UConn Sophomores About To 'Take Off Like Rocket Ships', Dan Hurley Says
One of the recurring themes of the UConn Huskies preseason period has been the development of its mega-talented sophomore class.
Solo Ball, Jayden Ross, and Jaylin Stewart will all play prominent roles in the Huskies’ march toward a three-peat this season. And don’t forget big man Youssouf Singare, who will be called upon for quality minutes if either Samson Johnson or Tarris Reed Jr. goes down with an injury.
UConn head coach Dan Hurley has been talking about Ball’s improvement for weeks, and the sophomore shooting guard looked like UConn’s best two-way player during its exhibition victory over Rhode Island.
Jayden Ross has been equally as impressive, albeit behind closed doors. Hurley has revealed that Ross has looked like UConn’s best player (not to mention a lottery pick) during certain stretches of practices, including during a recent closed scrimmage.
Then there’s Stewart, who offers the kind of defensive versatility and open court dominance with his physicality that will be paramount against the most talented and athletic teams that UConn faces this season.
It feels like UConn’s sophomores are on the verge of a collective breakout, and Hurley’s comments in the media have only validated that feeling.
Hurley appeared on The Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday and discussed his super sophomores.
“We got some sophomores that are about to take off here,” Hurley told McAfee.
“Some kids that we convinced to stay here. They didn’t play as much as they wanted to as freshmen, but they saw some openings in our program through the NBA draft … so we got some sophomores that are about to take off like rocket ships.”
“Solo Ball, Jayden Ross, and Jaylin Stewart. We got three sophomores (who are) going to make a big jump.”
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Colin Keane is a contributing journalist for "UConn Huskies On SI." Born in Illinois, Colin grew up in Massachusetts as the third of four brothers. For his high school education, Colin attended St. Mark's School (Southborough, MA), where he played basketball and soccer and served as student body president. He went on to receive a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Villanova University. Colin currently resides in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding "UConn Huskies On SI," please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org