How UConn has become a national title contender, despite losing eight players last spring
UConn suffered its first loss of the year on Saturday when they traveled to Cincinnati to take on #22 Xavier, snapping a 14-game winning streak in which they were as dominant as any team in the country had been through the first two months of the season.
The numbers speak for themselves. It took 13 games before an opponent lost by fewer than double figures against the Huskies. They trounced the likes of Oregon (83-59), Alabama (82-67), Iowa State (71-53), and Florida (75-54) before Villanova kept it reasonably close in Storrs last week (74-66) prior to Xavier pulling off the upset.
Connecticut is ranked #2 in the country in the NCAA’s Net Rankings as of Monday morning, with an offense that Synergy Sports has in the 95th percentile nationally and a defense that’s in the 94th.
Their offensive rating of 118.3 is tops in the Big East, ranking in the 97th percentile nationally (Providence is second at 115.1), while they also lead the league in defensive rating (their 87.3 rating is well ahead of second ranked Seton Hall at 94.1).
Dan Hurley’s group returned the Big East Preseason Player of the Year in Adama Sanogo, and an established, versatile wing in Andre Jackson, yet no one could have predicted that UConn would rise the way they have over the past two months.
In fact, no one did.
The Huskies were predicted to come in fourth by the league’s coaches in the preseason, and they were unranked by the AP voters prior to the start of the season.
On paper, it was all understandable. Connecticut lost eight players from last year’s roster. RJ Cole and Tyrese Martin accounted for nearly 40% of their scoring, Isaiah Whaley was a versatile interior defensive piece, Tyler Polley hit all sorts of big shots late in games, and there was a bit of a transfer exodus with Akok Akok, Jalen Gaffney, Rahsool Diggins, and Corey Floyd Jr. all leaving.
So, how did UConn manage to go from a roster filled with question marks to one of the best two-way teams in the country? Here are five key reasons:
Jordan Hawkins has taken off as a sophomore
Hawkins had received all sorts of pub prior to coming to UConn, and then throughout a freshman season in which he showed glimpses on a veteran roster last year (averaging 5.8 points per game).
This season Hawkins is letting it rip from beyond the arc. The 6’5 sophomore is shooting just shy of 40% from three (39.8) and taking 7.5 threes a game. That’s obviously a huge number, but considering he is playing 26.1 minutes a night… well, Hawkins hasn’t been bashful. Nor should he be, Hawkins has taken a big step forward.
The Huskies had been a subpar shooting team from distance in recent seasons, and with Hawkins (14.6 points per game) leading the way, they take a Big East-high 27 three pointers a game. They are also hitting them at 36% as a team.
His 14.6 points per game would be even higher had he not combined for two points in 14 minutes played against Stonehill and Iowa State.
PC will want to keep Hawkins off the right wing, where he is shooting 60% (12-20).