Alterique Gilbert suffered a separated left shoulder in Friday's Jordan Brand Classic national game, but it doesn't appear to be too serious.

Early in the game, Gilbert fell to the floor in pain after trying to swipe away a steal, gripping his left shoulder, and had to be taken off the court in a wheelchair at the Jordan Brand Classic national game.

Gilbert was taken to a local hospital, where X-Rays revealed a shoulder dislocation — something he’s suffered before.

“They say he’s fine,” offered Sharman White, Gilbert’s coach at Miller Grove High and also for on Friday night for the East Team. “It may take anywhere from 4-6 weeks to make sure it heals properly. He’s in good spirits.”

Gilbert suffered the dislocation when he tried to swipe the ball away from 6-foot-9 center Marques Bolden.

“(Bolden) had a good grip on it, so when he hit it, I think the vibration of it probably just knocked it out of place,” said White.

The coach added that the same thing happened to Gilbert a couple of years ago, “so he kind of knew exactly what had happened.”

Gilbert, a 6-1 point guard, is the centerpiece to a highly-touted UConn recruiting class.

“Y’all gonna really enjoy him up there," said White. "Phenomenal player, phenomenal kid. He affects winning, that’s what he does. He’s been a winner all his life, even before he got to Miller Grove. It’s almost sad that I’m not gonna be able to coach him again. I hated for this to happen, because this is our last ride together right here.”

“You’re gonna get an electrifying guard that can really affect winning in every single way.”

White said that Gilbert is like a hybrid of Kemba Walker, Shabazz Napier and Ryan Boatright.

"He can score like those guys, he can defend, but he can also run a team like I’ve seen Shabazz do. Whatever’s needed — he needs to score, manage, distribute, he can do that. You’ve got a great one.”

The coach added that Gilbert spoke with Ray Allen for about a half-hour earlier this week, and Allen was very impressed with the young man.

As the American Athletic Conference season winds down this week, it's time to take a look at who could/should be hauling in some hardware at the league tournament next week in Orlando.

A lot of tough choices this season, really. In fact, looking back at the preseason all-conference teams, we've got just two players picked for the first team making either first or second team all-AAC. Of course, we could be very wrong.

Here's how we see it:

ALL-CONFERENCE

FIRST TEAM

Nic Moore, Sr. G, SMU

Quenton DeCosey, Sr. G, Temple

Shaq Goodwin, Sr. F, Memphis

James Woodard, Sr. G, Tulsa

Gary Clark, Soph. F, Cincinnati

SECOND TEAM

Damyean Dotson, Jr. G, Houston

Troy Caupain, Jr. G, Cincinnati

Shonn Miller, Gr. F, UConn

Jordan Tolbert, Sr. F, SMU

Shaq Harrison, Sr. G, Tulsa

HONORABLE MENTION

Daniel Hamilton, Soph. F, UConn

Dedric Lawson, Fr. F, Memphis

Pat Birt, Jr. F, Tulsa

Louis Dabney, Sr. G, Tulane

ALL-ROOKIE

Jalen Adams, G, UConn

Jahmal McMurray, G, USF

Dedric Lawson, F, Memphis

Shake Milton, G, SMU

Kentrell Barkley, F, ECU

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Candidates: Nic Moore, SMU; Quenton DeCosey, Temple

Winner: Nic Moore, SMU

Moore won the award last season (beating out UConn's Ryan Boatright), and was the preseason pick this year, which certainly gave him the leg up on the competition from the start. Sometimes, guys have trouble living up to the expectations (see: Dunn, Kris), but not in Moore's case. He's third in the league in scoring at 16.7 ppg, third in assists and fourth in steals. It's a shame his NCAA tourney career will be defined by the following: snubbed as a sophomore, first-round loss on controversial goaltending call as a junior, postseason ban as a senior.

As recently as a few weeks ago, I thought Daniel Hamilton had a chance to unseat Moore for the honor. But he struggled so badly for the whole month of January, and UConn has fallen so short of expectations, that it's worth wondering whether Hamilton will even earn all-AAC honors.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

Candidates: Dedric Lawson, Memphis; Jahmal McMurray, USF; Shake Milton, SMU

Winner: Dedric Lawson, Memphis

Despite a pair of atrocious performances this season against UConn, Lawson -- a heralded McDonald's All-American coming in -- is the choice. He leads the AAC in rebounding at 9.5 per game (barely edging out Hamilton) while also scoring at a 15.6 ppg clip. McMurray leads the league in scoring, but he's too one-dimensional on a bad team. Jalen Adams was the preseason pick, but while he's really made strides in recent weeks, he's not going to win this one.

COACH OF THE YEAR

Candidates: Fran Dunphy, Temple; Kelvin Sampson, Houston; Larry Brown, SMU

Winner: Kelvin Sampson, Houston

This is a really tough one that could go to either Dunphy or Sampson. Temple was picked to finish sixth and is 12-4 with a chance to finish first. Houston was picked to finish seventh and is 10-6, fresh off a win at UConn. I was really impressed with the job Sampson did in Sunday's win in Storrs, and even more impressed with his postgame press conference. Dunphy won it last year, so maybe there's a tendency to go with someone new. Either that or Dunphy becomes the Mike Brey of the AAC: the de facto coach of the year.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Candidates: Tacko Fall, UCF; Gary Clark, Cincinnati; Shaq Goodwin, Memphis; Shaq Harrison, Tulsa; Amida Brimah, UConn

Winner: Gary Clark, Cincinnati

This usually goes to a shot-blocker, so that eliminates Harrison. Fall, a freshman, leads the league in blocks (2.1 per game). Brimah would be second at 2.0 per game, but he's only played in nine league contests and will end up only playing 11. He is the reigning league DPOY, but is 11 games enough to merit a repeat? I say it goes to Clark, the top shot-blocker (1.8) on the league's most consistently excellent defensive team.

SIXTH MAN OF THE YEAR

Candidates: Markus Kennedy, SMU; Rodney Purvis, UConn; Rob Gray, Jr., Houston

Winner: Rodney Purvis, UConn

This is another real tough one. Kennedy won it last year, but he's been bothered by a knee injury for much of this season and is only averaging 9.7 points and 7.1 rebounds in league play. Not bad, but not what was expected from a preseason first team all-league pick. Gray leads the league in scoring in overall games (17.1 ppg) but doesn't rank in conference play because he's only played in 12 (starting seven of them) due to a balky ankle. He scored just two points Sunday against UConn. Is it fair to give the league's Sixth Man Award to a player who's only come off the bench in five league games?

Unless I'm missing someone else, Purvis seems to be the best fit. We all know his limitations, but he's come off the bench in 12 of 16 league games and averaged 10.9 points.

MOST IMPROVED PLAYER
I'll go with Temple's Obi Enechionyia, unless anyone can come up with someone else.

SCHOLAR-ATHLETE AWARD
UConn's Pat Lenehan won it last year, so could Nnamdi Amilo and his 4.0 GPA make it two Huskies in as many years? Doubtful, since Amilo is not a scholarship athlete this season.

SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD
This is not meant to be a sarcastic putdown of the players in the AAC, but I don't have a great guess who's deserving of the award. Sometimes it goes to a real good player who got edged out in another award, so maybe Quenton DeCosey or a James Woodard wins it. If we could give an award to the UConn player who's most amenable to the media (I know that doesn't exactly equate to sportsmanship) then Purvis would be a front-runner.

Yeah, we know, most college sports previews at this time of year have to do with football. But we're all about basketball over here, and we decided to take a midsummer's look at the AAC's prospects for next season.

Turns out, the prospects are quite good. Barring any disasters, the league should get three and possibly as many as five teams into this year's NCAA tournament. Which means, of course, that it'll likely get just three, since the AAC has had the selection committee's two biggest snubs (SMU in '14, Temple last year) the past two seasons.

Mick Cronin returns to Cincinnati's sidelines this season

Anyway, the league looks good this year. Its player of the year (Nic Moore) is back. So are five other all-league players: Tulsa's James Woodard and Shaq Harrison, Cincinnati's Octavius Ellis, SMU's Markus Kennedy and Tulane's Louis Dabney. So is Mick Cronin, after missing most of last season with a vascular condition.

There are some tough losses -- Ryan Boatright, Austin Nichols, Will Cummings, Yanick Moreira, Corey Allen, Jr.. But there are also numerous high-level transfers (both graduates and otherwise) who will make immediate impacts: UConn's Sterling Gibbs and Shonn Miller; SMU's Jordan Tolbert and Semi Ojeleye; Memphis's Ricky Tarrant, Jr. And there are some talented, impact freshmen, too: Memphis' McDonald's All-American brothers Dedric and K.J. Lawson, UConn's Jalen Adams, SMU's Malik "Shake" Milton.

It says here that UConn, SMU and Cincy will be the top three -- pick your order, but we'll give the Huskies the edge on overall depth and talent -- with Tulsa and Memphis battling for tourney bids. One of those two will probably get in. Maybe both.

Temple lost a lot of talent but has a lot coming back, and it has Fran Dunphy. Owls may be borderline, but we know how that usually turns out. And Houston's been getting a little national love lately, but I just don't see it ... yet.

1. UCONN

Daniel Hamilton may be UConn's (and AAC's) best player

Best player: Daniel Hamilton; Top returning scorer: Rodney Purvis; Biggest loss: Ryan Boatright; Best addition: Sterling Gibbs (Seton Hall transfer); Best freshman: Jalen Adams; Biggest positive: Talent, depth at every position; Biggest negative: Team may take a while to jell.

2. SMU
Best player: Nic Moore; Top returning scorer: Moore; Biggest loss: Yanick Moreira; Best addition: Jordan Tolbert (Texas Tech transfer); Best freshman: Malik “Shake” Milton; Biggest positive: Defense! Defense!; Biggest negative: NCAA investigation looms over program (and Larry Brown seems to have lost a little of his fastball).

3. CINCINNATI
Best player: Gary Clark; Top returning scorer: Octavius Ellis; Biggest loss: Jermaine Sanders; Best addition: Head coach Mick Cronin (after missing most of last season due to health); Best freshman: Jacob Evans; Biggest positive: One of the stingiest defensive teams in the land; Biggest negative: No real go-to scorer.

4. TULSA
Best player: James Woodard; Top returning scorer: Woodard; Biggest loss: None; Best addition: Pat Birt (JUCO transfer); Best freshman: Sterling Taplin; Biggest positive: Everyone’s back from a 15-3, second-place team; Biggest negative: Golden Hurricane will sneak up on no one this season.

5. MEMPHIS
Best player: Shaq Goodwin; Top returning scorer: Goodwin; Biggest loss: Austin Nichols; Best addition: Dedric Lawson; Best freshman: Lawson; Biggest positive: Lawson brothers, transfer Ricky Tarrant ease loss of Nichols; Biggest negative: Nichols is gone, and Josh Pastner still coaches this team.

6. TEMPLE
Best player: Quenton DeCosey; Top returning scorer: DeCosey; Biggest loss: Will Cummings; Best addition: Shawn Alston; Best freshman: Alston; Biggest positive: DeCosey, AAC top rebounder Jaylen Bond are back; Biggest negative: Two of top three scorers (Cummings, Jesse Morgan) graduated.

7. HOUSTON
Best player: Devonta Pollard; Top returning scorer: Pollard; Biggest loss: Jherrod Stiggers; Best addition: Ronnie Johnson (Purdue transfer); Best freshman: Galen Robinson, Jr.; Biggest positive: Johnson, Damyean Dotson good transfer additions; Biggest negative: One of worst shooting teams in country last season.

8. CENTRAL FLORIDA

Best player: B.J. Taylor; Top returning scorer: Taylor; Biggest loss: Brandon Goodwin; Best addition: A.J. Davis (Tennessee transfer); Best freshman: Tacko Fall; Biggest positive: We could watch 700 pounds of big men (Fall, Justin McBride) playing together; Biggest negative: UCF was one of the worst defensive teams in nation a year ago.

9. TULANE
Best player: Louis Dabney; Top returning scorer: Dabney; Biggest loss: Jay Hook; Best addition: Malik Morgan (LSU transfer); Best freshman: Melvin Frazier; Biggest positive: Deepest recruiting class in 15 years; Biggest negative: Three players who started all 31 games last year now gone.

10. SOUTH FLORIDA
Best player: Chris Perry; Top returning scorer: Nehemias Morillo; Biggest loss: Corey Allen, Jr.; Best addition: Roddy Peters (Maryland transfer); Best freshman: Luis Santos; Biggest positive: Perry’s back after missing last 13 games with heart ailment; Biggest negative: Troy Holston, Jr. suffered ACL tear in June.

11. EAST CAROLINA
Best player: B.J. Tyson; Top returning scorer: Tyson; Biggest loss: Terry Whisnant; Best addition: Clarence Williams (JUCO transfer); Best freshman: Deng Riak; Biggest positive: Tyson; Biggest negative: Pirates were badly outrebounded last season.

PRESEASON SUPERLATIVES:

SMU's Nic Moore is the reigning AAC player of the year

PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Nic Moore, SMU. It's his until he surrenders it ... which he might.

BEST PLAYER: Daniel Hamilton, UConn. Or at least the best NBA prospect.

BEST NEWCOMER: Sterling Gibbs, UConn. Second-team all-Big East, 44-percent 3-point shooter.

BEST FRESHMAN: Dedric Lawson, Memphis. Should still be a high school senior, but will replace Austin Nichols at power forward.

BEST SHOOTER: Sterling Gibbs, UConn.

BEST DEFENDER: Amida Brimah, UConn. We know his shortcomings, but he'll lead league in blocks again. (Honorable mention: Shaq Harrison, Tulsa).

BEST DUNKER: Bo Zeigler, USF. He's got Stanley Robinson-type hops.

BEST COACH: Larry Brown, SMU. Tough to argue against a Hall of Famer.

BEST RETURN OF A COACH: Mick Cronin, Cincinnati. Though Larry Davis did a terrific job in his stead.

HOTTEST COACH'S SEAT: Josh Pastner, Memphis. (Honorable mention: Donnie Jones, UCF).

BEST POINT GUARD: Nic Moore, SMU.

BEST SHOOTING GUARD: James Woodard, Tulsa.

BEST SMALL FORWARD: Daniel Hamilton, UConn.

BEST POWER FORWARD: Markus Kennedy, SMU.

BEST CENTER: Octavius Ellis, Cincinnati.

BEST SHAQ: Shaq Harrison, Tulsa. Edges out Memphis's Shaq Goodwin, with Cincy's Shaq Thomas getting some love, too. Lotta Shaqs in this league.

BEST B.J.: B.J. Taylor, UCF. Edges out ECU's B.J. Tyson. Shut up.

BEST SCANDAL: SMU. NCAA looking into possible academic improprieties involving a former assistant coach, former player Justin Martin and current Mustang Keith Frazier. (Runner-up: Memphis, though a report about a tutor providing improper academic help to players apparently was much ado about nothing).

BEST BOOK ABOUT UCONN'S 2014 NATIONAL TITLE RUN: He he. Couldn't resist a little self-promotion.

A few UConn notes to get you through your weekend:

*** Kevin Ollie has been contacted by several NBA teams regarding Ryan Boatright.

"Boat is gonna create his own chance," said Ollie. "And if they're not gonna open the door, he's gonna kick it down."

"I want him to look at what team fits him the best. That's what I want him to look at, not just the guaranteed money."

*** Ollie doesn't think it'll be a challenge meshing all the new players together this season.

"I'd have a little more trepidation if we didn't have some talented players down there and I'm trying to piece things together. This group is very, very talented."

"It's a talented group. I'm not gonna sit here and lie to you guys."

*** Shonn Miller is a "rebounding magnet ... very cerebral, able to pick up on things quickly."

UConn's new guard, Sterling Gibbs, meets the media

*** Sterling Gibbs is "just a basketball player. He plays at a pace you can't get him out of, which is something I love."

"He's not a Ricky Moore, as far as pushing the ball. But he's also a very smart player throwing the ball ahead."

*** Sam Cassell is going to see a doctor on Tuesday, hoping to get a clean bill of health and can start playing the following week. He's been doing just about everything except full-out basketball in recent weeks.

*** Amida Brimah needs to "eliminate some of those foolish mistakes that he did. Some of them were trying to take charges, or illegal screens 35 feet from the basket ... It happens, but I think it happened too much for him. Freshman, sophomore year, I'll lay off, but junior year, you've got to eliminate some of those mistakes and stay on the court. I think he's heard that a lot from me, he's aggravated from me saying that -- which is a good thing."

Brimah is up to 233 pounds now, and the Huskies would like him to get to about 235-240 by October.

He will also be one of the team's captains for a second straight year. Ollie will look for one or two more players to join him as captain.

*** Omar Calhoun is out with a toe injury. He's currently sporting a boot and hasn't been able to train with the coaching staff.

*** Ollie on Terrence Samuel, Rakim Lubin transferring: "Sooner or later, it's gonna happen. They felt they had a better situation playing a little more in another program."

"I thought Terrence played a lot of minutes. I stuck with him, but he stuck with me, too. He allowed us to win a championship. He played a pivotal role. You hate to see him go, because that team was something special to me. Not because we won the national championship, but that year prior, to stick by me in the lean times, I've got a special place in my heart for that team."

*** On AAC: "I think the only significant player that left our conference is Boat ... Everybody's back. That's why I think it's gonna be a great league."

"We've got to continue to schedule out-of-conference games. A lot of our AD's and programs in the bottom half have got to start getting some guarantee games also, so they can start getting wins. We talked about that a lot in our conference meetings. That's what they're looking for -- the strength of the whole conference, and not just the top four teams."

*** Ollie on UConn's own schedule: "Early on, we're gonna really be tested and see what this team is made out of. Which is good."

*** It's still to be determined whether Nnamdi Amilo will be back on scholarship this season.

"A 7-footer might parachute in," Ollie joked. "But if we don't have that, I'm definitely gonna put him on scholarship."

*** Ollie on Terry Larrier: "Wow. Ooooooh, he is so good. Man, he is fantastic. He's long, he's athletic, he can shoot the ball, runs the court, great person to be around. His teammates love him."

Larrier is already best friends with Daniel Hamilton. But they go at it hard on the court.

"That's a nice little competition right there," said Ollie. "That's big-time right there."

*** Ollie on recruiting: "I think we've done some good things. We're not Kentucky. People want us to be Kentucky. We're not gonna just get all the All-Americans. We have to continue to establish relationships and pick the right people ... I think we've got some nice momentum. A lot of people didn't know what we were doing, and that's a good thing. I do like to move under the radar and surprise some people. A lot of people maybe were disappointing with not getting Diamond (Stone) and not getting such-and-such, but as a coaching staff, we have to have a Plan A, Plan B, Plan C, Plan D to get things done."

Spoke to three NBA scouts over the past week, and was somewhat surprised that two of them feel Ryan Boatright will be selected in the 2015 NBA draft on Thursday.

Take them for what they're worth, sure, but none of the mock drafts have Boatright being selected. You don't hear his name mentioned much from any of the draft pundits. Certainly, general managers and other front office types might be better sources, but it's still somewhat encouraging for those hoping Boatright gets selected to hear a couple of scouts predict he'll get drafted.

Of course, getting picked in the second round doesn't guarantee you anything (just ask DeAndre Daniels). In fact, players who aren't drafted have a slight advantage in the fact that they could have a chance to pick and choose which summer camps they will go to, rather than be beholden to just one team.

Anyway, here's what the three scouts (two from the Eastern Conference, one from the Western Conference) had to say:

EASTERN CONFERENCE SCOUT:

"I think the prospects of second round are less than 50-50, but there’s a chance of him getting drafted. Even if he doesn’t, for sure he’ll be invited to summer league camps and get a strong look from multiple teams. He’ll be sought after."

"Obviously, his size works against him. But he’s tough as nails. He can come in and be a change-of-pace guy, score the ball at times."

"My gut feeling is he probably doesn’t get drafted, but I think there’s a chance."

"He’s an unbelievable money-maker in Europe, because he’s the type of guy they don’t have over there. They don’t have the super-quick guy."

WESTERN CONFERENCE SCOUT:

"I wouldn’t be shocked if he went somewhere in the second half of the second round."

"He was very good here when we worked him out. He's an undersized scorer, but he's improved other parts of his game. I don’t think you can really call him a point guard. (There have been) a number of guys like him in the league, undersized, high-energy scoring types. You put them in the game, they affect the game with their energy."

"He's a tough guy, he competes ... Good kid, works hard, got a pretty good resume."

EASTERN CONFERENCE SCOUT:

"I think he's gonna be taken in the second round. He’s a tough guy. His size is against him, but he’s got plenty of fight and aggressiveness. Anyone who’s seen him in big games, he comes to play, always competes. Tremendous competitor."

"To his credit, after a while – it took a while – he let them coach him. It took him a while, but he gave in to the coach."

"I've watched Boatright for years. I think he'll get drafted. He should, (because of) his toughness, his skill set, his competitiveness."

(on mock drafts)

"It’s good to compare on June 26 the mock drafts, see how accurate they were ,,, A number of those guys, they have other agendas in the mock draft, too. Agents, and things like that."

"He's gonna have to come in and outplay people, just like done all his life. Nothing new for him. He’s built for that."

It was Husky Day at the State Capitol today. Most of the members of the UConn men's and women's basketball teams were there -- no Ryan Boatright, but just about everyone else there, including coaches Kevin Ollie and Geno Auriemma.

One reporter's daughter even got a whole bunch of autographs, including Geno's.

(Oh, and if you're in the Southington area tonight around 6:30, stop by the Southington Public Library, where I'll be doing a book signing and discussion of Rebound!).

Anyway, here's some of what Daniel Hamilton and Ollie had to say:

HAMILTON:

(on rumors he might be leaving the program)

“I never had any thoughts. I had a sitdown with Coach Ollie, and we talked about the season during the exit meeting. Everything was good. I’m excited to be coming back.”

“He said I’ve got to shoot the ball better, and just getting to where I wanted to go, not forcing shots, not taking ill-advised shots.”

“It never crossed my mind. I know there were some rumors out there saying I might leave, but there was no thought of me going. Especially after the year that we had, I want to come back and do even better things next year. I wasn’t satisfied with the year we had as a team. Next year, I want to come back and be better than we were this year.”

“I knew my grandma’s been sick the last couple of years. I was always talking to her, she was always watching my games. She was just proud of me throughout the whole year.”

(on watching his brother, Isaac, help UCLA make a run to the Sweet Sixteen)

“Them making the Sweet 16, it was definitely fun. I was supporting them the whole way.”

“Not jealous, I was happy for him. I was excited for him.”

OLLIE:

(on Duke winning the title)

“They definitely deserved it. Coach K is a wonderful coach.”

(on recruiting focuses)

“We’ve got a couple of players that we’re looking (at). We’re just trying to add some spots. My job is to evaluate the program ... We have a couple that’s right on the brink, and hopefully we’ll get some good news here soon.”

(on any possible transfers)

“No one came in my office yet. It’s always an open door. I’m not telling them to come in the office. If they decide to come in and decide to go somewhere else, I can’t hold them back, I can just give my opinion on going forward. Hopefully, everybody stays and we can add on some compliments to these guys we’ve got now.”

“We just had our regular exit meetings. I gave them my expectations of them. went over the stats with them, just the standards that we uphold here at UConn. It was a character-building season for us, for me as a coach. We’ve got to get better. I think everybody has that desire, to get better.”

(on how Ollie can get better as a coach)

“Everything -- management of the team, getting them in better positions. I can always improve on everything. It’s not just one thing. I’ve got to get these guys better. We all fell short. We’re all UConn, and we’d like to get to the tournament. It’s a fine line between good and bad. We lost a lot of close games. You look back at those situations, I could have done things better, players could have made shots. We’re all in this together. It’s not one thing.”

(on recent college coaching changes)

“I was happy for Dave (Leitao), and to see Shaka (Smart) move to Texas. Some great acquisitions there, but also some great coaches that got their walking papers, which is unfortunate, too.”

(on Steve Enoch)

Every time I see Steve, he’s getting bigger, he’s getting better, he’s performing very well, he’s rebounding the ball. He’s got a chip on his shoulder every time I see him. I think he’s gonna be a phenomonal basketball player for us. He’s gonna be a serviceable big man coming in his freshman year, getting to lear from Amida, Kentan and Phil on how to conduct yourself as a UConn basketball player. I see a lot of potential in him. Now, that potential’s got to turn into skill. And that just depends on how hard he’s gonna work. What I see from him, I don’t see where that pattern’s gonna stop. Every time I see him, he’s adding something to his offensive repertoire, defensive rebounding -- doing things we lacked a little bit last year.”

(on Jalen Adams)

“Jalen Adams is gonna be an instant player for us that’s gonna really impact the game instantly. He can do so much stuff off the bounce, he’s very athletic. A lot of people don’t know how good a passer he is. I’m just gonna weigh on him to come in and do the different things we know he can do. But, athletically, ball-handling, pushing the ball -- those are his strengths. I’m gonna try to display that every single day, give him a platform where he can go out there and show his God-given talents. And God has given him a lot.”

Apparently, Adams may not play in Friday's Jordan Brand Classic regional game at Barclays Center. Nothing's official as of now, however. Doesn't sound like an injury or anything, just a possible conflict of some sort.

Ryan Boatright wore his UConn jersey with pride for four years, playing hard every time he took the floor -- with the scars to prove it.

On Thursday night, he'll put that jersey on one last time.

Boatright will compete in a 3-point shooting contest, as part of Final Four week's festivities. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN at 7 p.m. on Thursday from Butler University in Indianapolis.

"He was debating on if he should do this," Boatright's mom, Tanesha, said by phone on Tuesday night. "Then he was like, 'This is my last time putting on my Husky jersey. I've gotta try to represent one more time.'"

Boatright, of course, was in street clothes for UConn's season-ending loss to Arizona State in the NIT a couple of weeks ago. He had hurt his shoulder in the Huskies' AAC championship game loss to SMU a few days before.

He's still rehabbing the shoulder, and while he wasn't prepared to play in the college all-star game this week in Indianapolis, his shoulder is good enough to shoot.

"If somebody would've asked me a year ago, I would've said he'd be in the dunk contest," Tanesha said with a laugh.

Tanesha, her parents and Ryan's brothers and sisters are planning to make the drive down from Aurora, Illinois to watch Ryan compete. (And if you're wondering how Ryan is getting there despite Gov. Malloy's travel ban to Indiana, his flight and expenses are paid for by Intersport, the event's sponsor, and not with state funds).

"He gets to put on that Husky jersey one more time," she said. "He's walking away at peace, and enjoying it more than having to watch it from the sideline. I told him, 'I know you always compete to win, but as a mom, I'll just love to see you compete with a smile.'"

After that, Ryan Boatright, who hasn't hired an agent yet, will focus on finishing up his classwork and preparing for his dream of the NBA. It'll be a tough road, and both he and his mother know it. The other night, Tanesha was on the phone with Shabazz Napier's mom, Carmen Velasquez, when Carmen put Shabazz on the phone.

"It's a process," Napier said of the NBA draft workout circuit. "People don't really understand until they get into it."

At least the Boatrights have a great "family" to go to for advice.

"I'm just thankful to have all the family -- Andre Drummond's mom, Kemba's mom Angela, Carmen, we're all like sisters -- for real," Tanesha said.

A few quick items today:

Ryan Boatright will be competing in the 3-Point Shooting Championship out at Butler University in Indianapolis on Thursday night, during Final Four festivities. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN.

Boatright declined an invite to play in the All-Star Game as his shoulder heals. There is no structural damage to his shoulder, and it's getting better with rest, but he just didn't want to risk further injury.

*** As you likely know by now, Diamond Stone spurned UConn (and, more notably, his hometown Wisconsin) and chose to take his talents to Maryland. While UConn had seemingly been resigned to this for a while, the fact that the Milwaukee native didn't choose the Badgers but instead fellow Big Ten rival Maryland was a surprise.

UConn will still get to see him up close and personal on Dec. 8 at Madison Square Garden, when the Huskies and Terps square off in a Jimmy V Classic game.

*** The AP All-America teams were released today. No UConn player made even honorable mention. To make honorable mention, you must either have been conference player of the year or received at least two votes by AP writers.

Boatright got just one All-America vote.

First Team

Frank Kaminsky, Wisconsin, 7-0, 242, senior, Lisle, Ill., 18.2 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 2.7 apg, 55.3 fg pct, 39.5 3-pt fg pct, 1.6 blocks (65 first-team votes, 325 total points).

Jahlil Okafor, Duke, 6-11, 270, freshman, Chicago, 17.7 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 66.9 fg pct (64, 323).

Jerian Grant, Notre Dame, 6-5, 204, senior, Bowie, Md., 16.8 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 6.6 apg, 1.7 steals, 36.6 minutes (53, 298).

Willie Cauley-Stein, Kentucky, 7-0, 240, junior, Olathe, Kan., 9.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 2.0 apg, 58.8 ft pct (45, 285).

D'Angelo Russell, Ohio State, 6-5, 180, freshman, Louisville, Ky., 19.3 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 5.1 apg, 41.5 3-pt fg pct, 1.6 steals (51, 282).<

Second Team

Delon Wright, Utah, 6-5, 190, senior, Los Angeles, 14.9 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 5.3 apg, 52.9 fg pct, 83.4 ft pct, 2.1 steals (15, 186).

Karl-Anthony Towns, Kentucky, 6-11, 250, freshman, Piscataway, N.J., 9.7 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 55.4 fg pct, 81.4 ft pct, 2.4 blocks (8, 139).

Seth Tuttle, Northern Iowa, 6-8, 240, senior, Sheffield, Iowa, 15.3 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 3.3 apg, 61.6 fg pct, (3, 139).

Bobby Portis, Arkansas, 6-11, 242, sophomore, Little Rock, Ark., 17.5 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 54.7 fg pct (2, 102).

Malcolm Brogdon, Virginia, 6-5, 215, junior, Atlanta, 13.9 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 2.5 apg, 87.1 ft pct (2, 98).<

Third Team

Buddy Hield, Oklahoma, 6-4, 212, junior, Freeport, Bahamas, 17.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 82.2 ft pct (3, 96).

Kyle Wiltjer, Gonzaga, 6-10, 240, junior, Portland, Ore., 16.7 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 1.9 apg, 53.6 fg pct, 46.6 3-pt fg pct (4, 93).

Rakeem Christmas, Syracuse, 6-9, 250, senior, Philadelphia, 17.5 ppg, 9.1 rpg, 55.2 fg pct, 2.5 blocks (74).

Georges Niang, Iowa State, 6-8, 230, junior, Methuen, Mass., 15.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 3.5 apg, 40.2 3-pt fg pct, 80.5 ft pct (1, 51).

Kevin Pangos, Gonzaga, 6-2, 182, senior, Holland Landing, Ontario, 11.5 ppg, 5.0 apg, 44.4 3-pt fg pct, 83.3 ft pct (1, 50).<

Honorable Mention (in alphabetical order)

Lawrence Alexander, North Dakota State; Justin Anderson, Virginia; Ryan Arcidiacono, Villanova; Ron Baker, Wichita State; Jalen Cannon, St. Francis, Brooklyn; Karl Cochran, Wofford; Kyle Collinsworth, BYU; Quinn Cook, Duke (1 first-team vote).

Kris Dunn, Providence (1); Perry Ellis, Kansas (1); Rico Gathers, Baylor; Madarious Gibbs, Texas Southern; Anthony Gill, Virginia; Kendall Gray, Delaware State; Ty Greene, S.C.-Upstate; Olivier Hanlan, Boston College (1).

Montrezl Harrell, Louisville (1); Martez Harrison, UMKC; Tyler Harvey, Eastern Washington; Corey Hawkins, UC Davis; Tyler Haws, BYU; LaDontae Henton, Providence; Darrun Hilliard, Villanova; R.J. Hunter, Georgia State.

Stanley Johnson, Arizona (1); Tyus Jones, Duke; Tyler Kalinoski, Davidson; Tim Kempton, Lehigh; David Laury, Iona; Damon Lynn, NJIT; Derrick Marks, Boise State; Jerell Martin, LSU; T.J. McConnell, Arizona.

Mikh McKinney, Sacramento State; Nic Moore, SMU; Justin Moss, Buffalo; Saah Nimley, Charleston Southern; Cameron Payne, Murray State; Chasson Randle, Stanford; Justin Sears, Yale; Kenneth "Speedy" Smith, Louisiana Tech.

Keifer Sykes, Green Bay; Marcus Thornton, William & Mary; Melo Trimble, Maryland; Fred VanVleet, Wichita State (1); Thomas Walkup, Stephen F. Austin; Jameel Warney, Stony Brook; Dez Wells, Maryland; Joseph Young, Oregon (1).

It's over.

We'll have a postmortem on this most frustrating UConn season some time tomorrow. As for now, digest some of these interesting postgame quotes:

RYAN BOATRIGHT:

(on whether he would have played had it been an NCAA tournament game)



Don't diss him, folks. Boatright made the right decision concerning his future. Really, it was the only decision.

More:

“It’s my last year. There’s no way. If I told you I wouldn’t (play if it was an NCAA tourney game), I’d be lying to you. But it wasn’t the NCAA tournament. Speaking with everybody that I need to speak to -- the coach, the trainers, the doctors and stuff -- they came up with the decision that I need to sit down. All I can do is honor that.”

Boatright said his shoulder injury has something to do with his rotator cuff, and that he'll likely have an MRI on Thursday.

“It was extremely tough. I was contemplating five minutes in if I wanted to go in there and throw my uniform on. It was rough. But I had belief in my team, I really thought we were gonna pull that game out. It sums up the season, man. Just inconsistent. We just need to get better, period, in all forms of the game.”

(on moving on to the next level)

“Just taking care of what I can control going into this process. I know it’s a long process, but it’s something I’ve been waiting for my entire life. It’s something I’m going to continue to work for, before and throughout the process. I’m just gonna control what I can control, which is my play. Hopefully, somebody believes in me and gives me the opportunity.”

KEVIN OLLIE:

“It just shows kind of our whole season -- the inconsistencies we’ve had. From the first half to the second half, I thought our guys really came out and played, started really executing and finding the open man. (But) we’ve got to do a better job as a coaching staff and as players to really fix that next year, because to be a good team, you can’t have inconsistencies as much as we had this year.”

(on the season as a whole)

“Fellas, we lost four games within 10 seconds. I mean, it’s not like we're in a damn pit. Ten seconds go our way, we’re gonna be in the NCAA tournament. I’m just gonna be real with you. There were a lot of games we lost at the end. I’m not crying over spilled milk, it is what it is. It’s a fine line. Those are the inches you’ve got to fight for as a coaching staff, as a program. I mean, it’s right there. It’s a fine line from being in the NCAA tournament or not in the NCAA touranment. ANd it’s a great life lesson I can teach the kids, too. You’ve got to value every game, every possession.”

Then there were these somewhat cryptic words:

“Whoever’s coming back, they’re gonna understand that we have a mission in mind. We’re gonna take the guys that want to be here, that are gonna fulfill that mission going forward.”

Asked if he's expecting transfers, Ollie replied: “I have no idea. I’m gonna have exit meetings next week, my door is gonna be wide-open. They can tell me their concerns, if they want to be here or not. If they want to transfer, I can’t stop them ... Hopefully everybody comes back. But, if not, we’ll keep moving on as a program.”

“I always have an open-door policy, with anybody. That’s the kind of relationship I want to have with my student-athletes.”

(on Boatright's chances in the NBA)

“It just takes one person in the NBA to love you. It doesn’t take all 30 teams, just one general manager, one person that believes in him. I think he really established himself as a better shooter this year. If you’re gonna be that small, at 5-9 -- he claims that he’s 6-feet, so we’re gonna say 6 feet -- he has to be able to shoot the basketball. I think he really worked on that this year, really shooting the ball at a high pace. And it wasn’t like he was just sitting in the corner. I mean, he had three people on him sometimes, and he still shot the ball at a high rate from the 3-point line.”

“He still has to work on body language and things like that. When you’re stuck in the NBA locker room, you have 30-year-olds, 32-year-olds, that you have to gain their respect. Not by talking, by working. I think he’s gonna do that from Day One. Hopefully, he’s in a position to do that on a day-to-day basis, because I know that kid wants it. He works so hard. Many times I try to sit him down, (he says) ‘No, coach, I want to work for my guys, get out here and practicre.’ I just wish the best for him. Because if he gets in a situation and it’s a dogfight, I’ll put my money on Boat.”

(on Amida Brimah, who played just three minutes in the second half and wound up without a point or a rebound for the game)

“He wasn’t banged up. Amida’s got to get better.”

Some notes and quotes from after today's practice, as UConn prepares for its NIT bout with Arizona State on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Gampel.

*** Ryan Boatright sat out of practice and is questionable for Wednesday's game. He suffered what appears to be a mild subluxation of his left shoulder after being hit coming off a screen in Sunday's loss to SMU.

“We’re just gonna treat the heck out of it," said Kevin Ollie. "Knowing him, he’ll be out there. But if he’s not, we’ll just go with the guys we’ve got.”

“Ryan’s a tough guy," Ollie added. "Hopefully, he’s back out tomorrow. If he can’t go, Terrence is gonna fill in, Rodney is gonna fill in, and we’re gonna play with the guys we’ve got.”

*** Daniel Hamilton attended his grandmother's funeral on Tuesday and was slated to fly home Tuesday night on a red-eye flight and be available for Wednesday's game (albeit, most likely, a bit tired).

*** Kentan Facey was cleared to practice on Tuesday, but only non-contact drills. If he wakes up and feels alright on Wednesday, he should be cleared to play.

*** Ollie on the lack of respect the selection committee appeared to show the AAC:



*** Ollie on Rodney Purvis's strong play lately:

“He’s getting the ball fullcourt and going down with a head of steam. It’s very, very hard to stop him when he starts doing that. And his 3-ball is going, and he’s making more of his free throws, which is gonna be a key to him if he wants to be an explosive scorer. Because he’s gonna get to the rim, he’s gonna get fouled a lot. For him to convert two free throws will really give him the momentum to keep attacking.”

“We’re seeing glimpses of what Rodney can do.”

(on Arizona State)

“Great transition team. They’ve got four JUCO transfers, they’ve got good, talented basketball players. And everybody can score. They usually play four-out, one-in, with Jacobsen in the middle. When he goes out, they bring in another shooter. There are gonna be a lot of shooters around the court.”

“They play four guards, sometimes they play (6-foot-6 Savon) Goodman at the five, so it’s gonna be a situation where I’ve got four guards out there. It’s not big deal. We’re just gonna go out there, whoever shows up and is willing to play, we’re gonna push them to play hard and we’re gonna prepare them to play the same way.”

(on Boatright ending his senior year on a down note)

“It’s tough, but he had a great senior year. Hopefully he remembers that, and hopefully the fans remember that. He had a remarkable, remarkable senior year. Yeah, it’s tough and all that stuff in the last game. But the games before that and what he was doing, there’s no way we would have been there. I was playing him 40 minutes. The guy’s not a robot, he’s a human being. It’s said that he went 1-for-12, but please don’t remember him that way.”

*** Rodney Purvis had some interesting things to say.

(is it strange practicing without Boatright, Hamilton, Facey?)

“Yeah, it is. But that’s what you have other players for, other Division 1 players for. Terrence is gonna have to step up really, really big ... I’m not sure if Daniel’s gonna come back.”

“He’s supposed to," said a reporter.

“Oh, he is? Thank God.”

(on Terrence Samuel needing to step up if Boatright is out)

“His number hasn’t been called that much this year, because of the greatness of Boatright. I just feel like he’s got to be ready to step up and be ready to make plays for us (Wednesday).”

(on how much the high ankle sprain early in the season affected him)

“It took a really, really long time. I was able to kind of plant off it, but not really have my full explosion. I can’t really gauge the time. I feel like I was able to contribute. I probably wasn’t scoring as best as I could, but I think I did a pretty good job on the defensive end, just trying to do different things.”

A reporter asked if it bothered him in his strong game at Florida.

“Florida? I kinda struggled in that game ... Oh yeah, when I came back in and hit a couple of big 3’s. I didn’t really need my ankles for that. That was mainly just catch and shoot, you know?”

*** Purvis noted that "next year is starting now" for the Huskies.

"Not only with me, but our entire team. Everybody’s confidence just has to go up a little bit. Boatright did a whole lot for us, carried us the whole season. Guys have got to start coming into themselves, because there’s gonna be no more Boatright.”

He added that he's looking forward to being more of a leader next season.

“I definitely am. This year, I kinda had to sit back a little bit and learn from Boat. Kinda waiting my turn, you know? It was kind of frustrating at times, I’ve got to be honest, because I was looking forward to coming in and being more. But I can blame some of that on myself. I wasn’t really ready to play a lot of the games. I’ve been going through a lot this whole entire season. I had a lot of things on my (plate), so I tried to put that to the side and play with a free mind.”

(on what he knows about Arizona State)

“I know they play like four guards, so this game is gonna be fun.”

(on potential for fatigue)

“We’re all 19, 20 years old, so there shouldn’t be any issues getting ready to play (Wednesday).”

Nothing more irrelevant than the final Top 25 ballot of the season. Teams only care about their seedings right now for the NCAA tournament, not their rankings.

But, had to submit one, so here's mine. Also, AP voters must submit three All-America teams, a national player of the year and a national coach of the year. I included my votes for those here, as well (and gave the AAC a little much-needed love. How the heck did UCLA get in over Temple, anyway?).

1. Kentucky
2. Wisconsin
3. Villanova
4. Duke
5. Arizona
6. Virginia
7. Gonzaga
8. Northern Iowa
9. Notre Dame
10. Iowa State
11. Maryland
12. Kansas
13. Wichita State
14. Utah
15. SMU
16. Oklahoma
17. Baylor
18. Louisville
19. Arkansas
20. Georgetown
21. Oregon
22. North Carolina
23. Michigan State
24. VCU
25. Butler

ALL-AMERICAN TEAMS

First team
Willie Cauley-Stein, Kentucky
Jahlil Okafor, Duke
Frank Kaminsky, Wisconsin
Jerian Grant, Notre Dame
D'Angelo Russell, Ohio State

Second team
Karl-Anthony Towns, Kentucky
Kris Dunn, Providence
Georges Niang, Iowa State
Tyus Jones, Duke
T.J. McConnell, Arizona

Third team
Kevin Pangos, Gonzaga
Montrezl Harrell, Louisville
Malcolm Brogdon, Virginia
Ryan Boatright, UConn
LaDontae Henton, Providence


PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Jahlil Okafor, Duke


COACH OF THE YEAR
Fran Dunphy, Temple

All you really need to know is that UConn scored 19 points in the game's first 22 1/2 minutes on Saturday.

Then, the Huskies scored 19 points in the game's final 6 1/2 minutes to win.

Also, Ryan Boatright is not only UConn's Mr. Clutch, he also gets a chance to prove the AAC coaches made the wrong choice for player of the year when he faces SMU's Nic Moore on Sunday.

Should be fun.

A little late with this today (late night at the XL Center last night, as you probably know).

Anyway, I say that Ryan Boatright didn't need that last-second game-winner to validate his career, but it certainly helps cement his legacy at UConn.

Here's how Boatright feels about that:

Some quick numbers:

In the (extremely) brief history of the AAC tournament, no team has shot better from the floor (54.5 percent) and from 3 (64.7 percent, 11-for-17), hit more 3's (11) or allowed fewer points in a half (14) than UConn did on Thursday night. And no freshman has ever scored more than rookie of the year Daniel Hamilton's 20.

(Alas, Hamilton isn't perfect: it was he who banged heads inadvertently with Kentan Facey in practice on Tuesday, causing Facey to suffer a concussion. He didn't dress for Thursday's game)

Oh, and South Florida is terrible.

Another number: 5,431. The attendance at the XL Center. Honestly thought it was closer to about 7,500, but it's not like they're gonna shortchanged themselves, right?

Anyway, expecting a bigger turnout Friday night in the quarters against Cincinnati. A game that promises to be a "dogfight."

KEVIN OLLIE:

“Our guys came out with intensity. We’ve just got to continue with that. It’s a short turnaround, we know that. It’s tournament play, so we’re gonna go back, get ready for Cincinnati. Everybody knows when you play Cincinnati, it’s a dogfight.”

(on Phil Nolan's seven rebounds)

“That was great. I challenged the bigs, in the Temple game, Phil played 20 minutes and got two rebounds, and Amida (Brimah) played 28 minutes and got one rebound. So, it was great to see those guys combine for 12 rebounds in their minutes. We want them to continue to rebound -- rebound out of their area.

“Phil did an amazing job. It doesn’t show in the points ... He sacrifices his body for our team, takes charges, does all the small things. That’s why I give him the minutes I give him, because I really trust him on the defensive end. And on the offensive end, he knows the right spots to be in.”

“He knows about this time of year. He started all six games of our tournament run last year. He’s a very experienced guy, especially in March and April.”

RYAN BOATRIGHT:

(on Cincinnati)

“It’s gonna be physical. I’ve played them a lot, and every single time we play them, it’s extremely physical. It’s gonna be a close game, it’s gonna come down to whoever wants to win the most. It’s gonna be a dogfight. They’re probably gonna play their match-up zone, so we’ve got to execute and break that zone down.”

NOLAN:



OMAR CALHOUN:

“I never lack confidence. Just a clean slate. Everybody’s just leaving it all out there, we all have the same goal in mind. We’re all just playing for each other.”

(on Cincy)

“It’s gonna be a dogfight. We beat them before, they beat us. We’ve got to come out with our best game. The best team’s gonna win.”

“I’m just healthier. We have a couple of days off before the tournament, and I needed those days to get my body back for this run. I’m feeling real good right now.”

Calhoun said his knee had been bothering him, as well as a sprained toe.

BRIMAH:

“Coach was talking to us about rebounding the last two games. We just came out and made sure we did that.”

Daniel Hamilton was named the AAC's rookie of the year on Thursday, and Pat Lenehan earned the league's Scholar-Athlete Award.

Both, of course, are well-deserved. Here's what they had to say:

HAMILTON:



"It's truly a blessing. I just want to continue to keep improving from this day on and keep getting better."

(on Kevin Ollie being a "second father")

"I can just talk to him about anything, his door is open 24 hours. Being to be able to talk to him about anything, on and off the court."

"It's truly an honor to be able to play for him, as well."

"This award means a lot. There were a lot of expectations coming into it, but when you've got coaches and teammates believing in you, it's not that tough."

Hamilton noted that his grandmother, Lucine Noble, passed away recently. The funeral is on Tuesday, and he will try to fly out to California on Monday to attend.

Added Kevin Ollie:

"You've got to take in consideration, he's from L.A., coming all the way across the country. Dealing with the academics, the time management we put on their lives -- it's tough. For him to continue to work and to have that on his back throughout the whole season, being named preseason rookie of the year, it's great. His expectations of himself are more than we expect of him. He's going to continue to do a good job, hopefully throughout this new season that we have, he'll continue his great play."

LENAHAN:



"It was completely unexpected. I didn't really think I'd be up for it. I know the scholar part, but the scholar-athlete part. It's an honor to receive the award. I think it says a lot about the University of Connecticut and the basketball program, really what coach Ollie stands for. I'm happy to be a representative of what coach Ollie wants us to do on and off the court."

*** Meanwhile, Temple's Fran Dunphy won coach of the year and SMU's Nic Moore was named player of the year. Obviously, Ryan Boatright could have won player of the year, as well, but Moore was the best player on the best team.

Here's what Ollie said about it:

"Anybody who's a competitor, you want to win player of the year. He had some great numbers, he led our conference in scoring, in assists he was right up in the top five. He did a wonderful job. He was unanimous first team, that's a great honor for him. Of course he wanted to win player of the year. I'd be lying right in your face if he didn't. But, at the end of the day, he doesn't have any control over that. What he has control over is getting our team ready to play, being a leader, being the point guard of our team. I think that's where his mindset is."

UConn begins AAC tourney play Thursday night around 8:30 p.m. at the XL Center. Here's what Kevin Ollie, Ryan Boatright and Amida Brimah had to say after practice on Wednesday:

KEVIN OLLIE:

(on the "formula" to making a long postseason run)



(on Amida Brimah winning AAC defensive player of the year award)

"Sometimes we tell Amida he needs to rebound a little more, because he tries to block every shot. I think the Temple game, he gave up a couple of offensive rebounds because he got himself out of position. Other than that, he’s a monster back there. We don’t want him to try to block and go help everybody. That means we’re not playing good defense.”

“To have the big fella back there, not even blocking every shot but deterring every shot ... we just need him to rebound a little bit more. I told him one rebound in 28 minutes is unacceptable. To be the defensive player of the year, you’ve got to finish possessions with rebounds.”

(on whether Brimah needs to be more assertive on offense, or if his teammates need to look for him more)

“A little bit of both. He’s got to go in there and post up hard, make himself available, create his shots. All my coaches used to always tell me, when the shot goes up, that’s a pass to you. You’ve got to go get a rebound, you’ve got to involve yourself in the game. That’s running up and down the court. We had plenty of fast-break opportunities.”

(on playing in front of the home crowd)

“It’s an added shot in the arm. You get down, or you get up, you hear the crowd going, it gives you a boost of energy. But we’re not gonna say we’re gonna win the AAC tournament because we’re in front of our home crowd. We saw in Memphis, the quarterfinals last year, we beat them in front of about 17,000 people. So, we’ve been on the other end of that.”

Ollie noted that Sam Cassell, Jr. won't be available Thursday night.


BOATRIGHT:

(on the need for other guys to step up)

“We’ve got two players, Daniel and Rodney, that can do that, easy. We’re playing 4-on-3 sometimes. It should be easy to get the basket. I told them, in order for us to go far, you’re gonna have to do that. They took it positively, and these last few days, they’ve been working extremely hard and having the right attitude.”

(on what it would mean to win the AAC tourney)

"A lot. It’s my last year. It could possibly be my last game every time we step out there on the floor. It means a lot and the team obviously because we want to make the tournament. In order to do that, we’ve got to win four straight."

(why is it possible)

"We beat every team that we’re going to face in this tournament. We beat them where we’re playing at, the XL. We should be confident going into those games knowing that we beat the teams that we’re facing already, we beat them where we’re playing at. And you should just have confidence in yourself, period. We’re good players and a good team, we’ve just got to go out there and show that.

(on memories of watching UConn's five-game run to Big East tourney title in 2011)

"I got in trouble a few times. I went to school late a few times, I watched Kemba and them.
It’s similar. I think they had five games, that’s even tougher, man. It’s kind of similar but we’ve just got to dig down deep and have a lot of pride. It’s going be tiring. There’s going to be some ups and downs, but we’ve got to stay together and keep fighting."

onestly, I haven’t watched USF lately. … We know they’re going to come in here and play hard. They’re not going to lay down. We need to go in there and take care of business.

(on talking to his teammates after calling them out a bit after Saturday's loss)

"We had a real long film session and we watched every clip, one by one. Then we watched the last five minutes and the first five minutes… I just told them they’re even going to come out showing that they’re going to take me out of the game and we’re going to figure it out from there. Or they’re going to go out and try to play us straight up and once I get to going off they’re eventually going to try to take me out of the game.

"I just told guys that’s your sign to step up. That’s your time to know that, ok, we’re going to let boat get us rest and we’re going to take over the game. We’ve got two, Daniel and Rodney, that can do that easily. We’re playing 4 on 3 at times, and it should be easy for you to get a basket."

"I told them in order for us to go far, you’re going to have to do that. They took it positively. These last few days they’ve been working extremely hard and have the right attitude."

(playing at the XL Center)

"It helps a lot. I’ve been saying it all year, we’re a totally different team at XL and at home than we are on the road, especially XL. We’ve been playing extremely well at XL this year. It has a lot to do with the crowd."
AMIDA BRIMAH:

(on winning defensive player of the year, other stuff)

While he's more than deserving, I wasn't sure if Amida Brimah would win the AAC's defensive player of the year award this season. I guess I thought the possibility of awarding so many players (Ryan Boatright for POY? Daniel Hamilton for ROY?) on a sixth-place team might hurt his chances.

It didn't Brimah earns the award, after blocking a league-record 101 shots during the regular season.

SMU's Markus Kennedy won the Sixth Man Award, while his teammate, Yanick Moreira, was most improved player.

And while few would put the words "sportsmanship" and "Memphis" together in the same sentence, Memphis forward Shaq Goodwin was chosen the winner of the league's Sportsmanship Award.

Brimah, the latest in a long line of standout centers for UConn, led the American Athletic Conference in total blocks as a sophomore and was second in the league in blocks per game (3.4). He averaged a league-leading 4.0 blocks per game in conference play and was the anchor of a UConn squad that held opponents to 39.7-percent field goal shooting. Brimah, who was an honorable mention all-conference selection, started all 30 games for the Huskies, averaging 10.0 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.

Kennedy earned honors as The American’s Sixth Man after he averaged 11.2 points and 6.0 rebounds in 20 regular-season games off the bench. He shot 56.3 percent from the field and ranked 11th in the league in scoring in conference games (11.8 ppg). Kennedy was named to the all-conference second team earlier this week.

Moreira, who also earned second-team all-conference honors, was tabbed as the league’s Most Improved Player after he finished the regular season as SMU’s second-leading scorer (11.3 ppg) and the team’s top rebounder (6.4 rpg). He started all 30 games and ranked seventh in The American in rebounding and blocks (1.3 per game). He averaged 6.0 points and 3.9 rebounds for the Mustangs last season.

Goodwin averaged 9.5 points and 7.1 rebounds for Memphis, but was recognized by the league coaches for his sportsmanship, positive demeanor, commitment to player safety and public support of both his teammates and opponents.

The league’s Player of the Year, Coach of the Year, Rookie of the Year and Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards will be presented at a Thursday luncheon at the XL Center in Hartford.

Complete coverage of the 2015 American Athletic Conference Championship will be available on the conference’s Championship Central page atwww.TheAmerican.org/mbb.

The AAC all-conference and all-rookie teams were announced this morning.

They are as follows:

FIRST TEAM

Ryan Boatright, UConn *
Nic Moore, SMU *
Austin Nichols, Memphis
James Woodard, Tulsa
Will Cummings, Temple

SECOND TEAM

Markus Kennedy, SMU
Yanick Moreira, SMU
Shaq Harrison, Tulsa
Octavius Ellis, Cincinnati
Louis Dabney, Tulane

HONORABLE MENTION

Daniel Hamilton, UConn
Amida Brimah, UConn
Troy Caupain, Cincinnati
Jaylen Bond, Temple

ALL-ROOKIE

Daniel Hamilton, UConn
Adonys Henriquez, UCF
B.J. Taylor, UCF
Gary Clark, Cincinnati
B.J. Tyson, East Carolina

* -- unanimous selection

Listening to the American Athletic Conference coaches today on a conference call, it sounds like SMU's Nic Moore will be the league's player of the year. The award will be announced on Thursday around 11:30 a.m.

Here's what some of the coaches had to say:

Memphis's Josh Pastner:

“I would assume it’s gonna be Nic Moore, they won the league. I’d be surprised if he didn’t. But there’s a lot of great players in this league.”

SMU's Larry Brown:

"I think there are a lot of great players in our league. If you ask me, and I don't ever like to push my kids, but we won the league with (Emmanuel) Mudiay not coming, losing Keith (Frazier), Justin Martin. Certain people had to step up and Nic had a great year. I think we're all proud of him. Any time you play on a conference championship team, that's got to mean something.

"(Shaq) Harrison is great, (Will) Cummings is great. (Ryan) Boatright, I admire him. There are a lot of quality players in our conference that did a great job for their team. But Nic's one of my kids. We wouldn't be sitting where we are without him playing at such a high level."

Temple's Fran Dunphy:

"I think there are a lot of good candidates at (Cummings') position, a lot of really good palyers. It'll be an interesting ballot and vote. I will say (Cummings) is a terrific guy. We wouldn't know what to do without him. But many coaches would tout their leaders in that way. Just so much respect for the league, programs, coaches within that league. If he's honored that way, he would be very much respectful of that."

East Carolina coach Jeff Lebo:

"I think there are a lot of worthy candidates, a lot of point guards in this league certainly worthy of it -- (Ryan) Boatright, (Will) Cummings I love and Nic Moore at SMU has had a special season. Those three guys, in y mind, pop to the forefront. It's hard to pick one over the other. I don't think there's a clear-cut. If any onoe of those three win it, I wouldn't be surprised."

Sorry, no video tonight. Did you really want any?

UConn finishes sixth in the AAC. It will play South Florida in its opening-round game on Thursday around 8:30 p.m. at the XL Center, and must win four games in four nights to earn the automatic NCAA tourney bid.

Can this group pull that off? Stranger things have happened -- though I'd caution against any 2011 Big East tournament comparisons just yet.

Here's what Kevin Ollie, Rodney Purvis and a frustrated Ryan Boatright had to say after the loss to Temple:

OLLIE:

“Not the way we wanted to close out the season. I thought we played very, very well the first half, the tempo was going our way. The first two possessions of the second half, they got offensive rebounds. That really set the tone. We never could get our tempo back. Our guys never had the poise to box out, to run a solid play. Credit them. They did a great job, getting up in us, giving us fits.”

(difference in Temple's defense against Boatright in the second half)

“There were no adjustments. Ryan was playing outstanding, but it comes down to rebounding, playing aggressive. Of course, they probably started denying. But they were denying in the first half. Other guys have to step up and make plays, you can’t just rely on Ryan. You try to take him off the basketball, they were creating a couple of turnovers. I know they really trapped the screen and roll when he came off the screen and roll in the second half.”

(didn't Temple switch and put Jesse Morgan on Boatright in the latter half?)

“They all did a good job -- Morgan, Cummings. When he came off pick-and-rolls, they were trapping him.”

(daunting task of winning four straight)

“I told them they’ve got a game on Thursday, and we’ve got to be tougher, or we don’t go anywhere. I wasn’t even mentioning the NCAA tournament.”

PURVIS:

“I think they just out-toughed us. They were getting offensive rebounds. We’ve got to be able to hit and put a body on somebody, that goes for the whole entire team, from the guards to the bigs.”

(what did Temple do differently on Boatright in latter half?)

“He was killing them in the first half, that’s what most college teams are gonna do. One player’s killing ‘em, they’re gonna try to change up their assignment. That’s what they did.”

(what's changed since the SMU win?)

“I’m not sure, honestly. Just a lack of energy. We really weren’t together these last two games, like the SMU game ... That Memphis game, from the top to the bottom, we weren’t connected. This game, we just got out-toughed in the second half.”

“This should feel like a fresh start for us. Just gotta have a breath of new energy.”

(can Huskies win four games in four nights?)

“Yeah.”


BOATRIGHT:

(what did Temple do differently on him in second half?)

“Fouling.”

“They had two, three guys on me at all times. Every screen I came off, they blitzed it. Ball screens, they blitzed it. Their game plan was to take me out of the game, make somebody else beat them. That’s when somebody else has to step up and make a play. It didn’t happen today.”

(what's got to change?)

“I don’t know, man. If I knew, I’d change it. Guys just got to step up, stop feeling sorry for yourself, know you’re a good player and have confidence in yourself. There’s no way there should be two, three guys on me and you shouldn’t take it as disrespect. Guys were triple-, double-teaming Shabazz, I was gonna go for 40. You’ve got to step up and have some confidence in yourself.”

(four games in four nights?)

“Anything is possible. But, we come and play how we did in the second half, it ain’t gonna happen. We’ve got to change our approach.”

(team's problems)

“Too many turnovers, gotta stop traveling, man. We travel too much for a Division 1 basketball team. We’ve just got to clean some stuff up. But I definitely believe in these guys still. There’s still a possibility, and I won’t give up.”

“It’s so frustrating. I pray all the time, I wish I was 6-10. I can’t control that. I try to help as much as I can on the rebounds, but that’s not my specialty.”

“Just play basketball, man. I can’t tell you what to do. You’ve got to play with instinct. Me telling you what to do didn’t get you here. All I can do is drag two, three people out, make a good pass. You’ve got to create -- a play for yourself, or a play for somebody else.”

“It’s irritating ... I’m not used to this losing.”