New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
Protocols mark UConn’s return to the Big Dance
For the first time in NCAA tournament history, or at least since the tourney was broken into four separate regions, coaches had no excuse to complain about where they were being sent this year.
In the past, coaches from the East Coast might kvetch about being sent out to an outpost out West. UCLA’s Mick Cronin was famous for this when coaching at
Cincinnati.
Then there was the frequent complaint about being sent to play too close to the campus of an opponent, whose fanbase could fill the arena and turn it into a virtual home game. Jim
Calhoun was famous for this.
Not this year, though. All 68 teams this week will be in Indiana, where the entire NCAA tournament will be held. No complaing about game sites, travel, etc., right?
Well ...
UConn will play its firstround game on Saturday (7:10 p.m., CBS) at Mackey Arena, on the campus of Purdue in West Lafayette, Ind. That’s a nearly twohour bus ride from Indianapolis, where all tournament teams are required to stay.
The Huskies will have to make that bus trip twice — for one, 90-minute practice some time over the next couple of days and, of course, for Saturday’s game. Not a huge inconvenience,
but not ideal.
Of course, 11 other teams are in the same boat — including, obviously, Maryland. That’s just the way it is this year. Everything’s different.
“This isn’t the total NCAA experience, where you pull into the (hotel) lobby and there’s no dance team, cheerleaders, band, fans,” UConn coach Dan Hurley said. “You go right to the testing. It’s not exactly the same euphoria that you feel, typically, in these situations.”
Hurley would know that “euphoria,” having taken Rhode Island to the Big Dance in 2017 and 2018. But none of the players on this year’s roster have had the same experience.
“I’m just glad to be playing in the tournament,” senior forward Isaiah Whaley said. “I haven’t been here before, so I don’t know how it was before we got here. I’m enjoying this time with my team in the tournament now. We’re all still excited to be here. The thrill of hearing our name on Selection Sunday is still surreal, everybody was super-excited. We’re just enjoying our time together right now and we’re superexcited to play.”
UConn has been quarantined in its hotel since its arrival on Monday, but Hurley was hoping the Huskies would get their COVID-19 test results back on Tuesday night. If everyone tests negative, the team might get some shots up at a local gym. UConn will practice at an Indianapolis-area gym a couple of times over the next few days, along with the one practice at Mackey.
That’s assuming, of course, that everyone everyone tests negative. Hurley need look no further than his UConn head coaching
counterpart, Geno Auriemma, to see things can change rapidly. Actually, he can’t look at Auriemma — he’s back home after testing positive for COVID, while his team heads out to San Antonio to begin tournament play.
Hurley noted that dealing with the protocols is easier, thanks in part to the Huskies’ experience inside Mohegan Sun’s “Bubbleville” back in November. Still, this entire season has been tough on everyone.
“That’s why I’ve got so much respect for everyone in college basketball, all the coaches, all the players that have soldiered on and gotten through this type of season,” he said. “I don’t think people on the outside that haven’t lived it and experienced it have any idea what it’s been like for the coaches and the players just to complete a season, never mind being your best.”
“Whether you made the NCAA tournament or had a disappointing year, people don’t have any clue how hard this has been on the players and coaches,” he continued. “Especially people that sit in their den or living room and pick coaches or players apart. Especially those people.”
RIM RATTLINGS
Hurley was in a jovial mood on Tuesday afternoon’s Zoom call. He joked about how his brother Bobby, the former Duke star, noted how “great the Maryland fans were to him when he was there. He said they were very, very nice to him, and the crowd just really admired him.”
When Hurley’s session was up and it was time for Whaley to join the call, the coach quipped: “If it was somebody that was more of a quote, like (Akok) Akok, I’d maybe stay on and listen.
Definitely (James) Bouknight. If Christian Vital was still here, this would be incredible. You should Zoom him in. He helped us get here anyway.”
Speaking of Vital, he was one of several former UConn players, including Jalen Adams and current Wichita State guard Alterique Gilbert, who contacted Whaley over the past few days.
“He said ‘Congrats,’ and he wished he could have been here with us,” Whaley said.
Junior point gaurd R.J. Cole, who suffered a minor concussion in Friday night’s loss to Creighton, remains in concussion protocol.
“We’ll know more later in the week,” said Hurley, “but I know the medical staff is all over it.”