Dom Amore: Hassan Diarra soldiers through pain, puts UConn men back in attack mode

There have been times one could see him wince, or catch him limping.

Those times have been fleeting, and so have Hassan Diarras chances to rest that aching knee.The General doesnt let his pain show, not if he can help it.It gives us lot of motivation, Solo Ball said.

To see some games he was playing on one leg, limping, and still getting us passes, still getting us shots.

Without Hass, it would be a lot harder to be playing these games.Diarra is dealing with tendinitis, playing with a band on his right knee.

Its something that is not going away, not as long as he is pounding his lower joints on the hardwood floor.

But this is February, the UConn men are fighting for their postseason lives and Diarra, in his fifth and final season of college ball, is indispensable at point guard.

Playing, winning, is exacting its toll in the form of pain.Dom Amore: Geno Auriemma knew at first glance; Diana Taurasi had it allHe sets the tone, Tarris Reed Jr.

said.

Just watching him go out there, play on one leg, limping, playing hard still, still making steals.

Its inspiring.

When your point guard is doing that, youve got to follow behind and it ultimately makes us tougher.Of the Huskies other options at point guard, transfer Aidan Mahaney has proven to be more an off-the-ball backcourt player and freshman Ahmad Nowell, who has also been dealing with injuries, is just now earning the trust of the coaches.

So even if he is not 100 percent, Diarras floor generalship is vital, and for the last few weeks the staff has cut down his practice time to save his court minutes for games.

Thats a lesser-of-evils solution, though, sacrificing sharpness in hopes of having more life in his legs.But things are gradually working themselves out as March Madness approaches.

Diarra practiced a little more this week, and Nowell gave the Huskies six solid, plus-six minutes in the first half against Georgetown Wednesday.

That allowed Diarra to play the entire second half, a total of 31 minutes, with 14 points and seven assists, he steadied UConns 93-79 victory at the XL Center.(The knee) is definitely better, Diarra said.

It has its days, but Im progressing each and every day.

Just got to keep maintaining it, keep working on it, getting it stronger.

...

I am practicing more, a little bit, going into each and every game, making sure Im doing my treatment.Diarra has managed to answer the bell for all 28 games, averaging nearly 28 minutes per, 8.3 points, 164 assists to 61 turnovers, 44 steals.

Hurleys attempts to rest him, sometimes going positionless, have had spotty results, especially as the Huskies face a steadier diet of ball pressure after Marquette and St.

Johns prompted 67 turnovers in three games.But the Huskies, following Diarras example, have pressed on themselves.

At 19-9, 11-6 in the Big East, they are positioned for a first-round bye in the conference tournament and an NCAA Tournament berth, baseline achievements for the back-to-back national champs, for sure, but nothing that should be taken for granted anywhere.

In fact, Georgetown coach Ed Cooley offered one of his periodic reminders to Connecticut not to be spoiled, that UConn is still rather formidable.

The Huskies will next try to get off the win-one, lose-one treadmill and capture win No.

20 at Providence on Saturday.During a timeout at Seton Hall Feb.

15, the TV mics caught Hurley challenging the team to match the level of desperation and intensity Diarra was displaying at a time when his difficulty in moving was more apparent.You just want soldiers, Hurley said.

People with heart.

The last couple of years, we got the personalities just right, the character, the competitive will, the work ethic, the desire to win.

He represents all those things.

He looked a little better, hes moving a little better, but you just want warriors, you want soldiers, you cant win (anything) without soldiers and warriors.

These games are battles; theyre fist fights.Dom Amore: A study in accountability, Alex Karaban puts another UConn loss on himselfAs he has managed this season with his compromised point guard situation and different personnel, Hurley has adjusted from the highly sophisticated sets and system and is turning players loose.

The results showed with the 93 points on Wednesday, the most theyve scored in regulation in conference play.People arent respecting us outside the system, Hurley said.

(Wednesday) we consciously drove the ball more.

Weve got to get into making our opponents concerned that were going to break things off and attack the rim, just to soften the defense up.

Weve become robotic, and a large part of that is me.

You get drunk on your own success.

We forced our players to be a little bit too robotic and now were trying to loosen the reins to go attack and create more.

That was my fault, I screwed that up.For it to work, Diarra has to be able to attack and dish.

He had the legs, as well as the freedom to force the issue against Georgetown and the team TOs were cut to 10.Coach is just trying to instill confidence in us, Diarra said.

Tell us to go out there and play, play freely, go out and make plays.

Were all talented players, we dont have to use the system necessarily to generate good offense.

I think we did a great job of it today.

Guys played with a little more confidence.Inside the room where UConn mens renowned, innovative offense is drawn upDiarras older brother, Mamadou, had to end his UConn career prematurely due to a chronic knee injury and has remained with the program as director of player development.

Hassan, who started at Texas A&M, has been able to complete his college career, becoming a valuable spark off the bench on the two championship teams.You cant imagine things like that, Diarra said.

You grow up as a kid in New York, you see guys like Kemba Walker and you say, I want to be like him.

Ive been blessed to be part of this program.

...

Im so grateful.And Diarra is giving back the way he knows how, by soldiering on to the finish, giving all his body is allowing him to give.Its definitely in the back of my mind that its coming to an end, Diarra said.

Every aspect of my game has grown since Ive been here.

Ive grown as a person, as a basketball player, grown as a brother, as a teammate.

All aspects of my life have changed.

UConn has changed my life..

This article has been shared from the original article on troyrecord, here is the link to the original article.