# 2016–17 UConn Huskies men's basketball team

The 2016–17 UConn Huskies men's basketball team represented the University of Connecticut in the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Huskies were led by fifth-year head coach Kevin Ollie. The Huskies split their home games between the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut, and the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion on the UConn campus in Storrs, Connecticut. The Huskies were members of the American Athletic Conference. They finished the season 16–17, 9–9 in AAC play to finish in a tie for fifth place. They defeated South Florida and Houston to advance to the semifinals of the AAC tournament where they lost to Cincinnati.

## Previous season

The Huskies finished the 2015–16 season 25–11, 11–7 in AAC play to finish in sixth place. The Huskies won the AAC tournament as the fifth seed, defeating Cincinnati and Temple to reach the championship game. They defeated Memphis in the championship. The Huskies received a No. 9 seed in the NCAA tournament and defeated No. 8 seed Colorado in the First Round before losing to No. 1 seed Kansas in the Second Round.

## Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Notes |
| Phillip Nolan | 0 | PF | 6'10" | 237 | Senior | Milwaukee, WI | Graduated |
| Sterling Gibbs | 4 | PG | 6'2" | 185 | Graduate Student | Scotch Plains, NJ | Graduated |
| Daniel Hamilton | 5 | SF | 6'7" | 190 | Sophomore | Los Angeles, CA | Declared to 2016 NBA draft |
| Sam Cassell Jr. | 10 | PG | 6'4" | 192 | RS Junior | Baltimore, MD | Transferred to Iona |
| Omar Calhoun | 21 | SG | 6'5" | 205 | Senior | Brooklyn, NY | Graduated |
| Nnamdi Amilo | 23 | PF | 6'3" | 225 | Senior | New Fairfield, CT | Graduated |
| Shonn Miller | 32 | PF | 6'7" | 210 | Graduate Student | Euclid, OH | Graduated |

## Recruits

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Alterique Gilbert PG | Lithonia, GA | Miller Grove | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Jul 4, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 89 ||||||
| Juwan Durham PF | Tampa, FL | Tampa Preparatory | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Sep 1, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 88 ||||||
| Vance Jackson SF | Napa, CA | Prolific Prep | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | Oct 16, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 82 ||||||
| Mamadou Diarra PF | Queens, NY | Putnam Science Academy | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | May 22, 2015 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 82 ||||||
| Christian Vital SG | Queens Village, NY | St. Thomas More | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | Apr 29, 2016 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 77 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 8 Rivals: 9 247Sports: 6 ESPN: 9 ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2016 Connecticut Basketball Commitment List". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 29, 2016. "2016 Connecticut Basketball Recruiting Prospects". Scout.com. Retrieved April 29, 2016. "2016 Connecticut Recruits". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 29, 2016. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved April 29, 2016. "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 29, 2016. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| 10/30/2016* 1:00 pm, HuskyVision | No. 18 | New Haven | W 83–68 | | 15 – Jackson | 7 – Larrier | 5 – Gilbert | XL Center (5,826) Hartford, CT |
| 11/05/2016* 1:00 pm, HuskyVision | No. 18 | Southern Connecticut | W 94–65 | | 19 – Purvis | 6 – Adams | 6 – Gilbert | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (6,305) Storrs, CT |
| Regular season |||||||||
| 11/11/2016* 7:00 pm, SNY | No. 18 | Wagner | L 58–67 | 0–1 | 19 – Larrier | 7 – Larrier | 5 – Adams | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (9,523) Storrs, CT |
| 11/14/2016* 7:00 pm, SNY | | Northeastern | L 61–64 | 0–2 | 17 – Larrier | 7 – Brimah | 3 – Tied | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (7,573) Storrs, CT |
| 11/17/2016* 10:00 pm, SNY | | at Loyola Marymount | W 65–62 | 1–2 | 14 – Larrier | 10 – Brimah | 5 – Tied | Gersten Pavilion (3,421) Los Angeles, CA |
| 11/21/2016* 9:00 pm, ESPNU | | vs. Oklahoma State Maui Invitational quarterfinals | L 90–98 | 1–3 | 34 – Adams | 6 – Tied | 6 – Adams | Lahaina Civic Center (2,400) Maui, HI |
| 11/22/2016* 3:30 pm, ESPN2 | | vs. Chaminade Maui Invitational 2nd round consolation | W 93–82 | 2–3 | 25 – Adams | 9 – Adams | 11 – Adams | Lahaina Civic Center (2,400) Maui, HI |
| 11/23/2016* 4:30 pm, ESPN2 | | vs. No. 13 Oregon Maui Invitational 5th place game | L 69–79 | 2–4 | 27 – Adams | 5 – Brimah | 5 – Adams | Lahaina Civic Center (2,400) Maui, HI |
| 11/30/2016* 7:00 pm, SNY | | Boston University | W 51–49 | 3–4 | 13 – Vital | 7 – Facey | 6 – Purvis | XL Center (8,183) Hartford, CT |
| 12/05/2016* 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | | vs. Syracuse Tire Pro Classic/Rivalry | W 52–50 | 4–4 | 21 – Purvis | 13 – Facey | 7 – Adams | Madison Square Garden (15,347) New York, NY |
| 12/10/2016* 6:00 pm, BTN | | at Ohio State | L 60–64 | 4–5 | 19 – Adams | 6 – Tied | 3 – Tied | Value City Arena (12,313) Columbus, OH |
| 12/18/2016* 1:00 pm, SNY | | North Florida | W 80–59 | 5–5 | 20 – Facey | 9 – Facey | 10 – Adams | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (7,110) Storrs, CT |
| 12/23/2016* 2:30 pm, ESPN2 | | Auburn | L 67–70 $^{OT}$ | 5–6 | 20 – Purvis | 14 – Facey | 4 – Vital | XL Center (12,051) Hartford, CT |
| 12/28/2016 3:00 pm, ESPN2 | | Houston | L 46–62 | 5–7 (0–1) | 15 – Vital | 7 – Facey | 5 – Jackson | XL Center (11,538) Hartford, CT |
| 12/31/2016 2:00 pm, CBSSN | | at Tulsa | L 59–61 $^{OT}$ | 5–8 (0–2) | 18 – Adams | 9 – Brimah | 6 – Adams | Reynolds Center (4,525) Tulsa, OK |
| 01/05/2017 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | | at Memphis | L 61–70 | 5–9 (0–3) | 14 – Tied | 15 – Brimah | 8 – Adams | FedEx Forum (10,227) Memphis, TN |
| 01/08/2017 5:00 pm, CBSSN | | UCF | W 64–49 | 6–9 (1–3) | 17 – Purvis | 9 – Facey | 7 – Adams | XL Center (8,163) Hartford, CT |
| 01/11/2017 9:00 pm, CBSSN | | Temple | W 73–59 | 7–9 (2–3) | 23 – Facey | 10 – Facey | 12 – Adams | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (6,582) Storrs, CT |
| 01/14/2017* 12:00 pm, FOX | | at Georgetown Rivalry | L 69–72 | 7–10 | 22 – Adams | 6 – Facey | 9 – Adams | Verizon Center (12,164) Washington, D.C. |
| 01/19/2017 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | | at SMU | L 49–69 | 7–11 (2–4) | 17 – Jackson | 10 – Facey | 8 – Adams | Moody Coliseum (6,978) Dallas, TX |
| 01/22/2017 6:00 pm, CBSSN | | East Carolina | W 72–65 | 8–11 (3–4) | 19 – Adams | 10 – Facey | 5 – Adams | XL Center (5,676) Hartford, CT |
| 01/25/2017 7:00 pm, ESPNU | | at South Florida | W 81–60 | 9–11 (4–4) | 20 – Adams | 8 – Brimah | 12 – Adams | USF Sun Dome (3,238) Tampa, FL |
| 01/28/2017 8:00 pm, ESPNU | | Tulane | W 78–68 | 10–11 (5–4) | 20 – Facey | 12 – Facey | 6 – Adams | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (9,207) Storrs, CT |
| 02/04/2017 4:00 pm, ESPN2 | | at No. 14 Cincinnati | L 68–82 | 10–12 (5–5) | 20 – Purvis | 6 – Purvis | 5 – Adams | Fifth Third Arena (13,428) Cincinnati, OH |
| 02/08/2017 7:00 pm, CBSSN | | South Florida | W 97–51 | 11–12 (6–5) | 23 – Purvis | 8 – Brimah | 10 – Adams | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (6,114) Storrs, CT |
| 02/11/2017 6:00 pm, CBSSN | | at UCF | W 66–63 | 12–12 (7–5) | 18 – Purvis | 12 – Brimah | 7 – Adams | CFE Arena (5,215) Orlando, FL |
| 02/16/2017 9:00 pm, ESPN2 | | Memphis | W 65–62 | 13–12 (8–5) | 19 – Adams | 10 – Facey | 6 – Adams | XL Center (9,631) Hartford, CT |
| 02/19/2017 4:00 pm, ESPN | | at Temple | W 64–63 | 14–12 (9–5) | 18 – Purvis | 6 – Facey | 5 – Tied | Liacouras Center (8,702) Philadelphia, PA |
| 02/22/2017 9:00 pm, CBSSN | | at Houston | L 70–75 | 14–13 (9–6) | 18 – Adams | 11 – Facey | 5 – Adams | Hofheinz Pavilion (4,131) Houston, TX |
| 02/25/2017 12:00 pm, CBS | | No. 17 SMU | L 61–69 | 14–14 (9–7) | 15 – Facey | 11 – Brimah | 2 – 3 tied | XL Center (13,553) Hartford, CT |
| 03/01/2017 7:00 pm, ESPNU | | at East Carolina | L 62–66 | 14–15 (9–8) | 12 – 3 tied | 11 – Facey | 6 – Adams | Williams Arena (4,354) Greenville, NC |
| 03/05/2017 12:00 pm, CBS | | No. 18 Cincinnati | L 47–67 | 14–16 (9–9) | 15 – Purvis | 10 – Facey | 4 – Adams | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (9,331) Storrs, CT |
| American Athletic Conference tournament |||||||||
| 03/09/2017 8:00 pm, ESPNews | (6) | (11) South Florida First Round | W 77–66 | 15–16 | 30 – Purvis | 7 – Brimah | 4 – Adams | XL Center (4,874) Hartford, CT |
| 03/10/2017 9:00 pm, ESPNU | (6) | (3) Houston Quarterfinals | W 74–65 | 16–16 | 23 – Adams | 6 – Purvis | 5 – Adams | XL Center (7,365) Hartford, CT |
| 03/11/2017 5:00 pm, ESPN2 | (6) | (2) No. 15 Cincinnati Semifinals | L 71–81 | 16–17 | 20 – Adams | 9 – Vital | 3 – Adams | XL Center (8,117) Hartford, CT |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. Source: |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | Final |
| AP | 18 | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Not released |
| Coaches' | 16 | RV | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |