The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
New look, same result
Different lineup can’t get UConn past Providence
PROVIDENCE 70 UCONN 59
Close your eyes and imagine, if you will, James Bouknight and David Duke trading one huge basket after another down the stretch at a raucous, sold-out Dunkin’ Donuts Center.
It’s the stuff Big East dreams are made of.
Now, open your eyes and find yourself at Alumni Hall, with no fans in attendance and Bouknight dressed in sweats on the bench.
That was the reality on Wednes“They day afternoon as UConn resumed its Big East rivalry with Providence. The only part of the fantasy sequence that was real was Duke, who lived up to his end of the deal.
Duke, Providence’s All-American candidate guard, scored three of the Friars’ first four baskets in the first three minutes of the second half to put PC ahead for good in a 70-59 victory over the Huskies. He and inside bully Nate Watson finished with 17 points apiece as the Friars snapped a three-game losing streak and improved to 10-10 overall, 6-8 Big East.
But it wasn’t so much Duke’s presence that defined the game. It was Bouknight’s absence that, once again, left UConn with few offensive alternatives and, ultimately, a “demoralized” postgame locker room.
“They were tougher,” UConn coach Dan Hurley said of the Friars. “They played better than us, coached better than us. Just a tough loss. Obviously, it’s a pretty demoralized group right now. And it doesn’t get any easier in this new league.”
UConn fell to 8-5 overall and 5-5 in the Big East. The Huskies have dropped four of their last five games, stretched out over a nearly four-week span. And Bouknight’s return from a left elbow injury suffered on Jan. 5 and surgery a week later remains shrouded in
mystery.
Last week, Hurley seemed optimistic when labeling Bouknight a “gametime decision” for the PC game. But apparently, Bouknight’s surgeon — who is seperate from UConn’s medical staff — made the decision on Monday that Bouknight wasn’t ready to return, after the star guard still felt some discomfort in his elbow.
Asked after the game how close Bouknight might be to returning, Hurley said: “Not close. James met with his doctor, and we’ll keep him as a gametime decision. He needs more time.”
Hurley went with a new starting lineup on Wednesday, inserting Jalen Gaffney and Tyler Polley back into the starting five and bringing R.J. Cole and Brendan Adams off the bench.
“(I was) rewarding Jalen for having a really strong offensive game the last time out,” Hurley said, “and trying to send R.J. a message that we need a lot more from him — not just offensively, but as a leader, as a defender, as a tough guy.”
It seemed to spark Cole, who had started the Huskies’ previous 12 games. The junior point guard finished with a team-high 14 points and six assists (along with five turnovers). Other than freshman Adama Sanogo (nine points, eight rebounds, five blocks, two steals) and Tyrese Martin (13 points, nine boards), no one else really stepped up for UConn.
Gaffney, coming off a career-high 20-point effort in Saturday’s loss to Seton Hall, picked up two quick fouls and finished with just four points and an assist. Polley had five points on 2-for-12 shooting. Isaiah Whaley remained in a slump with a mere four points.
In 13 minutes of action, Adams didn’t register a single point, rebound, assist ... nothing at all.
Then again, neither did Bouknight. The Huskies’ top player and likely 2021 firstround NBA draft pick has now missed seven straight games ... and, it appears, counting.
“It’s on all of us to step up in his absence,” said Cole, “so that by the time he comes back, rather than having to start over, we can insert him back in and keep moving forward.”
When that happens remains a mystery. But close your eyes once again and realize that, on Tuesday, the Huskies and Friars meet again, this time in Gampel Pavilion. There will be no fans in attendance, but Duke will be there, ready to play.
Will James Bouknight?
RIM RATTLINGS
⏩ It was the third start of the season for both Gaffney and Polley. Both started the first two games of the season and have come off the bench ever since. Gaffney started 11 games last season as a freshman, Polley has now started 60 of his 92 games for his career.