2008–09 Connecticut Huskies men's basketball team
2008–09 Paradise Jam tournament champions | |
---|---|
NCAA tournament, Final Four | |
Conference | Big East Conference |
Ranking | |
Coaches | No. 3 |
AP | No. 5 |
Record | 31–5 (15–3 Big East) |
Head coach | (23rd season) |
Assistant coaches |
|
Home arena | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion |
Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 1 Louisville† | 16 | – | 2 | .889 | 31 | – | 6 | .838 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 4 Pittsburgh | 15 | – | 3 | .833 | 31 | – | 5 | .861 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 5 Connecticut | 15 | – | 3 | .833 | 31 | – | 5 | .861 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 11 Villanova | 13 | – | 5 | .722 | 30 | – | 8 | .789 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 23 Marquette | 12 | – | 6 | .667 | 25 | – | 10 | .714 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 13 Syracuse | 11 | – | 7 | .611 | 28 | – | 10 | .737 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
West Virginia | 10 | – | 8 | .556 | 23 | – | 12 | .657 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Providence | 10 | – | 8 | .556 | 19 | – | 14 | .576 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Notre Dame | 8 | – | 10 | .444 | 21 | – | 15 | .583 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Cincinnati | 8 | – | 10 | .444 | 18 | – | 14 | .563 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Seton Hall | 7 | – | 11 | .389 | 17 | – | 15 | .531 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Georgetown | 7 | – | 11 | .389 | 16 | – | 15 | .516 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
St. John's | 6 | – | 12 | .333 | 16 | – | 18 | .471 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
South Florida | 4 | – | 14 | .222 | 9 | – | 22 | .290 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rutgers | 2 | – | 16 | .111 | 11 | – | 21 | .344 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
DePaul | 0 | – | 18 | .000 | 9 | – | 24 | .273 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
† AP Poll
|
The 2008–2009 Connecticut Huskies men's basketball team represented the
The Huskies finished the season 31–5, 15–3 in
Roster
Listed are the student athletes who are members of the 2008–2009 team.[2]
# | Name | Position | Year |
---|---|---|---|
4 | Jeff Adrien | Forward | Sr |
24 | Craig Austrie | Guard | Sr |
55 | Kyle Bailey | Guard | So |
2 | Donnell Beverly | Guard | So |
10 | Johnnie Bird | Guard | Sr |
11 | Jerome Dyson | Guard | Jr |
33 | Gavin Edwards | Forward/Center | Jr |
30 | Scottie Haralson | Guard | Fr |
13 | Alex Hornat | Forward | Jr |
45 | John Linder | Forward | Sr |
32 | Jonathan Mandeldove | Center | Jr |
35 | Charles Okwandu | Center | So |
12 | A. J. Price | Guard | Sr |
21 | Stanley Robinson | Forward | So |
34 | Hasheem Thabeet | Center | Jr |
40 | Jim Veronick | Forward | Sr |
15 | Kemba Walker | Guard | Fr |
2008 recruiting class
Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Scottie Haralson SG |
Jackson, MS | Provine HS | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Jan 25, 2008 | |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 40 | ||||||
Nate Miles SG |
Patterson, NC | The Patterson School | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Nov 20, 2006 | |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 88 | ||||||
Kemba Walker PG |
New York, NY | Rice HS | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 172 lb (78 kg) | Jun 9, 2007 | |
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 96 | ||||||
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 7 Rivals: 8 | ||||||
Sources:
|
Regular season
The Huskies' season began with the team ranked No. 2 in the AP Poll.
The first Big East Conference game of the season came at home against Georgetown, which the Huskies lost 74–63. This was the start of a 19-game stretch where 18 of the games were against conference opponents, and where their opponents were ranked in nine of the games. After this first loss, the Huskies went on to win 13 straight, staying comfortably atop the Big East Conference standings. Among these was a 68–51 victory at No. 7 Louisville— the eventual outright Big East Champions.
The Huskies reached No. 1 in the rankings on February 2, 2009, and held it for three weeks. During this span junior guard Jerome Dyson, one of the team's biggest scoring threats and its best guard defender, injured his knee. He would not be able to play for the rest of the season. The team spent the final few weeks of the regular season adjusting to their smaller rotation. A 76–68 loss at home to No. 4
The Huskies finished the regular season with 27 wins and 3 losses, with a conference record of 15–3. The team was not ranked out of the top 5 in the AP Poll at any point in the season.
Post-season
In the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament, UConn took on Syracuse. The game would prove to be a historic event, as it took a Big East record six overtimes before Syracuse ultimately triumphed, 127–117. The contest is tied as the second longest in NCAA Division I history.
The Huskies earned the No. 1 seed in the West Regional of the
The following weekend the Huskies were in Detroit, MI for a Final Four matchup against the Midwest's No. 2 seed, Michigan State. The game was close throughout, until the Spartans began to take control near the ten-minute mark of the second half. UConn would make one last run and cut the deficit to three late in the game, but Michigan State made key free throws and held on to win, 82–73. UConn's final record was 31 wins and 5 losses.
Schedule and results
Date time, TV |
Rank# | Opponent# | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Exhibition | |||||||||||
November 5, 2008* |
No. 2 | American International
|
W 83–58 | Storrs, CT
| |||||||
November 9, 2008* |
No. 2 | UMass Lowell | W 82–63 | Hartford, CT
| |||||||
Regular season | |||||||||||
November 14, 2008* |
No. 2 | Western Carolina | W 81–55 | 1–0 |
Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (9,820) Storrs, CT | ||||||
November 17, 2008* WCTX |
No. 2 | Hartford
|
W 99–56 | 2–0 |
XL Center (11,849) Hartford, CT | ||||||
November 21, 2008* WCTX |
No. 2 | vs. La Salle US Virgin Islands Paradise Jam |
W 89–81 | 3–0 |
US Virgin Islands
| ||||||
November 23, 2008* FCS
|
No. 2 | vs. No. 17 Miami US Virgin Islands Paradise Jam |
W 76–63 | 4–0 |
University of the Virgin Islands (3,271) US Virgin Islands | ||||||
November 24, 2008* FSN |
No. 2 | vs. No. 25 Wisconsin US Virgin Islands Paradise Jam |
W 76–57 | 5–0 |
University of the Virgin Islands (3,691) US Virgin Islands | ||||||
November 29, 2008* WCTX |
No. 2 | Bryant | W 88–58 | 6–0 |
XL Center (12,558) Hartford, CT | ||||||
December 1, 2008* WCTX |
No. 2 | Delaware State | W 79–49 | 7–0 |
Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (9,734) Storrs, CT | ||||||
December 4, 2008* WCTX |
No. 2 | at Buffalo
|
W 68–64 | 8–0 |
Buffalo, NY
| ||||||
December 15, 2008* WCTX |
No. 2 | Stony Brook | W 91–57 | 9–0 |
XL Center (12,721) Hartford, CT | ||||||
December 20, 2008* CBS |
No. 2 | at No. 8 Gonzaga Battle in Seattle |
W 88–83 | 10–0 |
Seattle, WA
| ||||||
December 26, 2008* ESPNU |
No. 2 | Fairfield | W 75–55 | 11–0 |
XL Center (13,771) Hartford, CT | ||||||
December 29, 2008 ESPN |
No. 2 | No. 11 Rivalry
|
L 63–74 | 11–1 (0–1) |
XL Center (16,294) Hartford, CT | ||||||
January 3, 2009 WCTX |
No. 2 | Rutgers
|
W 80–49 | 12–1 (1–1) |
Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,167) Storrs, CT | ||||||
January 6, 2009 ESPNU |
No. 5 | at No. 25 West Virginia
|
W 61–55 | 13–1 (2–1) |
Morgantown, WV
| ||||||
January 10, 2009 WCTX |
No. 5 | at Cincinnati | W 81–72 | 14–1 (3–1) |
Cincinnati, OH
| ||||||
January 15, 2009 ESPN |
No. 4 | at St. John's | W 67–55 | 15–1 (4–1) |
New York, NY
| ||||||
January 18, 2009 WCTX |
No. 4 | Seton Hall | W 76–61 | 16–1 (5–1) |
XL Center (15,572) Hartford, CT | ||||||
January 21, 2009 ESPN |
No. 3 | No. 20 Villanova
|
W 89–83 | 17–1 (6–1) |
XL Center (15,385) Hartford, CT | ||||||
January 24, 2009 ESPN |
No. 3 | at No. 19 ESPN College GameDay
|
W 69–61 | 18–1 (7–1) |
South Bend, IN
| ||||||
January 28, 2009 WCTX |
No. 2 | at DePaul | W 71–49 | 19–1 (8–1) |
Chicago, IL
| ||||||
January 31, 2009 WCTX |
No. 2 | Providence
|
W 94–61 | 20–1 (9–1) |
Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,167) Storrs, CT | ||||||
February 2, 2009 ESPN |
No. 1 | at No. 5 Louisville
|
W 68–51 | 21–1 (10–1) |
Louisville, KY
| ||||||
February 7, 2009* ESPN |
No. 1 | Michigan
|
W 69–61 | 22–1 |
Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,167) Storrs, CT | ||||||
February 11, 2009 ESPN |
No. 1 | No. 23 Rivalry
|
W 63–49 | 23–1 (11–1) |
Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,167) Storrs, CT | ||||||
February 14, 2009 WCTX |
No. 1 | at Seton Hall | W 62–54 | 24–1 (12–1) |
Newark, NJ
| ||||||
February 16, 2009 ESPN |
No. 1 | No. 4 Pittsburgh
|
L 68–76 | 24–2 (12–2) |
XL Center (16,294) Hartford, CT | ||||||
February 21, 2009 WCTX |
No. 1 | South Florida
|
W 64–50 | 25–2 (13–2) |
XL Center (15,451) Hartford, CT | ||||||
February 25, 2009 ESPN |
No. 2 | at No. 8 Marquette
|
W 93–82 | 26–2 (14–2) |
Milwaukee, WI
| ||||||
February 28, 2009 CBS |
No. 2 | Notre Dame
|
W 72–65 | 27–2 (15–2) |
Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,167) Storrs, CT | ||||||
March 7, 2009 CBS |
No. 1 | at No. 3 Pittsburgh
|
L 60–70 | 27–3 (15–3) |
Pittsburgh, PA
| ||||||
Big East tournament | |||||||||||
March 12, 2009 ESPN |
(3) No. 3 | (6) No. 18 Rivalry
|
L 117–127 6OT | 27–4 |
Madison Square Garden (19,375) New York, NY | ||||||
NCAA tournament | |||||||||||
March 19, 2009 CBS |
(1 W) No. 5 | vs. (16 W) Chattanooga First Round |
W 103–47 | 28–4 |
Wachovia Center (18,322) Philadelphia, PA | ||||||
March 21, 2009 CBS |
(1 W) No. 5 | vs. (9 W) Texas A&M Second Round |
W 92–66 | 29–4 |
Wachovia Center (19,894) Philadelphia, PA | ||||||
March 26, 2009 CBS |
(1 W) No. 5 | vs. (5 W) No. 17 Purdue Sweet Sixteen |
W 72–60 | 30–4 |
Glendale, AZ
| ||||||
March 28, 2009 CBS |
(1 W) No. 5 | vs. (3 W) No. 9 Missouri Elite Eight |
W 82–75 | 31–4 |
University of Phoenix Stadium (18,886) Glendale, AZ | ||||||
April 4, 2009 CBS |
(1 W) No. 5 | vs. (2 MW) No. 8 Michigan State Final Four |
L 73–82 | 31–5 |
Detroit, MI
| ||||||
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from
AP Poll . (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. |
Rankings
Week | ||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
AP | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 (6) | 1 (64) | 1 (67) | 1 (66) | 2 (1) | 1 (67) | 3 | 5 (1) | Not released |
Coaches | 2 | 2 (1) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 (1) | 1 (28) | 1 (30) | 1 (30) | 2 (1) | 1 (27) | 4 | 6 | 3 |
Postseason awards
Second Team All-America:
Hasheem Thabeet, Center, Jr.
National Defensive Player of the Year
Hasheem Thabeet
Big East Co-Players of the Year:
Hasheem Thabeet
with DeJuan Blair, Pittsburgh, Center, So.
Big East Defensive Player of the Year:
Hasheem Thabeet
All-Big East First Team:
Hasheem Thabeet
All-Big East Second Team:
A.J. Price, Guard, Sr.
All-Big East Third Team:
Jeff Adrien, Forward, Sr.
Big East All-Rookie Team:
Kemba Walker, Guard, Fr.
Team players drafted into the NBA
Round | Pick | Player | NBA Club |
1 | 2 | Hasheem Thabeet | Memphis Grizzlies |
2 | 52 | A.J. Price | Indiana Pacers |
References
- ^ "Big East Conference Standings - 2008-09." ESPN.com. Retrieved 03-23-10.
- ^ "UCONN Men's Basketball – University of Connecticut Official Athletic Site". Archived from the original on August 18, 2011. Retrieved March 29, 2009.
- ^ College Basketball – Rankings – Rivals.com
- ^ No. 2 UConn rallies past No. 8 Zags in OT
- ^ Calhoun wins No. 800 as UConn beats Marquette
- NBA.com. Archived from the originalon January 25, 2012. Retrieved July 20, 2009.