UConn men in reloading mode as they begin quest for three-peat

Nov. 2—STORRS — UConn is facing a familiar challenge this season.

The Huskies are in reloading mode after losing four starters from one of the most dominant men’s team in college basketball history.

Been there, done that before and still won a national championship

That’s why coach Dan Hurley is confident the Huskies will be in the running for a historic third straight national championship, something that hasn’t been done since UCLA won seven in a row from 1967-73, despite losing four of their top five scorers and rebounders.

The Huskies reloaded after the departure of Jordan Hawkins, Adama Sanogo, Andre Jackson Jr., Joey Calcaterra and Nahiem Alleyne from the 2022-23 national championship team and still cut down the nets last April for a second straight season.

“We lost five critical players and we had one of the best teams in the last 30 years,” Hurley said. “So we’re not spooked by everything that we lost because we lost so much the year before. We’ve got young players that are going to be in some critical roles that are going to have to grow up quickly.”

Last season’s standouts Tristen Newton, Donovan Clingan, Stephon Castle and Cam Spencer moved on to the NBA.

This season’s promising newcomers include transfers Aidan Mahaney and Tarris Reed Jr., as well as a talented freshman class headlined by McDonald’s All-American Liam McNeeley.

UConn will begin the 2024-25 season Wednesday as the preseason No. 3 team in the country.

“We’ve got some really exciting pieces potentially,” Hurley said. “If we get the best out of everyone, what it could look like is in line with being a championship-contending program. But we gotta hit. We gotta hit on Aidan. We gotta hit on Tarris. We’re banking on the sophomores to come through for us. We need Alex to play like an All-American. We need Liam to play like Steph for us.

“We’re banking on that we’re going to be able to get everyone where we’ve gotten those past teams.”

Five things to watch as UConn is about to begin its epic quest for a…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/uconn-men-reloading-mode-begin-003700964.html

Author : The Day, New London, Conn.

Publish date : 2024-11-03 00:37:00

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