UConn sports

There are times when the metaphor isn’t exaggerated. UConn beat Cincinnati 84-83 Wednesday night in an old-fashioned Big East war.

“It was a war, definitely,” UConn guard Jerome Dyson said.

Dyson, as he is wont, took a spill late in the game that left him woozy.

“I don’t know what happened,” Dyson said. “I know I was going up for the layup but I don’t even know if I put the ball up or not.”

He did, it didn’t go in, but Craig Austrie stepped in and made Dyson’s free throws for him.

It wasn’t just the Bearcats doing the hitting, though UConn’s Jeff Adrien did have a nice scrape on his neck after the game.

UConn coach Jim Calhoun called it a war over and over. He also joked that the teams were playing in the wrong venue. The game should have been next door at Nippert Stadium.

“Both coach Kelly (Cincinnati’s Brian) and coach Edsall (UConn’s Randy) would have been very proud,” Calhoun said. “Some of the tackles in the secondary were wonderful. I thought it was beyond five yards, but nevertheless…”

“I honestly didn’t know what to tell the kids,” Calhoun said. “I just said ‘Hit them back.’ ”

UConn recruit Nate Miles has yet to be given the OK by the NCAA Clearinghouse, a source said Saturday, and his future with the program may be in doubt.

There is still some information that has yet to be exchanged and Miles might be able to make it in time for UConn’s spring semester. But the semester starts Tuesday and the clock is ticking.

Miles must be enrolled by Feb. 4, the final day to add or drop classes at UConn.

According to multiple sources Miles has received a qualifying score on the ACT and has already earned a high school diploma (from The Patterson School). Graduation day for Miles is Monday at Patterson.

When Doug Wiggins was asked how he was able to score a season-high 15 points against Georgetown Saturday, the sophomore guard attributed to his relaxed style.

“To be honest with you, today it was my mentality,” Wiggins said after the game. “I came into the game with a whole different mentality like, ‘Just play ball.’ I actually tried it for the first time. And coach (Jim) Calhoun wasn’t there, so it was kind of a little more stress off me, less worries.”

Uhhmmm, it sort of seems like Wiggins was saying he likes playing for associate head coach George Blaney more than Calhoun.

Wiggins has since talked with Calhoun about the comments and the two can now laugh about it.

“His heart’s in the right place,” Calhoun said Wednesday.

Calhoun said he reminded Wiggins who was in charge when Wiggins scored 20 against West Virginia last year.

“You had 20 points in your first Big East game,” Calhoun cracked. “Who was coaching you that day? I forgot.”

Wiggins now says his new mentality has little to do with who is coaching him. “I really got the concept of just going out there and playing ball.”

Because of the connection, however, Calhoun said he may call on Blaney to do the substituting for the rest of the season.

“He said it was a matter of George,” Calhoun said. “That’s fine. I’ll tell George ‘You call his name (to check into the game).’ ”

Calhoun says Wiggins is only guilty of saying what was on his mind, not in his heart. And the coach also had the line of the day when talking about how happy all players are at one time or another:

“There isn’t a kid who hasn’t transferred in his mind,” Calhoun said.

This just in: Power Sauce is amazing!

OK, the real news:

Jim Calhoun isn’t feeling well and won’t be on the court for today’s game, according to the UConn brass (SIDs, not the trumpets in the band).

It’s a similar affliction to the one that forced him to exit the St. John’s game. Apparently, he was feeling terrible Friday night and hasn’t improved.

A couple of items about the UConn football team came across my desk today. And by desk I mean the 1-foot by 1.5-foot balsa wood contraption in my Washington hotel.

– UConn linebacker Danny Lansanah will play in the second annual Texas vs. The Nation college all-star game. It will be played Feb. 2 at 5 p.m. in El Paso, Texas. It’s going to be on CSTV, too. Lansanah will play for coach Buddy Ryan the former Bears assistant and Eagles head coach.

– The Meineke Car Care Bowl continues to toot its own horn a bit, which they are certainly entitled to do. The game earned the highest TV rating in its history, getting a 3.74 rating on ESPN. The 2006 game between BC and Navy drew a 3.56.

“We are delighted to reach a new milestone for the Meineke Car Care Bowl,” Will Webb, the bowl’s executive director said in a statement. “This bowl game has grown exponentially over the past six years and we have exceeded expectations time and again. Our continuing goal is to make the Meineke Car Care Bowl one of the most enjoyable experiences for the teams, sponsors, fans in the stadium and at home, and everyone involved in the Charlotte community.”

– CB Tyvon Branch and OG Donald Thomas will be in the Hula Bowl Saturday in Honolulu. It’s on Versus (that’s the NHL, Tour de France channel, I think) at 6 p.m. Branch and Thomas will be on the East side.

By the way, contrary to popular theory, sportswriters don’t root for the team they cover (if they’re worth anything). But now that Thomas has left UConn, I think I might have permission from the journalism gods to root for him a little. He really seems like a good guy when I’ve dealt with him and he’s made himself into an NFL prospect after sort of stumbling onto the roster nearly five years ago.

That isn’t to say guys like Branch, Lansanah, Dan Davis _ another media favorite for his bravado, his opinions and his playful attempts at intimidation (I’ve never backed down from him, I swear) _ and the rest of the departing Huskies don’t deserve support from fans. But me? I’ll have to get permission on a case-by-case basis.

UConn beat St. John’s 81-65 Tuesday, not that head coach Jim Calhoun was around to see the finish.
For the 18th time in his illustrious career, Calhoun missed part of a Husky game. The UConn brass said the coach was dehydrated, stressed, tired and light-headed.
Usually when he exits stage left early, Calhoun likes to start his postgame press conferences with “I guess I shouldn’t have had the fish.”
It’s an old line, but I was looking forward to hearing it again. Alas, the assembled scribes and talking heads were not graced with Calhoun’s presence after the game. Associate head coach George Blaney filled in admirably and eloquently, however, and offered up a few thoughts.
The most impressive stat of the night was Jerome Dyson’s nine steals.
“One of the hardest things to do in basketball is to steal the basketball,” Blaney said. “That’s probably one thing you can’t teach. He’s remarkable at doing that.
“Nine is an incredible number. Three is a pretty big number,” Blaney said.
St. John’s coach Norm Roberts wasn’t as impressed with his team’s ball handling.
“Even though when you look at the stats they had 14 turnovers and we had 17, our turnovers led to points,” Roberts said.
It was the age, not the mileage that Roberts pointed to.
“We played really young tonight,” Roberts said. “We played like a young team.”

I’ve officially joined the 21st century, not to mention every pimply-faced teen-ager that walks by my house with his pants around his knees and his eyes on my wife.

I have a blog!

Let me give you an idea what my goal with this space is: provide some of the best, up-to-the-minute information on the UConn men’s basketball and football teams _ plus, some of the worst, out-of-date pop culture references you can imagine.

I’ll try and steer clear of giving you stories about travel delays but I make no promises if US Air loses my luggage with the lucky blue shirt.

For starters, we have some ho-hum news from basketball practice Monday.

* Coach Jim Calhoun missed the workout Monday evening to attend the funeral of a family member.

* Associate head coach George Blaney, filling in for Calhoun and meeting with the media, says the Huskies are starting to “get it.”
“It’s always a question of when a team gets it. That’s the thing we’re all searching for with each team: how do you get your team to get it?” Blaney said. “This team, I think, is starting to get it.”

* Guard Jerome Dyson missed most of Monday’s practice because of back spasms. It’s only the latest of the sophomore’s scrapes and he’s expected to play.
“I always expect Jerome to be fine,” Blaney said. “I asked him if he needed an ambulance to go home tonight but I expect him to be ready.”
Dyson fell hard at Notre Dame _ I know, he’s always doing that _ and appeared to hurt his left wrist. After, however, he said he’s fine.
“He’s such a tough kid that even when he’s hurt, he’s going to play full out and give you the kind of effort you want,” Blaney said. “It’s kind of been a constant all year. He’s had a little bit of back spasms. It’s one of about six or seven different injuries that he’s played with all year.”