Sorry folks, but I just don't see how UConn is an NCAA tournament team right now.

I don't care what Joey Brackets says. I don't care what their RPI is, or whether they (somehow) still have the nation's No. 1 strength of schedule. I don't care if the ol' "last 10 games" aren't supposed to matter much, if at all.

They should matter. The Huskies have lost nine of their last 12 games. Their only three wins over the past 1 1/2 months came against a Herb Pope-less Seton Hall, last-place DePaul and 14th-place Villanova.

It's all well and good that UConn beat Florida State back around Thanksgiving -- before Florida State was the Florida State that beat both Duke (on the road) and North Carolina in consecutive weekends. It's nice the Huskies have won at USF and at Notre Dame.

It's nice that UConn has played, in February alone, five games against Top 25 teams. The Huskies lost all five of them.

I'm sorry, but getting an NCAA tourney invite shouldn't be based beating a few good teams two months earlier, then playing a lot of really good teams and losing to all of them. There are too many hungry mid-major teams that, while perhaps not as talented, are more likely to make a better showing in the NCAA tourney than the Huskies.

UConn still, believe it or not, can play its way into the Big Dance. I'm not going to get into the scenarios of how for the 900th time, but it's still possible.

But sorry ... right now, UConn does not belong in the NCAA tournament. Not in my eyes.

*** A few revealing quotes from tonight:

A couple of players were just about speechless after the 72-70 loss to PC.
“I’m not sure,” Jeremy Lamb said as he tried to explain how the Huskies had collapsed. “It’s very frustrating. I don’t know.”

Asked why such a talented team has now lost nine of its last 12 games and fallen to 17-12 overall, 7-10 in the Big East, the normally effusive Roscoe Smith shook his head, took a long pause, and simply replied: “I don’t know. No comment, I don’t know.”

But perhaps Shabazz Napier gave the most revealing answer to UConn’s failure to put away the Friars (15-15, 4-13).

“No disrespect to them, but this is one of those games that you put a ‘W’ by it before you even play it,” the sophomore point guard said. “But they came out real hard … and they took this one away from us.”

*** Andre Drummond was hit with a technical after apparently throwing the ball back at ref Roger Ayers with too much force after Drummond had been called with an elbow foul.
“I told (Ayers), ‘It’s Andre Drummond, he doesn’t know how to do that. He’s too nice a person,’” associate head coach Geroge Blaney explained. “I can’t imagine that would be intentional. He just misread it, I don’t know.”

Drummond agreed: “I tossed it to him. I guess he wasn’t prepared for it, and he thought I tried to throw it at him. I usually just toss the ball to the ref. I guess he wasn’t looking and it looked like a cheap shot.”

But Drummond wasn’t about to use the call as an excuse.

“That’s part of the game. I’m not going to complain about the refs and how they officiate the game. They made a call.”

*** Drummond had 12 first-half points – including four alley-oop dunks, three of them in the first 3 ½ minutes – as PC had no answer for the 6-foot-10, athletic freshman.

But after a transition alley-oop dunk to start the second-half scoring, Drummond went scoreless the rest of the way.

“I think we went away from what we were doing in the first half,” Drummond said. “They also did a great job on defense. They went on a really big run, came back and took the game.”

Napier took responsibility for UConn’s inability to get the ball inside in the latter half.

“I just think I didn’t run the ball like I usually do,” he said. “It’s not Andre’s fault, I didn’t run the ball at all. When I did run the ball, Andre had open lanes, alley-oops. In the second half, I didn’t run the ball quick enough.”

*** Jim Calhoun was released from New York’s Beth Israel Medical Center on Tuesday and is back home after undergoing lower back surgery on Monday. Calhoun will recuperate at home and be monitored by his personal physician. The hope is that he will be back on the sidelines for Saturday’s regular-season finale against Pittsburgh, but it’s still too early to tell.

Just talked to Andre LaFleur, the former UConn assistant coach who left last April to join Ed Cooley's staff at Providence as associate head coach.

Contrary to popular belief, LaFleur says he didn't leave UConn because he felt he had been passed over by Kevin Ollie on the UConn coaching depth chart. It all came about at last year's Final Four in Houston, when he sat down with Cooley shortly after Cooley had left Fairfield to become PC's new head coach.

"It wasn't something I was even thinking about," LaFleur said. "I was trying to position myself for a few head coaching jobs, and I talked to Ed to see if I could get in the mix for (the Fairfield) job. He told me they wanted to go with a sitting head coach, and Ed and I just started talking from there."

LaFleur left UConn shortly after the Huskies' national championship game over Butler. In fact, he missed the championship parade in Hartford as he readied to take over his new position.

"I was thinking maybe it was time for a change, for different responsibilities," LaFleur said. "I had been at UConn for a while."

Although Jim Calhoun didn't appear very happy about LaFleur's departure the day of the parade, LaFleur insists that Calhoun "understood."

"It should be the goal of every assistant coach to do your job somewhere and one day, have the opportunity to run your own program," LaFleur said. "This seemed like an opportunity to do that someday."

Popular opinion was that LaFleur felt eclipsed by Ollie, the first-year assistant coach who drew raves for his recruiting and inspirational leadership with last year's team. LaFleur insists that's not the case.

"I never felt eclipsed or pushed out by anybody," he said. "I learned a lot from Kevin and from Glen Miller (who took over LaFleur's assistant job). On the court, Kevin brought a lot to the table with drills and practice things from his NBA experience. And I thought Glen was one of the best X's and O's guys ever as a UConn assistant coach."

LaFleur said he still has the same type of recruiting responsibilities as he did at UConn, but now has a lot more responsibilities on the court, with scouting, game preparation, etc.

LaFleur, who last saw Calhoun at the Hoops Hall Classic in mid-January, says he's been rooting for UConn all year. That ends Tuesday night, however, when the Huskies face PC at the Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence.

"For one game, 40 minutes, we'll be trying to beat them," he said. "The atmosphere is going to be tremendous. Historically, UConn at Providence has not been an easy out."

But he added that he still hasn't counted UConn out for this season just yet.

"I still think they're capable of catching fire," he said. "There's too much talent there."

Jim Calhoun underwent successful surgery Monday morning to address foraminal spinal stenosis, a lower back condition which has forced him to take an extended medical leave of absence.


The procedure, performed at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City, removed a large extruded disk fragment that was pressing on the spinal nerve and decompressed the area around the nerve. The surgery took approximately two hours and doctors expect the Hall of Fame coach to make a full recovery. He will remain hospitalized overnight and is expected to be released on Tuesday.

“I am very fortunate to have been treated by three of the very best surgeons,” Calhoun said. “My heartfelt thanks to them and the entire Beth Israel community, who have made every effort to ensure my stay is as comfortable as possible.

“Lastly, thank you to the people across Connecticut and beyond who have reached out to offer their support. It means a great deal.”

Calhoun is expected to recuperate at home after his release from the hospital, where his recovery will be monitored by his personal physician. His coaching status will be evaluated on a day-to-day basis.

UConn will play its final two games of the regular season Tuesday night at Providence and Saturday at home against Pittsburgh, then will participate in the BIG EAST Championship next week at Madison Square Garden.

The first annual Jim Calhoun CardioRaiser – Workout for Autism Speaks, presented by Farmington Bank, was held Sunday at Cardio Express in Manchester and Southington. Coach Calhoun was unable to attend due to a back problem requiring surgery. Coach Kevin Ollie and President and CEO of Farmington Bank stood in for him.

Hundreds of participants chose from a variety of cardio activities including Zumba, spinning, running or walking on treadmills, stair climbing, elliptical training, or riding a stationary bike. It is expected the event will raise $100,000 for autism.

“I am deeply committed to the cause of helping families confronting the many challenges of autism. It is my hope that this annual event will bring Connecticut families together to raise dollars so important to all those facing this complex neurobiological disorder. I am extremely grateful for all of the community support we have received thus far – presenting sponsor Farmington Bank, Cardio Express, The River 105.9, Country 92.5 and Panera Bread," said Coach Calhoun.

The dollars raised will go to the Connecticut Chapter of Autism Speaks and be used to fund global biomedical research into the causes, prevention, treatments, and cure for autism; to raise public awareness about autism and its effects on individuals, families, and society; and to bring hope and help to all who deal with the hardships of this disorder here in Connecticut.

Here's how I rank 'em this week. Goodbye, Notre Dame and Brigham Young. Welcome back, St. Mary's and San Diego State.

Wichita State jumps from No. 18 to 12. I like the Shockers this year. Xavier McDaniel should be proud.

If you ask me, after the top 10, maybe 13, it's all a crapshoot. There's really not much difference between No. 14 and No. 25, or even No. 30, really. In fact, even the top 10 is rather volatile. It's gonna be a fun March, that's for sure.

1.       Kentucky

2.       Syracuse

3.       Michigan State

4.       Kansas

5.       Duke

6.       North Carolina

7.       Marquette

8.       Missouri

9.       Baylor

10.   Ohio State

11.   Murray State

12.   Wichita State

13.   Georgetown

14.   Florida

15.   UNLV

16.   Gonzaga

17.   Louisville

18.   Florida State

19.   Temple

20.   Wisconsin

21.   Creighton

22.   Michigan

23.   New Mexico

24.   St. Mary’s

25.   San Diego State

For those wondering about UConn’s NCAA tournament chances, consider these words from – of all people – Jeff Hathaway: “Who’d you play, where’d you play them, how’d you do?”

In a nutshell, that’s the criteria the 10-man NCAA Division 1 men’s basketball selection committee, chaired by Hathaway, will most strongly consider when picking this year’s tourney field.

Hathaway, the deposed former UConn athletic director, repeated that phrase, mantra-like, during a conference call a couple of weeks ago designed to highlight the NCAA's new-found transparency regarding the process. (Yes, the words "Jeff Hathaway" and "transparency" are rarely synonymous, but we digress). At ncaa.org, all the information that the selection committee will be looking at -- the "nitty-gritty" of every team, as well as each program's "team sheets" (they're alphabetical, scroll down a bit for UConn's) -- is available to the public, as well. 

(Of course, all this information was supposed to be updated daily, we were told, but the nitty-gritty page is through Friday's games and the team sheets are only through Feb. 12. Still, it's more info that in the past.)

Essentially, what Hathaway was saying is that a team’s Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) will be the biggest factor in determining invitations to this year’s Big Dance. I don't necessarily agree with it, but that appears to be the case.

The RPI takes into account a team’s winning percentage (25 percent), its opponents' strength of schedule (50 percent) and its opponents' opponents’ strength of schedule (25 percent). It’s worth noting that the RPI formula also weighs road wins more than it does home wins, while home losses detract more than road losses.

Through games played Saturday (including the Huskies’ heartbreaking, two-point loss to No. 2 Syracuse at Gampel Pavilion), UConn’s RPI was still No. 27 in the land. That’s as good as any of the other NCAA tourney “bubble” teams.

Other factors, obviously, come into play with committee members: the “eyeball” test, how a team’s been playing entering the tournament, how a team has fared without a key injured player, etc. (And yes, Hathaway must leave the room when UConn – or any Big East team, for that matter – is being discussed during the selection process. Hathaway currently serves as a Big East adviser, working predominately from his home).

Personally, I think how a team is playing entering the tourney should weigh heavily. If the tourney were tomorrow, UConn would be 3-7 in its last 10. Its last real good win came well over a month ago. Sorry, that doesn't pass muster in my book. But my book's not the one that counts here.

In the end, it largely comes down to: Who’d you play, where’d you play them, how’d you do?

So where does that leave UConn? Let’s take a look:

Who’d you play? The toughest schedule in America. Hard to believe, considering all the preseason detractors, but UConn’s strength of schedule remains No. 1 in all the land. Many of the Huskies’ non-conference foes – Florida State, Harvard, Central Florida, Arkansas, even Wagner – wound up being better than expected. Add that to the rigors of Big East play, and no one’s played a tougher schedule than the Huskies.

With remaining games against lowly Providence (RPI 155), Pittsburgh (86) and likely a conference weaker sister in the first round of the Big East tournament, UConn’s strength of schedule ranking should take a dip, but likely no more than a couple of spots.

Where’d you play them? UConn has won three games away from home against RPI Top 50 teams: Florida State (20) in the Bahamas, at Notre Dame (39) and at South Florida (47, prior to Sunday’s win over Cincinnati). The Huskies’ worst home loss of the season came against Cincinnati (72, prior to Sunday’s loss). UConn’s worst loss overall, at Rutgers, came on the road.

How’d you do? Against the RPI Top 50, the Huskies are 6-7. They’re 3-3 at home against such teams, 2-4 on the road and 1-0 on a neutral floor.

They’re 2-3 against RPI 51-100 teams – 2-1 at home, 0-1 on the road and 0-1 on a neutral floor – and 9-1 against everybody else.

Add it all up and UConn is still in the NCAA tournament – as of today. Even ESPN “bracketologist” guru Joe Lunardi agrees, apparently even as a 10th seed. But the key words are “as of today.” Beat Providence and Pitt and the Huskies are 19-11 overall, 9-9 in the Big East and almost certainly in – though it would behoove them to avoid a first-round Big East tourney upset. Of course, UConn has yet to win three straight games against Big East teams this season.

Lose one of the next two and UConn would likely need to win at least two games, maybe three, in the Big East tournament to safely get back on the right side of the bubble. Lose them both and just about the only way UConn could get a chance to defend its national title would be to win five games in five days at Madison Square Garden.

And we all know that could never happen, right?

Watching live, I thought Fab Melo should have been called for offensive goaltending. Watching the replay ... meh, maybe not.

Didn't have a good view of the final play, but watching the replay, it appeared Roscoe Smith got fouled by C.J. Fair. No call again, however, and Syracuse wins.

The Huskies certainly thought the refs missed the two calls, though they were certainly very classy about it.

Roscoe Smith:

"I made a strong move and I got fouled, but I think the officials did a good job. You really can’t call a foul in that type of situation. You’ve got to live with it.”

He added: “It’s a tough situation for the referees. They probably didn’t want to have the game decided on that. I got fouled, everybody saw it. If you didn’t see it, it’ll be on tonight."

Andre Drummond concurred: "He got hammered, but there was no call, so … You don’t usually see refs call fouls with five seconds left in the game. It’s kinda rare to see that. It was a 50-50 chance to get that call.”

Said Jeremy Lamb: “He definitely got fouled, he purposely grabbed his arm, but we didn’t get the call.”

George Blaney's rsponse: "Roscoe caught it, went to the rim and didn't get fouled. That's all."

I'm pretty sure Blaney was being sarcastic. He certainly was screaming for a foul on the sidelines. Not the way Jim Calhoun would have, but still ...

As for Melo's potential goaltend on his go-ahead putback slam:

“I thought it was on the rim, but it was just one of those games," said Smith. "It could’ve gone either way. They gave him the putback dunk, so you really can’t do anything about it.”

Asked if he thought Melo interfered, Drummond said: “Yeah, but it’s alright, it happens. It’s part of basketball. Some plays go (your way), some plays don’t.”