Price, Robinson Power UConn
by Zach Smart
STORRS, Conn. – If you thought Wednesday’s lackluster 69-65 victory over Morgan State was ugly, then consider much of the first half of Thursday’s UConn/Buffalo game a horror flick. The Huskies came out Kansas-flat, misconnecting on set shots, blowing shots underneath the cup, and playing matador defense that allowed Buffalo to play neck-and-neck with them for the game’s first 15 minutes.
Stiff as ever, the Huskies looked like they could use some vodka in their Gatorade. They needed anything that would loosen them up and allow them to play the physically intimidating brand of basketball that makes them such a unique threat in the Big East.
Enter the Stanley Robinson block party.
Robinson, a freakishly athletic but inconsistent 6-foot-9 swingman, ignited the Huskies defensively, changing shots during a vicious 17-0 run spurred by A.J. Price’s shot clock-muting three-pointer.
Robinson was a major presence during a second half that UConn’s suffocating defense played a significant role in. Robinson finished with 10 points, 13 caroms, and six swats en route to recovering from an abysmal zero-point, five-turnover mess the previous night.
“Whatever minutes he played were probably three more minutes than he deserved,” Jim Calhoun said after watching Robinson disappear in 13 minutes against Morgan State.
Following Robinson’s redemption night at Gampel Pavilion, Calhoun went from embarassed to awestruck.
“I’ve seen Stanley now for two years, that was certainly the best I’ve ever seen him play,” the longtime Husky coach explained. “He played where only rarefied athletes can play tonight. He made a catch that, I don’t know, maybe Rudy (Gay) or Scottie Burrell, can make. He really, really made a big difference.”
Price operated the offense with a savvy and maturity that was sorely lacking last year. He would finish with finish with a game-high 24 points, as the Huskies rolled to an 82-57 drubbing in the regional round of the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic, benefitting Coaches vs. Cancer.
Price was named MVP of the Storrs Regional, as the Huskies advance to play Gardner-Webb, which pulled off a shocking victory over Kentucky in the Lexington Regional Finals at Rupp Arena Wednesday night. The two teams will meet at Madison Square Garden.
In the season-opener, Price, the floor general from New York, handed out nine assists. “Tonight he (Price) showed he can score, and we’ve seen both aspects from him in two games, so I think he’s playing with a lot of confidence,” said Calhoun.
Price and UConn emphasized the running game, which certainly worked to their advantage. It had Buffalo sucking in wind eight minutes into the second half, when UConn began to turn it on.
Combo guard Jerome Dyson scored on back-to-back fast breaks and almost completed a personal 6-2 surge with an off-balance shot, but Robinson was there for the putback as UConn’s bulge ballooned to 19 points.
Price then pick-pocketed Bulls guard Sean Smiley at half-court, jetting back to the hoop for an easy lay-in that made it 64-43. A wash-out then ensued.
Was the 17-0 surge the biggest momentum-changer?
“I think it was our defensive intensity (during the run),” said Price. “We were everywhere. We really wanted to dig in, and only give them what we wanted. They didn’t get any easy shots in the second half.”
They certainly didn’t. Robinson, who had back-to-back eye-popping blocks (around three minutes before the half), Jeff Adrien, and 7-foot-3 behemoth center Hasheem Thabeet all changed shots during the run, as UConn racked up 15 blocked shots on the evening.
“After a tough game last night we really wanted it,” said Price, noting that UConn allowed Morgan State to shoot 11-of-22 from beyond the arc.
Sophomore guard Doug Wiggins, upgraded from his spot in the Calhoun doghouse, came off the bench and scored five points in 57 seconds during the run.
The Huskies, despite blowing some early opportunities to rip off a run, shot 46 percent from the floor. Free throws, however, were a different story. The Huskies shot just 25-37 (67 percent) from the charity stripe.
But it did little to help their Mid-American Conference foe, which couldn’t permeate any cracks in the defense.
Robinson’s six blocks established a new career-high.
“The sky is the limit for Stanley,” opined Price. “After being ripped by coach, knowing he didn’t play well, to come back and respond the way he did tonight really showed some character.”
