Daniel Hamilton enjoyed his official visit to UConn so much it gave him a vision for the future.
“I can see myself at UConn,” he told SNY.tv following the visit.
“Me and Coach [Kevin] Ollie got along real well. I’ve known him since before he was the coach at UConn.”
Hamilton is a 6-foot-6 shooting guard from Los Angeles St. John Bosco and the younger brother of Jordan Hamilton, who plays for the Denver Nuggets, and Isaac Hamilton, who plays at UTEP.
Ranked No. 28 in the Rivals 150 for the Class of 2014, Hamilton holds offers from UTEP, UConn, USC, UCLA, Arizona, Colorado, UNLV, San Diego State, Washington and Arizona State.
He has no other visits planned at the moment, but UConn is right up there for now.
“It went well,” he said. “I could see myself there.”
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Shabazz Napier , Ryan Boatright and DeAndre Daniels are all returning to UConn and that bodes well for the Huskies’ chances at a postseason run in 2014.
UConn was banned from the postseason this year because of sub-standard APR scores but can now look to making it back after settling into the American Athletic Conference that will also feature defending NCAA champion Louisville, Memphis, Temple, Cincinnati, SMU and Rutgers, among others.
“We think we have a great team for next season,” Napier said, “and we’re excited about playing for a conference championship and in the NCAA Tournament.”
Napier was not projected to go drafted and scouts thought he should return to school. His decision follows those of Louisville guard Russ Smith and Creighton forward Doug McDermott on Thursday. To read more of this story, click here
NEW YORK — Kentan Facey is excited about going to UConn next season, and he hopes guards Shabazz Napier and Ryan Boatright stick around for a potential deep run in the NCAA Tournament.
“As far as Boat and Napier is concerned, I think they have a lot of experience,” the 6-foot-8 Facey told SNY.tv last week at the Jordan Brand Regional Game, where he went for a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds as White beat Black, 114-102. “They’ll probably be one of the best backcourts that we’ll have for the season. And for the new conference that we’re going in [the American Athletic Conference], they definitely will bring a lot of experience towards that.”
Facey also believes future UConn teammate Terrence Samuel – who had eight points and four boards in the win — would benefit from playing with Napier and Boatright.
“They pretty much are bigger guards, so he’ll definitely learn the style of play through them, practicing with them every day and stuff like that,” said Facey, who helped lead Long Island Lutheran to the New York State Federation AA championship game, where they lost to Christ the King. To read more of this story, click here
UConn made the transfer of N.C. State guard Rodney Purvis official on Friday.
The former McDonald’s All-American who played 35 games as a freshman for the Wolfpack uring the 2012-13 season has signed a financial aid agreement to complete his transfer to UConn.
Purvis, a 6-3, 195-pound guard from Raleigh, N.C., will have to sit out the 2013-14 season as per NCAA transfer rules, although he will be able to practice with the Huskies. He will have three years of eligibility remaining, starting in 2014-15.
“Rodney is a great athlete, but first and foremost a great person,” UConn head coach Kevin Ollie said. “We’re very excited that he will be a part of our program.”
Purvis played in all 35 games for the 24-11 Wolfpack last season, starting 23 and averaging 25.5 minutes per game. He averaged 8.3 points, 2.4 rebounds, shot 44.2 percent overall and 38.5 percent from three-point range. He played 32 minutes and scored seven points in N.C. State’s 69-65 victory over UConn in the Jimmy V Classic last December in Madison Square Garden. To read more of this story, click here
Former N.C. State guard Rodney Purvis is headed to UConn, as had been previously reported.
“I really trust coach [Kevin] Ollie,” Purvis, who averaged 8.3 points and 2.4 rebounds, told the Raleigh News & Observer. “They have a great tradition of producing NBA guards and that’s where I want to be someday.”
The 6-foot-3 Purvis must sit a year, but will slot in beginning in 2014-15 after Shabazz Napier is gone and Ryan Boatright could be.
Purvis is a McDonald’s All-American who started 23 games and averaged 25.5 minutes per game last year at N.C. State.
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By BRENDAN McGAIR
Special to ZAGSBLOG
STORRS, Conn. – Nothing like sticking knife in your opponent’s back on the way out the door.
Taking the floor one final time as a Big East men’s basketball participant, Connecticut authored an emotional and appropriate final chapter Saturday against a Providence squad that was starting to gain steam in the NCAA Tournament conversation. Instead, the Huskies turned out the lights in a thrilling 63-59 overtime verdict at Gampel Pavillion that left the Friars (17-13 overall, 9-9 in Big East play) with some serious heavy lifting to do at next week’s Big East Tournament. To read more of this story, click here
By JOHN F. SILVER
HARTFORD, Conn. — It’s a rivalry that is 33 years old and in the fast moving world of college sports, that’s about as old as rivals get.
Syracuse and UConn are two of the marquee programs in the Big East. For ages, Jim Boeheim matched up with Jim Calhoun with their all-time wins record at times close enough where a week could change who was on top of the other.
The two schools became the epitome of Big East basketball.
The schools have played 88 times overall and 70 times as conference mates. In that time, UConn has won three national titles and been to four Final Fours while the Orange have three Final Fours to their credit and won the championship behind Carmelo Anthony in 2003.
That rivalry came to an end, at least for the time being on Wednesday, as UConn defeated No. 6 Syracuse for the first time in three tries in a 66-58 win.
The game was an ESPN featured game during rivalry week taking its rightful place before Duke-North Carolina.
Will the game ever be played again? To read more of this story, click here
UConn sophomore guard Ryan Boatright can’t stand watching ESPN nowadays.
The Huskies are banned from postseason play and so Boatright gets annoyed every time he sees an NCAA Tournament commercial on the Worldwide Leader.
“I see the daggun’ ‘Journey to the Tourney commercial every other commercial,” Boatright told UConn reporters, as quoted by the New Haven Register from the above video. “I get irritated, so I turn the TV off.”
There will be no NCAA Tournament, no NIT Tournament and no Big East Tournament for the Huskies, who will take 15-5 mark, 5-3 in the Big East into tonight’s tilt with St. John’s at Madison Square Garden. To read more of this story, click here
By JOHN F. SILVER
HARTFORD, Conn. – The press row seats aren’t occupied by many NBA scouts anymore.
There seems to be little interest in the University of Connecticut men’s
basketball team these days. The first reason is the lack of postseason eligibility, the second is not one surefire NBA pick that makes scouts and others take notice.
It wasn’t like that last year, when NBA scouts flocked to XL Center and Gampel Pavilion like they were season ticket holders.
That’s not the only difference between last year’s UConn team that began the season ranked in the top 5 and had top 5 talent before meandering through a 20-14 season and an early NCAA tournament exit.
Read the full story here.
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