“We got our confidence back, but…,” Dan Hurley knows it’s a little early to say the UConn Huskies are the same championship-contending team they have been the last two years. Most of their old players are out, young freshmen have taken over the team, and except for Alex Karaban, a veteran touch is missing. Where the Huskies’ offense has more or less been on point, it’s the defense that needs to be worked on. But in a recent conversation, the head coach pointed out other areas of improvement.

The UConn Daily’s YouTube channel posted an audio interview with the coach yesterday, in which Hurletalks about the major struggles the Huskies have been facing. “For whatever reason, our struggles have been significant guarding a line, maybe beyond and on the perimeter, maybe where we’re pretty young at the guard and the wing spots,” Hurley says.

Hassan Diarra, UConn’s fifth-year guard, might fit the bill for ‘veteran’ but he doesn’t have nearly enough experience on the court. The other guards are freshman Ahmad Nowell, sophomore Solo Ball, and juniors Aidan Mahaney and Souleymane Diaby. “There’s some technique issues, there’s some awareness issues, there’s been some scheme issues and those play the biggest role. I do think we’ve been a little bit unlucky in terms of team shooting just way above the norm of the way they would on shots,” Hurley continues.

“That’s a much smaller part of it, the technique, the form, being able to digest scouting reports, understanding the scheme – those are the biggest issues,” the coach points out. In a year of mostly wins, UConn’s Maui fiasco stands out in stark contrast. Those three back-to-back losses to Memphis, Colorado, and Dayton in late November were unexpected for everyone, most of all Hurley and his squad.

But the team somehow made it through and has gone on to win six consecutive games even including two impressive Top 25 wins over Baylor and Gonzaga. The Huskies’ next match-up with DePaul on Wednesday has Hurley a little worried because of how highly he praised first-year coach Chris Holtmann, who has turned around Demons basketball.

But the Huskies head hog also knows what his school needs to win championships.

Dan Hurley believes in his team’s No. 2 offense but needs them to work on defending

A 7-4 team, 0-2 in the Big East might not usually worry Dan Hurley. It certainly might not have done so in the last two seasons, but this time it’s Holtmann and his completely new squad of 13 players. Hurley knows this system might not usually work but this is the new basketball era, fueled by NIL. And the UConn coach knows, “It’s not the same DePaul. It’s a DePaul team that’s going to be really hard to beat, especially at their place.”

Hurley then told NJ Advance Media’s Adam Zagoria, “We got our confidence back, but we know that if we don’t start defending at a much higher level, we’re not gonna be in contention for the championships. We’ve got the No. 2 offense in the country, but our defense has not been where it needs to be.”

Underestimating teams has never ended well in college hoops and the Huskies know it. They might not always be higher-ranked opponents – they will remember Maui for a long while – but overcoming the chinks in their armor will be important if they truly go for the championship again. And DePaul is the next obstacle.