COMMENTARY
UConn impressed by scrappy UB
Jim Calhoun has never been one to mince words. So the Connecticut coach admitted he was taken by surprise when the University at Buffalo’s Rodney Pierce passed up the big shot at the end.
“Yeah, I was shocked,” Calhoun said after UConn survived a big scare Thursday night at Alumni Arena, 68-64. “We were going to double-team him.”
Frankly, Calhoun was scared to death. UConn came in unbeaten and ranked No. 2 in the country. They’re a big, strong, veteran team, a national championship contender, and they weren’t expected to have much difficulty with the Bulls.
But Pierce, a junior guard from Hutch-Tech, had the game of his life. He scored a career-high 28 points. Pierce made his first seven shots as the Bulls made it clear they intended to make a game of it against mighty UConn.
Pierce scored UB’s first eight points of the game to set the tone and its last four to give it a chance to tie. He nailed four free throws to draw the Bulls within two, 66-64. Then, after a turnover, UB got the ball back with 18 seconds left.
To no one’s surprise, UB gave the ball to Pierce. He stared down UConn’s Jerome Dyson about 25 feet from the basket, dribbled the ball between his legs twice, took Dyson into the lane, elevated toward the basket — and dropped a bad pass at the feet of Max Boudreau at the last second. Turnover. Ballgame.
“I was looking to penetrate and drive to the basket, and I saw Hasheem [Thabeet] step up,” Pierce said. “So I tried to make a bounce pass to Max for a layup. The play was one-on-one, so it was either get to the basket or get it to one of my teammates if they collapsed.”
It was the one bad decision in an otherwise glorious night for Pierce, who transferred to UB after a year at Rider. Calhoun was gushing about him afterwards. Pierce has become the go-to scorer for Reggie Witherspoon, averaging 18.8 points over the first six games.
The loss will hurt for awhile. UB (3-3) missed a chance to knock off one of college basketball’s powerhouses and steal some of the national spotlight — one day before the football team takes on unbeaten Ball State in the Mid-American Conference Championship Game on ESPN2. Surely, Turner Gill’s team will take inspiration from this night.
Calhoun rarely hesitates to rip into his team after a poor effort. But he spent more time praising UB coach Reggie Witherspoon for having his team emotionally ready and impeccably prepared. The Bulls played terrific defense. They battled UConn dead even on the boards. They had only seven turnovers.
“Clearly, it was a very difficult night for us,” Calhoun said. “This will be great for UB if they can build on it and not just use it as a high point. If they can play with this same kind of energy, they can be a pretty good basketball team, and be fun to watch, by the way.”
This is a crucial year for Witherspoon, who needs to demonstrate progress after a couple of down years. If Thursday is any indication, UB is on its way back to respectability. Its core group is more experienced. Pierce has emerged as a reliable scorer. The Bulls have the young big man they desperately needed in freshman Mitchell Watt, a 6-foot-9 forward with the talent to be a star in the MAC.
So it was a good night for UB basketball. The crowd seemed to enjoy it. Despite the loss, things are looking up again. If the Bulls play with this sort of intensity in the league, they’ll be a .500 team at the very least.
“I feel pretty proud,” Pierce said, “proud of my team and the way we all competed. We had a chance to win. We’re a pretty good team. This is a steppingstone for where we can go in the future.”
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