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***FULL RECAP COMING LATER***
UConn's first half was a little bit of a mess. The offense looked out of sync, settling for way too many three pointers, and the Huskies found themselves in some foul trouble early as every member of the front court had two fouls at the break. After 20 minutes the visiting Bryant Bulldogs were up 34-28 at the half.
In the second half, we started to get nervous as the Bulldogs were hanging around, but eventually Ryan Boatright hit a three with 6:43 left to put UConn up seven and from there they would never look back. The defense locked down, Bryant shots started clanging off the rim, and the Huskies moved the ball up the court with overwhelming speed and athleticism to go on the run that would put the game away.
Get used to hearing this: Ryan Boatright led the way for the Huskies with 24 points on 7-16 shooting and a perfect 7-7 from the free-throw line. He added 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals and one awesome block:
The block is nice, but the in-and-out (and that finish!) Ryan Boatright hits a Bryant defender with is FILTHY: https://t.co/sP7KZxXPpM
— Rob Dauster (@RobDauster) November 15, 2014
Danny Hamilton looked every bit the polished all-around threat he was promised to be. The freshman finished with 9 points and 7 rebounds. Amida Brimah showed how dominant he can be with some nice offensive post moves and absolutely devastating blocks, finishing with 5 to go with 5 rebounds and 12 points on 6-9 shooting. Kentan Facey showed a natural aptitude on the boards, finishing with 11. He only scored 5 points, but overall it was a solid showing for the sophomore in his first opportunity to play significant, meaningful minutes.
As a team, the Huskies out-rebounded Bryant 39-31 and finished the game with a much better shooting percentage after the Bulldogs couldn't seem to make a shot in the last ten minutes of the second half.
There is definitely a lot for the Huskies to work on, though. Their first half offense stunk and the defensive pressure wasn't fully there, but as Kevin Ollie said after the game, "we're trying to win in March and April... it's about embracing the process."
It was the first game, there are going to be lumps and it doesn't always look beautiful. But no matter what you have to believe that KO and the staff will take corrective action and have these Huskies ready for the Puerto Rico Tip-Off next week.
GO HUSKIES!!