UConn men’s basketball forward Adama Sanogo out at least three weeks with abdominal strain
UConn men’s basketball sophomore forward Adam Sanogo is out a minimum of three weeks with an abdominal strain suffered in Tuesday’s victory over Maryland-Eastern Shore.
“Right now, it’s looking like a couple of weeks to possibly longer. Potential longer than that, or maybe longer than even that. We just don’t really know the extent,” coach Dan Hurley said.
“Three weeks is probably the absolute minimum.”
Hurley revealed that Sanogo had an MRI that showed what could be a tear, though it’s not decisive yet. According to Hurley, Sanogo wanted to participate in practice on Thursday but was in a lot of pain.
The No. 17 Huskies are going to be without two of their top three scorers against Grambling State on Saturday and for the immediate future. Senior guard Tyrese Martin is out two to four weeks with slight sprain and an avulsion fracture in his left wrist. Sanogo, who is the Huskies’ second-leading scorer, averages 15.6 points per game, and Martin, the third-leading scorer, averages 12.9.
“Next man up,” Hurley said. “We’ve got to keep going. Every team goes through these things through the course of the season.”
For UConn, that means increased opportunities on both ends of the court for a multitude of young players.
“We’re going to have to reinvent ourselves. You’re talking about a ton of production there,” Hurley said.
Look for freshman guard Jordan Hawkins to take on a secondary role in the offense behind leading scorer R.J Cole, who averages 16.1 points per game. Hawkins is considered a sharpshooter, with an impressive resume coming into the season including being a consensus top-50 recruit and 2020-21 Gatorade Maryland Player of the Year. He averages 7.2 points per game.
Hawkins has shown flashes of his scoring prowess, including scoring a career-high 16 points against Auburn in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in the Bahamas, but has had lapses on the defensive end. Hawkins also hasn’t been as consistent as needed on the offensive end, scoring just five points against UMES on 2-for-5 shooting.
Hurley anticipates giving more minutes to freshmen Rahsool Diggins and Samson Johnson, who haven’t seen much game time. Both are consensus top-50 recruits. Diggins was MaxPreps Pennsylvania High School Player of the Year and is a combo guard who can run an offense or score with a quick first step. He provides another ball-handler to a team that lacks them.
Samson is a stretch-four with a quick burst for a big man and can help UConn on the interior defensively. His tall, lanky frame will allow him to contest shots and rack up blocks. He will try to defensively emulate Sanogo, whose tough presence will be missed in the paint.
“I’m excited to see Samson,” said Hurley. “In some way, I’m afraid because I know he is going to make a ton of mistakes.”
For UConn, the key to more minutes for the younger guys is limiting mistakes.
“Mistake players bury you,” said Hurley.
Hurley also expects more out of his veterans than he saw against UMES. He’s looking toward redshirt junior forward Akok Akok and graduate forward Tyler Polley to provide more on both ends of the court. Polley had a multitude of good looks against UMES that didn’t go down, but if UConn wants to succeed missing two of their best scorers, Polley needs to raise his efficiency. He is shooting just 38% from the field while averaging 10.1 points per game.
Akok has completely disappeared at times this season. In the Battle 4 Atlantis, he failed to score a single point in three games. Against a short UMES team, he took only one shot and made no real impact on the court, corralling just one rebound. Since the Michigan State game, Akok has seen his minutes dwindle from 17-18 a game to a little less than five minutes in subsequent games.
“You’ve got to get in the game and make something happen,” said Hurley on Akok’s lack of presence. ”It’s an important time for him. It’s an opportunity here with Adama going down to get more minutes and really get himself going.”
Here’s everything else you need to know about the matchup:
The basics
No. 17 UConn vs. Grambling State
Time: 4 p.m., Saturday
Place: Gampel Pavilion
Series: First meeting
TV: FS2
Live stream: Fox sports website.
Radio: UConn Sports Network (Mike Crispino, Wayne Norman). 97.9-ESPN Hartford. WILI-1400-AM (Willimantic). WATR-1320-AM (Waterbury). WAVZ-1300-AM (New Haven). WGCH-1490-AM (Greenwich).
Grambling State (3-5) probable starters, sixth man
Danya Kingsby, G, 6-1, Gr.; Cameron Christian, G, 6-6, RJr.; AJ Taylor, F, 6-8, Jr.; Tra’ Michael Moton, G, 6-1, So.; Prince Moss, G, 6-7, Sr.; Malik Lamin, F, 6-11, RFr.
No. 17 UConn (7-1) probable starters, sixth man
R.J. Cole, G, 6-1, GS; Isaiah Whaley, F, 6-9, GS; Jordan Hawkins, G, 6-5, Fr. ; Akok Akok, F, 6-9, RJr.; Andre Jackson, G/F, 6-6, So.; Jalen Gaffney, G, 6-3, Jr.
The matchup
UConn’s offense: Hawkins is about to see a sharp uptick in shot attempts. Look for him to be the secondary option offensively to Cole with Martin and Sanogo out.
UConn’s defense: The Huskies defense has slipped in recent games. On Tuesday, UConn allowed mid-major Maryland-Eastern Shore to shoot 24-for-51. Look for the Huskies to focus defensively, as that has been Hurley’s focus in practice.
Grambling State offense: Kingsby leads the Tigers in scoring with 12.1 points per game. In their last game against Jarvis Christian, he shot 2-for-8 with just four points.
Grambling State defense: Opponents shoot about 23 3s per game against the Tigers at a 34.8% clip. Look for the Huskies to take a lot of 3s on Saturday.
UConn’s key: Get back on track defensively.
Player to watch: Hawkins. With Sanogo and Martin out, it will be important to see how the freshman handles an expanded offensive role.
About Grambling State coach: Donte Jackson enters his third season at the helm at Grambling State University. In his first season, he guided the Tigers to their first SWAC regular-season championship in nearly 30 years.
Grambling State’s mascot: The Tigers.
Famous alumni: Willis Reed, Naismith Hall of Famer and voted one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history; Super Bowl XXII MVP Doug Williams.
