“It was a good day in my life,” said UConn head coach Kevin Ollie. Hours after agreeing to a new contract that will keep him on UConn’s sidelines until at least 2018, Ollie watched his players play inspired basketball while defeating a talented Washington team – saying his team played with “desire, vision and focus.”
As Ollie stepped onto the court before an ignited XL Center crowd that had braved a blizzard to reach the arena, he was greeted with a standing ovation. “My legs were shaking,” he said. “I was excited about the moment.”
The first half was an up-and-down affair. Washington was marred by foul trouble and UConn responded in kind by missing 5 of their first 6 free throw attempts – before recovering to finish the half 11-16 from the charity stripe.
UConn featured a balanced approach on offense. Shabazz Napier led the real Huskies with 8 points and played lockdown defense on Washington’s star guard C.J. Wilcox. “Shabazz did a remarkable job on Wilcox,” said Ollie. “They came out early and aggressive defensively,” added Washington coach Lorenzo Romar. “They did a good job on the boards.”
UConn took a 5 point lead into the locker room at halftime and continued their strong effort after intermission with a 19-4 run as their pressure forced Washington into a bevy of turnovers. The frontcourt trio of Tyler Olander, Enosch Wolf and Phil Nolan kept Washington’s larger big men at bay. Aziz N’Diaye, the fake Huskies’ 7 foot center, fouled out without registering a single field goal.
While Olander and Nolan played hard, it was Wolf that garnered the most praise – from the fans, his coach and teammates. “Enosch did his job,” said Napier. “When you see the guy diving on the floor, you want to dive on the floor.” Wolf finished with a team-high 9 rebounds and seemed to relish the physical nature of the game. “We started hitting first and it became a mindset,” said Wolf. “It doesn’t matter if I start, I’m going to do my best.”
Washington closed to within four points with just under three minutes to play, but UConn sealed the victory by continuing to force Washington into tough shots (29.7% shooting for the game) and by beating the press – including a ferocious alley-oop from Omar Calhoun to Wolf late in the game.
As the clock struck zero, Ollie joined UConn’s Emily Noonan for what was supposed to be a postgame interview. But as Ollie appeared on the XL Center jumbotron, the audience stopped on their way to the exits, standing in the aisles to applaud their present and future coach. Ollie’s players gathered around their leader as he addressed the crowd and ended the night with a statement he repeated to the media after the game, “y’all got me for 5 more years.”
Notes:
- DeAndre Daniels took a big fall late in the second half, hitting his head on the court. Ollie said after the game that Daniels required stitches but did not appear to have a concussion. Omar Calhoun said Daniels knew who he was and seemed relatively with it. Daniels is expected to play New Year’s Day against Marquette.
- Daniels wasn’t the only UConn player to get dinged up in the physical battle with Washington. Both Wolf and Napier were sporting some cuts and bruises after the game, and both seemed pleased with the opportunity to get some hits in before the Big East schedule begins.
- Most of the postgame talk was focused on Ollie, including some heavy praise from Washington coach Lorenzo Romar. “He’s an awesome person and an awesome basketball coach. When he joined the coaching ranks, he conducted himself as a student trying to be the best. I’ve always been impressed by him.”
- RJ Evans provided a nice boost in the first half and joined with Wolf in bringing high energy off the bench. After being slowed by a collarbone injury, it was nice to see Evans back at full speed.
- Napier, Calhoun and Ryan Boatright were the only UConn players to score in double-figures. Eight players scored in the game.
Next Up:
- The Big East season officially begins for UConn on Tuesday when they celebrate the new year with a conference matchup against Marquette in Milwaukee. Game time is 8pm and will be televised on ESPNU.
