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Husky Hoops: UW vs Utah Valley (Dec 21)
ChillyDawg
Member Posts: 1,469
This is the first meeting ever between the two programs. Utah Valley (8-3) is a mid-major program and doesn't have any Seniors on their roster. The UW and Utah Valley have both played Wyoming this season. Wyoming defeated the UW 77-72 in OT on November 18. Wyoming defeated Utah Valley 74-62 on December 11. Utah Valley does have an impressive victory over #12 ranked at the time BYU (72-65 OT). Utah Valley State is not the best three point shooting team (33%) but they do have a very solid big man in 6'11 (R-SO) Fardaws Aimaq (19 ppg/13 rpg). If the refs get their big man in foul trouble it should make the game easier for the UW to get a win. If the game is called fairly it should be a real competitive game.
INFO
UW MBB https://gohuskies.com/sports/mens-basketball
Utah Valley MBB https://gouvu.com/sports/mens-basketball
NEWS
Go UVU https://gouvu.com/news/2021/12/19/mens-basketball-utah-valley-wraps-up-non-conference-play-at-washington-on-tuesday-night.aspx
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2QXmBpiHLE
Matthew Loves Ball: Utah Valley vs BYU Highlights
INFO
UW MBB https://gohuskies.com/sports/mens-basketball
Utah Valley MBB https://gouvu.com/sports/mens-basketball
NEWS
Go UVU https://gouvu.com/news/2021/12/19/mens-basketball-utah-valley-wraps-up-non-conference-play-at-washington-on-tuesday-night.aspx
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2QXmBpiHLEMatthew Loves Ball: Utah Valley vs BYU Highlights
Comments
Utah Valley Wolverines Key Players:
G- Blaze Nield, Jr. 6’1, 185: 7.5 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 4.5 apg, 40.0% FG, 29.4% 3pt, 80.8% FT
You gotta love yourself a point guard named “Blaze”. Nield transferred from BYU and has been a rock solid passing point guard option. He’s much more comfortable as a distributor although his usage rate is up 50% this year compared to last. Expect him to primarily dump it off to UVU’s talented bigs and only shoot when truly open.
G- Le’Tre Darthard, So. 6’4, 180: 10.2 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 1.8 apg, 38.7% FG, 33.3% 3pt, 91.7% FT
Last year Darthard was the most efficient player in WAC conference play hitting 53% of his 3-pointers. It had been a rough start to his sophomore campaign until they played D-III Bethesda and Darthard found his stroke to end up with 30 points. If he can’t get his shooting back on track though then he doesn’t provide a lot of utility in other aspects of the game.
G- Connor Harding, Jr. 6’6, 185: 10.9 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.7apg, 41.6% FG, 36.4% 3pt, 60.6% FT
Another BYU transfer, Harding has found instant success in his first year with the Wolverines. He has nearly doubled his previous best scoring average with the Cougars. The turnover rate is much higher than you’d like (at least 3 turnovers in 8 of their 11 games) but when he gets a shot up it’s fairly efficient. Expect UW to try trapping him when they get the chance to see if he’ll cough up the ball under intense pressure.
F- Tim Fuller, So. 6’9, 235: 6.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 1.0 apg, 63.3% FG, 50.0% FT
Fuller transferred from Weber State where he had a really nice freshman season. Last year was a bit of a setback as he struggled to crack the rotation but he’s a career 62% shooter from the field so he can score down low. He is also a consistently excellent offensive rebounder and it won’t be a surprise if he has 5+ tonight against the Huskies.
C- Fardaws Aimaq, So. 6’11, 245: 19.8 ppg, 13.5 rpg, 1.5 bpg, 51.2% FG, 33.3% 3pt, 66.7% FT
The 3rd year player out of Vancouver BC started his career at Mercer but blossomed last year into one of the best centers in the country. Last year he finished 1st in the country in defensive rebounding rate and 8th in offensive rebounding rate. This season it’s 14th and 151st respectively but that’s still ridiculous. Washington will find it very difficult to go to their small lineup with Aimaq on the other side especially since he plays nearly every minute for Utah Valley. In an OT upset win over BYU Aimaq had 24 points, 22 rebounds, and 5 steals. He could easily have 20 rebounds tonight.
Box Score http://stats.statbroadcast.com/statmonitr/?id=371024
Utah Valley star big man in foul trouble (3 fouls) most of the first half and the UW still trails 30-27 at the break... The UW will need more ref help in the second half. Look for Utah Valley big man to pick up his fourth foul early in the second half and for the refs to quickly get the UW into the ft penalty with a bunch of early second half foul calls against Utah Valley.
Final: UW (5-5) 52 Utah Valley (9-3) 68 http://stats.statbroadcast.com/statmonitr/?id=371024
Go Huskies https://gohuskies.com/news/2021/12/21/mens-basketball-huskies-fall-68-52-to-utah-valley.aspx
UWDawgPound https://www.uwdawgpound.com/2021/12/21/22849384/husky-offense-no-shows-in-68-52-loss-to-utah-valley-uw-washington-basketball
Seattle Times https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/uw-husky-basketball/washington-men-still-hampered-by-covid-issues-fall-to-utah-valley/
Senior forward Jamal Bey was placed in COVID protocols and missed Tuesday’s 68-52 nonconference loss against Utah Valley at Alaska Airlines Arena.
The short-handed Huskies (5-5 and 0-1 Pac-12) were also without assistants Will Conroy, Wyking Jones and Quincy Pondexter who are in health and safety protocols.
Still, coach Mike Hopkins downplayed UW’s absences and attributed another lackluster performance to the wide range of problems that have plagued the Huskies all season.
Washington, which ranks last in the Pac-12 in three-point shooting percentage (28.5%), went 0 for 11 from downtown.
The Huskies also shot 35.2% from the floor and were 14 of 26 on free throws, which explains why they tallied their fewest points since scoring 42 against UC Riverside on Dec. 1, 2020.
And inexplicably, UW got off to another slow start and was behind at halftime for the seventh time this season. Washington, which trailed for more than 35 minutes, was down 30-27 at the break and never got closer than four points in the second half.
“We just didn’t come out and play as hard as we have to play,” Hopkins said. “We started off the game just like 90% of the season and got a little lackadaisical.”
Despite Hopkins’ assertion to the contrary, Bey’s absence more than likely disrupted UW’s offense.
He’s their best three-point shooter and is tied for fourth among the Huskies in scoring (9.1 points per game) and third in rebounding (4.9) while averaging 30.3 minutes. He’s also a UW co-captain who made 28 straight starts and appeared in 71 consecutive games before Tuesday.
“It’s definitely more challenging,” Terrell Brown Jr. said when asked about Bey’s absence. “We depend on Jamal’s scoring.”
Despite its depleted roster, Hopkins, who normally opts for an 8-man rotation, used 10 players with hopes of finding someone other than Brown (23 points, six rebounds, two assists and three steals) who might trigger a dormant offense.
“He’s one of the toughest guys I’ve ever been around mentally and physically,” Hopkins said about Brown. “He’s a really good leader. He’s got the ability to score as well as make plays for others. When he feels like the other guys aren’t as engaged as he is, he looks to put us on his back.”
At times Brown, who entered the game ranked ninth nationally among Division I players while averaging 21.2 points, has been able to carry an incoherent offense that’s ninth in the Pac-12 in scoring (69.7 points).
However, his heroic exploits were undone by the frigid shooting of starters Daejon Davis, Nate Roberts and Cole Bajema, who replaced Bey. The trio combined for five points on 2-for-16 shooting, while Emmitt Matthews Jr. added 10 points.
“The other guys, we’ve got to step up in a lot of different positions,” Hopkins said. “A lot of guys got opportunities and they’ve got to play better. That’s just the bottom line.”
Backup center Riley Sorn made his season debut as Hopkins searched in vain for anyone who might bring some energy off a Husky bench that was uncharacteristically lifeless.
Unwittingly, backup Sam Ariyibi gave the Huskies a spark after casually throwing a pass that was intercepted at midcourt.
After the play, Brown verbally chastised Ariyibi and admonished the freshman forward for standing at midcourt while Wolverines guard Le’Tre Darthard (16 points) flushed an uncontested fast-break dunk that put Utah Valley up 54-39 with 7:49 left.
“The only thing that we can really provide for our coaches is hard work and play hard,” Brown said. “They’re not really upset if you make 100 shots or miss 100 shots. As long as we play hard and let the results be the results.”
Following a UW timeout, the Huskies went on an 8-2 run to pull to 56-47 with 5:02 left. However, that was as close as they would get the rest of the way.
Washington, which had its Pac-12 opener at Arizona rescheduled to Jan. 25 and forfeited its conference home opener against UCLA, starts league play at Washington State on Dec. 29.
“We may not have the best nonconference record, but I know that this team can persevere through a lot of stuff,” Brown said. “The players that we have are really good players. I’m excited and they’re excited. Even though we took this loss, you can see the potential is there. We just need to reach it.”
Hard to find any coach in UW history this bad. Maybe Ty Willingham - but even the king of comportment won at Stanford and ND. Hopkins has shit his pants from day one.
Washington vs Utah Valley Game Highlights
247 Sports https://247sports.com/college/washington/Article/Washington-Huskies-UW-Mens-Basketball-Terrell-Brown-Mike-Hopkins-its-like-a-slow-drip--178936678/
Mike Hopkins: "It's like a slow drip"
Senior guard Terrell Brown, Jr. and Head Coach Mike Hopkins spoke to the media Tuesday night after Washington lost to Utah Valley 68-52. Despite missing a starter (Jamal Bey) and three assistant coaches (Wyking Jones, Will Conroy, Quincy Pondexter), Hopkins said it was the slow start that put the Huskies behind the 8-ball and gave UVU the impetus they needed to push ahead.
Missing foul shots and three-pointers was akin to a 'slow drip', according to Hopkins. Adding to their problems was getting out-rebounded by 18 and poor offense bleeding over to the defensive side of the ball. Below is the full media session with Brown and Hopkins, as well as selected quotes.
Terrell Brown, Jr.
On the offense without Jamal Bey...
"It's definitely more challenging. We depend on Jamal's scoring, but the opportunity goes to the next person. It's kind of like next man up. It's how we prepare all the time. No matter what, we knew whatever he was going through, he was going through. But we always prepare ourselves for next man up, everybody can be able to produce."
On the offensive issues in general...
"They played better than us, to be honest. They played together, they moved the ball. They changed some defenses at one point. They went 1-3-1 and then to a man-to-man. It was different. They were pressing a little bit, then back off. Give credit to them guys. The beauty of basketball is that you learn from your losses and make your adjustment going into Pac-12 play."
How hard has it been on you to be the sole scorer at times?
"Nobody likes to lose. We're getting the stops that we need and sometimes the ball's just not rolling in for us right now. I know our group of guys are workers. They're going to figure it out. We missed 12 free throws and didn't make any threes. I think these dudes are upset in the locker room right now by the way we played, but I also know that them guys want to work hard. We want to be good. It is what it is; we've just got to be better."
On the state of the program heading into Pac-12 play...
"Throughout the season you learn that there's always work to be done. You can always get better. We didn't have the best non-conference, but I know that we can persevere through a lot of stuff. And the players that we have are really good players. I'm excited, they're excited, even though we took this loss. You can see the potential is there. We just need to reach it."
Mike Hopkins
How did the absences affect the performance?
"I don't think they affected it at all. We just didn't come out and play how hard we have to play. We started out the game just like 90 percent of the season; a little lackadaisical. They picked us apart, they scored 10 quick points. There's a time out, we started locking in, and then they don't score for 8-9 minutes. And then we're fighting back. So we have to have better starts. We have to play like it's our last game all the time, and it's just been in spurts."
To get better starts, does that mean change the starters?
"Could be. We're going to have to evaluate. The bottom line is, we've just got to have more of an energy boost. It's got to be more of a pop. We've had one game this year at South Dakota State where we came out really good at the beginning of the game. A lot of these other games we've gotten behind. We just haven't played with the pop that we need to."
On getting outrebounded 44-26...
"It impacted us. We tried to play a little bigger lineup without Jamal. We were able to play two guards, and at one point I even had Langston (Wilson) at the three just to try and have the length and athleticism in there, especially in the second half when the big kid was playing. And we got out-rebounded. It's a mindset, it's a willing-to mindset, and it's obviously an area we've got to get better at."
On Terrell Brown's ability to play through anything...
"He's one of the toughest guys I've ever been around. Mentally, physically. He's a really good leader. He's got the ability to score as well as make plays for others. When he feels like the other guys aren't as engaged like he is, he looks to put us on his back. The other guys, we've got to step up in a lot of different positions. A lot of guys got opportunities; they've got to play better. That's just the bottom line."
Is there a way to scheme things to make it easier for them right now?
"The threes we got tonight were pretty open. We're going to have to watch tape but out of the 11 I'd say 7 or 8 were probably really good looks. You've got to knock those down. Foul shots, it's not necessarily the number it's when you make 'em. If you're going down and they score and you come down and make 1 of 2, they score and you come down and it's 1-1 and you miss the front end, those add up. So it's not necessarily the runs; you've got to be able to score during those times. And it just felt like it was a slow drip. Add another one. And then we had to start to press and get the pressure. The one kid made a big three and we got him to shoot early and he hit the three in the corner. It all starts with how you come out and play at the beginning. And I felt like we just didn't have the pop that we needed."
Washington vs Utah Valley (Full Game Highlights)
UW Athletics: MBB Head Coach Mike Hopkins Postgame Press Conference (Utah Valley 12/21/21)