UConn faced Southern Connecticut State University in the first of its two exhibition match-ups last night at Gampel Pavillion. In front of a World Series-depleted crowd (attendance was just over 5,000), albeit with a full student section, the Huskies did exactly what everyone expected, beating SCSU 93-65.
But of course, we don’t go to the exhibition games to see who wins. We go to see what the team looks like, particularly the new guys. And Coach Kevin Ollie gave us exactly what we wanted, getting all the unfamiliar faces on the court.
The backcourt looks incredibly deep, with fifth-year senior Lasan Kromah and freshman point guard Terrance Samuel coming off the bench behind Shabazz Napier and Ryan Boatright. But the most heartening part of the evening was the new big men.
The UConn crowd fell in love with Amida Brimah, the freshman from Ghana, when he slammed down an alley-oop and followed it up with a blocked shot (on which he was, unfortunately and unsurprisingly called for a foul). He hustled up and down the floor, on offense and defense, and recorded three blocks in the first half, including a monster volleyball block. He got the hook when he recorded his second foul in only four minutes.
In the second half, Brimah managed to play 13 minutes with only one foul. He finished the game with five blocks and a second alley-oop. He played with energy, and after one of his more emphatic blocks, had the crowd chanting “Ah-Mi-Dah!” He’s definitely one to watch this season. “He’s going to be a great player for us,” Ollie said. “He’s not as raw as a lot of people say.”
Brimah, who at 7 feet tall weighs in at 217 lbs, does look like he should be spending more time in the dining hall, though. Dairy Bar ice cream is your friend, Amida.
DeAndre Daniels looked like a man who spent an insane amount of time in the gym this summer. He led the Huskies with a double-double: 21 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 8-for-13 from the floor and making all five of his free throws. “He was the most consistant tonight,” Ollie said. “I think he’s going to have an incredible year.”
Boatright’s outside game looks much improved. He went 3-for-3 from behind the arc, 6-for-9 overall with five assists. Napier also recorded five assists, but only took three shots on the night. He seemed more interested in making trick passes. Not that that’s necessarily a bad thing.
In the second half, with both Bazz and Boat on the bench, Terrence Samuel was left to run the point. He looked very comfortable with the ball. And he played exactly like you would expect an NYC point guard to play. Samuel had a few smooth passes, though only one assist and one turnover in 15 minutes. Phil Nolan and Kenton Facey both had some moments of brilliance as well.
It wasn’t all good news last night. Unfortunately, last season’s rebounding woes continue to be a problem. SCSU out-rebounded UConn 48-43. “I’m obviously disappointed in that,” Ollie said after the game.
Admittedly, the Huskies’ five offensive boards look terrible, but taking into account the fact that they shot 58.1 percent from the floor, the stat doesn’t hurt quite so much. What does hurt is that SCSU managed to pull down 18 offensive boards. Boxing out was almost non-existent in the post. And while Brimah was able to snag some rebounds while standing behind SCSU players (seriously, his arms are like 37 feet long), that’s not going to fly come conference play. Ollie also said that he wants to work on the team’s transition game before next week’s exhibition against Concordia. “Giving up 27 fast-break points is not good,” Ollie said. Ollie said he hasn’t tried out all the combinations he wants, yet. In next weeks exhibition look for him to try out two big men, possibly Brimah and Nolan at the same time, as well as Niels Giffey in the four spot.
