2020-2021 Record: 15-8 (11-6)
Probable Starters: RJ Cole, Andre Jackson, Tyrese Martin, Isaiah Whaley, Adama Sanogo
Bench: Tyler Polley, Akok Akok, Jalen Gaffney, Jordan Hawkins, Richie Springs, Rahsool Diggins, Samson Johnson, Corey Floyd Jr., Matt Garry, Andrew Hurley
UConn enters their second season in the Big East, and fourth year of the Hurley era. The Huskies finished third in the Big East last season and got bounced after a poor performance against Maryland in the Round of 64. Can they learn from that performance and build on the momentum they built last season?
I’ve written about UConn’s lineup, recruiting class, and expectations earlier, so I won’t spend too much time on them here, but the team is strong, athletic, and deep. The Huskies return four starters, and Big East Co-Defensive player of the year Isaiah Whaley and Big East Sixth Man of the year Tyler Polley. In classic Hurley fashion, I expect this team to be dominant on the defense end and likely lead the conference in blocked shots and potentially rebounds.
The biggest question mark for the Huskies is who will be the go-to guy in late game situations? I think it will start off as RJ Cole and/or Tyrese Martin, but this might shift to Andre Jackson and Jordan Hawkins by March. The offense was stagnant at times last season, and Hurley has recently said that the offense will run through big man Adama Sanogo. Sanogo showed great improvement throughout his freshman season.
I’m not sure I love the idea of centering the offense around a big in todays game, but I’ve been on the record since the season ended saying that if the offense goes through Sanogo he will average 15 PPG and 10 RPG.