UConn Fast Break

Dan Hurley and the UConn Huskies did it. They repeated as national champs. Once the 2023-2024 Huskies got fully healthy, it was clear they were the best team in the country. But the best team in the country doesn’t always win in March or April. This group took care of business with the Big East regular-season championship, tournament championship, and a dominant run through the NCAA once again. In...

It’s been said all year: UConn can win any kind of game and anyone on the team is capable of going off for 20 points. On Saturday night, it was Stephon Castle who tied a career-high with 21 while all five Husky starters scored in double-digits as Dan Hurley’s squad bested Alabama to advance to the national championship game for the second year in a row. The accolades, the accomplishments, and the...

Illinois and its fans probably thought they were in good shape going into halftime on Saturday night. The game had been tied right before the break and they were giving the No. 1 team in the country as good a fight as anyone had thus far in the NCAA Tournament. They lost by 25. They tied the game with 1:49 left in the 1st half — nine minutes off the clock later, they were down by 30. In this episo...

This UConn team is extremely good. It has one of the most dominant centers in the country, two experienced, All-American-caliber guards, a five-star freshman who can lock up the nation’s top scorers, and they round out their starting five with a 50-40-90 forward who started for last year’s national champions. It’s no wonder they blew past Stetson and Northwestern on their way to the Sweet 16. In t...

We had a lot of fun at the Big East Tournament, didn’t we folks? The UConn Huskies sure did, winning all three of their games comfortably despite some slow starts and other minor challenges along the way. Their prize? The top overall seed and their first four games will be in ideal locations, though they can expect to see some decently challenging opponents. In this episode of the podcast, Aman, D...

These UConn Huskies appear to be unflappable. If it wasn’t for a few injuries or an insane shooting night from Creighton in Omaha, it’s wild to think that a regular season with 28 wins could have gone even better. After 31 games, UConn won all but three, setting multiple program and league records along the way. Four players were honored on the Big East all-league teams and more honors are likely...

In this week’s Fast Break, the crew ponders the meaning of Sunday’s historic home finale, where we saw Jonathan XIV’s final public appearance while the basketball team clinched the program’s first Big East title since 2006. We also covered the emergence of Stephon Castle and Donovan Clingan as well as UConn’s potential path through the Big East tournament bracket, ending with a discussion on the u...

A week ago, UConn men’s basketball took its first loss of 2024. The Huskies followed that with a big win over Villanova at Gampel. In their final home game on Sunday against Seton Hall, they have a chance to clinch at least a share of the Big East regular-season title before a tough two-game road trip to close out the season. This podcast episode covers all that plus UConn players’ potential for B...

The UConn Huskies’ immense success is starting to feel like a burden. Will fans survive if nothing short of a championship will do? This podcast was recorded after the Marquette game and before the Creighton game. We didn’t break down the Creighton matchup but did discuss the final stretch of the season and the fact that UConn could lose a game or two (it looks like that prophecy already came true...

We had some technical difficulties in getting this episode out after recording, so our apologies. It doesn’t affect much but we intended for this to go out before the Georgetown game. In this episode, the crew discusses UConn’s recent stretch of four games in nine days, the fact that the team is an absolute wagon, and looks ahead to the home stretch of the regular season — the final six games shou...

In an episode of the podcast that went a little off the rails, our crew discusses the Huskies reaching the No. 1 ranking, the wins over Creighton and Villanova, and a wide range of additional items including Big East road destinations, Marquette’s disappointing start, and whether UConn’s players are appreciated enough. Enjoy! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other s...

The UConn Huskies are a well-equipped group. They’re talented, deep, experienced, well-coached, and sitting (tied for) first in the Big East standings through six games. Our latest podcast covers the resolve of this team to keep up its winning ways. This stretch without Donovan Clingan has become an opportunity for other guys to step up and for the coaches to develop new wrinkles in the on-court s...

Enjoy! Photo: Ian Bethune This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theuconnfastbreak.substack.com

On the latest episode of the podcast, our crew runs four deep to break down the Kansas game, the Lawrence experience, and the Huskies’ dismantling of North Carolina at Madison Square Garden. Our conclusion: this team is really, really good. We expressed a deep appreciation for Cam Spencer, the hero of the UNC game and a spirit animal for the most rabid parts of the fanbase, and Tristen Newton, who...

UConn men’s basketball has dominated the early schedule and even set an NCAA record along the way while also winning the Empire Classic at MSG by beating Indiana and Texas, comfortably. So UConn is good, great even. But… Stephon Castle is hurt. Donovan Clingan was hurt. The Huskies are still dependent on a lot of youngsters and they’ve yet to be tested in any serious way this season. They led for...

The UConn Huskies are 3-0 as they get ready to take on Indiana and possibly No. 19 Texas at Madison Square Garden this Sunday and Monday. But not everything is perfect in Storrs. Stephon Castle sat out the MVSU game with a knee injury suffered during the Stonehill game but not diagnosed until a day or two later, according to head coach Dan Hurley. Without Castle, the Huskies looked sluggish even i...

Aman, Patrick, and Madigan hopped on the podcast to discuss the UConn men’s basketball season opener and updates on the Huskies in the NBA. In an expansive conversation, we cover Alex Karaban’s career-high performance, what we saw from the two new starters, including the debut of a five-star recruit, and the emergence of Samson Johnson. We also went through a few interesting possibilities for the...

Basketball season is less than a week away! On the latest episode of the podcast, Aman and Patrick discuss how the competition is shaping up around the Big East. The Huskies were picked to finish third in the league, behind Marquette and Creighton, and will have a lot to prove after losing so many stars from last year’s squad, while also facing new head coaches at St. John’s and Georgetown that sh...

In this episode, Aman and Patrick start with a breakdown of the UConn men’s basketball schedule. With practice starting, First Night on the horizon, a recent visit from a No. 1 recruit, and the season opener a month away, we’ve got a lot to talk about! In addition to highlighting visit-worthy road games and primetime contests, we also review the non-con slate, which features road games against per...

The podcast crew had the pleasure of chatting with Aaron Jones, running back on the Green Bay Packers and cousin of UConn guard Tristen Newton. While Jones has made a career in football, he actually played some hoops for UTEP and clearly follows the game closely. The interview will be available to everyone through the end of this weekend but then it’ll go into the archive for subscribers only. Ple...

The Fast Break crew is proud to share that we had a lovely interview with Green Bay Packers running back Aaron Jones, cousin of UConn men’s basketball’s Tristen Newton. The full conversation will be available to our premium subscribers, but we have a clip to share here and a few others that went out on our social media . In this soundbite, Jones discusses what he’s seen of Dan Hurley as a head coa...

Our football podcast at Husky Football Forum just dropped, but we had to get another quick segment out after Jim Mora named Maine transfer Joseph Fagnano the starting QB. To get the first hour of our football season preview, listen here: For more info on this season of Husky football, be sure to check out the Husky Football Forum, our newsletter featuring original reporting, photos, and video, as...

This podcast was recorded in advance of the Huskies’ European trip, as we got a chance to learn a bit about how things are shaping up for next year’s roster from the team’s public appearance the weekend before they left. In this episode, Aman and Patrick rapped on the state of the roster and how the Huskies will replace all of the production and leadership that’s now in the NBA . The stats coming...

We had the pleasure of interviewing someone who has a wealth of knowledge about UConn’s athletic history, because he’s studied it! Clayton Trutor is a history professor and author of two sports books:  Loserville: How Atlanta Remade Professional Sports  (2022) and Boston Ball: Jim Calhoun, Rick Pitino, Gary Williams, and College Basketball’s Forgotten Cradle of Coaches  (2023). We briefly discusse...

It was a busy, exciting night for UConn fans as the NBA Draft was held last week in Brooklyn. With Jordan Hawkins on the Pelicans, Andre Jackson on the Bucks, and Adama Sanogo in Chicago, we discussed each of those players’ situations and how they may fit on their respective rosters. Aman also made a bunch of very bad player comps. It’s time to get creative, folks. Photo: NBA.com This is a public...