Inside the numbers of Huskies’ win over Hartford
UConn freshman Andre Jackson cut a lonely image on the Gampel Pavilion floor Friday night. At around 11:30 p.m., well more than an hour after UConn’s “meh”, 69-57 win over Hartford was over, Jackson was out shooting jumpers, trying to improve after a rough second game of his career.
Practically from the time he entered the game a little over five minutes in, the 6-foot-7 swingman was in foul trouble. He wound up playing just six minutes, committing three fouls and missing the only shot he took.
But Jackson was hardly the only Husky who struggled on Friday night. Here’s a look at some of the key numbers — good and bad — from UConn’s win.
10
Isaiah Whaley had 10 points and 10 rebounds for his sixth career doubledouble. URI transfer Tyrese Martin also grabbed 10 rebounds in his UConn debut. Both displayed the type of grit and toughness, particularly in the second half, that the Huskies desperately need more of.
85.3
Whaley’s stop percentage, an analytic that esti
mates the rate of defensive possessions where the opposing team didn’t score while the player was on the floor. Whaley had five blocks, including a huge stuff of Hartford’s Traci Carter with 4:13 left that helped spearhead a key, 6-0 Husky run to provide a little separation from the pesky Hawks.
Whaley also doled out a team-best four assists. Never a good sign when your 6-foot-9 center is your top assist guy.
15
A career-high scoring night for sophomore Jalen Gaffney. He shot 4-for-10 from the floor, 1-for-3 from 3-point land and 6-of-8 from the foul line. He also didn’t turn the ball over once in his team-high 35:41 on the floor, and though he dished out only a pair of assists, Gaffney’s plus/ minus of 13 was tops on the Huskies.
It was a rough night for Tyler Polley and Brendan Adams. Plagued by foul trouble, the Polley went scoreless in 15 minutes with just two shot attempts, to go with a mere two rebounds and one assist.
Adams may have been worse. He scored two points on 1-for-7 shooting, but missed all four 3-point attempts, turned the ball over twice and finished with a 0 efficiencey score — a stat calculated by points + rebounds + assists + steals — missed shots — turnovers.
14-1
The Big East’s record, through Friday, after the first three days of the 202021 season. The only loss was Seton Hall’s one-point loss at Louisville on Friday, four days after the Pirates
came out of a 14-day quarantine. Granted, most of the wins have been against relative cupcakes, but this
league is pretty good.
david.borges @hearstmediact.com