UConn announced yesterday what the Washington Post had reported last week -- that the Huskies will open their 2013-14 season at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn against Maryland on Friday, Nov. 8.

A lot of people have noted that UConn's press release regarding the game had the following words:

“We are looking forward to opening our 2013-14 basketball season in such a wonderful way, playing a great program like Maryland in a beautiful facility like Barclays Center,” said UConn Coach Kevin Ollie, who expects to return his top six scorers and top five rebounders, including All-Big East first team pick Shabazz Napier. “I know all our student-athletes, but especially the ones from the New York City area, are very excited about the opportunity.”

While it would appear that the Huskies are expecting Napier (and Ryan Boatright and DeAndre Daniels, not to mention Enosch Wolf) back in uniform next season, it's important to point out that those weren't Ollie's words. Nothing is set in stone yet.

That said, it looks highly likely that UConn will have no NBA draft defections this year. Napier is still in a walking boot, so even if he did get the chance to work out for NBA teams, he'd be extremely limited (if able at all to do so).

*** UConn does not currently have a game scheduled with Texas next season. In November, 2008, the schools signed a four-game contract over six seasons, with games schedule for 2009-10 at UConn, 2010-11 at Texas, no games in 2011-12 or 2012-13, 2013-14 at UConn and 2014-15 at Texas.

This year's game isn't a certainty yet, but that's not to say it won't happen. Right now, all we know for sure is that the Huskies will open the season with Maryland, then play either Boston College, Washington or Indiana on Nov. 21-22 at Madison Square Garden in the 2K Sports Classic.

UConn will play two of those three teams, though it's not known which ones yet. It will also play two prior 2K Classic games in Storrs against yet-to-be-determined opponents. Even if UConn (or BC, Washington or Indiana) lose one of their opening two games, all four of those teams will still go to the Garden. Apparently, the tournament is trying to avoid a situation like it had a few years ago, when Gardner-Webb popped Kentucky in Lexington and the Wildcats didn't get a chance to go to MSG.

UConn was supposed to play Washington in Seattle next season, after hosting the Huskies on Dec. 29 in Hartford. But because the teams may meet in the 2K Sports Classic, that game is likely to be put off for another year.

*** Andre Drummond was back in Storrs on Tuesday. Drummond's Pistons play the Celtics tonight.

It’s fun -- yet really impossible -- to speculate where UConn would be right now if it was postseason-eligible. After all, if the Huskies had been postseason-eligible this season, would Alex Oriakhi and Roscoe Smith still be on the team?

Still, it’s an intriguing question: based on what the Huskies did this year, would they be solidly in the NCAA tournament field at this point, or on the bubble, with work to do this week at the Big East tournament (if, of course, they were allowed to play in that tourney).

We asked a couple of noted “bracketologists” – ESPN’s Joe Lunardi and Yahoo Sports’ Brad Evans – and their opinions were surprisingly varied. Lunardi has the Huskies as a No. 10 or 11 seed, probably needing a win this week in New York to assure themselves of a Big Dance ticket, while Evans has UConn as a 6 or 7 seed – with the potential to climb as high as a 5 or fall as low as 8.

Here’s what they had to say:

LUNARDI:

“For the record, you’re the first person that’s asked me today, but I’ve been asked every day, all season about UConn. I’ve been evaluating them as if they were eligible, and right now they’d be around the cut line, between a 10 and an 11. Kind of where Villanova and Cincinnati are. I’ve got Villanova at 40, Cincinnati at 41. They’d be in the field. Not by a lot, but by enough to feel comfortable.”

EVANS:

“Right now … I’d have them on a 6 or 7 seed line, probably a back-end 6 seed. Their record isn’t gaudy by any stretch, but they’ve got RPI wins, quality wins akin to a Wisconsin or an Illinois. They’ve got 10 losses, but enough accrued quality victories worthy of a 6 seed, or at worst a 7 seed.

“Now, if they lost the opening game of the Big East tournament, they may slide to an 8 seed. But that’s rock-bottom for them. Conversely, if they won three in a row or took the Big East tournament title, they have a ceiling of a 5 seed.”

So why the discrepancy between Lunardi and Evans?

“I usually weigh strength of schedule (they’re top 30), quality wins, but (if you) look at is other metrics – UConn’s KenPom ranking is 53, they’re Sagarin is around 55," said Evans. "Every committee’s different. If you look at secondary metrics and cling to those, they could be a 10 seed. But if you use traditional measurements like RPI, quality wins, strength of schedule, which I’m endeared to, they’d be higher.”

Of course, if Alex Oriakhi or Roscoe Smith (or Andre Drummond) were here … and if they were eligible for the Big East tourney … etc., etc.

Cleveland Melvin commited to UConn on Nov. 17, 2009, described by his prep coach as a "freakishly athletic player," and de-commited on March 4, 2010, desring to be more of a wing player rather than an interior guy. Here's a review of his brief, fleeting time "with" the Huskies.

Here's our blog when Melvin officially committed to UConn back on Nov. 17, 2009. Interesting to look at the comments, where we were asked if this eliminated the Huskies from Roscoe Smith contention.

A few days later, we spoke with Melvin at the National Prep Showcase in New Haven, where he was excited to get to UConn because it had "a lot of girls, and all that."

And, on March 4, 2010, here's our blog after Melvin de-commited. His Notre Dame Prep coach, Ryan Hurd, told me at the time:

"It's very mutual. There was open dialogue over the last few days. Cleve expressed his interest to be a wing player, and Coach Calhoun and Coach Sellers expressed interest in him being an interior player over the next four years. Cleve thinks his chance to play at a higher level was playing the wing.


"It's totally amicable."

Happy to say I'll be Connecticut's AP Top 25 men's basketball voter again this season. I think this is the fourth straight year? Those Sunday night West Coast late games are always fun when your ballot's supposed to be in by Sunday night.

Anyway, here's the preseason Top 25 I submitted to the AP a few minutes ago (minus the occasionally witty blurbs). Although they are eligible to be voted for despite their postseason ban, UConn doesn't make the cut:

1. Louisville
Rick Pitino may be, in Jim Boeheim's words, "full of (bleep)," but the defending Big East champ Cardinals certainly aren't.
2. Indiana
Most figured Tom Crean would get Hoosiers back to national prominence quickly. Led by Cody Zeller, it's happening now.
3. Kentucky
The beat goes on: farewell, Anthony Davis; hello, Nerlens Noel. (By the way, didn't Yankees notice that 'Cats won national title this season?).
4. Michigan
I've always loved John Beilein as a coach. Give him a team brimming with talent and watch out.
5. N.C. State
On Dec. 4 at MSG, UConn will see first-hand if Wolfpack deserve preseason tabs as ACC's best team.
6. Ohio State
I'm a little leery of Buckeyes without a dominant big man in middle, but Aaron Craft is a top guard.
7. Duke
OK, let's get our Plumlees straight: Miles is gone, Mason's back and Marshall's ready to go. Right? Right.
8. Kansas
Jayhawks slipped from first to second in Big 12 for first time in eight seasons last year. Not likely to repeat that this season.
9. North Carolina
If UConn players could have taken phony courses UNC players have been taking, they might be eligible for NCAA tourney this year.
10. Florida
Gators will be playing Yale in New Haven on Jan. 6 so that Rhode Island's Erik Murphy gets a chance to play game closer to home. Should be fun.
11. Syracuse
Orange play UConn for final time as members of the Big East on Feb. 13 in Hartford. Sad.
12. Michigan State
The Kevin Ollie Era (and '12-13 college hoops season) kicks off with bang when Huskies face talented Spartans Nov. 9 in Germany.
13. UCLA
If Shabazz Muhammed, Kyle Anderson are deemed eligible, Bruins could be Final Four-bound.
14. Arizona
After starring at Xavier last year, Mark Lyons gets to play for Wildcats this season as a grad student. Odd.
15. Creighton
Blue Jays have one of best players in nation in coach's son Doug McDermott, who could average over 25 per game this season.
16. Memphis
Will Joe Jackson be "Steppin' Out" as one of nation's elite players this season?
17. Baylor
Surprised Scott Drew hasn't found a way to get Brittany Griner to play for his team.
18. San Diego State
Fab Five father Steve Fisher has top four scorers returning from last year's Mountain West regular season champs.
19. Missouri
Those predicting that Mizzou is Final Four good apparently feel Alex Oriakhi will be 2010-11 Oriakhi, not '11-12 Oriakhi.
20. St. Louis
It's too bad Rick Majerus (heart issues) will be sidelined for what could be Billiken's most exciting season in years.
21. Notre Dame
With Farmington's Tim Abromaitis unable to secure a waiver to play, who'll be Big East's scholar-athlete of the year this season?
22. UNLV
Roscoe Smith won't be able to play this season for this "organization" (as he likes to call teams), but Rebels are very strong.
23. Pittsburgh
With a healthy Tray Woodall and frosh Steven Adams in two, no way Jamie Dixon has second disappointing season in a row.
24. Virginia Commonwealth
Another NCAA tourney run will make Shaka Smart even more attractive to big programs (including Warde Manuel?).
25. Tennessee
After watching Jarnell Stokes dominate UConn first-hand last year, I'm pretty high on the Vols this season.

ALL-AMERICA:

Doug McDermott, Creighton

Cody Zeller, Indiana

Isaiah Cannan, Murray State

Jamaal Franklin, San Diego State

C.J. Leslie, NC State

Greetings, back from vacation. What'd I miss over the past 10 days or so? Anything?

Yeah, apparently a few things. As we know, Alex Oriakhi is Missouri-bound, Jeremy Lamb (who's agent is Cheshire's own Jeff Schwartz) and Andre Drummond are headed to the NBA, Roscoe Smith is searching for greener pastures and Michael Bradley might be, as well. Am I forgetting anything?

UConn is in quite a situation right now, but a lot could be remedied if/when we find out what Jim Calhoun's plans are. Will he stay through the end of his contract, or even longer? Stay just another season? Or will he retire now? It's important for the program to know, because it's getting burned on the recruiting trail right now.

A little stability within the program (coach-in-waiting, anyone?) could help out a lot.

But don't take my word for it. Here's a quote from one prep school coach, who's had players recruited by UConn in the past, from the above linked article:

"If you’re asking me as someone who would advise a kid, I’d have a hard time telling him he’s gonna play for Jim Calhoun for four years. And I don’t think, unless they have a much better year next year, that he’s going to have a guarantee he’s going to be able to name a successor. Those are pretty big sticking points."

The coach added that a coach-in-waiting would help UConn because "any time you can show continuity, where the program is gonna be, that allows a kid to make a four-year decision, regardless of whether he wants to be in college for four years."

This coach also had some interesting things to say about this past year's UConn team -- namely, that the general knock around basketball was that the Huskies "didn't get along well ... at all" -- particularly the guards. At least one recruit has said he witnessed this discord first-hand while at a UConn practice.

Interesting stuff, though probably something most assumed all along.

Although Michael Bradley has been granted a release from his scholarship by UConn, it's still possible he'll remain with the program.

One of the main reasons Bradley is considering a transfer is to be closer to his ailing grandmother, who has cancer, in Tennessee. He has already visited Western Kentucky, and both Belmont and Tennessee-Chattanooga have inquired about the 6-foot-10 forward.

UConn has put together a plan that it hopes will help Bradley navigate his way through the upcoming year while remaining a Husky: getting him back to Tennessee every third week, mapping out his classes and workouts for the summer, etc.

Bradley is slated to meet with head coach Jim Calhoun some time today, and could have a decision within the next day or two. Certainly, with Alex Oriakhi, Andre Drummond and Roscoe Smith all gone, there will be a great opportunity for playing time for Bradley, who has yet to play a single second in his two years as a Husky (red-shirted as a freshman, injured this past season).

Meanwhile, the Huskies are obviously focusing much of their recruiting efforts on frontcourt players, with Bradley Hayes and Chris Obepka still at the top of their wish list. Hayes, a 6-foot-11 project who was seen by the UConn coaching staff in Las Vegas and by Calhoun recently in Pittsburgh, appears to be down to UConn, Texas A&M and Georgetown.

Obepka appears more of a long-shot for UConn. Cincinnati, Oregon and St. John's seem to be in the lead, with UConn a distant fourth.

The Huskies are also looking at the JUCO and/or European (German) route. But UConn -- which has 12 scholarship slots for next season (it's still docked one for NCAA violations) -- won't simply fill all the available spots for the sake of filling them. Unless the Huskies can get a marquee player or two, they'll likely save scholarships for the following season, when a bumper crop of top recruits will be available and UConn should be back to 13 available scholarships.

Roscoe Smith is the latest to join the mass exodus from the UConn men’s basketball program.

As first reported by CBSsports.com, Smith, a 6-foot-8 sophomore, has requested and received his release from his scholarship. Smith averaged 4.4 points 3.4 rebounds per game, down from his numbers as a freshman (6.3, 5.2, respectively). His minutes were down early in the season but improved play got him significant run as the season progressed. Smith hit double figures in three straight games (Syracuse, Providence, Pittsburgh) at one point in February.

Smith becomes the latest to leave the UConn program, which as of now is banned from postseason play next year. Alex Oriakhi has transferred to Missouri, Jeremy Lamb and Andre Drummond have entered the NBA draft and Michael Bradley has also received a release from his scholarship.

The Huskies have added Holy Cross transfer R.J. Evans, but it’s apparent that the postseason ban and – perhaps more importantly – Jim Calhoun’s uncertain future is causing players to leave the program while also keeping recruits away. UConn has one signee, New York City’s Omar Calhoun, slated to join the program next season.

Of course, Smith will almost certainly have to sit out next season as a transfer, anyway. It's possible that the school to which he transfers could apply for a waiver that allows him to play immediately, since UConn is (or almost certainly will be) banned from the postseason. But it would seem highly unlikely that Smith would be granted that waiver.

UConn freshman forward DeAndre Daniels can be forgiven if his mind hasn’t totally been on basketball in recent days.

Daniels’ sister, Keirstyn Schumpert, had surgery on Sunday to remove a brain tumor. Doctors were able to remove the tumor and Schumpert is still resting in the hospital but could go home as soon as Thursday, according to Daniels.

He and his family were at the hospital for about seven hours on Sunday.

“It was real tough, just waiting until the doctor came out to tell us what’s going on,” he said.

Daniels added that right now, the right side of his sister’s face is numb, but she is cancer-free.

Schumpert is a standout guard at Manchester High. Daniels wasn’t sure what the surgery could mean for her basketball future.

*** Royce White is a matchup nightmare, but it's starting to feel like people are making him out to be the next Magic Johnson. No doubt, however, he's a big concern for UConn.

"I think the thing he does is he makes you -- you don't want to get polarized on him and get beat," said Jim Calhoun. "He can help facilitate that, so it becomes very difficult. But he's a heck of a basketball player. I was talking to a pro scout today who's seen him four or five times and just said he's got some (Kevin) McHale stuff inside. Right now, I wouldn't consider him a great shooter outside, but he just does things to help his team win."

Andre Drummond, Roscoe Smith and Alex Oriakhi could all see time guarding White.

"Just to give you an idea," Calhoun noted, "this morning at practice, we played four different guys on him -- small, big. We tried different sets trying to figure out which way he'd try to go after us.

Said Drummond: “He’s a big man that dribbles the ball, passes to his open teammate. A lot of focus is on him, because you’re not used to see a 6-8 big bring the ball up the court and run their offense. But we know what we’ve got to do to win this game.”

That means utilize the Huskies’ significant size advantage by rebounding and defending inside.

“If anything, it creates a matchup problem for them,” Drummond added. “(White is) shorter, you’ve got me and Alex down on the post.”
For what it's worth, UConn came off very confident today. Not cocky, but definitely confident.

*** And, of course, there's ISU's prowess on 3-pointers -- a bugaboo for UConn defensively most of the season.

“In some of the regular season games, I think we didn’t work as hard to defend the 3 as we could,” said Jeremy Lamb. “We let people get open shots, and they were able to hit a couple, and it gave them confidence to hit more. I think we’ve just really got to be ready to close out, no easy buckets.

In short, the Cyclones can be a matchup problem for UConn.

“They’re attacking two things that, during the year, have reared its ugly head for us,” Calhoun admitted. “We block shots down low very well, but we haven’t taken away the kind of penetration I’d like to see. And, at a particular point in seven or eight games, we were just God-awful (defending the) 3. We’ve worked hard and gotten better at it, but we’re going to be put to the ultimate test.”

*** Win and the Huskies should get the Saturday night date that everybody seems to want: a rematch with Kentucky, the No. 1 overall seed.

"You definitely hear it from the fans, they definitely want to see the UConn-Kentucky matchup," said Oriakhi. "Coach tells us to take it one game at a time. We're just trying to beat Iowa State and then play Saturday. If we win on Saturday, we want to play again."

There were about 8,000 UK fans at the Wildcats' open practice on Wednesday. There were about eight UConn fans.

*** Although UConn and Iowa State have never played each other, the Cyclones have two players who have played against the Huskies.

Chris Allen was a sophomore on the Michigan State team in 2009 that beat UConn in the Final Four. He scored two points in nine minutes off the bench in the Spartans’ 82-73 victory in Detroit. Allen also played on MSU’s Final Four team the following year before transferring to Iowa State. He has played in 14 NCAA tournament games, most by any player in this year’s field.

Also, senior guard Scott Christopherson was a freshman at Marquette in 2008 when the Golden Eagles lost at UConn, 89-73. He transferred to ISU the following season.

In fact, Iowa State has seven transfers on its roster, including ex-Michigan State standout Korie Lucious, who’s red-shirting this season.

“Did I plan on bringing six of them in my first year?” Hoiberg said. “No, it just happened to be a year where a lot of guys were leaving their schools.”

*** Brigham Young arrived in town on Wednesday after rallying from 25 points down to beat Iona the night before. The Cougars will face Marquette on Thursday.

BYU has a UConn tie: first-year BYU assistant coach Mark Pope is the brother-in-law of former UConn director of basketball operations Beau Archibald. Pope, a team captain on the 1996 national-champion Kentucky team, is married to Archibald’s sister, LeeAnne. The couple married in 1999 and has four daughters.

*** Some interesting stuff from John Calipari on how to alleviate the one-and-done situation (something he says he doesn't like) and Calhoun on whether Calipari might move on to the NBA, particularly if he finally wins a national title.

Said Calipari: "Here's what I would say. It starts with you get the NCAA in the room, and you say you give these kids the stipend they deserve. That's one.

Two, the insurance that they have to pay for themselves, which can be upwards of $15,000 per year, $20,000 per year that they have to pay for themselves. They're loaned the money, and then they have to repay it when they come out. The NCAA should pay that to encourage them to stay.

The third thing is families, the NBA, and the NCAA should get together and have a loan program for those families‑‑ we're only talking 30 kids. We're not talking 500 players. We're talking 30 kids that would be eligible for that insurance. They should be able to have a loan. To what level, I don't know.

The last two things are the NBA. And Billy Hunter and I have talked about these. One, if a young man stays more than two years, his contract, his rookie contract should be shorter. And if a young man graduates, his pay scale should be higher when he comes in. Now we encourage these young people. It's about them. You should stay because of the integrity of our school. Unless you're Bill Gates or Steve Jobs, you guys leave and go change the world. But you guys, you stay in school because it's the integrity. It doesn't make sense to me.

My thing is these kids are chasing their dreams just like tennis players and golfers and geniuses and computer geeks and all the others. They're chasing their dreams the same way. And what we've got to do is come together and say, how do we do right by these young people? How do we make sure?

If the NBA says, no, we don't want to shorten their contract, well, then, it's on them. It's not on Billy Hunter, and it's not on the NCAA. If the NCAA says, no, we're not going to pay for this insurance. Those kids should pay for it themselves, disability insurance. Then that's on the NCAA.

But I think there's some things we can do, and hopefully people will come together and say these are simple things that would encourage young people to stay in school.

Let me say this. It's like last year. Brandon Knight. Brandon Knight was a 4.0 student and had 60 college credits after one year. He transferred in 23 honors courses, and he graduated with 60 college credits. That's two years of work in one year. But he was the seventh pick of the draft. How could you tell him to stay?

And Detroit, the Pistons, they love him. They want him to be what their whole organization is about. So it's not academic, and it isn't. It's what is right for these young people."

Say what you want about Calipari, but he makes some very solid points. Too bad it's unlikely the NBA Players Association would ever accept.

And here's what Calhoun had to say about Calipari:

"John at present rate, based upon numbers, is going in the Hall of Fame, assuming he stays in college basketball. And if he keeps‑‑ in 1990, we got beat by Christian Laettner's shot. For the next nine years, we were tortured that we weren't good because we couldn't win a National Championship, and we were good. Ray Allen, Donyell‑‑ we all know there's a lot of good players at UConn. We average 26 wins a year, the whole thing. A lot of final eights, just couldn't get there.


If you stick with it and you smell it enough, you'll get it. So I don't think it's a case of John winning or not winning a National Championship. Can I imagine John going in the NBA or anything else? Yes. Or anything else? Yes. I think John very simply marches‑‑ always has, even when he was a young guy. When he was at Pitt, marches to his own drummer, and I think that John has taken that and obviously done a very good job coaching‑wise and otherwise.

Let's put it this way. Maybe in your own set of mind, would you think it's some sort of standard, because I heard a lot of years until I won a few‑‑ you know, he's on the landscape now. You really don't have to look, find, and come up with a much better coach, quite frankly. I know he has a lot of very good talent. He does a lot with that very good talent.

My point being simply, if he feels that way, what you're talking, that's the difference. I've never had a chance to ask him, nor would I really. It's going to be his choice. He certainly can handle the players, that's one thing. And I've always said that some of our best teams are much more difficult to handle because of talent, and he's done a remarkable job doing that.

I don't think he has to prove anything more in college basketball if he got a very good NBA job, if that's what he'd want to do. I personally don't think he has to prove anything."

UConn is practicing this afternoon at nearby Spalding College and won't be available to the media until 6 p.m. We'll have some blog updates later with UConn stuff.

Iowa State players Chris Allen, Royce White and Scott Christopherson and head coach Fred Hoiberg met with the media this afternoon. Here's some of what they had to say:

The Cyclones have hoisted up 748 3-pointers this season, by far the most of all Big 12 teams. More impressively, they’ve hit 38 percent of them and had three regulars shoot the 3 at a 41-percent rate or better.


Leading the way is Christopherson, a 6-3 senior guard and Marquette transfer who has shot 45 percent from beyond the arc this season.

"We're kind of a unique team because we have the ball in Royce's hands quite a bit more than what I'ds say a normal college team does," Christopherson said. "So we do a lot of different things with dribble hand-offs, and use Royce's abilities to kind of manipulate the defense to get looks for our shooters."

Indeed, White presents a matchup nightmare for virtually any team, UConn included. The 6-8, 270-pound sophomore forward is the only player in the nation to lead his team in scoring (13.1), rebounding (9.2), assists (5.1), steals (1.2) and blocks (0.9). It should also be noted that he leads the Cyclones in turnovers at 3.9 per contest, a product of being the team’s primary facilitator of the ball.

“He’s such a unique kid, as far as how he plays,” said Hoiberg. “We try to simulate Andre Drummond in practice, can’t do it. We don’t have anybody that size. I’m sure they’re tyring to simulate Royce White in practice, and they can’t do it. Nobody that we play can simulate what he does.”

We'll find out later who should get the defensive draw on White. 6-8 Roscoe Smith would be a prime candidate, though he's giving up nearly 70 pounds. Drummond is likely, too, but beware what Allen had to say.

“Not too many bigs can move their feet (well) enough to guard him,” said guard Chris Allen. “Any time he has a 6-foot-10, 260-pound guy (guarding him), it’s not going to be too hard for him to get around him.”

Drummond, of course, is 6-10, 270.

We do know one defensive matchup on the other side: Chris Babb, a 6-5 junior guard, told reporters he'll be guarding Jeremy Lamb. He knows it will be a challenge.

"He's really good at coming off down screens and uses them very well," Babb said. "He doesn't need a lot of space to get off his shot. He's a good scorere and I'm going to do my best."
*** Although UConn and Iowa State have never played each other, the Cyclones have two players who have played against the Huskies.


Allen was a sophomore on the Michigan State team in 2009 that beat UConn in the Final Four in Detroit. He scored two points in nine minutes off the bench in the Spartans’ 82-73 victory. Allen also played on MSU’s Final Four team the following year before transferring to Iowa State. He has played in 14 NCAA tournament games, most by any player in this year’s field.

Also, Christopherson was a freshman at Marquette in 2008 when the Golden Eagles lost at UConn, 89-73. He transferred to ISU the following season.

In fact, Iowa State has seven transfers on its roster, including ex-Michigan State standout Korie Lucious, who’s red-shirting this season.

“Did I plan on bringing six of them in my first year?” Hoiberg said. “No, it just happened to be a year where a lot of guys were leaving their schools.”

*** The players were asked if there was an "intimidation factor" facing UConn.

"I mean, Kemba Walker's not coming back, is he?" Christopherson replied. Good line.

*** Hoiberg on Drummond and Lamb as NBA prospects:

"Big time. I think the sky's the limit for those two. Drummond, his size, you don't see any people that can run the floor like him and get off the ground. He's going to be a big-time pro, just because of the size that he has.

As far as Lamb, just a complete guard. He's got the size, he's got the length. He's got the athleticism, and he's a tough kid to stop. We have to mix coverages on him, I think, to try to keep yim off balance a little bit."

Hoiberg is an Ames native who starred at Iowa State in the mid-1990's. He's so popular in town, they call him "The Mayor." He was asked about Jim Calhoun, and why they don't call hyim the mayor of Storrs.

"They should. I'm honored to coach against him. We actually recruit that area out east quite a bit, and I've seen him at a lot of events, and I've gotten to know him. He's a great guy. Hes always a guy that you can ask questions to, and he'll answer them for you."
*** UConn was next-to-last in the Big East in 3-point defense, allowing opponents to hit treys at a 34.3 percent rate. Only DePaul (35.4 percent) was worse.

Iowa State not only shoots the 3 well, it also guards it well, holding opponents to 29.8 percent – tops in the Big 12. UConn shot the 3 at 33.1 percent this season, 10th in the Big East.

Add Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg to the long list of people who think Kevin Ollie is as classy a person as there is in the sport of basketball.

Hoiberg goes back a long way with Ollie. The two went on a recruiting visit to Arizona together way back in the day, and Lute Olsen said he'd take the first one who committed. Neither, obviously, did.

Hoiberg and Ollie were teammates on the Chicago Bulls in 2001-02. In recent days, they see a lot of each other on the recruiting trail.

"He's one of my all-time favorites, he's such a good guy, a good person, all about the right things," Hoiberg said. "He's gotten the most out of his abilities. He's such a good person, and in a league that has the perception of not having those types of personalities, he brings a positive light to the NBA becauxe of the type of kid he is."

"I'm proud to call him a friend."

Hoiberg and his coaching staff went over plenty of UConn film last night, and what they saw was eye-opening.

"The first thing, they're huge in the front line," the second-year ISU coach and former Cyclone star said. "With Oriakhi and Drummond, they're tough to score on in the paint. Roscoe Smith, who starts at the 3 at 6-foot-8, that's as big and long a front line as we've seen all year. And their guards are extremely quick and talented. They're a great team, and they're playing their best basketball of the season. It's gonna be a tough match-up, but I feel our guys are playing well right now."

Roscoe Smith had 14 points and seven rebounds on Saturday, but perhaps his most important statistic didn’t show up on the postgame score sheet: one charge.

In fact, the charge Smith picked up on Pitt’s J.R. Moore with 1 minute, 33 seconds left appears to be the first taken by any UConn player this season. Seriously.

“First charge we’ve taken in six months, I think,” associate head coach George Blaney quipped after UConn's 74-65 win over Pitt. He wasn’t kidding.

“We’ve been trying to get a charge out of anybody this whole season,” added point guard Shabazz Napier. “We (would) tell each other, ‘First one to get a charge, I kid you not it’s going to be big.’ And he got that charge and I couldn’t help my emotions but to jump on him and grab him and tell him, ‘You did it! You got that first charge!’ That was a big moment, a big key because we needed that stop to prevail.”

Indeed, the Panthers – particularly Moore – had been driving to the hole incessantly throughout the second half, turning a 15-point deficit into, at one point, a one-point lead. UConn led 63-61 when Smith took the key charge on Moore.

“It felt good,” Smith said. “They normally hurt, but I didn’t feel any pain. Everybody was very happy. We were kind of competing to get the first one. It was right there for me, I just stepped right in there and took it.”

Napier hit a 3-pointer on UConn’s ensuing possession, and the Huskies never looked back en route to a 72-65 win.

“That’s what you have to do, if people are driving the ball that hard,” Blaney said of Smith’s charge. “They’ve got five or six guys that can put it on the deck and put it to the rim. That remains the most difficult thing to defend in the game, the dribble-drive. To be able to step in and take the charge is very important.”

Smith has now scored in double figures in three straight games as his playing time – and confidence – increases more and more.

“He got a lot of consistent minutes last year, but he was a freshman,” Blaney pointed out. “You expect more out of a sophomore. He still was making mistakes early in the year. He’s getting saner with the ball, not turning it over.”

Added Andre Drummond: “I’m proud of that kid, man. Seriously. He played really well today.”

*** The Huskies were energized by Jim Calhoun's return to the sidelines.

“To have him on the sideline,” Napier said, “words can’t explain what he means for this team.”

Said Jeremy Lamb: "He was fresh out of surgery and still he came to coach us and gave it his all. It meant a lot, so we wanted to play hard for him."

Added Blaney: “It’s why he’s in the Hall of Fame, it’s why he understands a team, how to motivate a team. They were practically crying in the locker room, because he told them he loved them, and that’s why he came back.”

Blaney handled postgame press conference responsibilities as Calhoun, just five days removed from lower back surgery, was simply too exhausted (and emotional) to do so.

While not as active on the sidelines as usual, Calhoun was certainly animated at times – yelling at officials several times, and his players at others. Drummond knew the 26th-year, Hall of Fame head man was truly back when he heard him scream his name after Drummond took an ill-advised baseline jumper midway through the latter half.

“Oh, there he is,” Drummond thought at the time.

Calhoun’s surgeon was at the game, and afterwards told him he was concerned “when you were running up and down the sidelines,” according to Blaney.

“He was clear-headed, emotional when he had to be,” Blaney said of Calhoun. “To me, the only thing he did different was we put a chair out for him to sit in during timeouts … He is exhausted right now. The game’s exhausting, anyway, but to be coming off of surgery, that really can get you.”

But Calhoun told his players on Friday that he’d do anything he could to be there for them, and he came through.

“Coach Calhoun brought a lot of motivation, a lot of energy,” said Smith. “We definitely could feel it out there. It was electrifying when he first walked into practice. He definitely gave us that extra push we needed.”

Added Drummond: “It was great seeing him on the sideline. It gave us that extra spark, knowing that he was out there. Just hearing his voice again, it makes you play that much harder.”

Drummond, of course, had predicted Calhoun's return the day before.

“Should’ve listened to me the first time," he quipped. "I never doubted it.”

*** Barring a possible NIT game, Saturday was the final game at Gampel in the careers of walk-ons Kyle Bailey, Ben Stewart and P.J. Cochrane. All three, along with four senior team managers, were honored in a pregame ceremony, with Jim Calhoun presenting them gifts at midcourt.

Calhoun walked out from the locker room for the ceremony about 15 minutes before the opening tap, to a large, standing ovation from the assembled crowd. It was his first public appearance as UConn’s head coach since a Feb. 1 loss at Georgetown, and his first appearance at a UConn home game since a Jan. 29 loss to Notre Dame in Hartford.

*** Among the visiting recruits at Gampel Saturday was Sam Cassell, Jr., a Class of 2012 guard out of Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg, Mass., and the son of the longtime NBA star.

*** Napier led UConn with 23 points in what Blaney called “one of his best games of the year.” Lamb added 14 points, Alex Oriakhi had eight and Drummond seven to go with four blocks (all in the first half). Moore led Pitt with 16 of the bench.

*** As of right now, there's still a remote chance of UConn being the No. 9 seed for next week's Big East tourney and playing Tuesday at noon. DePaul would have to beat Seton Hall tonight at 6 for there to be any chance of that happening.

More likely, the Huskies will be the 10th seed and play Tuesday at 7. They can't finish as the eighth seed.

*** We'll have some video up around 6:30 p.m.

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.

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.”

Busy couple of days for Shabazz Napier. On Saturday, he publicly lambasted his teammates for lacking heart. On Sunday, he missed practice after re-aggravating a strained ligament in his right foot, and appeared "highly doubtful" to play Monday vs. Villanova.

About four minutes before the game, it was decided Napier could play. He didn't start the game, but he sure did finish it -- with a 30-foot 3-pointer that scorched the nets with 0.6 seconds left to play, giving UConn a badly-needed, 73-70 win.

All in a couple days' work.

Here's what Napier had to say about his injury:

“(Trainer James Doran said on Monday morning) it was highly doubtful (I'd play). I told him, give me some pills, some Ibuprofen, and I think I’ll be alright. It was still hurting, but I was able to play with it. I didn’t play at 100-percent, but I played enough.”

"I told my teammates, 'If I can get out there, no excuses.'"

On his game-winner:

“I looked up, I saw Jeremy had his hands up in the air, but I was like, ‘I’ve gotta take this last shot.’

"I had a flashback. I used to do that a lot in high school, a lot of game-winners. Usually I hit them from real, real deep. I just shot it, and I was able to make the shot."

“In that situation, you don’t take the best shot, you take the most open shot. (Dominic) Cheek was playing me far back. If I got a little closer, he might have come up.”

And, of course, on how his teammates reacted to his postgame quotes:

“They react in their own way. They understood where I was coming from. I probably said too much, and you guys (the media) probably led it to a different point, but I understand. I just want my teammates to go out there and give there all. Today, they did. I can’t complain. We had a lot of problems today, and we stuck with it.”

Never good when we're called "you guys." But I digress ...

His teammates didn't completely understand where Napier was coming from.

“At the end of the day, we definitely didn’t need that from Shabazz, or from anyone," said Roscoe Smith. "But, I kind of think he knew that he messed up. But, as a team, as a unit, we didn’t have any type of judgment on him. We still accept him with open arms, continue to keep our heads up.”

Added Jeremy Lamb: “The team looked at it as, ‘Let’s just respond.’ We didn’t try to dwell on it.”

Asked if Napier's criticism was accurate, Lamb simply said: "Not sure, not sure.”

Said George Blaney: "Shabazz speaks a lot, all the time. (His teammates) knew, in most cases, he was probably right."

*** Lamb, obviously, steppe dup big time with a career-best 32 points, including 10 of UConn's 13 in overtime.

"I think No. 3 was just OK tonight," Blaney dead-panned.

“Jeremy played terrific,” Napier said. “I think he could play like that most of the time. Today, he had to go the extra step, because I wasn’t 100-percent. Once he saw that, I think he really went at it and had to be an offensive threat.”

Roscoe Smith finished with seven points and five rebounds but dozens of hustle plays, including a huge play with 25.8 seconds left in OT when he fought Pinkston for a rebound and knocked it off the Villanova forward out-of-bounds, keeping the ball in UConn’s possession after a Ryan Boatright missed free throw. Lamb followed by knocking down a pair of freebies to give the Huskies a 69-66 lead.

Andre Drummond added eight points and 11 boards for the Huskies.

It’s worth noting that Villanova (11-16, 4-11) was without the services of its leading scorer, Maalik Wayns, who’s out with a sprained MCL in his right knee. The short-handed Wildcats had squandered a 20-point lead to Notre Dame two days earlier, also losing in overtime by a 74-70 tally.

It’s also worth noting that the first 12 minutes of the game were unquestionably UConn’s worst 12 minutes of its season.

At one point midway through the opening half, UConn went 11 straight possessions without scoring – 10 missed shots and three turnovers. Villanova scored 12 points during that span, opening up a 26-8 advantage, and it appeared the Huskies had hit rock-bottom.

But Lamb converted a conventional 3-point play to finally end UConn’s 7 ½-minute drought, and the floodgates opened. The Huskies outscored Villanova 22-4 over the final 8:06 of the half – keyed by 10 points from Lamb – and somehow found themselves tied at the break.

The 18-point deficit was the largest UConn has overcome to win a game this season, trumping a comeback from 13 points down to Coppin State back on Nov. 20.

*** With about four seconds left in the first half, Drummond grabbed a defensive rebounded and unleashed a fullcourt shot. Though there was about a five-second difference, it conjured up images of Roscoe's fullcourt heave with about 10 seconds left in regulation at Texas last season.

His teammates let Andre know about it.

“Someone said, ‘Yeah Roscoe, yeah Roscoe,'" Napier reported. "He didn’t see there was a lot of time left. Then, when he got the ball at .9 seconds, he didn’t want to shoot it. It was like, ‘Why didn’t he shoot that one.’ It was a funny moment.”

*** The Committee on Academic Performance met on Monday but didn't come to a conclusion on whether it will use APR scores from 2010-11 and 2011-12 (rather than 2009-10 and 2010-11) to determine whether teams can qualify for the 2013 tournament.

According to NCAA director of public and media relations Erik Christianson, the committee will continue the dialogue at future meetings. It next meets on April 23-25, and it may meet by conference call before April.

Alex Oriakhi is averaging just 6.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per game this year, both well down from last year's numbers (9.6, 8.7).

But by far his most impressive -- and, in the long run, perhaps most relevant -- number he's logged this season is 3.6. That's his grade-point average from last semester, Oriakhi said on Friday. Prior to Wednesday's win over DePaul, he and three walk-ons -- Kyle Bailey, P.J. Cochrane and Ben Stewart -- were honored for notching GPA's north of 3.0, as well.

“All my hard work studying, keeping my grades up, it’s definitely an accomplishment," Oriakhi said. "I was happy to be recognized.”


Oriakhi, who is majoring in sociology but may switch to communications, said he learned a lot from one particular teammate the past two seasons.

“Just watching Kemba (Walker), he was definitely a role model, even off the court," Oriakhi noted. "Just to see the kind of student he was. It’s easy for kids not to care about their grades and just go to class, but Kemba definitely excelled in the classroom. He was definitely a role model for me, academically.”

(Beating Marquette may be signature win Huskies need).

With so much scrutiny -- fair or unfair -- on UConn's academics lately (APR, etc.), Oriakhi's good grades are a nice representation for the program right now.

"I definitely am going to work hard, and hopefully my teammates can follow suit and get their grades up," he said, adding that he's not even the lead dog, academically, for the Huskies right now.

"I think Boat (Ryan Boatright) has the highest GPA overall, so now I’ve got to catch up to him.”


Oriakhi is leading the team on the court, as well. His 14-point, 10-rebound effort against DePaul was his second double-double of the season (he had 11 last year), and his oncourt leadership has been noticealbe ever since he called a team meeting a couple of weeks ago.

“I just tell myself when I’m out on the court, ‘Just talk,'" Oriakhi said. "DeAndre said when he hit those two 3’s (vs. DePaul), he heard me cheering for him and it made all the difference for him. When I’m on the court, I’m going to be the loudest guy out there. Even if I’m on the bench, I’m going to be cheering for my teammates."

Said George Blaney: “Since that (team meeting), he has fully committed to being ‘all-in.’ He’s just been great. I love the way he played the other night with the 14 and 10. When he plays with confidence like that, and with that kind of exuberance and energy level, it’s really good for us.”

"He’s the one veteran we’ve had, he’s been through a lot of wars," Blaney added. "He’s put up some incredible numbers against some really, really good basketball teams over the years. That’s what we need from him. The more he does that, the easier it will be for Andre, Tyler and Roscoe to do things, too. Especially with rebounding, defense and scoring inside.”

Elsewhere:

*** Everyone is pretty much healthy for UConn. Both Jeremy Lamb and Andre Drummond are good to go, DeAndre Daniels has been battling a bad back but will play tomorrow, and Roscoe Smith (Achilles) also should be able to play. Smith didn't play at all against DePaul on Wednesday. He could have, if needed, but had missed the prior two practices -- and, as it turned out, UConn did just fine without him.

*** NCAA.org has team pages on every team in the country, focusing on their RPI, strength of schedule, etc., throughout the season. It's alphabetical, so scroll down a short ways to find UConn.

A day after the Celtics' 95-91 win over Chicago at the TD BankNorth Garden, Ray Allen found time in his schedule to drive down to Gampel Pavilion to sit through UConn's practice on Monday, then deliver a 20-25 minute speech to the team afterwards in the locker room.

“It was vintage Ray Allen, it was a classic talk," reported associate head coach George Blaney. "That’s what Jim (Calhoun) has built here: the family atmosphere of great, great players that have done tremendous things for the state of Connecticut and have gone on to even do greater things in the NBA, and still have that feeling of closeness to the team."

Allen touched on numerous topics: getting through tough times, how to communicate with teammates, his relationship with current Celtics players and with UConn assistant coach Kevin Ollie, his former UConn teammate.

He also instilled in the team the belief that this season is far from over.

“He said you’ve got to bring it every day," said Ryan Boatright. "Just because we’re down right now doesn’t mean we can’t turn it around. He gave us two examples: the team last year with Kemba, and the New York Giants. They lost four straight in the regular season, now they’re the Super Bowl champs. He told us to keep fighting and we can turn this whole thing around if we come together as a team.”

Tyler Olander said the biggest thing he took from it was "trusting each other, keep playing basketball. He reminded us that in the game of basketball, mistakes happen. Even at his level in the NBA, people shoot air balls, people dribble off their foot, but you’ve got to keep playing through that. We’ve let mistakes get to us and bring us down, so that was good to get our minds on that.”

Blaney pointed out Allen's high praise for Ollie.

"He really went on a lot of different areas: the players on the Celtics team, a lot about Kevin (Ollie), what Kevin meant to him as a player – how Kevin drove him to be better than he was, that Kevin’s work ethic and his ability to make me work harder was something that is still ingrained in me today. To me, that was a great tribute to Kevin.”

And the fact that Allen decided to make the trip to Storrs at all was "a tribute to Jim (Calhoun) and how he’s built this program, and the kind of players that he’s had in this program that still want to give back.”


Added Boatright: “That was good, just to know that the guys that went through here still pay attention to us. For him to take time out of his busy schedule to come talk to us, to try to help us get back on track, we really appreciated it.”

Blaney noted that Allen said when the Celtics played Memphis recently, he and Rudy Gay were talking at midcourt about the UConn game they had watched the night before.

"The college players all watch the NBA," Blaney said, "and the NBA guys all watch college games."

Andre Drummond sat out of Monday's practice with his sore right ankle, but it gave him the chance to talk to Allen throughout practice.

"We were just running through a bunch of topics," Drummond noted. "After practice, he was talking to the guys, saying we’ve got to pick each other up, we can’t talk down to each other. You’ve got to know who to talk to in what ways, and that things will click for us after we start trusting each other more.”


Added Olander: “That was a real good experience, just to have him come, with all his knowledge and experience and all the things he’s accomplished, just to get our minds right again, tell us forget about things that have happened and to move on as a team. It was special to have him there to get us re-focused on what we have to do to get through the rest of the season.”


*** As for UConn's walking wounded, Jeremy Lamb's sprained right toe has improved, according to trainer James Doran, and he was expected to give it a go at practice today. Same with Drummond, though the team is being more cautious with him.

"It tweaks sometimes when I make the wrong step," Drummond said, adding that he'll likely "go in spurts" today in practice.

Drummond said on Sunday, the day after he turned his ankle up in Syracuse, his ankle really hurt and he could barely get out of bed.

“I told James, you might wanna come get me, because I can’t walk," Drummond said with a smile. "I’m struggling to get out of my bed. He loosened it up for me. He’s a great trainer, because if I was on my own, I’d still be stuck in my room to this day.”

Also, Roscoe Smith was pulled out of practice with a sore left Achilles tendon on Monday, and it wasn't known whether he'd practice today.

***UPDATE*** Lamb and Drummond both got through practice on Tuesday, though it was a struggle for both (particularly Lamb). Smith did not practice and appears questionable for Wednesday's bout with DePaul.

UConn's intense practice the day after its regular-season ending loss to Notre Dame last season will go down in the annals of program history.

The way Jim Calhoun and others have described it, that practice is what kick-started the team's miraculous, 11-game run to Big East and NCAA tournament championships.

Could a players-only meeting called by Alex Oriakhi before Friday's practice yield a similar season turnaround? No one's suggesting the Huskies are going to go unbeaten the rest of the way, but everyone involved believes the emotional meeting will have a big impact. It certainly appeared to in Saturday's whitewash of an admittedly slumping, shorthanded Seton Hall.

Here's what Oriakhi and his teammates are saying about 'The Meeting':

“I told guys, ‘It really hurts not to make the tournament,'" Oriakhi said. "We weren’t playing together, so I told guys I’m willing to give up my minutes, I don’t care anymore. I don’t care if I’m on the bench, I’ll be the biggest cheerleader, I just want to win. When I said that, you could see in the guys’ eyes, they really bought into it. I said, ‘Either we’re in or we’re out.’ Everybody said we’re in. I think that really helped. It’s crazy when you change everybody’s mindset, what can happen.”

He continued:

"I just told guys, I apologize for being selfish, too much thinking about my minutes, this and that. I think it’s what we needed. My freshman year, we didn’t have that. If I’m the captain of the team, I have to take responsibility of what happens, whether I’m playing or not.”

Oriakhi said his parents, Alex and Angela, as well as assistant coach Kevin Freeman were all pleading with him to call a team meeting.

“If I’m hearing it from all different directions, I’m wrong if I don’t," he said. "I really think that meeting was all the difference in the world. It’s crazy what a few words will do.”

Oriakhi isn't necessarily a natural leader, he admits. But ...

“That’s what this team needs, that’s what I have to do. I’m new to this, as well. I’ve always been the guy in the backseat. It’s definitely something new to me, I’m willing to do it, though.”

He said Roscoe Smith also addressed the team during the meeting.

"He said he wanted to apologize for being selfish, as well, worrying about minutes. He told us, ‘When we win, we all look good.’ I asked him, ‘How many points did you score in the national championship game?’ He said, ‘None.’ I said, ‘Do you care?’ He said, ‘No.’ When guys heard that, they all bought into it. I looked into everybody’s eyes, and you could see they were willing to make a change. Guys bought into that, and it really, really showed on the court.”

The meeting went down right after George Blaney had held a meeting of his own with Oriakhi, Jeremy Lamb and Shabazz Napie.

“That’s what leaders do," Blaney said of Oriakhi. "That’s a good job.”

UConn players agreed:

“It was a good meeting," said Jeremy Lamb. "He really got serious with us. If he talks, aother people got stuff off their minds. We just told everybody we needed everybody on the team. In these hard times, everybody’s got to come together. It really meant a lot to the team. I appreciate him for doing that.”

Added Ryan Boatright: “It was real emotional. Alex and the upperclassmen felt like they had to get some stuff off their chest. Being a freshman, I just sat back and listened to what everybody had to say. We had a great practice, and it carried over to the game.”

We'll have some video shortly ...

A few more details from today:

*** Blaney said he spoke with Calhoun after the game, and that Calhoun watched the game with the volume turned down so that he could focus on the team's energy.

"He felt that Alex was the key to the first half," Blaney said.

He added: "There was a little bit of jump in his voice that wasn’t there this morning or yesterday. I was happy we were able to make him feel better.”

*** About the only excitement in the second half (aside from some thunderous Andre Drummond dunks) came late in the game, when Napier and SHU's Jordan Theodore started jawing after Theodore was called for a foul on Napier.

“He said Jordan was fouling him the whole possession," Boatright reported. "I guess when he went for the ball, he kinda scratched his neck. They were just tangled up. Just two dudes with emotion going on. They shook hands when we came out of our timeout."

However, SHU coach Kevin Willard wasn't pleased with the call (or, in particular, referee Gene Steratore) and was ejected from the game after getting consecutive T's.

Willard didn't mince words afterwards:

"I thought the refs called a good game. To be honest with you, there is one of them I don't get along with. I wanted to wish him a happy Valentine's Day. He didn't like that, and that was the end of that ... I don't mind getting blown out. I do have an issue when the refs enjoy the blow out. And I don't think they should be smiling or enjoying one team getting their butt kicked and another team not ... That's what I saw."

*** New Haven's Freddie Wilson, a Hillhouse product and Seton Hall frosh, scored just two points in 20 minutes but is making strides with the Pirates.

UConn is going with an eighth different starting lineup today -- and let me be the first to say, I like it.

The Huskies are going with a three-guard look: Ryan Boatright, Shabazz Napier and Jeremy Lamb. Andre Drummond's the center and Tyler Olander the power forward.

I think this is the best lineup to get an offensive flow going, especially against a zone defense. Boatright makes things happen, as we saw before he got into foul trouble at Georgetown. He can make Drummond very happy getting him the rock.

Ditto for Olander, the team's best big-man passer who sees the floor well when he gets the ball at the high post and can also pop in a 15-footer.

Not to say Roscoe Smith, Alex Oriakhi, Niels Giffey and DeAndre Daniels don't still have roles on this team, but this starting lineup may be UConn's best right now.

*** The Huskies catch a break as Seton Hall top scorer, rebounder Herb Pope won't play after bruising his rib Tuesday night against Marquette. If UConn doesn't win today ...

*** Karl Hobbs has been bumped up to assistant coach while Jim Calhoun is out. He'll be able to coach the team during practices and, obviously, during games during this span.

*** I wouldn't expect Calhoun to make the trip to Syracuse. Getting on airplanes is one of the worst things for his back right now. (Oh, and so is the stress from losing. Yeah, Syracuse might not be a good remedy).

What do you do when you make wholesale lineup changes and end up with the same results?

“Back to the drawing board,” according to Ryan Boatright.

For about 3 1/2 minutes, Boatright's presence in the starting lineup in place of Shabazz Napier really seemed to light the spark UConn has desperately been missing. He hit Andre Drummond for three early hoops, and the Huskies had a 13-7 lead.

Then, Georgetown went into a 2-3 zone, slowing UConn's offense back down to a standstill. Not long after, Boatright picked up two quick fouls and was on the bench for the final 10 minutes of the half.

The rest of the way, it was pretty much more of the same for the Huskies. UConn did manage to get more good looks but couldn't shoot at all. The Huskies were 18-for-60 from the floor, 2-for-20 on 3-pointers (heck, even 6-for-13 from the foul line).

The 44 points mark the second-lowest total ever for a UConn team in Big East play. The previous low was 42, set in 1982 and 1999.

Jeremy Lamb was 4-for-18, 2-for-11 -- many of them open looks. The three new starters -- Boatright, Niels Giffey and Roscoe Smith -- were 1-for-9 for two points.

Of course, the players they replaced weren't much better -- particularly Alex Oriakhi and Shabazz Napier.

Oriakhi went scoreless with one rebound and attempted exactly one shot all night. That shot? A dunk attempt that somehow wedged between the rim and the basket.

And Napier. Oh, Napier. He went 0-for-9 with one point and has now missed 17 straight shots from the floor. His body language wasn't much better tonight, either.

“I expect a lot more out of him, an awful lot more – including body language,” said Jim Calhoun.

Said Boatright of Napier: “He’s not showing hatred towards me or anything like that. He’s handling it like he’s handling it. We like each other, we still get along and stuff like that. It’s the coach’s decision.”

UConn's point total matched its second-lowest ever in Big East play.

“The one thing that did shake my head, we missed a ton of shots that Division 1 basketball players ,and UConn, should make,” said Calhoun, seemingly separating, at least for a moment, the fact that his team is, indeed, a D-1 team.

There have been times over the past few games where it’s been tough to tell.

But the Huskies -- at least some of them -- vow to keep fighting.

“I’m going to keep working, I’m going to keep pushing. We’re going to keep pushing,” said Calhoun. “Tomorrow’s (practice is) going to be longer, and we’re going to go at them and find people who can do what they can do. We’re not the most talented team, I guess we’re the sixth-youngest (team in America). I have no idea what that means. It means (bleep), in plain English.”

Added Andre Drummond: “I have faith in everybody, I’m sure everybody has faith in everybody else, the coaching staff has faith in us. Nobody’s given up yet. We’ve just got to keep fighting.”

And Boatright: "I remember last year’s team, I remember watching them, they lost the last four out of five heading into the Big East and they put it together and made a run and they just came back. We still have a chance.”

In all, Calhoun was -- once again -- surprisingly serene after another bad loss.

“I’m happier with our defense than I was on Saturday against Notre Dame," he said. "Our defense, generally, was good, except we had some people who felt, down nine with 12 to go, game’s over so they’re going to gamble. Bang. You’re not down nine anymore, you’re down 11.”

JIm Calhoun is shaking things up: Ryan Boatright will start at point guard tomorrow night vs. Georgetown and Roscoe Smith will start at power forward. Shabazz Napier and Alex Oriakhi, the team's two captains, will come off the bench.

Also, Niels Giffey returns to the starting 5, in place of DeAndre Daniels.

It's simply a matter of quickening the pace offensively for the Huskies, who have scored 57 and 48 points in their last two games and look stagnant on offense.

"It doesn’t mean ‘Bazz can’t do the job … We just need to get into a better pace," Calhoun said. "From Bazz’s standpoint, he’ll get a better viewpoint coming off the bench.”

“We’ve got to get some cheap, easy points, be it against Georgetown or Seton Hall," Calhoun added. "We just can’t keep getting 50 points a game. We’re just not going to win that way.”

Calhoun said he started pondering such changes a couple of games ago. However, the team had some good practices over the past week, and he felt good about things going into Sunday's Notre Dame game (and, of course, had Boatright practicing on the blue team all week, not knowing if he'd be able to play).

But Sunday's stinker was the final straw.

"It’s not against anybody, it’s for the team," Calhoun said. "It’s what we think is best. (Boatright) is young, and he’s been told to push the ball up. And it’ll be against some three-quarter court pressure, because they will trap us.”

Telling Napier and Oriakhi, the team's captains and key cogs in last year's title run, wasn't easy.

“It’s very difficult, in a lot of different ways," the coach said. "But what I’ve got to do is not what’s best for each individual player, it’s what’s best (for the team) ... The one thing I’ve always felt we need to do as a team is to create easy baskets. It’s pretty hard to win a league as crazy and as close as ours (without doing that)."

Giffey is the quickest player up the floor, according to Calhoun, and Daniels is a close second. But Giffey's got more experience and is back in the starting lineup.

And as for Roscoe, his ability to run the floor should also help UConn's pace.

“He will get up the court," Calhoun siad. "I don’t know what he’s gonna do when he gets there, but he’ll try to make something happen, that’s for sure.”

Pretty intriguing stuff. Of course, Boatright could throw the ball away 37 seconds into the game, and Napier could pop right off the bench to replace him.

Calhoun also defended criticism of Andre Drummond's recent play.

“I’m not saying Andre’s perfect, he made a couple of not-so-good plays, but if he can keep giving us double-doubles, block four shots, it gives us a much better chance to win basketball games," the coach said.

It's also incumbent upon the Huskies to get Jeremy Lamb more than just the nine shots he got against Notre Dame.