“He’s gotten stronger”: UConn HC Dan Hurley heaps praise for 6’3’’ guard Solo Ball’s playing quality

Solo Ball has been an integral part of Dan Hurley's UConn Huskies roster in his two seasons at the program. In his freshman year, he helped the team win the NCAA championship, and last season, the 6-foot-3 guard was named to the second-team All-Big East.

His performances have impressed the head coach, who discussed Ball's qualities in a YouTube video uploaded by Storrs Central TV on Sunday. The video featured an excerpt from Hurley's press conference on Saturday, in which he discussed the new additions to his roster.

"Solo, I would just say, you know ... the confidence, you know, what he was able to do. I mean, he did not know if he was a guy that was careening towards shooting like mid-40s to even higher from 3 at incredibly high volume, and it's not easy to make threes in a Jordan Hawkins, you know, rip level of getting it off quick and making hard 3s."

He continued to talk about Solo Ball's shooting slump and rim finishing.

"So, I mean, the residual confidence carryover of being an All-Big East player or a guy that's proven. ... I don't think he ended the year shooting great in the last couple games, but, I mean, his shooting last year ... he's as good a shooter as there is returning to college." Dan Hurley continued, "He's gotten stronger. We've emphasized, you know, just like rim finishing and handling and passing and defense, you know, like, he's going to be better in all those ways last year and then bring even improved shooting with him back, more range, more dangerous."

Last season, Solo Ball averaged 14.4 points on 43.9% shooting, including 41.4% from behind the arc. He also averaged 3.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 31.7 minutes per game in 35 games, improving his game massively from his freshman season.

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Solo Ball, Alex Karaban and more return to Dan Hurley's UConn Huskies

After getting knocked out in the second round of the NCAA Tournament by the eventual champions, Florida Gators, Dan Hurley's UConn will receive a significant boost with Alex Karaban, Solo Ball, Tarris Reed, Jaylin Stewart, Jayden Ross and Souleymane Diaby returning to play for the Huskies.

From the Class of 2025, Dan Hurley signed four-star shooting guard Braylon Mullins and center Eric Reibe, and three-star shooting guard Jacob Ross and Jacob Furphy.

They also acquired Silas Demary from the Georgia Bulldogs and Malachi Smith from the Dayton Flyers.

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Edited by Victor R. Lopez M.