UConn’s lack of A-game not a concern as Huskies power past Marquette

Solo Ball’s improvement on defense has helped UConn remain strong even with off days shooting, such as Sunday against Marquette. (Photo by Jessica Hill/Associated Press)

STORRS, Conn. — A time-tested mark of a true championship team is its ability to win games with far from its best efforts, a quality that resonates the later into a season teams get.

When a team with multiple perimeter threats makes just five of its three-point attempts, the focus then becomes relying on an effective calling card. UConn was able to do that Sunday at Gampel Pavilion, using its defense to make up for what Dan Hurley termed a “frustrating” offensive performance, stifling Marquette and defeating the Golden Eagles comfortably, 73-57.

“Today was a game where we should have shot 50 percent from the field,” Hurley conceded. “I felt like we got good enough looks from three that there should have been double-figure threes made, and the turnovers (11), I guess I can live with that number based on what’s been transpiring. The ’24 team was number one in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio. We gotta get the turnovers down. We waited a half to offensive rebound, we offensive rebounded the heck out of the ball in the second half. You can’t wait a half to offensive rebound, that’s a part of your offense. The free throw shooting was sketchy again, and I thought we left points on the board not finishing at the rim.”

“Teams get better throughout the year. We’re gonna get a lot better. We’re not gonna stay the way we are, we’re gonna improve a lot.”

UConn (14-1, 4-0 Big East) used its defense, second in the country only to Michigan according to KenPom efficiency ratings, to frustrate Marquette and compound what has already been a long season for the Golden Eagles. Head coach Shaka Smart, no stranger to stout defenses of his own wherever he has been, praised the fourth-ranked Huskies for their refusal to give in, even with the outcome in very little doubt.

“They were more relentless than us,” Smart said. “They just stayed with it and they kept attacking, they kept battling, and the way they attacked the glass in the second half was a huge, huge difference maker. Coming out of halftime, I thought UConn did a good job of playing with force, and we did not stand up to them enough.”

“They have a unique defense compared to most of the teams that we play, in that they only really help when they have to. They stay home for the most part with guys, and what that requires is really, really battling and staying in front of a guy.”

UConn’s defense has always been the program’s bread and butter under Hurley, save for the anomaly of last season. Not only has the collective improvement been tangible this year, the individual growth of Solo Ball on that side of the floor is night and day compared to where it was during his sophomore campaign.

“I feel like it’s definitely gotten a lot better,” Ball said of his defense, which complemented 17 points and eight rebounds Sunday. “Last year, it was kind of a head case. I feel like it was our Achilles’ heel as a team and it affected us all, because my defense, and also just the team defense, just wasn’t there. That was a big emphasis going into this year, and we work on defense tirelessly every single day in practice. You’ve just gotta trust your preparation.”

“It’s helped a lot,” Hurley concurred. “It was a huge improvement. If you look at defensive ratings of players last year, we had multiple players in our starting five that were 500, 600, 700, 1000 or lower relative to their individual defensive rating. It was a shitshow out there on defense last year. Silas (Demary, Jr.) has helped, Solo’s improvement on defense has helped, Braylon (Mullins) as a freshman. I just think overall, Eric (Reibe)’s been pretty good defensively, Tarris (Reed, Jr.) is surrounded by better defensive players, and he’s raised his level.”

Halfway through the season, UConn may not be the juggernaut it was two years ago when defending its national championship, but the Huskies are a consensus Final Four-caliber unit as presently constructed. That, coupled with a mutual embrace of player development, projects to be a boon in the self-proclaimed basketball capital of the world and a nightmare to those tasked with the unenviable assignment of taking UConn down.

“I feel like the biggest thing I’ve grown this year is just strength,” Ball remarked. “The strength piece has been influential for me just going to the rim, and it’s also just helped rebounding. I feel like I’ve become a way more complete player than I was last year, and I think that’s just what I could do help the team.”

“They’re still evolving,” Smart said of UConn as a whole. “I really like the pieces that they have, their role definition that they have. The way they play offensively is as hard to deal with as anybody.”

Hurley joked that he liked the fact that Alex Karaban and Braylon Mullins shot a combined 5-for-21 Sunday, hinting that it might bode well for their next game Wednesday at Providence after getting a bad day out of their systems. Regardless of the inefficiency, however, a conference win is more enjoyable now knowing what the future projects to be.

“This year has been so fun so far just with these guys,” Ball proclaimed. “I feel like we have an incredible chemistry together, and the great thing is we’re still gonna grow. We’re not gonna be the same team that we’ll be in March, and that just comes with the reps that we’re gonna put in. We still have guys that are getting back into the flow of things and just getting comfortable. Everyone’s on the same page now, but as soon as we continue to build chemistry, it’s just gonna be dangerous between all 15 of us.”