SUPER BOWL 2012

When he crumpled to the floor after diving for a loose ball with 14 minutes, 19 seconds left in Saturday’s game, Andre Drummond thought he had broken his right ankle.

“It was hurting like crazy,” he recalled.

So were UConn’s chances of pulling off an upset of No. 2 Syracuse at the Carrier Dome.

Drummond was helped off the floor by trainer James Doran and reserve Enosch Wolf and eventually taken back to the UConn locker room, with the Huskies trailing by five.

By the time he emerged a short while later, UConn’s deficit was nine with about 9 ½ minutes to go. More importantly, however, Drummond re-entered the game and, though playing with a noticeable limp and going scoreless the rest of the way, appears to have avoided any major injury.

“It’s a little sore, but I’m not gonna stress out,” the 6-foot-10 freshman center said after UConn’s 85-67 loss to the Orange. “I’m gonna get back to school and take care of it.”

Added associate head coach George Blaney: “I hope it’s not serious, and I hope that it wasn’t the difference (in the game), but it certainly would have been nice to have him that stretch when he was out.”

Indeed, after a poor first half, Drummond came out in the latter and established himself as a major presence down low. He scored eight of the Huskies’ first 10 points on a variety of dunks, spin moves even a couple of free throws. It all came about after some impassioned advice from the coaching staff at halftime.

“We talked about attacking the rim,” Blaney reported. “Andre’s been kind of reluctant to attack the rim. The first half, he put up a couple of soft shots. We started screaming at him, ‘You’ve got to go two-handed, full-force, and rip it down.’ He was much, much better the second half.”

Drummond wound up with 13 pints and a team-high seven rebounds, but was disappointed his injury prevented him from more.

"It’s frustrating,” he admitted. “I was just getting it going, too. We could have had this game. It really killed everything. We had the momentum going, and it slowed us down a little bit.”

Blaney was happy with Drummond’s toughness in returning to the game despite the injury.

“I love that part about him. What’s interesting about his character is that he’s learning. He’s never had to compete before, he’s always been the biggest, strongest, most natural athlete in any game he’s ever been in. Now he’s learning how to compete at this level. You have to do things: take peoples’ legs out, run the court, finish strong at the rim, get people off you so you two-handed dunk rather than one-handed dunk. He’s picking it up and getting better and better as we go along.”

*** Jeremy Lamb led UConn with 18 points but was just 2-for-10 on 3-pointers and, too often, seemed to pas up on open shots.

“I would have liked to have Jeremy a little bit more ready to pull the trigger,” Blaney said. “I think he passed up probably four or five shots. I don’t think he thinks he’s shooting the ball well, and so I think he’s passing up to try to get a better shot. I don’t care, I want him shooting open shots. I don’t care whether he makes them or doesn’t, at this stage, I want him shooting open shots.”

Lamb has now made just 7 of 33 3-pointers (21 percent) over his last four games.

“I’m not hesitant,” he insisted, “it’s just sometimes, I try to move the ball a little too much. I don’t want to take quick shots, that’s what their defense is predicated on. There were probably a couple of shots I could have taken that I didn’t realize I had, but I’ve just got to realize that.”

*** Jim Calhoun missed his third straight game with spinal stenosis, and his return to the sidelines still is in question.

“He’s still in a lot of pain,” said Blaney. “He’s been talking to doctors in New York, Boston and at UConn. The problem with backs is that there are all different supposed solutions, and you have to pick the right one at the right time. That’s what he’s trying to decide. His brother, the heart surgeon, is kind of monitoring everything, and I think they’ll come to some kind of decision shortly.”

Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim said he talked to Blaney about Calhoun before the game.

“You can’t get out of bed, you can’t coach,” Boeheim shrugged. “It’s obvious he’s one of the great coaches of all time. If he’s not there, it makes a difference.”

*** Shabazz Napier had 11 points and seven assists for UConn.

“Probably, as far as leadership was concerned, it was the best Shabazz has been since he’s been with us," said Blaney. "I thought he kept us all together and pushed the ball great.”

*** UConn's probable exclusion from the 2013 NCAA tournament doesn't appear to be weighing on the players' minds

“I don’t even think anybody on this team knew about that," said Ryan Boatright. "At least I had no idea until you just told me. We’ve got this year right now. This is the year we’ve got to worry about. We need to concentrate on getting wins and turning the season around.”

Drummond was asked if the penalty might figure in his decision on whether or not to turn pro after this season.

"Honestly, I don’t know," he said. "I’m focusing on this season. I’m not going to focus on what’s happening next season. We’re right here and now, playing for a national championship. I don’t care what’s going to happen next year.”

Greeetings from Knoxville, where tomorrow's UConn-Tennessee game will unfold. Hotel's right next door to the Women's College Basketball Hall of Fame.

In that vein, UConn will be supporting Tennessee's Hall of Fame women's coach Pat Summitt tomorrow by sporting "Back Pat" t-shirts during pregame warm-ups. The t-shirts will read: "I Bleed Blue and White, But Wear Purple to Back Pat."

Summitt, of course, went public with her diagnosis of dementia in late August and has formed a foundation in support of Alzheimer's programs.

“We’re more than happy to support Pat Summitt, whom I’ve been friendly with for a long period of time," Jim Calhoun said.

In other news:

*** Nothing new on Ryan Boatright, who didn't make the trip.

“Obviously we’ll miss him," Calhoun said. "We certainly could use Ryan, but we’ve really pushed Brendan (Allen).”

With that in mind, Calhoun got a kick the other day out of one of the rare e-mails he reads.

“I don’t see many e-mails because I don’t necessarily have a place you can get to me, but I did see one (which said) we should have taken Shabazz out when we got the lead for a little bit of rest," the coach said. "I felt like writing back, ‘You mean, so he could make three 3-pointers in a row from, like, 25 feet with 1:28 to go in the game, because he was so fatigued?’”

Enosch Wolf isn't here, either. He had to take two exams that he missed earlier while suffering from a concussion, but the second exam has yet to be posted, so he was left behind in Storrs.

*** Niels Giffey is back in the starting lineup, replacing DeAndre Daniels.

*** Jeremy Lamb is 3-for-19 on 3-pointers the last four games, and his patented floater so prevalent in last year's title run has been MIA.


Said Calhoun: “Jeremy’s just got to shake out of this, move quicker, come off screens better … They’re gapping him so he can’t drive, they’re muscling him low and on top of screens so he can’t quite get free. He’s got to find a way to get free.”

*** Michael Bradley won't play tomorrow (and maybe the rest of the season), but he'll have about a good amount of fans cheering him and UConn on.

Bradley spent much of his childhood at the Tennessee Baptist Children's Home, about 90 miles down the road in Chattanooga. Lynn Jordan, one of the home's organizers who has developed a close bond with Bradley over the years, will bring about 40 kids currently living at the home to see the game. The tickets were donated to the children's home by a couple from the Knoxville area.

"A lot of our churches around the area do things for us at Christmas," Jordan explained. "Several churches have met Michael and knew him when he was living here. They've kept track of him."

Most of the kids have never met Bradley, but are aware of his story. There is a plaque in Bradley's honor inside the home's gym, and the cottage he lived in still has his picture in it.

Jordan said she was happy that Bradley wound up not having to surrendering his scholarship so that Andre Drummond could play at UConn, but didn't offer any details.

"I think just it worked out that he didn't have to," she said.

Calhoun said Bradley (who fractured his ankle back in the fall) is still noticeably limping in practice.

“There’s a chance that ankle won’t be better for a year," Calhoun said. "He really had extensive surgery, he was out an incredibly long time, so there’s a chance he may not get into a game this year.”

*** UConn is 1-1 all-time against Tennessee, beating the Vols last season at Gampel, 72-61, in a game where Bruce Pearl emerged from his 8-game SEC suspension to coach the non-conference tilt. Pearl, of course, was fired after the season. His opinion is still highly valued by a local sports talk radio show, though (he's a regular guest, apparently).

The Vols are now coached by former Cuonzo Martin, who was heavily recruited by Calhoun in the early-1990's. Martin's final two choices, in fact, came down to Purdue and UConn.

*** This is the second time Tennessee has faced UConn with the Huskies as defending national champs. In a second-round NCAA tournament game on March 19, 2000, the Vols posted a 65-51 win in Birmingham, Ala. Khalid El-Amin was bothered by an ankle injury and held to just one basket.

*** Lucky 13? Tennessee's big home upset over Florida two weeks ago came when the Gators were ranked 13th nationally, as the Huskies are (for now).

*** One more note on Tennessee: I tuned into the Classic Rock radio station on the drive from Nashville to Knoxville (don't ask). Most of the standard fare: Zeppelin, Springsteen, etc., etc. Then came Black Oak Arkansas, a heavy-handed Southern rock band that (I think) was pretty big in the early 70's. You certainly don't hear them on the radio anymore, at last north of the Mason Dixon line.

Their front man was a wild guy named Jim Dandy, whom David Lee Roth has admitted to nicking parts of his act. Roth took it to a much higher, more entertaining level, of course. Unfortunately, Roth's voice now sounds like what Dandy's used to sound like.

And if you don't believe DLR took part of his act from Jim Dandy, watch Black Oak Arkansas's "Jim Dandy to the Rescue.", then watch Van Halen's "So This is Love."

Kemba Walker's mom, Andrea, is at Gampel tonight, sporting here UConn, No. 15 jersey. Maybe that's not entirely surprising, as she's from New York (though now lives in Charlotte with Kemba).

"I'm a UConn fan for life!" she said.

What was more surprising was seeing Andrea at the Notre Dame game in South Bend on Saturday -- even though Kemba's Bobcats were hosting Golden State that night.

No fear -- Andrea flew out of South Bend after the 11 a.m. game and made it to Charlotte to cheer on her son, who she says is doing well and enjoying NBA life.

Perhaps we'll be able to ask him about it later -- Kemba is expected to be at tonight's game, as well.

Elsewhere:

*** Nothing new on Ryan Boatright to this point, though his Tweet about an hour ago was interesting: Lets get this W tonight Fellas. I hope i get dis leash of my neck soon and be back down. #FreeBoat

Both Boatright and Enosch Wolf are in civvies on the bench right now.

*** There are nine NBA scouts/GM's credentialed for tonight's game, including Danny Ferry of the Cavs.

Despite his in-game histrionics, Jim Calhoun is usually pretty reserved during practices. Not today.

Calhoun, quite simply, was as vocal and animated as I've ever seen him in a practice in my five years on the UConn beat. The F-bombs flowed like wine, and while he was as hands-on and engaged as I've ever seen him in terms of individual instruction, he was equally as critical.

At times, the team's effort was questioned, it's "softness" pointed out. At other times, poor execution was the focus.

No one was spared -- not even little-used Michael Bradley and Enosch Wolf, the latter of whom Calhoun chastised for essentially getting the perks of traveling with and being on the team while hurting the team in practice.

“Why would I come out dead-ass, if I expect them to respond?” Calhoun asked, rhetorically. “Life’s all about getting up in the morning,” Calhoun said afterwards. “Hopefully it’s a good morning … other times you get knocked on your ass. It’s now how you get knocked on your ass, it’s how you get up and what you do after that. We got knocked on our ass the last couple of games a little bit, and we’ve got to get back on.”

And then, the strangest thing happened. When the 90-minute practice was over, Calhoun seemed happy with the team's overall effort.

“I thought they worked incredibly hard today … we really went hard," he said. "Today it was very good, effort-wise."

But Coach, what about all those F-bombs and ... ah, never mind.

Was today the worst Andre Drummond has seen Calhoun in his brief UConn career? No.

“I’ve been to games before, I’ve seen worse," Drummond said. "He wants to win, you can’t blame him. Who doesn’t like to win?

*** Ryan Boatright won't find it awkward tomorrow night playing against West Virginia, the school from which he de-committed.


“I don’t even think about it, especially coming off two losses," he said. "Just thinking about winning, I don’t even think about that stuff.”

Boatright committed to the Mountaineers, but a few days later fellow point guard Jabarie Hinds did, as well, miffing Boatright and his family. Boatright re-opened his recruitement and soon settled on UConn.

He said he doesn't know Hinds and hasn't talked to him about it.

“It’s in the past," Boatright said. "I’m where I want to be, it’s just the way it went. I’m here. I’m where I wanted to be the whole time. It worked out best for both parties.”

*** Jeremy Lamb is finding that being a preseason first team All-American leads to special attention by opponents. Lamb seems to be getting grabbed and bumped a lot during games to keep him from getting the ball, but Jim Calhoun says he must adjust to it,“because I can guarantee the officials aren’t going to adjust to us.”

*** Niels Giffey gets another start despite going scoreless in 22 minutes vs. Rutgers. Roscoe Smith continues to struggle for playing time as Calhoun searches for a position for him. The coach would like Smith to play more at power forward.

*** Shabazz Napier is still banged up. He practiced Sunday and participated in most drills (though was on the stationary bike at times, as well), but had to be helped back to the locker room by trainer James Doran when practice was over.

*** Drummond was asked how the bus ride home from Pisacataway was last night.

“You heard a lot of crickets," he said. "You couldn’t really hear any talking at all. Everybody was pretty quiet.”

Andre Drummond is 6-foot-10 (or 6-foot-11), 277 pounds, so you think he wouldn't ever be intimidated, no matter how many people are surrounding him.

But put him and two other guys in a Women's Studies class, surrounded by about 30 women, and Drummond gets a bit uncomfortable.

"It kinda feels like your being bashed all day by a bunch of females," Drummond said on Thursday. Jokingly. We think.

Education was the talk of the day at practice as the Huskies get ready to finish up their exams. All players will be done with their exams Friday at 1 p.m. and will hit Gampel for practice at 3:30 p.m. for a solid, two-hour practice.

Drummond said he takes his academics seriously and knows he can't take the practice floor until his course work is done. His final exam on Friday will be in Drama.

Sounds like he has to deal with enough drama in that Women's Studies class.

A few other brief notes from UConn's short (one-hour) practice today:

*** Michael Bradley is still not participating in fullcourt drills because he "can't really run," according to Jim Calhoun. It'll probably be another couple of weeks before Bradley can start running fullcourt, according to the coach.

*** Enosch Wolf suffered a concussion in practice Wednesday, wasn't at practice today and will be out "a couple of days," Calhoun said.

*** Calhoun said he's trying to get DeAndre Daniels back into the mix, and that Roscoe Smith will be seeing time at the 4 over the next few games. Walk-on Brandon Allen is getting a closer look, too, "because of anything that coule possibly happen."

Daniels was working, one-on-one, with assistant Kevin Ollie on his ballhandling skills after practice. Daniels worked on dribbling two balls simultaneously with both hands, ostensibely to improve his handle from both the left and the right.

*** Here's Jeremy Lamb, talking about going up against Rudy Gay, one-on-one, recently in practice:

*** Calhoun acknowledged what everybody already knows -- that he won't be on the sidelines for UConn's first three Big East games, beginning Dec. 28 at South Florida.

“There will be a different guy driving the trolley. It won’t be me, for (three) games," he said.

Calhoun said he won't start talking about the situation to the team until next week, a day or two before UConn's Dec. 22 bout with Fairfield.

It's going to sound like Andre Drummond was making excuses about his UConn debut Friday night, in which he went scoreless in 12 minutes of action.

“That never happened to me before," he said. "Ever."

Drummond said playing with a facemask on bothered him a bit, as did the tendonitis that had him icing his left knee after the game. Not starting also affected him, he said.

“I’m not used to coming off the bench," he said. "That’s one of things I have to get over and get used to doing. I think that’s what’s really throwing me off, too. But it doesn’t really matter … it matters how I perform in the game.”

Indeed, Drummond was probably just a little frustrated that his much-ballyhooed debut didn't go very well, individually. But he seemed ready to put it behind him and get better for Monday against Wagner.

“Everybody has their off days," he added. "I’ve just got to come back tomorrow, have a great practice, have another great practice on Sunday and come out on Monday and play again.”

Tyler Olander said he saw from Drummond "a first college game against a D-I team. I know Andre’s going to respond very well. He knows what to expect now.”

Shabazz Napier offered him some consoling advice afterwards.

“I told him, ‘Don’t allow coach to drill your mistakes in your head. You made a mistake, make up for it.’”

*** Calhoun was peeved at all his bigs (except Olander) after UConn barely outrebounded Columbia 43-41 and allowed 20 offensive boards.

"They outworked us. We don’t have anyone in the frontcourt ready to play right now, except for Tyler, who understands the game of basketball.

“I told Enosch (Wolf), ‘You haven’t done much, but it’s a good time for you to do something right now.’”

Said Olander: “We were getting pushed under the rim a little bit, which shouldn’t happen. The other team worked hard, and we (the frontcourt) kind of failed to respond.”

*** Alex Oriakhi was a virtual no-show, with two points and five boards. He was also a no-show for the postgame press availability, a rarity for him.

*** Fortunately for UConn, Jeremy Lamb and Napier showed up, combining for 51 of the team's 70 points (Lamb's 30 was a career-high).

Columbia coach Kyle Smith said of Lamb: "Here's how good he is: I had no idea he had 30. The game is very easy for him."

Smith also said Napier can do everything. "He's got a little Chris Paul, (with the) floperoos."

*** Calhoun's most telling quote: “I’m looking to the next game – the game where Shabazz has four fouls, the game when Jeremy’s shot doesn’t go. Then what happens?”

*** The coach seems to be getting a bit annoyed by the Ryan Boatright and Niels Giffey situations.

On Boatright: “I’ve not been informed of anything. That’s not unexpected.”

And on Giffey's return: “You’ll have to ask Niels. He says his ankle’s sore.”

he’s capable of, by any means. He’s not going to let that happen again.”

A fairly typical exhibition opener for UConn. Some sloppiness, some poor play -- particularly in the first half -- but overall plenty of positives, as well. Here's my game story.

We'll start with who didn't play, either at all or in the first half. Ryan Boatright is being held out as UConn and the NCAA explore his eligibility, and Jim Calhoun had little to say about the matter after the game.

“I watched Bill Belichick today, and I really enjoyed it," said the coach. "I loved his answers: ‘Nope,’ ‘Yup.’”

He did add, however: “There’s probably 35-40 kids right now probably in similar situations (as Boatright).”

Roscoe Smith sat on the bench the entire first half, even as walk-ons and Enosch Wolf got some run. According to Calhoun, it was a disciplinary measure for violating "a commitment he had with us … no big deal … No more will come of it. It’s finished.”

OK, now on to who did play both halves. Andre Drummond appeared a bit uncomfortable early on, no doubt a combination of playing with a face mask and playing in his first collegiate game (or exhibition game, as it were).

But after missing his first three shots from close range, and picking up his third foul early in the latter half, Drummond started to settle in. He finished with 10 points and four boards and gave himself a "C-plus" for his efforts.

"I'll go with an 'F' for the first half," he added.

“I think he struggled a lot with the mask on," Calhoun said. "I don’t think he expected to. How do you ever know if a kid struggles because of the fact that it’s his first game … He doesn’t have any idea how great he’s going to be some day. You saw some slight things. When he has a layup, it’s not just a layup.”

Indeed, Drummond had a few rafter-shaking dunks.

*** Shabazz Napier also overcame a slow start (0-for-6) and finished with nine points, seven rebounds and a whopping 15 assists. Oh, and no turnovers.

"Fifteen to '0' was nice, but the '0' was because he wasn't doing anything in the first half," Calhoun said. "How can you have a turnover when you're not doing anything? But in the second half, he got us going."

*** Calhoun was most pleased with the play of Tyler Olander, who had nine points and nine boards and, along with Napier, was the team's best overall player, per the coach.

"He was always fundamentally sound, has a good feel for the game," Calhoun said. "But he blocked four shots – I don’t know how many he blocked last year, if he blocked 10 I’d be surprised – and he looked like he knew exactly where he should be, defensively and offensively. Happily, the things that we see in practice translated over into an exhibition game.”

In fact, Olander had just seven blocks last season.

“He would have been good playing against most anybody tonight," Calhoun added.

Said Olander: “I’m just a lot more aggressive attacking rebounds, not shying away when I get the ball in the post. I’m more confident in my moves down there.”

*** In his debut, DeAndre Daniels had 10 points and four boards. However, he earned a quick hook from Calhoun after hitting a 3-pointer and giving the "Monocle" sign to the student section.

“He can do that if we’re in New Orleans playing for the national championship," said Calhoun. "But playing a Division 2 team, up 35 points … and he’s one of the great kids in this program, one of the nicest kids. It’s atypical. I don’t think you’ll see that move again.”

Said Daniels: “Coach was right, I was wrong for doing that. I was just kind of in the moment. I learn from my mistakes.”

*** Calhoun wasn't happy with the play of Alex Oriakhi (13 points, eight boards)

Looks like Andre Drummond may make his debut in a UConn uniform Wednesday night after all.

Drummond, who suffered a mild concussion and broken nose in practice on Friday, has been participating in non-contact drills. He was fitted for a mask and will try it on before the exhibition opener with AIC. If he feels comfortable with it on during UConn's 2:30 p.m. shootaround, he'll likely see some time -- though he won't be in the starting lineup.

Jim Calhoun said tomorrow's starting five will likely be Jeremy Lamb (who has clearly emerged as the team's leader, per the coach), Shabazz Napier (who has shown improvement in practice over the past few days), Alex Oriakhi, freshman DeAndre Daniels and Tyler Olander (who's been "our best overall big guy," according to Calhoun).

Here's my advance on the exhibition opener. A few other notes and quotes from today's availability:

*** Impressive walk-on Brendan Allen should see some significant playing time on Wednesday.

*** Calhoun feels very good about the team's man-to-man defense. The fast break has been better, too, now that Napier has been playing better.

*** Napier said he's been dealing with a sprained left ankle and a left knee injury, but is healthy now.

*** Kemba Walker and Kevin Ollie were complaining about not getting calls during scrimmages in practice. Ollie, apparently, even lobbied for a three-second violation.

"There has never been a call for the gray team," Calhoun said, "and there never will be."

*** When asked about Tony LaRussa's decision to retire as a world champion, Calhoun said, "Smart man." But he went on to stress how he has no desire to retire right now from a job he loves so much.

*** Jeremy Lamb apparently doesn't read his own press clippings. When asked how he felt about being named an AP Preseason First Team All-American, Lamb responded: “I think I heard about it yesterday. I can’t say it’s surprising, but I guess it’s a good accomplishment.”

*** Calhoun scored 27 points for AIC in a game at UConn on Dec. 1, 1964. His most memorable stat from that game?

"Eight stitches from Toby Kimball."

Indeed, Kimball tore down 28 rebounds that night, to go with 30 points in a 98-67 Husky win.

*** Enosch Wolf (right groin) has returned to practice and will be in uniform tomorrow night.

The big news in practice today was Andre Drummond, who suffered a broken nose and mild concussion after a collision with new walk-on Brendan Allen. He'll be fitted for a mask on Monday and wear it for 6-8 weeks.

Drummond checked into the school infirmary on Friday and will stay overnight as a precaution. Seems highly doubtful he'll play in Wednesday's exhibition with AIC.

“We will not rush to have Andre for Wednesday or any target date,” said Jim Calhoun. “We want him ready for the whole year, that's what's important. To rush him back for an exhibition makes no sense if it sets him back. We need him long term more than just Wednesday.”

*** Meanwhile, with Michael Bradley sidelined until at least December with a fractured ankle, and Enosch Wolf now out at least a week with a strained right groin, UConn is woefully thin at the big man position.

But that's the least of their problems right now, according to Calhoun.

“I’m really concerned with our offense," Calhoun said. "We’re turning the ball over, not shooting well. The past few days we’ve shot 39 percent, we’re not making 3’s. Defensively, I actually think we look pretty good … (but) we don’t have an offensive leader.”

He said Jeremy Lamb, Drummond and Alex Oriakhi have been assertive offensively. Beyond that, not so much.

Calhoun seems particularly peeved at Shabazz Napier, who's "not playing particularly well, either emotionally or otherwise," and was replaced in the starting lineup on Friday by frosh Ryan Boatright.

Oriakhi agreed that Napier could be playing better right now.

“I think it’s kind of hard to ask so much from a sophomore, but that’s the role that’s been given to him," Oriakhi said. "They wouldn’t have asked that of him if he wasn’t able to do it. I just think he needs to slow down a little bit. He’s definitely been hitting shots and playing great defense, but he needs to slow down, take his time and be a little patient – especially with the big men, because his passes are hard to catch, and my hands aren’t the best. I tell him he’s got to be patient with me sometimes.”

*** Oh, and don't be mad at Allen, the Windsor resident who played at Windsor High and Bridgeton Academy. He looks athletic and impressive and has seen some time at point guard in practice, even though, "he's not a point guard, but we try to get him into that in case we have injuries," according to Calhoun. "By nature, he’s a very fun, explosive athlete to watch. But he’s not necessarily a structured guy. He probably came to the right place, as opposed to a Princeton-type offense. I don’t think he’d fit in a Princeton-type offense, suffice to say.”

*** My own personal observation from today's practice: frosh DeAndre Daniels boasts a feather-soft shooting touch.

“Every night I’m here around 9 p.m. to try to make my shot better," Daniels said. "I work on it every day.”

He figures he'll be playing the 2 and 3 this year, though with all the frontcourt injuries, expect him to see time at the 4, as well.

Daniels, a southern California native who went to school in Florida last year, frollicked in Thursday night's snow, making snowballs and thoroughly enjoying the experience.

“Enjoy it now," his teammates told him, "because you’re going to hate it in January.”

*** Calhoun referenced West Virginia's move to the Big 12 on Friday.

“Who won that wrestling contest today?" he asked.

"West Virginia," he was told.

“OK, good. I thought they might be able to pin (Louisville) in the third round.”

*** As for the APR stuff, we'll just go to the videotape. It's Jim Calhoun at either his best or, depending on your vantage point, his worst. I might side with the latter:

Here are the times of UConn players for this year's Husky Run:

1. DeAndre Daniels – 19:32
2. Niels Giffey- 19:45
3. Ethan Waite- 20:01
4. Tyler Olander- 22:24
5. Ryan Boatright- 23:13
6. Jeremy Lamb- 23:54
7. Enosch Wolf- 24:05
8. P.J. Cochrane- 25:31
9. Ben Stewart- 25:32
10. Roscoe Smith- 27:05
11. Alex Oriakhi- 29:32
12. Shabazz Napier- 29:56
13. Andre Drummond- 29:59

Southington's Jim Rosenberger, a senior, won the race for the third straight year. His time was 17:20.

Said Daniels on his running ability: “In practice, when we run cemetery hill on Saturday, and when we’re playing pick-up, I’m always running and beating everybody down the floor.”

Jim Calhoun noted that past players have been known to take some ... ahem ... shortcuts around the 3.4-mile course.

"Khalid El-Amin had his own unique method. I think there was a bus going around campus that Khalid took, and then got dropped off here at the front."

Freshman Andre Drummond has been admitted to the University of Connecticut and is listed on the roster as a member of the men’s basketball team.



The roster is available on line at: http://www.uconnhuskies.com/sports/m-baskbl/mtt/conn-m-baskbl-mtt.html



Drummond will wear No. 15 this season -- the number that was worn last year by Kemba Walker and "retired" onto the Huskies Wall of Fame back in April.



No word yet on how UConn has found a scholarship for Drummond. Michael Bradley, Enosch Wolf and Niels Giffey are all on the Huskies' roster, as well. UConn had talked to Bradley about possibly giving up his scholarship, and some reports noted that having Wolf or Giffey leave the program was a possibility, as well.

Maybe you've heard the news already: in between a pair of natural disasters (earthquake and hurricane), UConn got some earth-shaking news when Andre Drummond announced, via Twitter, that he has committed to the Huskies.



Here's the story from today's Register.



An amazing turn of events, really. While some have suggested all along that Drummond has always been in play for UConn this upcoming season, it sure seemed a long shot as classes in Storrs were set to begin in a few days. Not to mention the fact that the Huskies' scholarship allotment for this season is already used up.



Which leads us to a very intriguing question: Just how will UConn find a way to get Drummond on the team? A no-brainer, you say? Just nudge one of the current guys off the squad. Send Enosch Wolf back to Germany or tell Niels Giffey to stay over there. Tell Michael Bradley, a redshirt last year, that he'll see no playing time this season with Drummond in the fold and might as well find greener pastures elsewhere.



Nonsense. I have zero information what the Huskies plan to do (people inside the program aren't commenting even off-the-record about Drummond; information they didn't want becoming public has already leaked out). But if a player who was slated to be on the Huskies' roster this season -- indeed, a roster that's been posted on the UConnhuskies.com website for a few weeks already -- suddenly leaves the program, it will be highly suspicious and, quite frankly, totally out of line.



If you made a mistake on a kid, deal with it and take the high road. If you tell him in May that his future with the program doesn't appear filled with playing time, that's one thing. But not on Aug. 27. Not even to make room for perhaps the No. 1 pick in the 2012 NBA draft.



I don't believe that will happen, however. I don't even believe it has crossed the UConn coaching staff's mind. While Drummond & Co. have been typically close-to-the-vest even about this, there are reports that the big man will pay his own way this year. As an in-state kid, his tuition would be somewhat reasonable, and he'd be eligible for student loans, as well. Stanley Robinson qualified for loans while playing as a "walk-on" a couple of years ago.



And, of course, Drummond stands to be more than ready to pay off his tuition a year from now -- provided, of course, the new NBA collective bargaining agreement doesn't up the age of eligibility. If that happens, Drummond can return for another year or two to UConn, where a scholarship will no doubt be available.



But there are no skollies available right now, and I don't want to see any mysteriously open up over the next week or two. I won't believe it was pure coincidence. Not for a moment.

It’s good to be Jim Calhoun these days.

As if being just a few months removed from your third national championship, then getting commitments from a pair of blue-chip recruits, wasn’t enough, Calhoun now has all six of his beloved grandchildren living nearby. His oldest son, James, just moved from California back East to Massachusetts. The whole family, in fact, is heading down to Jamaica for a vacation on Friday.

Before that, however, Calhoun is heading down to Augusta, Ga., tomorrow for the Peach Jam, where many of the nation’s top recruits will be playing (and where the Huskies first laid eyes on an under-the-radar recruit named Jeremy Lamb a couple of years ago).

When Calhoun returns from Jamaica, he’ll be heading to Orlando and Las Vegas for another pair of showcase events. The Huskies have already got one recruit (6-foot-6 – yes, 6-6, not 6-4, as has been commonly reported – Omar Calhoun) and are planning on bringing in two more. UConn hopes to get a scholarship back from APR if it shows it is taking steps towards improving its academic situation, and there’s a strong chance that Lamb (and maybe even Alex Oriakhi) could go pro after this season.

Anyway, here’s a little of what Calhoun had to say about the current state of his program:

On DeAndre Daniels:

“He and ‘Scoe (Roscoe Smith) can play very well together. DeAndre is not quite strong enough to play inside, now, but he’s gonna be a player.”

“He’s much more effective when he’s on the perimeter. He can put it down, pass it and really, really, really shoot it.”

On Lamb’s breakout performance at the U-19 World Championships:

“Couldn’t be prouder. The ball didn’t go in the hole (always). With him, as with other players over the years – particularly kemba – if he didn’t play well, Jeremy would go find a gym and shoot. We talked on the phone twice, and it was bothering him that Coach Hewitt didn’t want him to shoot, he wanted him to rest. If that’s Connecticut, he’d be shooting. But I’m really proud of what he did. They didn’t have a great team, but he had a great, great tournament.”

On how close Lamb came to going pro:

“His family talked about it. I told Rolando (Lamb’s father) it’s a real bad idea. Yes, he would have been a top-25 pick – the earliest I heard, definitely, was the Knicks – but most importantly, he was not ready mentally or physically. He has the chance to be a special player, whether it’s this year, next year, whenever it may be.”

On Niels Giffey:

“Niels played on the (German) 20-and-under team, and his coach Henrick Rodl just elevated him to the senior team. The last month (of summer) could be really great for him.”

On next year’s team:


“We should have a solid, 9-man rotation – maybe 10, maybe 8. We have a lot of good pieces. Roscoe can play the 3 and 4, Tyler can shoot the ball. We’ll probably play a lot the same, but in some ways be a lot different … We’ve got good pieces on the outside, good pieces on the wing, we can play multi-dimensional. I’m worried about our muscle. Tyler is 240 now, Niels or Michael – one of them’s got to emerge, get a little more muscle. I have great confidence in Shabazz, he’s getting more mature, and he’s going to have to carry that into the season. Jeremy can play at the 1, 2 or 3, he played at the 1 in 19-under. Without question, Ryan’s coming in with the ability to pass the ball. He’s quick, and he can certainly score the basketball. We can play Niels at the 2, DeAndre – against zones, in particular – as a 2.”

On another ‘key’ loss, besides Kemba – Charles Okwandu (yes, Charles Okwandu):

“He gave us 15 minutes per game, blocked a shot-and-a-half, he was 260 pounds, a 7-foot wide-body. We don’t want to lose sight of that right now. Alex can be good, and we hope Enosch or Michael does, because I don’t see anybody right now being able to do what Charles did for us.”

On filling the position of director of administration vacated by Glen Miller:

“We hope to have that done within the next week … It involves a former UConn player.”

Calhoun noted that the hope is to essentially bring in two new people, one to work with academics, alumni relations, etc., and the other to concentrate more on compliance and other aspects.

On Kemba Walker:

“He came to school a couple of days ago and hung out with us. Tomorrow, he’ll be honored at the Middlesex Chamber of Commerce in Cromwell. He’s staying here because this is home to him … To get a player that special again would be an awful lot to ask.”