is that there simply aren’t enough events to throw into the building to make it financially self-sufficient. At some point, that’s going to lead to a lot more UConn games being played in Hartford — especially when equally challenging renovation decisions will need to be made about Gampel Pavilion. That’s annoying, but it’s also a really gross thing to do to the UConn students who are keeping the entire athletic department afloat with tuition subsidies at the moment, but I think it’s the most likely outcome at this point.
For what it’s worth, I find it hard to believe that there aren’t better uses of a city block than an arena that sits empty most of the year — where my urban planners at? But since the debate seems to only include two options: a very nice arena for the Wolf Pack or a smoldering pile of rubble on Trumbull St., go Wolf Pack I guess.
