UNCASVILLE, Conn. — Every exhibition game comes with a perennial disclaimer for better or worse, to take any and all that you see within its borders with the proverbial grain of salt.
Even with that caveat taken into account, if Tuesday’s showing from UConn was what raised the curtain on what the most prolific championship program this century expects to be another standard-bearing season, one might want to make Dan Hurley and the Huskies appointment television over the next five months.
UConn’s 72-52 victory over Syracuse did not accumulate style points, in fact, the opening minutes were a slog on both ends before and after Jayden Ross was whistled for two fouls in the game’s first 77 seconds. But what the Huskies lacked in gaudy stat lines and aesthetically pleasing margins of victory, they made up for in length, tenacity, and the stout defense that has once again reprised itself as a Hurley calling card.
“We showed just a high level of defensive potential,” the coach said after UConn limited Syracuse to 0.80 points per possession and 15-of-49 shooting. “Our team, defensively, this could be one of our best defensive teams. I think we’ve got great defensive potential. I was happy with that, to hold them to 30 percent, force 16 turnovers and really get after them. I thought it was really good.”
UConn was shorthanded on Tuesday, with Braylon Mullins being unavailable, yet Hurley still found a way to get all of his other 13 players into the game against a Syracuse squad that was frustrated throughout the night against the Husky pressure. And in its first look at life without Alex Karaban, the man tasked with being his primary successor seemed to show positive signs in filling the void left by the most decorated winner in program history.
Nik Khamenia, whose freshman season ended at the hands of UConn when Mullins’ last-second shot sunk Duke, scored 12 points and added eight rebounds in Karaban’s stead, recording a game-high plus-22 efficiency. The former Blue Devil conceded he was in an unenviable position replacing a four-year cornerstone, but credited his predecessor and Hurley for allowing him the room to grow while also absorbing all that comes with the UConn brand.
“AK was able to come back in the summer,” Khamenia reflected. “Just picking his brain a little bit and learning from him, things he found that helped him succeed here, I’m just trying to learn to grow every day. (Hurley) wants me to be successful (and) do a lot of things with this team. Ever since the summer, he’s been that way. I’m still making mistakes, but just continue to grow throughout the season so that by the time we get to Big East play, I’ll be ready.”
Khamenia’s fellow marquee transfer offered perhaps the most impressive takeaway. Na’jai Hines came off the bench Tuesday, but the Seton Hall transfer led UConn with 17 points and matched Khamenia with a team-high eight boards, demonstrating why his brute strength and physicality was tailor-made for Hurley’s style of play.
“The way we practice, the way that we come in every day and have a certain mindset, is to play harder than any of our opponents,” Hines said. “I showcased it, some of my teammates also showcased it. We were crazy on the boards.”
UConn recorded 41 rebounds, and was plus-11 on the glass (23-12) in the opening stanza, with Hines posting a near-double-double at the intermission with nine points and six caroms in an effort that saw Hurley invoke big men of Huskies past to describe his sophomore’s effort. Still, the coach was quick to point out that he is looking for a fire that rages harder and burns brighter.
“He’s talented like Adama (Sanogo), he’s talented like Tarris (Reed),” Hurley gushed. “He was the most impressive player on the court. The time he spent at Seton Hall with Shaheen (Holloway) was very helpful. You still have to make them earn some things. Like, you’ve gotta earn a starting position for us by what you’re about every single day. The bar is so high for him, it’s tougher for him to get to his bar every day than it is for another guy who’s got average talent. So we’re on his ass.”
Silas Demary, Jr. controlled the game with 13 points and five rebounds while only playing 25 minutes, while freshman Junior County had a productive debut with nine points and seven boards. Fellow rookie Colben Landrew fought his way to eight points and four rebounds, underscoring a point Hurley made that while his team may be young, its natural maturation could be a boon when it matters most.
“The thing with us is like, we’re gonna get better the whole year,” he said. “There may be teams that are really, really old, older teams that maybe won’t quite have the upside that we have as a team when we’re healthy, when we get Braylon back in the mix. It’s a young team, but it’s a talented team and we’ll keep getting better.”
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