from the rivals.com uconn site
1) Earfly film watching has shown one thing for certain; this Sanogo guy has become an exemplary player. He shoots, posts, rebounds, defends, blocks shots, passes. Did UConn media and fans anticipate this level of development?
This level of development isn't a big shocker, but most fans were skeptical about Sanogo's newfound ability to shoot. He fixed his passing issues throughout last season when it became apparent that he had difficulties passing out of a low post double team, so that was less of a surprise. His shooting is the most impactful thing because he's really able to fool defenders on the pump fake. That really opens the floor for the team and enables him to do more once he does get inside. Fans were expecting development, but he's a much more complete player than anyone expected.
2 Defensively the Huskeis seem to be ahrd man team. Do they zone? What are some of the pick and roll coverages?
On defense, UConn virtually never runs any zone. There's a story that UConn fans will sometimes hear about how Dan Hurley once tried to run zone back before he was at UConn and his team lost the game. His father, legendary coach Bob Hurley Sr., still hasn't let him hear the end of that game. On the pick and roll, Hurley likes to have his bigs hedge hard, which was very effective with now-graduated forward Isaiah Whaley, and Sanogo has gotten much better with it now.
3) Hawkins is the floor spreader. How have you seen him develop in Storrs?
With Hawkins, there was never really anything stopping him except for his confidence. He had a little spurt of energy last year against Auburn in the Battle 4 Atlantis where he scored 16 points in limited playing time, but had a costly turnover late in that game that seemed to rattle his confidence for the rest of the season. After returning from his concussion in the first game this year, Hawkins has been fantastic. Aside from a rough effort against Iowa State in the PKI final, his shooting has been on point. He shot just 33% last year but has jumped all the way up to 42.5% through 11 games, a mark that he should be able to maintain. Him and Sanogo really open up a lot of things for each other and for the rest of the team.
4) Hurley relishes the bad boy mantra. Has the team adopted that too? Fans?
I don't know if bad boy is the best way to describe Hurley's mantra, moreso incredible toughness. This team will be the first on the ground for a loose ball, will force jump-balls and plays tenacious defense, which is all in the culture of the team. The team and the fans have embraced that toughness, which has been the key to their sensational start.
5) What is UConn's achilles heel?
Winning every game from here on out will be an uphill battle, so once they do lose, it'll be because of 40 minutes of poor shooting. There were a lot of bricks during the first 25 minutes of the last game against Butler, but they managed to overcome that towards the end. They won't lose due to a lack of effort and their offensive rebounding will always keep them in games. They have many proven shooters on the roster, but there are nights when nobody can hit a shot and if that comes against a tough opponent, that'll be the end of the winning streak.
6) Prediction?
I'm going to say a 90-60 UConn win. It's definitely going to be an uphill battle for Georgetown with suffocation of the UConn defense, especially at Gampel Pavilion. They beat a good Butler team by 22 on the road, so 30 at home vs a struggling Hoya team seems pretty fair.
1) Earfly film watching has shown one thing for certain; this Sanogo guy has become an exemplary player. He shoots, posts, rebounds, defends, blocks shots, passes. Did UConn media and fans anticipate this level of development?
This level of development isn't a big shocker, but most fans were skeptical about Sanogo's newfound ability to shoot. He fixed his passing issues throughout last season when it became apparent that he had difficulties passing out of a low post double team, so that was less of a surprise. His shooting is the most impactful thing because he's really able to fool defenders on the pump fake. That really opens the floor for the team and enables him to do more once he does get inside. Fans were expecting development, but he's a much more complete player than anyone expected.
2 Defensively the Huskeis seem to be ahrd man team. Do they zone? What are some of the pick and roll coverages?
On defense, UConn virtually never runs any zone. There's a story that UConn fans will sometimes hear about how Dan Hurley once tried to run zone back before he was at UConn and his team lost the game. His father, legendary coach Bob Hurley Sr., still hasn't let him hear the end of that game. On the pick and roll, Hurley likes to have his bigs hedge hard, which was very effective with now-graduated forward Isaiah Whaley, and Sanogo has gotten much better with it now.
3) Hawkins is the floor spreader. How have you seen him develop in Storrs?
With Hawkins, there was never really anything stopping him except for his confidence. He had a little spurt of energy last year against Auburn in the Battle 4 Atlantis where he scored 16 points in limited playing time, but had a costly turnover late in that game that seemed to rattle his confidence for the rest of the season. After returning from his concussion in the first game this year, Hawkins has been fantastic. Aside from a rough effort against Iowa State in the PKI final, his shooting has been on point. He shot just 33% last year but has jumped all the way up to 42.5% through 11 games, a mark that he should be able to maintain. Him and Sanogo really open up a lot of things for each other and for the rest of the team.
4) Hurley relishes the bad boy mantra. Has the team adopted that too? Fans?
I don't know if bad boy is the best way to describe Hurley's mantra, moreso incredible toughness. This team will be the first on the ground for a loose ball, will force jump-balls and plays tenacious defense, which is all in the culture of the team. The team and the fans have embraced that toughness, which has been the key to their sensational start.
5) What is UConn's achilles heel?
Winning every game from here on out will be an uphill battle, so once they do lose, it'll be because of 40 minutes of poor shooting. There were a lot of bricks during the first 25 minutes of the last game against Butler, but they managed to overcome that towards the end. They won't lose due to a lack of effort and their offensive rebounding will always keep them in games. They have many proven shooters on the roster, but there are nights when nobody can hit a shot and if that comes against a tough opponent, that'll be the end of the winning streak.
6) Prediction?
I'm going to say a 90-60 UConn win. It's definitely going to be an uphill battle for Georgetown with suffocation of the UConn defense, especially at Gampel Pavilion. They beat a good Butler team by 22 on the road, so 30 at home vs a struggling Hoya team seems pretty fair.