It's over.

We'll have a postmortem on this most frustrating UConn season some time tomorrow. As for now, digest some of these interesting postgame quotes:

RYAN BOATRIGHT:

(on whether he would have played had it been an NCAA tournament game)



Don't diss him, folks. Boatright made the right decision concerning his future. Really, it was the only decision.

More:

“It’s my last year. There’s no way. If I told you I wouldn’t (play if it was an NCAA tourney game), I’d be lying to you. But it wasn’t the NCAA tournament. Speaking with everybody that I need to speak to -- the coach, the trainers, the doctors and stuff -- they came up with the decision that I need to sit down. All I can do is honor that.”

Boatright said his shoulder injury has something to do with his rotator cuff, and that he'll likely have an MRI on Thursday.

“It was extremely tough. I was contemplating five minutes in if I wanted to go in there and throw my uniform on. It was rough. But I had belief in my team, I really thought we were gonna pull that game out. It sums up the season, man. Just inconsistent. We just need to get better, period, in all forms of the game.”

(on moving on to the next level)

“Just taking care of what I can control going into this process. I know it’s a long process, but it’s something I’ve been waiting for my entire life. It’s something I’m going to continue to work for, before and throughout the process. I’m just gonna control what I can control, which is my play. Hopefully, somebody believes in me and gives me the opportunity.”

KEVIN OLLIE:

“It just shows kind of our whole season -- the inconsistencies we’ve had. From the first half to the second half, I thought our guys really came out and played, started really executing and finding the open man. (But) we’ve got to do a better job as a coaching staff and as players to really fix that next year, because to be a good team, you can’t have inconsistencies as much as we had this year.”

(on the season as a whole)

“Fellas, we lost four games within 10 seconds. I mean, it’s not like we're in a damn pit. Ten seconds go our way, we’re gonna be in the NCAA tournament. I’m just gonna be real with you. There were a lot of games we lost at the end. I’m not crying over spilled milk, it is what it is. It’s a fine line. Those are the inches you’ve got to fight for as a coaching staff, as a program. I mean, it’s right there. It’s a fine line from being in the NCAA tournament or not in the NCAA touranment. ANd it’s a great life lesson I can teach the kids, too. You’ve got to value every game, every possession.”

Then there were these somewhat cryptic words:

“Whoever’s coming back, they’re gonna understand that we have a mission in mind. We’re gonna take the guys that want to be here, that are gonna fulfill that mission going forward.”

Asked if he's expecting transfers, Ollie replied: “I have no idea. I’m gonna have exit meetings next week, my door is gonna be wide-open. They can tell me their concerns, if they want to be here or not. If they want to transfer, I can’t stop them ... Hopefully everybody comes back. But, if not, we’ll keep moving on as a program.”

“I always have an open-door policy, with anybody. That’s the kind of relationship I want to have with my student-athletes.”

(on Boatright's chances in the NBA)

“It just takes one person in the NBA to love you. It doesn’t take all 30 teams, just one general manager, one person that believes in him. I think he really established himself as a better shooter this year. If you’re gonna be that small, at 5-9 -- he claims that he’s 6-feet, so we’re gonna say 6 feet -- he has to be able to shoot the basketball. I think he really worked on that this year, really shooting the ball at a high pace. And it wasn’t like he was just sitting in the corner. I mean, he had three people on him sometimes, and he still shot the ball at a high rate from the 3-point line.”

“He still has to work on body language and things like that. When you’re stuck in the NBA locker room, you have 30-year-olds, 32-year-olds, that you have to gain their respect. Not by talking, by working. I think he’s gonna do that from Day One. Hopefully, he’s in a position to do that on a day-to-day basis, because I know that kid wants it. He works so hard. Many times I try to sit him down, (he says) ‘No, coach, I want to work for my guys, get out here and practicre.’ I just wish the best for him. Because if he gets in a situation and it’s a dogfight, I’ll put my money on Boat.”

(on Amida Brimah, who played just three minutes in the second half and wound up without a point or a rebound for the game)

“He wasn’t banged up. Amida’s got to get better.”