Sterling Gibbs "really happy" for Seton Hall's success
Listening to Kevin Willard on the radio on my drive to the airport this afternoon got me thinking about Sterling Gibbs.
Gibbs, of course, played for the Pirates for three seasons before transferring to UConn as a grad student this season. He's been up-and-down for the Huskies, hitting some big shots, averaging about 10 points but not putting up the numbers he did last season as one of the top 3-point shooters in the country.
Seton Hall, meanwhile, has played as well as just about anyone in the country the past few weeks and won the Big East tournament on Saturday.
A lot was made about locker room dissension with the Hall last season, and as the Pirates played well and the Huskies struggled at times this season, it may have appeared that Gibbs' departure was a positive for the Pirates.
But there appears to be absolutely no animosity between Gibbs and his old teammates. I asked him shortly after UConn's win over Memphis in the AAC title game on Sunday if he was happy for the Hall.
“I’m really happy for those guys," he said. "I keep in touch with all of them. I actually had a long conversation with Desi Rodriguez. I try to mentor those guys, still, because they’re friends. I live right around the corner from Seton Hall — I went home last week — I saw those guys and I was able to talk to them and get up with them for a little bit. It’s always nice to see a New Jersey school really thriving.”
Also, it was nice to see DeAndre Daniels on Saturday night. He's in town visiting his grandmother and stepmom for the holidays, and was inside the locker room afterwards. Daniels played in Australia last year but broke his foot about four months ago and has been rehabbing mostly in Toronto with the Raptors, who still hold his rights after selecting him in the second round of the 2014 NBA draft.
He said he probably needs about another month or two of rehabbing before he’s ready to play again. He’s not under contract with the Raptors, who will relinquish his rights after this season.
Daniels enjoyed his time in Australia last year.
“It was good,” he said. “I loved it. To be far away and be out there by myself was tough at first, but it was good to grow up and play a new position (small forward). It was a good league, and I enjoyed my time out there.”
As league play begins, we forecast this year's AAC season
In its third season, the AAC doesn't appear to be as good as we thought it was going to be just a few months ago. With SMU barred from the postseason, could this be a one-bid league? Probably not, but considering how the league has had the two biggest snubs for each of the last two NCAA tournaments (SMU in 2014, Temple in 2015), it's hard to envision any more than two bids -- at least at this point.
We chronicle all this in today's Register. Meanwhile, with conference play just underway (and UConn readying for its league opener on Saturday at Tulane), here's our picks for the league's award-winners this season:
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Daniel Hamilton, UConn. The most complete player in the league, and possibly its best NBA prospect. Hamilton leads the league in assists, is fifth in reboundng and 13th in scoring. Even with reigning POY Nic Moore back and playing well, we're gonna side with Hamilton on this one.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Dedric Lawson, Memphis. He's got strong competition from SMU's Shake Milton, but Lawson has thus far made the transfer of Austin Nichols far more bearable. He's fifth in the league in scoring and second in rebounding.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Shaq Harrison, Tulsa. Amida Brimah isn't expected back until about mid-February, so we're eliminating him from the competition. With that in mind, we'll throw Tulsa a bone and give it to the player who currently leads the league in steals.
COACH OF THE YEAR: Kelvin Sampson, Houston. No matter how many games SMU wins, there's no way they'll give this award to Larry Brown -- right? Houston was expected to be better this season, and Sampson -- a very good coach -- may have the Cougars even better than expected.
ALL-CONFERENCE
FIRST TEAM
Daniel Hamilton, UConn Rodney Purvis, UConn Nic Moore, SMU Jordan Tolbert, SMU James Woodard, Tulsa Troy Caupain, Cincinnati
A few awards that won't be announced at the AAC tournament in Orlando in March:
BEST NAME: Tacko Fall, UCF. Is there any competition? That he's 7-foot-6, 300 pounds and playing pretty well (2.5 blocks per game) only adds to his intrigue.
BEST TRANSFER: Jordan Tolbert, SMU. Texas Tech transfer leads the league in rebounding at 10.2 per game, to go with 12.6 points. He's overshadowed Markus Kennedy to this point.
BEST GRAD TRANSFER: Ricky Tarrant, Jr., Memphis. UConn fans love Shonn Miller and Sterling Gibbs, but Tarrant, who started his career at Tulane, then played two seasons at Alabama, may have the bigger overall impact.
BEST JUCO TRANSFER: Rob Gray, Houston. After playing at Howard JC last year, Gray is leading the AAC in scoring at 18.5 points per game.
BEST SHAQ: Shaq Goodwin, Memphis. In a narrow victory, Goodwin, who seems to have been around forever, edges Harrison, who along with James Woodard forms one of the top guard combos in the league.
Old Home Season continues Tuesday for Sterling Gibbs vs. Texas
Sterling Gibbs has already played against the team with whom he originally signed a national letter-of-intent (Maryland), as well as the team he chose UConn over as a graduate transfer (Ohio State).
Anyway, I'll be signing copies of my book, Rebound: The Incredible Story of UConn Basketball's Comeback from Defeat to Dominance, on Saturday at the UConn Co-Op Store, prior to the Huskies' noon bout with Ohio State, starting around 11 a.m. Yes, the title is a little vague. Yes, they should have put Shabazz on the cover. But it is the story of UConn's run to the '14 title, starting at Kevin Ollie's 2012 introductory press conference and ending at Jerry's World in Arlington, Texas.
Anyone filtering through the store en route to the UConn-Ohio State game across the street at Gampel at noon, we'd love for you to come by!
Getting back to Saturday's game, Ollie is looking for the Huskies to get tougher. And that means tougher from the get-go. He also realizes that time is tickin', and the idea that new players still have to "feel-out" their place with UConn's returnees is over.
One interesting subplot: While UConn had to go up against a player (Diamond Stone) who spurned its advances on Tuesday night, the script gets flipped on Saturday, when the Huskies feature a player (Sterling Gibbs) who spurned Ohio State's advances last spring.
Here's some of what Sterling Gibbs had to say after Thursday's practice, as he gets set to begin his first and only season as a Husky:
And here's some of what Kevin Ollie had to say:
Elsewhere:
*** Phil Nolan took part in most of Thursday's practice, but Ollie wouldn't completely sign off on Nolan being available to play on Friday, saying that the senior forward was still favoring his ankle a bit.
*** Tyler Olander took in practice. Olander is playing professionally in Lithuania, but recently hurt his leg and is back rehabbing it for a couple of months. It's a similar injury to what DeAndre Daniels sustained over the summer, according to Ollie.
The AAC released its preseason coaches' poll on Tuesday morning, and the coaches pretty much got it right.
SMU is picked to win the league. Debatable (especially with its postseason ban) but certainly not criminal. UConn's picked second, Cincinnati third, Tulsa fourth, Memphis fifth, Temple sixth, Houston seventh ... pretty standard.
Daniel Hamilton earned first-team honors, and I completely agree. I think there's a chance he could wind up conference player of the year. I'm that high on Hamilton. But it's no surprise that SMU's Nic Moore, who won the award last year, is the preseason pick.
Jalen Adams is tabbed as rookie of the year. I thought this could go to either Adams or Memphis's D.J. Lawson, who is a McDonald's All-American and could see major minutes as the player asked to replace Austin Nichols. But again, certainly no crime that Adams (who likely won't start much this season) is the choice.
Amida Brimah and Sterling Gibbs made preseason second team. Certainly fair. But here's where things get a little sticky -- Rodney Purvis did not earn any recognition. He is the Huskies' top returning scorer, and we all saw what he could do over the final couple of weeks last season, particularly in the league tourney while Ryan Boatright was battling injury and double-teams.
Of course, there are only so many spots (10) on the preseason teams, and it's hard to give four of them to UConn players. Should Purvis have got the nod over, say, Brimah? You could make that argument.
But he didn't,. and now maybe this "snub" could serve as motivation for Purvis as the season unfolds.
Preseason Player of the Year Nic Moore, R-Sr., G, SMU Preseason Rookie of the Year Jalen Adams, Fr., G, UConn Preseason All-Conference First Team Octavius Ellis, Sr., F, Cincinnati Daniel Hamilton, So., G/F, UConn *Markus Kennedy, R-Sr., F, SMU *Nic Moore, R-Sr., G, SMU James Woodard, Sr., G, Tulsa Preseason All-Conference Second Team Troy Caupain, Jr., G, Cincinnati Amida Brimah, Jr., C, UConn Sterling Gibbs, GS, G, UConn Shaq Goodwin, Sr., F, Memphis Shaquille Harrison, Sr., G, Tulsa [*] denotes unanimous selection 2015-16 Preseason Coaches' Poll (First-place votes in parenthesis)
Daniel Hamilton, Rodney Purvis earn Erving Award consideration
For what it's worth, Daniel Hamilton and Rodney Purvis have both been named to the 2016 Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award watch list. I thought of Purvis as more of a two-guard, but what do I know?
Four different lists were announced on Tuesday: Erving, as well as the Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year, Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year and Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year. No other Huskies are on the lists. I thought Sterling Gibbs might make the Cousy list, but it's a long season.
And if you're wondering about the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year list, that will be released on Friday. I'd expect Amida Brimah to make that one.
2016 Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award Candidates: Jaylen Brown, California Daniel Hamilton, Connecticut Rodney Purvis, Connecticut Brandon Ingram, Duke John Brown, High Point Troy Williams, Indiana Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk, Kansas Wayne Selden, Jr., Kansas Alex Poythress, Kentucky Damion Lee, Louisville Ben Simmons, Louisiana State Jake Layman, Maryland Denzel Valentine, Michigan State Justin Jackson, North Carolina DeAndre Bembry, Saint Joseph’s Malik Pope, San Diego State Michael Gbinije, Syracuse D.J. Hogg, Texas A&M Brandon Taylor, Utah Nigel Hayes, Wisconsin
Sights and sounds from UConn's season-opening practice
It's that time of year, folks. UConn officially kicked off practice on Saturday with a four-hour grind that started at 10 a.m. in Guyer Gym and ended around 2 p.m. inside the Werth Family Champions Center.
Here's some of what was said, along with some video:
KEVIN OLLIE:
(on the newcomers)
“They did an amazingly good job. Sterling did a great job, Shonn was fantastic, and Enoch and Jalen did a great job. Terry played well, too. I was like, ‘Man, I wish I could have him, too.’ Just being greedy, I guess.”
“We lost a lot of games in the last few minutes, last possession, that we’d like to clean up. That’s why the execution part is so crucial going into the season.”
“Oh, we’re gonna run. Definitely gonna run. I was very disappointed in our tempo (last year). We’ve got to run, push the pace. I’ve got a lot of options. I can go big, I can go small. That’s what I like. We’ll just see how we can manipulate the defense, and see who’s not gonna give in, retreat or surrender. That’s what I kept telling the guys: it’s the UConn covenant.”
(on Jalen Adams)
“He’s gonna be a fantastic player. The one thing that he’s gotta get better at is conditioning -- which wasn’t bad, but playing at this level, you’re gonna be playing a top-notch point guard. You’re gonna be playing probably their best player on the court. So you’ve got to be able to guard defensively, then come down and have the composure to run the offense.”
“We’ve had a lot of great point guards. If he wants to be in that line of guys, he’s gonna have to do the extra stuff. It can’t just be the two hours of practice. It’s got to be the extra stuff to make him an extraordinary person to put on that jersey.”
(on how hard it is to monitor an entire program as a head coach)
“You have to have discipline. I’m not saying those other teams didn’t have it, I’m just speaking for myself. You have to have accountability, and that starts with the coach. It is what it is. We can put our arms up and say it’s not our job to do it, but that’s what we have to do. That falls on us. We have to understand that it comes with the job, with being a head coach. You’ve got to have great people around you.”
“It’s up to them to take ownership and do the right things. I think all our guys want to play. They have pride in their jersey and their university. Hopefully, our guys do the right thing. But they’re 17, 18-year-olds, they make mistakes like we all make mistakes. We’ve just got to be careful with what we’re doing. It starts with me. I can’t run away from that. We’ve got to step up. It’s like a great quarterback -- you can’t run away from pressure, because most pressure comes from outside. You’ve got to step up in the pocket. That’s what we’ve got to do -- step up in the pocket, on the court and off the court. That’s why we challenge so much. If you see your brother doing something wrong, you challenge him to be better, because he’s just gonna bring us all down. We do a lot of things off the court to try to manage them when they get in those situations, so they think about doing the right things, not the wrong things.”
STERLING GIBBS:
“That plays a big part in being good. You have to hold everyone accountable. As a brotherhood, you can’t be scared to tell your brother that he’s doing something wrong.”
(on Adams)
“Jalen’s talented. He’s really skilled. He’s gifted, he’s tall, he’s athletic. He has all the abilities to be a star. This year, I’m just gonna try to give him some knowledge, teach him a couple of things that I’ve learned over the course of the year. And I’ll probably be able to learn a couple of things from him, as well.”
(on running)
“That’s a guard’s dream, to be able to have the freedom to get out and run, and to use the pick and roll. Just to have the freedom overall, I think that’s one of the things that he’s really stressing. He doesn’t want to come down and call a play each time down.”
DANIEL HAMILTON:
“They handled it pretty well. The fifth-year (guys), and a couple of the freshmen, they played real well. I didn’t expect them to be that good. They handled it real well.”
(on Adams)
“He’s more mature than a freshman. He doesn’t play like a freshman, he plays like it’s his second or third year. That’s gonna help us huge, because he comes in and has a clue on what’s going on. He’ll come in and play right away.”
(on team's versatility)
“Last year it was kind of like, ‘Watch him do that, watch him do this.’ It’s more of a team this year. Everybody can do different stuff. People aren’t just one-dimensional.”
“It’s kind of like having toys. He can throw whatever toy or whatever car he wants to have.”
ADAMS:
“It was tiring, but I think I did pretty well ... The whole week leading up to this, everybody’s like, ‘First practice, K.O. is cool, but when you get on the court, he’s in a different mindset.’ So, I was kind of expecting it. And I like to run.”
“We have five guys who can score the ball, four who can score off the perimeter. Everybody’s a key asset, so you have to pay attention to everybody.”
(on running)
“I love that a lot. That’s one of the main reasons I came here, just watching them play. They’re always uptempo offense. I like to get out, fast-break dunks, alley-oops. I like to have fun when I’m playing.”
“Everybody can play basketball at this level. People who are willing to put in extra time, pay attention to detail, do the little stuff.”
“Each of those three guards, I want to take stuff from. Kemba, I want to take his aggressivness and creativity. Shabazz, his pull-up jump shot and how he’s the leader. And Boatright, how he’s also a great leader and he just gets everybody involved. I like that a lot from all those guys.”
(can he lead as a frosh?)
“Definitely. I think leading is natural. In those type of situations, growing up -- even off the court with my friends, I was always, like, the head honcho. Leading is natural. If you’ve been through it, it carries on to the court.”
Daniel Hamilton addresses the crowd prior to the run:
Kevin Ollie speaks with the media:
Daniel Hamilton crosses the finish line first among his UConn teammates -- backwards -- with a time of 20:31.
Some notes 'n quotes off the run:
KEVIN OLLIE
(on the Husky Run)
“It’s important -- spending time with the fans, seeing them run, seeing us run. It’s about starting something and finishing something. That’s kind of our motto: whatever we start, we want to finish. That hill on the back side always gets you. But you’ve got to persevere. Just like the season, there’s gonna be some ups and downs, but you’ve got to get to the finish line. It’s really not a race to win, it’s a race against yourself. You want to finish.”
(on the team's newcomers)
“They’re fitting in great. That’s one thing I really want to see early -- team chemistry. They’re doing a wonderful job coming in and bringing leadership. They’re not scared to challenge people. We don’t want them to come in and take a back seat, because they’re gonna play a pivotal role in our success.”
(on Daniel Hamilton)
“I think he always had confidence in how good he could be. It’s just putting the work in, seeing the results. I think he saw some great results last year, but he definitely wants to improve on shooting percentage, being a better decision-maker, taking better shots. But he did some wonderful things last year. Now, you’ve just got to take what you do well now and do it even better. I’ve been seeing some remarkable growth throughout this preseason.”
“He’s gonna be on everybody’s list to stop. We had Ryan Boatright, I bet you he had the big star on his name. Now, Daniel’s gonna have that star on his name. The good thing is we have a lot of players that are gonna have that star on their names. It’s not gonna just be one guy. That’s a good thing for a coach to have options, and to have a team that’s deep.”
(on SMU)
“We hate for that to happen to SMU ... I just hate for it to happen to a very dear friend of mine. I know they’re gonna get better from the situation and hopefully go forward. We’ve got to go forward as a university, as a conference. We still have some great teams that are gonna have the opportunity to play in the NCAA tournament.”
“I can’t tell you that, you’re gonna have to call Larry about that. But, knowing him, he’s been down a lot of times in his life. The good thing about being down, a week later, he’s back up and at it again. I don’t think that’s gonna change now. I think he’s gonna look at it as a learning circumstance, and I think he’ll get better. But he’s a great man, he’s been very influential in my life. I just wish him the best going forward.”
*** Amida Brimah sat out the run. He rolled his ankle in his final GHPA game in August, but should be fine for Saturday's first practice.
Sam Cassell, Jr. also sat out the Husky run. Trainer James Doran didn't want him pounding his stress fracture for 3.1 miles on blacktop. He's good to go Saturday, too.
HAMILTON
“I said I was gonna win it a couple of weeks ago, so I had to make sure I lived up to that.”
“Definitely a different attitude. I want to win, like UConn does. I just want to come in, win and make a huge impact.”
“I’m in the best shape of my life.”
“I’m ready to come in and lead and just win, that’s the main thing. We win, everybody’s having fun and everybody looks good.”
“We’re more together. We all come to the gym at the same time, nobody’s separate from each other. We’ve got the team mindset. The new guys are fitting in real well, putting in their work at nighttime. They’re dragging me to come in the gym. That’s always a good sign.”
“I had way too many turnovers -- two turnovers a game, that’s a lot a game, and I’m not even a point guard. I’ve got to defnitely cut down on that.”
(on speculation he'll go pro after this year)
“That’s a distraction outside the locker room. I don’t want to make a distraction outside the locker room, because that could affect the way we play. I just want to come in and play our game, play the way UConn wants to play. That’s getting wins.”
OMAR CALHOUN:
“I’m feeling real good, better than I felt last year coming in. I did a lot of rehab over the summer, so I’m feeling 100-percent right now. Hopefully I can stay this way and just continue to improve.”
a lot of track work, working on mobility, flexibility, lot of strengthening core, when I was in boot, strengthen everything else
“I want to show everyone the kind of player I really am. I’ve been dealing with injuries basically every year, besides my freshman year. Hopefully, I can get the year I want my senior year. Make a big run in the tournament, that’s the plan.”
“I’ve always been a competitive person. It should be fun. Whoever’s the best is gonna be on the court at the end of the day.”
PURVIS:
“Everything with me is off the flow of the game. I’m pretty fast, so I’ll let my speed get me out in transition to get me going. It’s a great thing to have a lot of weapons, but just because you have a lot of weapons doesn’t mean you have to take your foot off the gas. The more scoring, the more points, the more wins we’ll get.”
“He’s even surprised me how much more he’s opened up. Last year he was a freshman. When you’re a freshman, you’re kind of figuring yourself out. You’re coming to a locker room with a lot of older guys. With his summer and with that year, he’s really opened up a whole lot. He’s kind of like a differnet person. Last year, he was the quietest in the locker room. Now, he’s one of the loudest. That’s always a positive.”
“I dedicated my whole summer pushing myself and preparing myself for this moment. It’s not really good to say, but I really do feel like this is my team. I’ve got to step up and be that guy and be that coach on the floor. It’s a huge role, a huge task, but I’ve got to give my credit to Coach Ollie. He’s really working with me each and every day. I really credit him.”
Sure, there are hundreds of players out there, and Kentucky, Duke and North Carolina can't swipe up all of them. Sure, it may have helped UConn that Durham missed much of his junior year after tearing the ACL in his right knee, though it appears most of the major programs still coveted the Tampa Prep star despite the injury.
But the fact of the matter is, the Huskies are welcoming three excellent players to the program next season -- and more top-notch talent could be on the way.
Wenyen Gabriel, one of the top-rated power forwards in the nation out of Wilbraham and Monson Academy, is slated to visit Storrs in a few weeks (Oct. 2-4). He's also highly sought-after by Kentucky, Duke, Maryland and Providence, but if the Huskies can get him to commit, it would really put their 2016 haul over the top.
Meanwhile, UConn is still very strong with a pair of top 2017 recruits: Zach Brown, a 7-footer out of Miami, and Hamadou Diallo, a shooting guard out from Putnam Science Academy who is close to current teammate Diarra.
UConn currently has one scholarship still open, which it could fill with a walk-on, as it has the past couple of seasons, or leave open in case any mid-season transfers become available. Otherwise, the Huskies will have at least four scholarships open up next season, with Sterling Gibbs, Shonn Miller, Omar Calhoun and Phil Nolan all graduating. It's certainly possible that Daniel Hamilton, Amida Brimah and/or Rodney Purvis could leave school early for the NBA after this season, as well.
With all that considered, the Huskies will likely have at least two, if not three or four more slots to fill for the 2016-17 season. A big man and a shooter top their wish list to fill out the Class of 2016 -- unless, of course, an extremely talented player at any other position suddenly becomes available. UConn could soon be getting a visit from 6-8 forward De'Ron Davis out of Colorado, who's getting a home visit from the Huskies this week.
Otherwise, the Huskies are looking at '17's and '18's, and could be getting a visit soon from Myles Powell out of South Kent School.
Here's a quick breakdown of UConn's 2015-16 schedule
Sun., Nov. 1Tampa (exhibition) at Gampel, 2 p.m. Division II program whose facilities UConn borrowed prior to USF game last year
Sat., Nov. 7New Haven (exhibition) at XL Center, 1 p.m. Huskies will look to avenge football team’s loss to Chargers in 1992! First time programs have met in a major sport since.
Fri., Nov. 13Maine at Gampel, 7 p.m. Black Bears coached by former Providence assistant Bob Walsh.
Tues., Nov. 17New Hampshire at Gampel, 7 p.m. Wildcats may be UConn’s toughest low-major foe this season.
Sat., Nov. 21Furman at Gampel, TBD Clearly an excuse to get RI native, Furman grad Brad Faxon over to a UConn game. Or not. This is a Battle 4 Atlantis "subregional" game.
Wed. Nov. 25vs. Michigan at Imperial Arena, Bahamas, 9:30 p.m. After disappointing 2014-15, John Beilein-coached Wolverines should be tourney team again.
Thur., Nov. 26vs. Syracuse or Charlotteat Imperial Arena, Bahamas, TBD A date with ex-Big East rival Orange sure would be delicious.
Fri., Nov. 27vs. TBD at Imperial Arena, Bahamas, TBD Final game of Battle 4 Atlantis; could be first of two meetings with Texas.
Wed., Dec. 2Sacred Heart at XL Center, 7 p.m. Pioneers went 9-9 in Northeast Conference last season.
Tue., Dec. 8vs. Marylandat MSG, 9:30 p.m. The Diamond Bowl: Huskies go up vs. frosh Diamond Stone, who rejected UConn for Terps. Maryland should be a preseason national top-five team across the board.
Sat., Dec. 12Ohio State at Gampel, noon First of home-and-home with Buckeyes, who lost NBA lottery pick D’Angelo Russell, several others.
Sun., Dec. 20UMass-Lowell at XL Center, 4 p.m. Last of three America East foes on Huskies’ schedule.
Wed., Dec. 23CCSU at XL Center, 12:30 p.m. Huskies face former assistant Howie Dickenman’s crew for second straight season.
Tue., Dec. 29at Texas at Erwin Center, 9 p.m. Longhorns welcome Shaka Smart as new head coach after canning underachieving Rick Barnes; Sterling Gibbs returns to the school at which he started.
Sat., Jan. 2at Tulane at Devin Fieldhouse, TBD With Sugar Bowl night before, New Orleans will be hoppin’ for Huskies’ AAC season opener.
Tue., Jan 5 Temple at XL Center, 8 p.m. Owls were NCAA tourney’s top snub last year, but won’t make as convincing a case this season.
Sat., Jan. 9 Memphis at Gampel, 7 p.m. Austin Nichols transferred to Virginia, but Tigers welcome McD’s All-America brothers Dedric and K.J. Lawson.
Thu., Jan. 14 at Tulsa at Reynolds Center, 7 p.m. Golden Hurricane have every player back from last year’s second-place AAC squad. Literally, everyone.
Sun., Jan. 17 at Houston at Hofheinz Pavilion, 2 p.m. Hofheinz Pavilion a house of horrors for UConn, who are 0-2 there in AAC play.
Tue., Jan. 19 Tulane at XL Center, 7 p.m. Green Wave welcome deepest, most talented recruiting class in years.
Sat., Jan. 23Georgetown at XL Center, noon
Beginning of home-and-home with Hoyas, who will be strong, led by D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera and a top recruiting class that includes former UConn target Jessie Govan
Thu., Jan. 28 Cincinnati at XL Center, 7 p.m. Bearcats have just about everyone back, including coach Mick Cronin, who missed most of last season with health issue.
Sun. Jan. 31 at Central Florida at CFE Arena, TBD Two of AAC’s top frosh last year, B.J. Taylor, Adonys Henriquez, lead the way.
Thu., Feb. 4 at Memphis at FedExForum, 9 p.m. Big man Shaq Goodwin played very well while Nichols was sidelined by injury last season.
Sun., Feb. 7 East Carolina at Gampel, noon Huskies won’t visit ECU this season as part of AAC unbalanced schedule. Thank God, because last year's trip was a snowy, icy, flight-delayed nightmare. And not just for the writers.
Thu. Feb. 11 at Temple at Liacouras Center, 7 p.m. Owls will always be dangerous as long as Fran Dunphy is their coach.
Sat., Feb. 13 Tulsa at Gampel, 8 p.m. There aren’t many better all-around guards in league than James Woodard.
Thu., Feb. 18SMU at XL Center, TBD Led by reigning AAC player of year Nic Moore, Larry Brown’s Mustangs will vie for second straight league title.
Sat., Feb. 20 at Cincinnati at Fifth Third Arena, TBD Gary Clark, Octavius Ellis form possibly AAC’s top front line.
Thu., Feb 25 at South Florida at Sun Dome, TBD Orlando Antigua will get this program turned around, but not this season.
Sun., Feb. 28 Houston at Gampel, TBD Lots of people like Kelvin Sampson-coached Cougars as sleeper team in AAC. I don't quite see it yet.
Thu., March 3 at SMU at Moody Coliseum, 9 p.m. Only thing that could hold Mustangs back this year is ongoing NCAA investigation.
Sun., March 6 Central Florida at Gampel, 2 p.m. Coach Donnie Jones could be on hot seat if Knights don’t show improvement.
Kevin Ollie on Amida Brimah, Sam Cassell, Jr., transfers, recruiting ... and Dave Kaplan's hole-in-one!
Kevin Ollie spoke with the media today, prior to his annual golf tournament, which supports sport and recreational opportunities for people with disabilities.
First, the lead story of the day: UConn assistant director of athletics-video services Dave Kaplan scored a hole-in-one on a the 184-yard, par-3 18th hole on Monday and won a Honda Pilot. Not bad for a self-professed "hacker."
"We can say that sets the tone for the season," Ollie quipped.
Here's why that particular charity means so much to Ollie:
“It’s special to my heart because of (former UConn teammate) Steve Emt first. That’s why I got into the Tolland Fund. What we did for him, and what he went through in his car accident -- but he’s doing great now. Helping athletes with disabilities -- and I don’t even say disabilities. 'Disabilities' comes from your mind. These kids and young adults that we help, they’re striving for greatness. We want to give them a shot to compete -- on a national level, or just around here, recreationally.”
(on how recruiting has been going)
“It’s been going well. We’ve been making some good contacts with a lot of great players. Just sitting down and making sure your staff is getting seen -- that’s pretty much what it is. We’ve already evaluated the guys we like. It’s pretty much just making sure they see us. With social media, it’s a different environment now with recruiting. With all the different tournaments, it’s kind of hard sometimes. But that’s why we get down i the ‘situation room’ and prioritize and go after the guys we really want. Sometimes we win some, sometimes we lose some, but eventually it works out if you have the same creed in mind -- getting great UConn student-athletes, not just athletes.”
(on UConn tapping into the fifth-year senior market so successfully)
“The landscape of collegiate sports now. I believe it’s up to 700 transfers now, which is out of control. But you have to look at it in your recruiting portfolio as something that you have to do and understand and navigate. We start early, we had some great players to come to us this year. Hopefully, they play a vital role in a great season.”
“When R.J. (Evans) gets a master’s degree in one year, that pretty much helps everybody. Lasan (Kromah) did a great job, he’s gonna be finishing up. Everybody can’t be R.J. R.J. was our first fifth-year (senior) (since) I became the head coach. For him to do it in one year was really amazing. He really set a tone. Lasan came in and did a great job, helped us win a national championship but also did an amazing job in the classroom. Everything I’m getting from Sterling (Gibbs) and Shonn Miller is that they’re doing amazing in the counseling program they’re involved in. It’s going amazingly well.”
(on Amida Brimah)
“Last year he was out with the soulder injury, couldn’t really work like he wanted to work. Anybody who knows Amida, he still worked. But to the capacity he’s able to do it now is great. He just went to adidas Nation, got some great reviews on him there.”
(on whether this year we'll see "the real Sam Cassell")
"The real Sam Cassell? Yeah. I thought the real Sam Cassell was there. I touch him everyday, he’s breathing. As a player? Yeah, he got hurt, so he couldn’t really show the real Sam Cassell. But what he did do -- which was phenomonal -- was he stayed with the team. I felt like Sam was still working out, he was always around the guys, encouraging the guys. Sometimes, somebody gets an injury and they withdraw. He actually started coming in even more. That’s the real Sam for me. Everybody looks at the basketball, but I look at the totality of the man. For him to still involved himself with team activities, being hurt, really shows a lot about his character. That’s what we thought about with Sam coming in -- that he has a high character. I love him, and hopefully he has some more opportunities this year to go out and -- I guess -- show the real Sam Cassell. But I see the true man. And the true man has been there ever since.”
(on last season)
“I thought we had a season of up’s and down’s last year. But like I tell everybody, we had a character-building season. I had a character-building season as a coach. It’s not going to always be a national championship. We’re gonna have to go through some valleys. But in the valleys, that’s where you get stronger. I think we got stronger as a team, and we’re looking forward to 2015.”
(on whether UConn has definite plans for its 13th scholarship)
“Not yet. Hopefully a 7-footer parachutes down, and I’ll be right there to catch him. But I don’t know if that’s gonna happen. I look up all the time, hopefully he’s coming down soon. But if he doens’t come down, we’ll have that extra scholarship, and I’ll look at possibly a walk-on filling it. But it’s still open, there are still some activities around there. We’ve still got our antennae up, like always, checking and seeing what’s happening through the wire. So if you all hear something, make sure you put it on your Twitter account, OK?”
Turns out, the prospects are quite good. Barring any disasters, the league should get three and possibly as many as five teams into this year's NCAA tournament. Which means, of course, that it'll likely get just three, since the AAC has had the selection committee's two biggest snubs (SMU in '14, Temple last year) the past two seasons.
Mick Cronin returns to Cincinnati's sidelines this season
Anyway, the league looks good this year. Its player of the year (Nic Moore) is back. So are five other all-league players: Tulsa's James Woodard and Shaq Harrison, Cincinnati's Octavius Ellis, SMU's Markus Kennedy and Tulane's Louis Dabney. So is Mick Cronin, after missing most of last season with a vascular condition.
There are some tough losses -- Ryan Boatright, Austin Nichols, Will Cummings, Yanick Moreira, Corey Allen, Jr.. But there are also numerous high-level transfers (both graduates and otherwise) who will make immediate impacts: UConn's Sterling Gibbs and Shonn Miller; SMU's Jordan Tolbert and Semi Ojeleye; Memphis's Ricky Tarrant, Jr. And there are some talented, impact freshmen, too: Memphis' McDonald's All-American brothers Dedric and K.J. Lawson, UConn's Jalen Adams, SMU's Malik "Shake" Milton.
It says here that UConn, SMU and Cincy will be the top three -- pick your order, but we'll give the Huskies the edge on overall depth and talent -- with Tulsa and Memphis battling for tourney bids. One of those two will probably get in. Maybe both.
Temple lost a lot of talent but has a lot coming back, and it has Fran Dunphy. Owls may be borderline, but we know how that usually turns out. And Houston's been getting a little national love lately, but I just don't see it ... yet.
1. UCONN
Daniel Hamilton may be UConn's (and AAC's) best player
Best player: Daniel Hamilton; Top returning scorer: Rodney Purvis; Biggest loss: Ryan Boatright; Best addition: Sterling Gibbs (Seton Hall transfer); Best freshman: Jalen Adams; Biggest positive: Talent, depth at every position; Biggest negative: Team may take a while to jell.
2. SMU
Best player: Nic Moore; Top returning scorer: Moore; Biggest loss: Yanick Moreira; Best addition: Jordan Tolbert (Texas Tech transfer); Best freshman: Malik “Shake” Milton; Biggest positive: Defense! Defense!; Biggest negative: NCAA investigation looms over program (and Larry Brown seems to have lost a little of his fastball).
3. CINCINNATI
Best player: Gary Clark; Top returning scorer: Octavius Ellis; Biggest loss: Jermaine Sanders; Best addition: Head coach Mick Cronin (after missing most of last season due to health); Best freshman: Jacob Evans; Biggest positive: One of the stingiest defensive teams in the land; Biggest negative: No real go-to scorer.
4. TULSA
Best player: James Woodard; Top returning scorer: Woodard; Biggest loss: None; Best addition: Pat Birt (JUCO transfer); Best freshman: Sterling Taplin; Biggest positive: Everyone’s back from a 15-3, second-place team; Biggest negative: Golden Hurricane will sneak up on no one this season.
5. MEMPHIS
Best player: Shaq Goodwin; Top returning scorer: Goodwin; Biggest loss: Austin Nichols; Best addition: Dedric Lawson; Best freshman: Lawson; Biggest positive: Lawson brothers, transfer Ricky Tarrant ease loss of Nichols; Biggest negative: Nichols is gone, and Josh Pastner still coaches this team.
6. TEMPLE
Best player: Quenton DeCosey; Top returning scorer: DeCosey; Biggest loss: Will Cummings; Best addition: Shawn Alston; Best freshman: Alston; Biggest positive: DeCosey, AAC top rebounder Jaylen Bond are back; Biggest negative: Two of top three scorers (Cummings, Jesse Morgan) graduated.
7. HOUSTON
Best player: Devonta Pollard; Top returning scorer: Pollard; Biggest loss: Jherrod Stiggers; Best addition: Ronnie Johnson (Purdue transfer); Best freshman: Galen Robinson, Jr.; Biggest positive: Johnson, Damyean Dotson good transfer additions; Biggest negative: One of worst shooting teams in country last season.
8. CENTRAL FLORIDA
Best player: B.J. Taylor; Top returning scorer: Taylor; Biggest loss: Brandon Goodwin; Best addition: A.J. Davis (Tennessee transfer); Best freshman: Tacko Fall; Biggest positive: We could watch 700 pounds of big men (Fall, Justin McBride) playing together; Biggest negative: UCF was one of the worst defensive teams in nation a year ago.
9. TULANE
Best player: Louis Dabney; Top returning scorer: Dabney; Biggest loss: Jay Hook; Best addition: Malik Morgan (LSU transfer); Best freshman: Melvin Frazier; Biggest positive: Deepest recruiting class in 15 years; Biggest negative: Three players who started all 31 games last year now gone.
10. SOUTH FLORIDA
Best player: Chris Perry; Top returning scorer: Nehemias Morillo; Biggest loss: Corey Allen, Jr.; Best addition: Roddy Peters (Maryland transfer); Best freshman: Luis Santos; Biggest positive: Perry’s back after missing last 13 games with heart ailment; Biggest negative: Troy Holston, Jr. suffered ACL tear in June.
11. EAST CAROLINA
Best player: B.J. Tyson; Top returning scorer: Tyson; Biggest loss: Terry Whisnant; Best addition: Clarence Williams (JUCO transfer); Best freshman: Deng Riak; Biggest positive: Tyson; Biggest negative: Pirates were badly outrebounded last season.
PRESEASON SUPERLATIVES:
SMU's Nic Moore is the reigning AAC player of the year
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Nic Moore, SMU. It's his until he surrenders it ... which he might.
BEST PLAYER: Daniel Hamilton, UConn. Or at least the best NBA prospect.
BEST SHAQ: Shaq Harrison, Tulsa. Edges out Memphis's Shaq Goodwin, with Cincy's Shaq Thomas getting some love, too. Lotta Shaqs in this league.
BEST B.J.: B.J. Taylor, UCF. Edges out ECU's B.J. Tyson. Shut up.
BEST SCANDAL: SMU. NCAA looking into possible academic improprieties involving a former assistant coach, former player Justin Martin and current Mustang Keith Frazier. (Runner-up: Memphis, though a report about a tutor providing improper academic help to players apparently was much ado about nothing).
BEST BOOK ABOUT UCONN'S 2014 NATIONAL TITLE RUN: He he. Couldn't resist a little self-promotion.
'A move Daniel might make on Terry, Terry will come back and make the same move on him'
Sterling Gibbs and Terry Larrier both played in the Greater Hartford Pro-Am on Wednesday night. Daniel Hamilton was there to cheer them on.
Gibbs and Larrier both looked good. Real good.
Gibbs, who poured in 45 points in a GHPA game the other night, can distribute and shoot. And he just oozes 'winner.'
Larrier is silky smooth, a long, 6-foot-7 athlete who can shoot from all over the floor:
Larrier draws obvious comparisons to Jeremy Lamb -- but also to Hamilton. In fact, the two have formed a unique bond this summer. They're best friends off the court, but when they go against each other in pick-up games on the court this summer, some intriguing battles have taken place.
“It’s actually fun, because of the fact that they’re so similar. They’re tall, they’re able to score the ball in multiple ways -- shoot, dribble, everything. A move that Daniel might make on Terry, Terry will come back and make the same move on him. It’s real competitive, and they really like each other and they’re really good friends.”
Don't expect to see much more of Hamilton or Larrier at the GHPA this summer, however. Both are heading home next week, and will resume their off-court friendship/on-court rivalry in the fall. No doubt, Larrier's presence as a "practice player" will greatly benefit Hamilton -- and the entire UConn team -- this season.
Kevin Ollie: 'It's a talented group. I'm not gonna lie to you guys.'
A few UConn notes to get you through your weekend:
*** Kevin Ollie has been contacted by several NBA teams regarding Ryan Boatright.
"Boat is gonna create his own chance," said Ollie. "And if they're not gonna open the door, he's gonna kick it down."
"I want him to look at what team fits him the best. That's what I want him to look at, not just the guaranteed money."
*** Ollie doesn't think it'll be a challenge meshing all the new players together this season.
"I'd have a little more trepidation if we didn't have some talented players down there and I'm trying to piece things together. This group is very, very talented."
"It's a talented group. I'm not gonna sit here and lie to you guys."
*** Shonn Miller is a "rebounding magnet ... very cerebral, able to pick up on things quickly."
UConn's new guard, Sterling Gibbs, meets the media
*** Sterling Gibbs is "just a basketball player. He plays at a pace you can't get him out of, which is something I love."
"He's not a Ricky Moore, as far as pushing the ball. But he's also a very smart player throwing the ball ahead."
*** Sam Cassell is going to see a doctor on Tuesday, hoping to get a clean bill of health and can start playing the following week. He's been doing just about everything except full-out basketball in recent weeks.
*** Amida Brimah needs to "eliminate some of those foolish mistakes that he did. Some of them were trying to take charges, or illegal screens 35 feet from the basket ... It happens, but I think it happened too much for him. Freshman, sophomore year, I'll lay off, but junior year, you've got to eliminate some of those mistakes and stay on the court. I think he's heard that a lot from me, he's aggravated from me saying that -- which is a good thing."
Brimah is up to 233 pounds now, and the Huskies would like him to get to about 235-240 by October.
He will also be one of the team's captains for a second straight year. Ollie will look for one or two more players to join him as captain.
*** Omar Calhoun is out with a toe injury. He's currently sporting a boot and hasn't been able to train with the coaching staff.
*** Ollie on Terrence Samuel, Rakim Lubin transferring: "Sooner or later, it's gonna happen. They felt they had a better situation playing a little more in another program."
"I thought Terrence played a lot of minutes. I stuck with him, but he stuck with me, too. He allowed us to win a championship. He played a pivotal role. You hate to see him go, because that team was something special to me. Not because we won the national championship, but that year prior, to stick by me in the lean times, I've got a special place in my heart for that team."
*** On AAC: "I think the only significant player that left our conference is Boat ... Everybody's back. That's why I think it's gonna be a great league."
"We've got to continue to schedule out-of-conference games. A lot of our AD's and programs in the bottom half have got to start getting some guarantee games also, so they can start getting wins. We talked about that a lot in our conference meetings. That's what they're looking for -- the strength of the whole conference, and not just the top four teams."
*** Ollie on UConn's own schedule: "Early on, we're gonna really be tested and see what this team is made out of. Which is good."
*** It's still to be determined whether Nnamdi Amilo will be back on scholarship this season.
"A 7-footer might parachute in," Ollie joked. "But if we don't have that, I'm definitely gonna put him on scholarship."
*** Ollie on Terry Larrier: "Wow. Ooooooh, he is so good. Man, he is fantastic. He's long, he's athletic, he can shoot the ball, runs the court, great person to be around. His teammates love him."
Larrier is already best friends with Daniel Hamilton. But they go at it hard on the court.
"That's a nice little competition right there," said Ollie. "That's big-time right there."
*** Ollie on recruiting: "I think we've done some good things. We're not Kentucky. People want us to be Kentucky. We're not gonna just get all the All-Americans. We have to continue to establish relationships and pick the right people ... I think we've got some nice momentum. A lot of people didn't know what we were doing, and that's a good thing. I do like to move under the radar and surprise some people. A lot of people maybe were disappointing with not getting Diamond (Stone) and not getting such-and-such, but as a coaching staff, we have to have a Plan A, Plan B, Plan C, Plan D to get things done."
(on how things have gone in his first few weeks on campus, and why he chose UConn the second time around):
(Larrier said that Shaka Smart tried to get him to come with him from VCU to Texas)
“Shaka definitely did reach out, try to get me on a visit. But I already kind of had my mind made up with the schools I wanted. No knock to Shaka, he’s still a great coach. I’m thankful for all that he’s taught me. I wish him and Texas the best of luck. But I’m just glad to be a Husky.”
JALEN ADAMS:
(on heading to the adidas Nations camp next month as a counselor)
“I’m looking forward to it. I went there as a camper, so it’s always nice to go back at the next level.”
"When I found out he was coming in here, that’s why I was excited rather than stressing about it, because I know Kemba and Shabazz Napier played together. Shabazz Napier and (Ryan) Boatright played together. You can play with two guards, it doesn’t matter. Coach Ollie, when I committed here, he told me that UConn was positionless. You don’t have an assigned position, you just go out and play hard.”
STERLING GIBBS:
(on what he hopes to gain from his one season at UConn):
“As much as possible. As much knowledge, as much wins, brotherhood. I think we have enough talent to do some big things. We’ve just got to put it all together and all buy into the system.”
(on being a possible mentor to Jalen Adams):
“When I first got to Texas, we were just learning on the fly, we didn’t really have a big brother figure to look to on the court. But I really want to just pass all that knowledge to him and have him be the best player possible.”
SHONN MILLER:
(on whether rebounding, defense will be his main roles with UConn):
“That’s obviously one of my strong points. But I feel like I can do a multitude of other things, whether it’s scoring, passing, shooting.”
(on how good UConn can be this season)
“I don’t really know how to say it. We can just be really good. I think we have all the tools at each position to be a very good team.”
STEVE ENOCH:
“I know we have a boatload of talent. I’m just excited and interested to see what it could become ... It seems like we could be a really, really good team.”
Jim Calhoun: Mass wave of transfers 'is not great for the sport'
Jim Calhoun was at the 30th annual Franciscan Sports Banquet & Silent Auction on Tuesday in Southington.
Realized that, during his tenure at UConn, he almost never took in transfers (Ed Nelson was one of the few). Yes, it was an entirely different era. But Calhoun doesn't like what's going on with the mass epidemic of transfers in college basketball these days. He stresses that it has nothing to do with the fact that UConn has been as active (and successful) in the transfer market than any program. It's simply not a good thing for the entire sport, Calhoun said, and he wishes rules would be put in to help curb the mass exodus of players.
"I'm not a transfer guy. It's a different age, and everybody has to do it, I think. But honestly, overall -- it's got nothing to do with UConn or anybody right now -- it's got to do with the sport. I just don't know ... it's not great for the sport. One-and-done is not particularly great, but a kid comes, is great and leaves, it's understandable."
Calhoun said about 44 percent of all players transfer these days.
"I saw the kid from Rhode Island (Kuran Iverson) just got eligible, because he and the coach didn't get along. I know there are more extenuating circumstances ... I don't think everybody's against that kind of thing. There are questions: Bringing the 3-point line out, widening the lane, putting the arc in there and, quite frankly, the one-and-done's and, at the other end, we've got to make sure that, if you transfer, you've got to sit out. I think that would change a lot of people's mind about things. Yet, if I'm sitting in that seat today, and I'm thinking about the fact that I've got to fill roster spots, I've got to fill them. So, it's not UConn, it's not anybody. It's not Fred Hoiberg at Iowa State. Our team might be close to 50 percent this year -- (Sam) Cassell, (Rodney) Purvis, the three other kids ... I will embrace those kids. I think I met the (Sterling) Gibbs kid when we were recruiting him, actually .I've met the (Shonn) Miller kid and (Terry) Larrier -- I'll welcome to the Husky family and hope that they're accepted well, and so on. But the more and more I get a chance to go different places nationally, it will affect the game."
(can you understand why Kevin Ollie would be bringing these guys in?)
"You mention Kevin, I'm not mentioning Kevin. You take it that way, then it's Coach Calhoun is knocking UConn. Of course I"m not doing that. I said, if Jim Calhoun was sitting at this seat today, and recruiting hadn't gone quite as well as I wanted to and could get two fifth-year, all-league players? No-brainer."
"The backdraft of this is that there are coaches from other teams that just had players taken away from them. How would you like to have some of our players taken away? In all honesty, I'm not (helping) Kevin Willard here, but they're pretty good players he's losing. We could look at anybody -- the Mississippi State kid, (Rodney) Hood at Duke. It's not Kevin, if you mix that up, you're trying to make something that's not there. What it is is, I think a developing problem in college athletics and college basketball."
Hamidou Diallo, Steve Enoch, Mamadou Diarra, Bruce Brown at Mary Kline Classic; Jalen Adams not
A few tidbits from the Mary Kline Classic at West Orange (N.J.) High:
*** Jalen Adams did not attend. No real reason given, just a lack of communication with the event's organizers over the past couple of weeks.
*** Bruce Brown, the Class of 2016 guard out of Vermont Academy who is Adams's cousin, said that UConn is a bit off his radar right now.
"They're not really recruiting me as hard as everybody else is," said Brown, who said that Michigan and Arizona are among those school recruiting him the hardest.
*** Mamadou Diarra looked strong and athletic in the low post, with a few dunks -- including this one:
Diarra finished with 20 points, mostly on dunks. He's got good feet, and a good body. Seems fairly skilled.
Hamidou said that he is not related, but that his family knew Amadou Diallo's family back in Africa, though not when they both lived in New York City.
*** Steve Enoch said he'll be arriving at Storrs sometime in mid-June for summer courses. His goals on the basketball court this summer?
"Getting stronger, and improving my motor. I have a pretty decent motor, but there's always room for improvement."
Asked Enoch about UConn's three new transfer additions over the past month -- Shonn Miller and Sterling Gibbs, who'll both play this season, and Terry Larrier, who won't be eligible until the 2016-17 season -- Enoch said:
"It's real interesting. I'm waiting to see what we can work with this year."
Enoch is expecting to come in and help UConn right off the bat, at least off the boards this season. The addition of Miller, who led Cornell with 8.5 rebounds per game last season, should take some of the pressure off Enoch.
"Fifth-year seniors are always a good value to a team," the 6-foot-10 Enoch said.
*** I realize this is ancient history by now, but not sure if I had ever heard Prince Ali's reasoning for de-committing from UConn last year. So, asked him why.
"I committed a little early," he said. "I decided to open things up, I was having a good summer. It was nothing with the coaching staff, nothing going on. I just decided to open up, check out other schools. If I had waiting a little longer (to commit), I doubt it would have ever happened."
No hard feelings, he stressed.
"Kevin Ollie's a great guy, all the coaches are great people, I'm cool with their players. They're great people."
Started as UConn men's basketball beat writer for the New Haven Register in August, 2007. Before that, was traveling Boston Red Sox beat writer from 2004-06 for the Journal Register Co. (which included the Register).
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