Well, that was interesting. At times during their season-opener against Maryland, UConn looked capable of competing with the best teams in the nation. At others, they looked flawed and vulnerable. All of that added up to a one-point victory before a mixed crowd at the Barclay’s Center, 78-77.
The Huskies dominated the first half, ballooning their lead up to as much as 13, while Maryland struggled to limit UConn’s open shots. Senior Niels Giffey stole the show by hitting all three of his three-point attempts — hitting intermission with a team-high 13 points along with four rebounds.
Fellow senior Shabazz Napier brought the kitchen sink — nine points, five assists, four rebounds and no turnovers — seemingly manipulating the other players on the court like chess pieces. There was the behind-the-back pass to Lasan Kromah for three. Several assists to Ryan Boatright for fast break dunks. And one big three pointer of his own.
Maryland didn’t hit their stride until midway through the second half. Another Boatright dunk (and subsequent primal scream, naturally) raised UConn’s lead to 67-50 with 11:43 left. The Terps answered with an 11-0 run, corresponding with two fouls for Napier.
Foul trouble was a consistent theme for the Huskies. New NCAA rules claim to promote the “freedom of motion.” For UConn, that meant 22 fouls in the game and disjointed play that sapped momentum from the teams, and players from the court. Both Amida Brimah and Phil Nolan were punished with 4 fouls each as the Huskies watched their lead dwindle down the stretch.
With Napier on the floor with four fouls late, Maryland cut the lead to 75-73 on a Nick Faust three. It was then that the unlikeliest of heroes emerged for UConn.
Tyler Olander did not play in the first half. The senior big man has seen his minutes passed off to the formidable tandem of Nolan and Brimah, and lost his starting role in the process. Despite this, Olander’s effort in the second half was inspired. Upon entering, he immediately grabbed a defensive rebound. On the other end, he snatched an offensive rebound and hit an open Omar Calhoun for a three pointer. Back on defense, he ended up with a steal.
After Faust hit the three to bring Maryland within two, a broken play found Olander open in the corner. With the shot clock winding down, Olander calmly sank a three of his own — the second of his 4-year career — scoring UConn’s first points in over three minutes and extending the lead to 78-73.
It was an impressively clutch moment in a game hungry for one. Napier fouled out with 1:30 left in the game. The lead shrank to three. DeAndre Daniels missed a three. The lead shrank to one.
With only 26 seconds left in the game, Maryland sent Ryan Boatright to the line for a one-and-one. Boatright bricked the front end. Luckily for UConn, Dez Wells tried to launch a high floater over Amida Brimah on the other end, missing badly, the rebound landing in the hands of freshman guard Terrence Samuel.
Maryland fouled Samuel, who missed the front end of a one-and-one himself.
Great defense by Boatright on Wells, forced a miss that would seal UConn’s victory.
An ugly and gut wrenching end cooled some of the enthusiasm that UConn showed through much of the game. The real takeaway is that this team is incredibly deep, but nowhere near deep enough to run with the elite teams in the country if Shabazz Napier is not on the court.
Random Notes:
- It was a very quiet night for DeAndre Daniels. He attempted only nine shots (4-9) and didn’t score a single point the last 16:54 of the game as UConn’s lead vanished. Maryland’s second half defense did a good job of keeping Daniels out of the 15-foot range that should be his bread and butter this year. Still, after showing success in the post early in the game, the Huskies seemingly abandoned the strategy as the game wore on.
- Lasan Kromah and Niels Giffey played phenomenally in the first half. Kromah finished the half with eight points. Unfortunately, neither scored in the second half.
- The post trio of Amida Brimah, Phil Nolan and Tyler Olander all played relatively well tonight. But freshman Kenton Facey did not see action despite foul trouble to several of the other big men. Curious indeed.
- Despite his missed free throw late, you can see what an asset Terrence Samuel will be. His ball-handling and passing skills add an element that was missing from last season’s team when either Napier or Boatright exited the game. He appears very poised for a youngster and clearly enjoys getting his teammates involved — a great trait for a backup point guard.
Next up:
A veteran’s day clash with the Bulldogs of Yale. Monday, November 11th at the XL Center in Hartford. Tip is early at 3:30 and the game will be televised on SNY.
