A few notes as I sit next to the esteemed Rich Elliott and wait to watch the UConn men’s basketball team practice Friday. (And then some from after practice)
– Former Providence coach Tim Welsh will be the analyst Saturday on MyTV9 and SNY when UConn and Bryant hit the court.
I’ve never heard Welsh call a game but it would seem to me he’d be an entertaining listen. He was always fun (even after a loss or in a sour mood) after games.
Veteran Bob Picozzi will be alongside Welsh to provide play-by-play.
– Kemba Walker has scored 20 or more points in two of his first five games at UConn. The only players to do that at UConn under Jim Calhoun before now were Ray Allen, Caron Butler and Khalid El-Amin.
– With a win against Bryant Calhoun would tie Lute Olson and Lou Henson for 8th place on the NCAA’s all-time victory list with No. 780.
– Finals are coming up for the Huskies, which means guard Jerome Dyson might have to make the trip to Buffalo one day later than the rest of his teammates.
“That’s part of being a student athlete,” Calhoun said.
– Guard A.J. Price says he’s healthy. That’s rare this season.
“I’m actually feeling good for probably the first time this year,” Price said. “It’s the best I’ve felt in a while.”
– UConn and Bryant have met in each of the last four seasons, but all of those have been exhibitions.
Bryant is moving up to Division I now and Saturday will be its first “real” game against the Huskies.
– Freshman forward Ater Majok is still scheduled to arrive in December. It’s just not clear when.
“There’s nothing new. We’re still waiting on that,” Calhoun said. “On the holidays it’s very difficult to get anybody at the NCAA. We’ve tried. We’re trying to get that news as quickly as we can.”
– The Bryant contest is “an us game” according to the UConn coach.
“We better just make sure we pay attention to the job at hand,” Calhoun said. “Our job is to take care of Connecticut, take care of ourselves.”
And Calhoun isn’t getting too caught up in the Huskies’ record.
“Two years ago we had a deceptive 11-0 record,” he said. “So the 5-0 record doesn’t impress me. Two of the wins do impress me.”
- Neill
