At this point in the season, the UConn men’s basketball team is where it should be.
The Huskies emerged from a soft, four-game, non-league slate with a perfect record, but now they head to center stage in a nationally televised game on ESPN.
“Our season has been going pretty good, we come in 4-0 and we’re just going to ride the moment those first four games,” UConn point guard R.J. Cole said. “Now we get a chance to amp it up a bit and play some tougher competition.
“I think we are ready for it.”
The 22nd-ranked Huskies (4-0) open with No. 19 Auburn (3-0) at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Imperial Arena in Paradise Island, Bahamas in the first round of the Battle 4 Atlantis.
“We have eight returning players that have played a lot of college ball, so they know what’s coming on Wednesday,” UConn coach Dan Hurley said via Zoom on Tuesday morning. “We know what a high-level team looks like.”
But can the Huskies beat one, or three, at this point in the season?
The Huskies were dominant through the first three games but were off the mark in an 87-63 win over Binghamton on Saturday.
UConn missed 13 of 14 shots to open the game, but recovered to shoot 49.3 percent overall, which was close to its 50.5 percent coming in.
“Obviously, I’ve been on edge the last few days with the team because I didn’t like what I saw on Saturday,” Hurley said. “I’ve been on everybody pretty hard here the last couple days trying to get everything fixed and being in the right spots.”
Another issue for Hurley in the win was the Huskies’ defensive effort after allowing a season-high in points and field-goal percentage (37.5).
“There is a style of defense you can afford to play in a buy game versus a low-major that you can not afford to play versus a team like Auburn,” Hurley said.
“We are not going to be able to get spread out and hug our man defensively and allow their athletic drivers and their bigs to see all types of space on the court,” Hurley added. “We know we have got to make adjustments tactically with what we did in the first four.”
The Tigers have averaged 76 points per game and are led by sophomore guards Wendell Green Jr. (17 ppg) and K.D. Johnson (15 ppg). They also have a potential top-5 NBA Draft pick in 6-foot-10 freshman Jabari Smith (13.3 ppg. 9 rpg, 2.3 spg).
Pending the outcome with the Tigers, UConn would play either Michigan State or Loyola-Chicago on Thursday in either a semifinal or consolation game.
The Huskies have five players scoring in double figures, led by Adama Sanogo (15.8) and Martin (13.5), but also have Cole (11.0, 4.5 apg), Jalen Gaffney, and graduate student Tyler Polley (10.0 apiece).
“I feel like we are doing a good job with offensive rebounding and also we look more connected on defense,” Martin said. “I feel like we are sharing the ball really well this year, so this is a big test tomorrow … but I feel like we are in a good spot right now.”
