University of Connecticut Athletics
Huskies Show Confidence, Consistency And Composure
12/29/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Game Story: UConn Tops Central Connecticut
By Erica Brancato
The key ingredients to a successful team are confidence, consistency and composure, according to UConn men's basketball coach Kevin Ollie said. Those three elements were present on Sunday, as UConn defeated Central Connecticut, 81-48, in front of a spirited XL Center crowd.
"That's a Kevin Ollie team," said Central head coach Howie Dickenman, who knows all about Ollie. During his time as an UConn assistant coach, Dickenman recruited Ollie out of Los Angeles to play for the Huskies in the mid-90s.
"I told him at the end of the game, I said, `I don't know if you are going to win the crown again but it won't be for lack of effort and lack of coaching.' I meant every word of that."
Though the first half was a back and forth battle, as the score was tied six times, the Huskies were able to gain momentum in the second half to swiftly move past the Blue Devils. UConn started off slow shooting 14 for 29 field goals in the first half; however, the Huskies were able to heat up, as they went 12 for 12 in field goals at the beginning of the second half and never looked back.
UConn was able to maintain a balanced on offense, as five Huskies were able to rack up double figures in points. Ryan Boatright led the offense with 18 points and three steals, while Rodney Purvis followed closely behind with 14 points and one steal. Amida Brimah and Kentan Facey both scored 12 points, while Omar Calhoun racked up 11 points.
"I think it is a great step for us as a team," sophomore Facey said. "Teams are going to scout us and teams are going to realize that Ryan (Boatright) is a great player. They are going to try to come up with defenses to take him out of the game. For us to have people that can step up and are capable of stepping up in games, I think that's going to determine how far we go in the storm and even making the tournament."
After some recent struggles, Calhoun was able to shine against the Blue Devils, as he was a key factor on offense. Despite multiple injuries and some inability for his shots to fall, 11 points and 18 minutes on the court were great confidence boosters for Calhoun.
"I definitely felt stronger out there," he said. "I felt like you know I'm getting healthier everyday and I was able to get in the passing lanes and that kind of started me off you know getting that first basket to have a better day today."
Along with Calhoun, Facey also had a breakout game, as he racked up his first career double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Facey, who has been only playing basketball for five years, is able to succeed this season due to his development last year, Ollie said.
"The game was too fast for him last year," Ollie said. "Last year we put him on the red team, like the scout team, and it really allowed him just to play free. I have seen some different things that he can do and I was very encouraged by that. That's when he really started taking off last year when he said `alright I'm going to jump out of my ego, get on the scout team and work on my game.' That's the sacrifice you need for a championship level team. I think that's leading to his great season thus far."
Facey says he mainly focuses on rebounding to bring something new to the table that other players cannot do. With the talent of his teammates, he believes he should focus on rebounding to help out the team and everything else will fall into place.
"We have a team that is guard heavy," he said. "We have a lot of good guards and for me to focus on anything else right now would be counterproductive because everybody else can do other stuff and I can do something that not everyone on the team can do."
