Notes & Quotes: UConn Downs East Carolina, 85-67
STORRS, Conn.—Freshman point guard Jalen Adams was 7 for 8 from the floor, scoring 14 points as UConn defeated East Carolina, 85-67 in front of 9,307 at Gampel Pavilion on Sunday afternoon.
Here is a look at what looked good and what needs work for the Huskies (17-6, 7-3 AAC):
WHAT WENT WELL
1. ADAMS CONTINUES TO IMPROVE: Freshman point guard Jalen Adams was brilliant again on Sunday, knocking down his first seven shots, adding four assists and four steals to his stat line. His quickness and ability to finish in the open court was once again on display as the Huskies outscored the Pirates 17-10 on the break and 50-22 in the paint. The freshman is seemingly growing more into his role of floor general with each game.
UCONN COACH KEVIN OLLIE’S TAKE: “Jalen is an exceptional athlete and he can do things certain other guards can’t do…When we were struggling in the first half with a couple of our guards, [Adams] really stepped it up getting to the hole, getting layups and putting pressure on [East Carolina’s] transition defense. He did a wonderful job…You can’t even teach the stuff he was doing today, that was just natural ability”
2. BALANCED ATTACK: Adams (14), Shonn Miller (16), Rodney Purvis (16), Daniel Hamilton (12) and Sterling Gibbs (12) all scored in double figures as UConn used a 22-5 run in the second half to separate for good. The team as whole shot 55.6 percent from the floor, knocking down 7-of-19 attempts from beyond the arch.
ADAMS’ TAKE: “Just keep making the extra pass to the open guy, keep making stops. If we do that the ball is going to find the open guy and we keep rolling.”
OLLIE’S TAKE: “Energy, energy. I told them when we came out from halftime, ‘the ball finds energy.’ A couple of guys weren’t playing with energy but they picked it up.”
3. HAMILTON THE GLASS CLEANER: Hamilton hauled in a game-high 16 rebounds, notching his seventh double-double of the season. The sophomore is averaging 14.5 boards per game in the last two contests and plays a huge part of the Huskies’ success in transition.
HAMILTON’S TAKE: “Just playing my brothers in the backyard having to get your own rebounds and playing different games like 21 and stuff like that. I think that’s what I did tonight—got rebounds and got my guards in transition and got them the ball.”
OLLIE’S TAKE: “Once again, Daniel is going to do what he does—plays solid, got great rebounding positioning. I still want him to play with more energy, I want all of our guys to play with more energy.”
4. PURVIS LEADS THE DEFENSE: East Carolina’s Prince Williams was cooking early, scoring 21 points on his first 11 shots. But in came Purvis who helped anchor a defensive effort that held the Pirates to 37.1 percent shooting and forcing 11 turnovers.
OLLIE’S TAKE: “This is 10 in a row holding teams under 40 percent [shooting] which is remarkable…Rodney came in and it wasn’t about him scoring…We put [Purvis] in there and he started playing defense and I don’t think [Williams] scored again. We try to predicate our offense with our defense. What I’m trying to preach to those guys and saturate their hearts with is that relentless effort because we have something really good here.”
1. SILLY TURNOVERS: The Huskies were credited with only six turnovers in the game, four of them by Adams, but it was an attempted around-the-back pass by Hamilton that drew a quick hook from Ollie.
HAMILTON’S TAKE: “I was tripping, I don’t know what I was thinking. [Ollie] definitely got a sub for me and told me I can’t be doing that.”
OLLIE’S TAKE: “I want everyone to be more solid. We made a couple Harlem Globe Trotters passes which I don’t like. I just want us to be solid and go watch the Super Bowl, that’s what I want to do.”
2. TOUGH END TO THE HALF: Leading 42-31 with the first-half clock winding down, Kentan Facey was charged with a shooting foul. The officials reviewed the play to see if time was to be put back on the clock and in doing so also established there was a technical foul call on Phil Nolan for throwing an elbow. The Pirates were awarded four free throws and possession with 1.6 left on the clock. Fortunately for the Huskies, East Carolina made only two at the charity stripe and B.J. Tyson’s three-point heave at the buzzer sailed off the rim.
OLLIE’S TAKE: “I’m not a ref so I don’t know."
NEXT UP
The Huskies will be on the road to take on the Temple Owls at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia. The Owls beat the Huskies in their first matchup of the season on a last-second jumper at the XL Center.
KEVIN OLLIE PRESS CONFERENCE:
Beginning below, full version available here (members only).