SB Nation Stories from The UConn Blog

​Final Score: UConn Frustratingly Falls to Auburn in Overtime, 70-67
UConn lost Jalen Adams, and then the game.

Despite another impressive defensive performance by an undermanned UConn team, the Huskies came out ice cold in the second half and then lost Jalen Adams to injury. They came back late to force overtime but ultimately floundered, losing 70-67 in front of a good-sized crowd at the XL Center.

For the fifth straight game, UConn held its opponent under 35% shooting as Auburn hit just 33% of its shots. Unfortunately, the Huskies shot an abysmal 4-of-28 from deep and 35% from the field. In a disturbing trend, they once against struggled at the line, making just 68% of their freebies.

“We have to follow the game plan,” Kevin Ollie said. “We can’t shoot 28 threes.” After the North Florida game, he mentioned how pleased he was with the emphasis on the two-pointer, but today his team failed to follow suit.

Three Takeaways from the UConn Win Over UCF
Have the Huskies turned things around?

With the frustrations of four-straight losses after an already rough start snowballing, it has taken far too long for the Huskies to play at the high standards their predecessors set. But at least it happened on Sunday in the win over UCF.

The Huskies came out hungry from the opening tip and rode their defense to a satisfying victory. It was refreshing to see them effectively spread the ball on offense, win 50-50 balls, and play 40 minutes of dominant defense.

In what was the most complete team-win of the season, here's what we learned from Sunday's action:

Fast Start... Furious Defense

​Kevin Ollie's decision to start a bigger lineup paid off immediately. UConn hit its first four shots including a pair of Rodney Purvis threes to jump to a 10-0 lead. Running a crisp offense and spreading the ball out well, the Huskies shot 47% from the floor and hit six threes.

​What was more impressive was the total domination on the defensive end. UCF's star center Tacko Fall came in averaging 14 PPG, 11 RPG, and an NCAA-leading 80% FG%. UConn held Fall scoreless in 25 minutes and UCF to just 33% shooting. Yes, the Knights hit 9-21 from three, but clean looks were hard to come by all afternoon.

UConn Men’s Basketball: Early-Season Report Card
The Huskies’ 2016 season started in a way which nobody could have predicted. Do they have what it takes to recover?

This hype-machine was in full force in Storrs going into this fall. UConn was ranked as high as #16 in the polls. The frontcourt was supposed to be deeper and more experienced. Jalen Adams and Alterique Gilbert were set to lead a fast and dangerous backcourt deep into March. Husky fans delirious with anticipation of Kevin Ollie’s top-10 recruiting class.

How quickly things can change. Nine games into a challenging non-conference slate, the Huskies sit at 4-5 with only eight healthy scholarship players available. UConn has grinded out every single game, but the early returns leave fans questioning what could have been.
But all is not lost. The American Conference as a whole is rebuilding this season. The conference tournament will still be played in Hartford this March. We beat Syracuse. There is hope.
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With a third of the season played, here’s a look at the Huskies’ body of work.

Three Point Shot: Takeaways from UConn-Auburn
Another close game, another tough loss.

Auburn’s basketball may not be on par with football, but Bruce Pearl has turned around the Tiger program as a competitive SEC squad this season. UConn could not capitalize on the chance to earn a resume-building win.

With the Huskies opening conference play Wednesday against Houston, here are a few things we learned from Friday.

What’s Cooler than Being Cool…Ice Cold: At this point, UConn’s offense lives and dies in the paint. The bigs are playing well and the guards are attacking the rim. Which is why it’s so puzzling to see the Huskies take 28 shots from three. It’s bad enough they only made *four* of them. It’s even worse that the guards settled way too many times for contested jumpers rather than attacking the paint. In the last six games, UConn is shooting 27% from three.