Connecticut Huskies Team Preview
by Robby Maddux
March Madness basketball online, Connecticut finished the season on a dismal 1-6 ATS stumble.
But let's not forget, the Huskies were twice ranked No.1 nationally (spending four weeks at the top of the AP poll), had winning streaks of 13 and 11 games, were 13-2 on the road, have an impressive out-of-conference resume and been ranked in the Top 5 all season. They had 14-2 (2-9 ATS) record at home, were 8-1 (6-3 ATS) on the road are 4-1 in neutral-site contests
Three of the four Huskies defeats have come in the past seven games, after losing starting guard Jerome Dyson for the rest of the season with a knee injury. Most of the players on this year's squad have never won a postseason game. Connecticut is 0-5 since beating Washington 98-92 in overtime in the 2006 regional semifinals.
It's clear the Huskies have struggled since Dyson went down. To improvise for his absence, A.J. Price has become more of a factor as a scoring threat and Kemba Walker has been a spark, but the team lacks perimeter options. Freshman Scottie Haralson has been called on for an offensive lift and he must respond.
Once the ball is tossed up to begin the madness, coach Jim Calhoun will likely play it by feel and whoever looks better in a given situation or has the hot hand will be seen on the floor. Calhoun isn't particularly overly concerned about playing time - compared to other coaches - nor does he hesitate to adjust on the fly, which he'll be forced to do throughout the tournament minus Dyson.
Calhoun is 28-16 in the tournament. The Huskies will open play on Thursday, March 19 against No. 16 seed Chattanooga (23-10 SU, 13-17-0 ATS) at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pa.
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—Huskies are 0-7 ATS in their last 7 NCAA Tournament games.
—Huskies are 2-8 ATS in their last 10 games as a favorite of 13.0 or greater.
—Huskies are 7-19 ATS in their last 26 neutral site games.
—Mocs are 2-6 ATS in their last 8 non-conference games.
—Mocs are 7-15 ATS in their last 22 games as an underdog.
—Mocs are 2-6 ATS in their last 8 games overall.
