Last year, UConn finished 9-9 in Big East play and won the national title. This year, they have lost nine of their past 14 games and are well on their way to somewhere in the neighborhood of the same conference record. So the question is worth asking: Can UConn 2012 make a UConn 2011-like run?
The simple answer is yes. Theoretically, UConn is not that different a team from last year. Substitute Ryan Boatright for Kemba Walker give Andre Drummond some of the minutes used Tyler Olander and last season's frontcourt rotation, and you have a talented squad that is tournament tested.
On the other hand, this UConn team is constantly stagnant on offense, there appears to be a leadership void and it lacks the inside scoring, perimeter defense and depth of ball handlers to make a run. Of course, you could have said the same thing about this team last February. So how can things change? Let's go deeper, starting with last season's success.
To see the rest of Doug Gottlieb's notes on UConn and get all of ESPN Insider's March Madness coverage, become an ESPN Insider today.
ABOUT THIS BLOG
College Basketball Experts
Fran Fraschilla is an analyst for ESPN and was previously the head coach at New Mexico, St. John's and Manhattan.
Joe Lunardi is the resident bracketologist for ESPN.
Seth Greenberg is an analyst for ESPN and was previously the head coach at Virginia Tech, South Florida and Long Beach State.
