Post-game breakdown: USF
UConn did what it was supposed to do on Thursday night.
It eliminated a significantly weaker team in 11th-seeded South Florida from the American Athletic Conference Championship tournament.
The final score: Sixth-seeded UConn, 69, USF 43.
Up next: third-seeded Cincinnati.
The quarterfinal game between the two old Big East combatants will start at approximately 9 p.m. at the XL Center in Hartford.
“We’re going to continue to just fight and do what we have to do to continue to survive,” coach Kevin Ollie said.
Here’s a post-game breakdown:
-- UConn ran a balanced attack, with five players scoring at least nine points. AAC rookie of the year Daniel Hamilton had a game-high 20 points and sophomore Rodney Purvis added 13.
“I thought our execution offensively was great,” Ollie said. “No one really cared about who was getting the shots, or who was scoring. We were just throwing it to the open man, and the open man was making plays. That’s how we’re going to have to play the rest of the way.”
-- The Huskies raced to a 25-5 lead and never looked back.
“We faced a team that came out with a little bit of vinegar…,” USF coach Orlando Antigua said. “They came out and played extremely hard and made some tough shots, especially early on.”
-- UConn set several conference tournament single game records, including most 3-pointers (11), fewest points allowed in a half (14) and a game (43), best field goal percentage (54.5) and 3-point field goal percentage (64.7).
Hamilton had the most points by a freshman in the two-year history of the AAC tournament.
-- The attendance (5,431 fans) was decent for UConn's first round game. The crowd size should be bigger for tonight’s quarterfinal.
-- The Huskies improved to 7-1 at the XL Center this season.
-- Ollie praised the play of junior Phil Nolan, who had a career-high tying seven rebounds. He didn’t attempt a shot in 29 minutes. He also had only one turnover and played solid defense.
“Phil did an amazing job,” Ollie said.
-- Hamilton on playing in his first conference tournament game: “I could definitely feel the difference, especially the intensity.”
-- UConn and Cincinnati, two former Big East foes, may be the biggest rivals in the AAC. The two teams split the regular season series, with UConn winning 65-62 in Hartford on Jan. 10 and losing on the road, 70-58, on Jan. 29.
“Every single time we play them it’s extremely physical,” senior Ryan Boatright said.
The Bearcats (22-9) earned one of five first round byes in the tournament.
-- The Huskies may be without reserve forward Kentan Facey for the second straight game. Facey suffered a concussion in practice Tuesday from banging heads with Hamilton.
“We’re just trying to make sure his symptoms get better…,” Ollie said. “(Our medical staff) is going to do a good job assessing it and hopefully he can come back (Friday).”
Without Facey on Thursday, freshman Rakim Lubin got the call. Lubin had two points and two rebounds in 10 minutes. He hadn’t played in the previous four games, missing three of those due to a concussion.
-- Trending: They improved to 11-1 when leading at half. They were up 29-14.
Also, they climbed to 8-0 when shooting 50 percent or better from the field. They converted 54.5 percent on Thursday.
-- Reserve Omar Calhoun had his most productive game in recent weeks, finishing with nine points on 4-for-6 shooting. He scored three of his field goals on runners in the lane.
-- Ollie cleared the bench in the final minute, putting in Pat Lenehan, Dan Guest and Terrance Ditimi. Guest made his only shot while Lenehan, who received the AAC's scholar-athlete of the year award earlier in the day, grabbed a rebound and missed his only shot.
-- Check back Friday for a pre-game preview and regular updates from day two of the AAC tournament in Hartford.
Follow me on Twitter: @GavinKeefe
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