The UConn Fast Break - 11/7/2023

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Welcome to basketball season

UConn men’s basketball kicked off hoops season by hosting Northern Arizona on Monday night to open its national title defense. The crowd was in it from the jump, as the returning players from the NCAA Tournament-winning squad were recognized, followed by the reveal of the fifth national championship banner in the rafters.

We also saw appearances, via the video board, by Andre Jackson, Jordan Hawkins, Adama Sanogo, and Joey Calcaterra. They were unable to make it due to their NBA obligations (Calcaterra recently signed in the G League).

After the festivities, the game offered a lot of excitement as well. Donovan Clingan won the opening tip and then recorded the season’s opening points, as he corralled an offensive rebound and outmuscled a Lumberjack defender with a nice move for a layup.

The Huskies had their best two-point shooting percentage (78.1 percent) since 2000, beating a mark set in last year’s beatdown of LIU, and allowed just 0.75 points per possession, one of the more encouraging signs of their defensive effort. They also grabbed 45.5 percent of their misses while Northern Arizona had a 20.5 percent offensive rebound percentage. Alex Karaban set a career-high in points, one that he’s sure to surpass this season.

It was an exciting start for Dan Hurley’s squad.

Tonight, Geno Auriemma will begin his 40th season at the helm of UConn women’s basketball.

Though a mild championship “drought” has persisted, the Huskies are a premiere contender once again. Paige Bueckers is back. All-World big Aaliyah Edwards and the bulldog Nika Mühl are seniors. Returning stars Azzi Fudd and Caroline Ducharme are joined by an exciting crew of freshmen led by KK Arnold and a redshirt freshman in Ice Brady who are all expected to have some impact.

If it can stay healthy, this will be a really fun team to watch.

Weekly Rewind

 Men’s Basketball

Huskies dominate the Lumberjacks – No. 6 UConn starts the season with an impressive win. | Photos

Northern Arizona Takeaways – Some deeper thoughts following the season opener. 

Notes & Quotes – Read about what the Husky players and coaches had to say about their performance Monday night.

State of the Rotation - What we’ve learned about the lineup and rotation.

UConn in the NBA – Jordan Hawkins went off on Monday night.

@uconnblog

Samson Johnson impressed everyone opening night 🔥‼️ #uconnhuskies #uconnmbb #uconn #danhurley

MBB Season Preview

Big East Preview: The Bottom – A look at the teams projected to be at the bottom of the conference this year. 

Big East Preview: The Middle – A look at the teams that could be a dark horse in the conference title race. 

Big East Preview: The Top – A look at the Huskies top conference competition this season. 

Stephon Castle has big expectations this season – The freshman will have a lot on his plate as the team’s starting point guard.

5 keys to the season – The important questions that the Huskies will need to answer this season. 

Samson Johnson’s big opportunity - The junior forward is in line for a key backup role this year. 

Offseason in Review – A recap of the Huskies’s offseason including the Europe trip, NBA draft, White House visit, and more.

Predictions for the season – Our best guesses for the 2023-2024 season.

Meet the UConn Freshmen – What the new guys are expected to bring to the roster.

Women’s Basketball

Azzi Fudd’s potential this season ($) – Fudd is looking to stay healthy and consistent this season. 

Stock Watch – A look at how each Huskies’ stock fared after their exhibition against the Owls.
| Photos  

Frontcourt Preview – An in-depth look at how the Huskies’s frontcourt will operate this season. 

The 4 programs tied to UConn – A preview at what Princeton, Vanderbilt, Wisconsin, and Dayton will bring to the court this season. 

Backcourt Preview – An in-depth look at how the Huskies’ backcourt will look this season. 

Roster Breakdown – A breakdown of what the Huskies had to say about each other. 

Chasing Perfection – In the latest podcast episode, we discuss what Paige Bueckers’ long-awaited return will look like for her and the Huskies. 

Dayton Preview – The Huskies are set to face a former player and two-time national champion this Wednesday. 

Hockey

Podcast ($) – In the latest episode we discuss the Huskies’ shooting woes. 

Huskies land two defensemen – UConn added a couple of commitments on the blue line.

Huskies fall to Catamounts – UConn faced a disappointing 4-1 defeat against Vermont.

UConn’s struggles continue – An analysis of what went wrong for the Huskies in their loss to Vermont. 

UConn defeats Vermont – A productive third period gave the Huskies a 5-2 lead over the Catamounts. 

Women’s Hockey ranked no. 12 – The Huskies entered the top 15 after sweeping No. 13 Northeastern. | Photos 

UConn’s explosive third period ($) – Inside the 38 seconds that saved the Huskies.

Football

Volunteers dominate Huskies – Football lost big on Saturday.

Post-Game Spread – Thoughts on a season falling into despair.

Week 10 Opponents – A look at how the Huskies’ upcoming opponents are doing.

Soccer

Kaitlyn Mahoney named Big East Goalkeeper of the Year – The UConn women’s soccer player was named the league’s best goalie while some teammates picked up conference accolades as well. 

Support the most in-depth coverage of UConn men’s hockey around!

Highlights

This alley-oop from Cam Spencer to Samson Johnson early in the NAU game was absolutely phenomenal.

Memory Lane

The last time UConn men’s basketball won a championship and had an exciting talented team the following season boosted by the addition of a five-star recruit, the year was 2012. Andre Drummond had just joined the squad and the hopes were high for a repeat.

We all know that didn’t happen. But the 2011-2012 season did open with a lot of optimism, as three future NBA players graced the Husky roster: Drummond, Jeremy Lamb, and Shabazz Napier.

They kicked things off at Gampel Pavilion with a 70-57 win over Columbia. The Huskies held a slightly larger lead than that at halftime, letting the Lions catch up a little bit late in the second half.

The highlight of the game, and maybe the season, was Jeremy Lamb’s high-flying dunk over some guy who probably works in finance right now.

It was part of a 30-point effort from Lamb. Napier dropped 21.

UConn, Great Pic

Some shots by Ian Bethune from the banner-raising ceremony, followed by a few more from UConn women’s hockey’s win over No. 13 Northeastern at Toscano Family Ice Forum.

Parting Thoughts

The pomp and circumstance were intense inside Gampel Pavilion on Monday night. The headliner — the unveiling of UConn men’s basketball’s fifth national championship banner — was obvious, but it was also the first regular season game on the arena’s new floor and also the reveal of Dee Rowe’s statue inside the building.

It was one of the biggest nights inside the building in years and the students (and fans) were ready. The first group of students arrived more than 10 hours before gates were scheduled to open- and the crowd grew throughout the day. It stretched well into Hillside Road by 4:40 p.m. and security made the decision to let them enter almost 10 minutes early.

The entire primary student section was full by 5:10 p.m., which ended up being a full 90 minutes before tip-off and an hour before the banner ceremony, with the overflow sections filling up pretty soon after.

It was a great showing by the fans, no doubt eager to pay their respects to the reigning national champs, and a sign of the immense progress for this program under Dan Hurley.

Lastly, a shoutout to Kyle, who was the first one at Gampel on Monday morning. That’s commitment.

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