Our Cardinals have a quick turnaround this week after their game on Saturday and will now travel to Hartford for a Big Monday match-up on Espn with UCONN. Cards should be ranked #1 and will be looking for their 11th straight. Will also be looking to start 4-0 in Big East play. UCONN could possibly be ranked and they will be looking to keep their momentum going after a huge win on the road against #17 Notre Dame Saturday.
It was a chaotic off season in Storrs as they dealt with NCAA sanctions, players leaving for the NBA, players transferring to other schools and the biggest surprise of all coming when Hall of Fame coach Jim Calhoun decided to retire. UCONN now has a roster that includes only 10 scholarship players. Depth, especially along the front-line, is a concern. Shabazz Napier, Tyler Olander and Niels Giffey are the only players remaining from the national championship team. But putting all that stuff behind them new head coach Kevin Ollie has the new era of UCONN basketball heading in the right direction. He has his team playing with a lot of heart and has them at 12-3 in a 3 way tie for 4th place in the Big East at 2-1. They are coming off of a big win at #17 Notre Dame ending their 17 game win streak. In fact, ND boasts the second best home-court advantage (Kansas being #1) in terms of win percentage over the last seven years. The Fighting Irish had won 111 out of their last 118 games, good for .940 winning percentage before that loss on Saturday. The Huskies have also improved on what was their biggest weakness this season and that’s rebounding. The Huskies entered last Tuesday’s game with DePaul being out-rebounded by 5.8 rebounds per game, the worst mark among Power 6 conference schools. They had been out-rebounded in 11 of 13 games. But that has changed and they have out-rebounded the Blue Demons 46-26 and the Irish 30-22 in their last two contest. The Huskies rank nationally 76th in points per game at 72.5, 277th in rebounds per game at 32.5, 131st in assist per game at 13.6 and 42nd in field goal percentage at 47%. Kenpom has their adj. efficiency on offense at 108.4 ranked 43 and on defense at 91.8 ranked 51. He has them ranked 43 overall.
In-conference offense: 3pt/35% (3), 2pt/53% (1), FT/71% (7)
In-conference defense: Turnover% 15.7 (10), Block% 6.5 (12), Steal% 9.5 (6)
Head Coach Kevin Ollie: “We just talk about hanging in there and hanging around. Good things are going to happen to a team that sticks together and for a team that plays for each other.”
The Huskies Players:
-Projected Starters
Tyler Olander JR (5.3 ppg, 4.1 rpg) 6-9 F is the front court player with the most experience. He has improved as a rebounder and can score on the block. His efforts on the defensive glass were a big factor in the Notre Dame upset. He has 80 points this season grabbing 61 rebounds, and blocking 20 shots in 316 minutes of play.
DeAndre Daniels SOPH (11.0 ppg, 4.7 rpg) 6-8 F is a very strong and good defensive wing player. He is also very solid on the offensive end of the floor. He had 9 rebounds in that big win over Notre Dame. He has scored 165 points this season and grabbed 70 rebounds with 19 blocked shots in 392 minutes of play.
Shabazz Napier JR (17.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg) 6-1 G is UCONN’s leading returning scorer. He is a very smart and crafty guard who can score the ball. He shoots 45% from the field, 40% from 3 and 83% from the charity stripe. Also very good defensive player who led this team in steals last season. He has 33 this season. He has scored 262 points and has 60 assist in 554 minutes of play.
Ryan Boatright SOPH (16.1 ppg, 2.8 rpg) 6-0 G came off the bench last season but has become one of the go to guys in this UCONN three guard line-up. He shoots 48% from the field, 35% from 3 and 74% from the charity stripe. He has scored 241 points this season and has 68 assist in 520 minutes of play.
Omar Calhoun FR (10.1 ppg, 3.1 rpg) 6-5 G is considered a Top 10 shooting guard. ESPN rated him a four-star prospect and the No. 7 two guard in the 2012 class. Gatorade Player of the Year and New York player of the Year are a few more of this guys accolades. He rounds out this three guard line-up. He shoots 41% from the field, 29% from 3 and 76% from the charity stripe. He has scored 151 points this season and has 18 assist in 449 minutes of play.
– Bench
R.J. Evans SR (4.3 ppg, 1.4 rpg) 6-3 G is not a big scoring threat but does come off the bench and provides some good defensive play. He is averaging 1.3 steals a game. He has scored 52 points this season and grabbed 17 rebounds in 204 minutes of play.
Niels Giffey JR (3.8 ppg, 3.2 rpg) 6-7 F is a smart player who makes others around him better. He has had moments of brilliance but often isn’t noticed when he’s on the floor. He is a 92% free throw shooter. He has scored 57 points this season and grabbed 48 rebounds in 292 minutes of play.
Enosch Wolf JR (3.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg) 7-1 C is UCONN’s only true center, but he remains a project and has seen very little action. But he is effective when in the line-up shooting 64% from the field. He has scored 56 points this season and grabbed 54 rebounds in 204 minutes of play.
The XL Center will be rocking and our Cards will have their work cut out for them in this one as they will be facing a team who is playing their best basketball of the season. The Huskies will be fired up to knock off a number 1 team on their floor and remember this UCONN team can’t play in the post season, so games like this are their season. The Cards are scoring over 30% of their points off turnovers and they will have to step it up defensively in this one to force the three guard line-up of UCONN into mistakes. It will be fun to watch the Napier, Boatright, Siva and Smith match-up as this will be two of the best back-courts in the nation going head to head. Rebounding will be a huge in determining the outcome. Our front court guys will have to get to the boards especially on the offensive end as this UCONN group demolished the Irish in that stat. UCONN used less than 60 possessions in their win over the Irish, and perhaps the key takeaway from the win was their ability to control the glass. Per Ken Pomeroy, opponents grab nearly 36 percent of their misses, but in the win, UCONN managed to snag 73 percent of Notre Dame’s attempts, controlling the glass and not allowing easy points.
The guard play in this game will be world class but what separates Louisville from UCONN in my opinion is depth and the huge advantage the Cards have in skill in the front-court. With that said this will be a battle to the end and will have us hanging on the edge of our seats. But our Cards will pull this one out.
The Beak Prediction:
Louisville 70 UCONN 64
