Ollie is optimistic about next season

Coach remains positive about upcoming season

SOUTH WINDSOR » It was raining a bit on Friday at the South Windsor Community Center, where the newest installment of Kevin’s Kourts — Kevin Ollie’s inclusive basketball courts for athletes with disabilities — was about to be unveiled.

“I don’t like to call it rain,” the eternally optimistic Ollie noted. “I call it ‘liquid sunshine.’”

Rain, liquid sunshine, whatever you want to call it — just as the ceremony began, it stopped. A good omen, no doubt.

Not that Ollie was going to let a little rain dampen a day where the 40x50 courts, which feature distinctive baskets and backboards that allow wheelchair athletes to play able-bodied opponents on a level playing field, were opened. It’s the second Kevin’s Kourts to be opened in the state; the first was unveiled in Hartford a year ago. Courts in Waterbury and West Hartford are also on the docket (a planned project in New Haven seems to be on hiatus right now due to “complications,” according to Ollie).

“Just to see it come to fruition is great,” said the sixth-year UConn head coach. “This is a special one. It’s adjacent to the boundless playground, so I think a lot of kids are going to be able to play. That’s the purpose of Kevin’s Kourts.”

Similarly, Ollie isn’t going to let an offseason of turmoil and seeming disarray rain on his faith in his team. On the heels of their first losing season in 30 years, the Huskies had three players (Vance Jackson, Steve Enoch and Juwan Durham) transfer and their top recruit (Makai Ashton-Langford) back out of his commitment and bolt to Providence.

Associate head coach Glen Miller was fired, and UConn lost out on a bunch of recruiting battles, as well. A rainy offseason, indeed.

But Ollie seemed guardedly optimistic about his team’s prospects for the upcoming season.

“I feel good,” he said on Friday. “There are a lot of things that have to go into place. We’re just working. I don’t want to get ahead

FROM PAGE 1 of myself. The team is coming together, there are a lot of new pieces.”

There was good news to report. The Huskies were racked by injuries last season, with freshman Mamadou Diarra (knees) missing the entire season, and freshman Alterique Gilbert (shoulder) and sophomore Terry Larrier (knee) missing just about all of it. All three are back on the court, playing and practicing; Diarra, currently going through Ramadan, has lost some weight, “but he’s still Mamadou,” according to the coach.

UConn also announced on Thursday that it will begin a three-game series with Villanova this season on Jan. 20, 2018 in Hartford. Along with road games at Arizona and Auburn, a bout with Syracuse at Madison Square Garden and a trip to the challenging PK80 Invitational, the Huskies’ non-league schedule will provide plenty of challenges.

Then again, their American Athletic Conference slate won’t be too shabby, either, particularly with the addition of Wichita State, which should be a consensus Top 10 team entering the season. Cincinnati should be a Top 25 team, as well, and SMU and Houston could also be strong.

“We’re a Power Six,” Ollie noted. “Our league is coming together very well. (Commissioner) Mike Aresco is doing a great job. They can’t keep us out. It’s a Power Six, and we’re gonna keep building that, and we’ve got to show that on the basketball court so we can get some respect and some higher seeds in the NCAA tournament.”

Certainly, the status of the American would be enhanced even more if UConn returns to its past success. And Ollie seems to understand the pressure could start to mount on him this season if the team isn’t back in the NCAA tournament picture.

When asked how many more Kevin’s Kourts he’d like to see built throughout the state, Ollie noted that wheelchair athlete Ryan Martin was hoping for at least 50.

“I like that. If we can do 50, that would be great,” Ollie said, with a smile. “I mean, I’ve got to coach a little longer, so I’ve got to make sure I win some games.”

Either that, or liquid sunshine could start falling on the Huskies’ program.