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Big turnarounds in home-and-home conference matchups are not rare. We saw one last night as the Huskies avenged a 75-71 loss to Houston on New Year's Eve with an 80-43 shellacking of the Cougars at Gampel. That's a 41-point turnaround. Kevin Ollie said afterwards that revenge wasn't the issue. They just wanted to prove they were better.
A similar turnaround occurred back in 1976. UConn-New Hampshire was a long, but one-sided rivalry. After losing the first 10 games early in the 20th century, UConn lost 2 in a row only once - in 1932 and 1933 - and went 89-15 the rest of the way till the series ended.
But on Feb 21, 1976, Dee Rowe's UConn squad went up to Durham and absorbed an 85-82 overtime upset loss. The late Gerry Friel, the Wildcats jubilant coach, boldly stated after the game that "when New Hampshire beats UConn, it isn't an upset." The Huskies begged to differ only 5 days later. On Feb 26, they destroyed UNH 99-54 in a game that looked a lot like last night's game. That was a 48-point turnaround. That UConn team was Rowe's first and only NCAA tournament team, finishing 19-10 and making a then rare appearance in the Sweet 16 where they lost to eventual Final Four participant Rutgers .
Many years later, on Jan 2, 1990, the St. John's Redmen demolished the Huskies 93-62 at Alumni Hall in Queens on January 2nd. After that embarrassing loss, which dropped the Huskies to 0-2 in the Big East, Nadav Henefeld famously told Jim Calhoun "It wasn't them, Coach. It was us." He was right.
The next time around, UConn proved they were better. 24 years ago this week, on January 27, 1990, UConn's Dream Team opened Gampel Pavilion with a 72-58 win over St. John's. That's a 45-point turnaround.
And, as every UConn fan knows, those 1990 Huskies went on to be Calhoun's first Big East champ, NCAA tournament team and national contender, dropping a heartbreaking overtime loss to Duke in the Elite Eight.
Will the 2014 UConn Huskies ride the wave to a big finish? Will Kevin Ollie take these guys to his first Sweet 16, Elite Eight, or beyond? Who knows? But the signs are promising. We just have to hope that those who do know history, are destined to repeat it.
A similar turnaround occurred back in 1976. UConn-New Hampshire was a long, but one-sided rivalry. After losing the first 10 games early in the 20th century, UConn lost 2 in a row only once - in 1932 and 1933 - and went 89-15 the rest of the way till the series ended.
But on Feb 21, 1976, Dee Rowe's UConn squad went up to Durham and absorbed an 85-82 overtime upset loss. The late Gerry Friel, the Wildcats jubilant coach, boldly stated after the game that "when New Hampshire beats UConn, it isn't an upset." The Huskies begged to differ only 5 days later. On Feb 26, they destroyed UNH 99-54 in a game that looked a lot like last night's game. That was a 48-point turnaround. That UConn team was Rowe's first and only NCAA tournament team, finishing 19-10 and making a then rare appearance in the Sweet 16 where they lost to eventual Final Four participant Rutgers .
Many years later, on Jan 2, 1990, the St. John's Redmen demolished the Huskies 93-62 at Alumni Hall in Queens on January 2nd. After that embarrassing loss, which dropped the Huskies to 0-2 in the Big East, Nadav Henefeld famously told Jim Calhoun "It wasn't them, Coach. It was us." He was right.
The next time around, UConn proved they were better. 24 years ago this week, on January 27, 1990, UConn's Dream Team opened Gampel Pavilion with a 72-58 win over St. John's. That's a 45-point turnaround.
And, as every UConn fan knows, those 1990 Huskies went on to be Calhoun's first Big East champ, NCAA tournament team and national contender, dropping a heartbreaking overtime loss to Duke in the Elite Eight.
Will the 2014 UConn Huskies ride the wave to a big finish? Will Kevin Ollie take these guys to his first Sweet 16, Elite Eight, or beyond? Who knows? But the signs are promising. We just have to hope that those who do know history, are destined to repeat it.