Huskies' roller-coaster ride continues in NYC

"Never a Dull Moment" would be an appropriate title for a book about UConn's rocky, drama-filled regular season.

From coach Jim Calhoun missing seven games due to medical leave of absence, to thrilling wins over nationally ranked Texas, Villanova and West Virginia, to dismal efforts in crucial losses down the stretch, the unpredictable and wildly inconsistent Huskies have given their fans something to talk - or swear - about.

Now they're looking to write a thrilling ending in this week's Big East Conference tournament in New York, starting with today's first-round game against No. 13 St. John's (16-14) at approximately 2:30 p.m. at Madison Square Garden.

"We wrote our script for the season," Calhoun said. "It certainly is not an acclaimed novel by any stretch of the imagination, but it's a script that we've written. There's been some terrific wins and some terrific efforts. There's been some really not-so-good basketball and not-so-good efforts by us.

"Starting (Tuesday), a new season starts. … People in the past have changed their season around, so we have that opportunity."

What a turnaround it would be for the 12th-seeded Huskies (17-14), who ended the regular season with three straight losses to fall out of contention for an NCAA tournament bid. They've also lost five straight Big East tournament games dating back to 2005. That's a major drought for a program with six conference tournament titles.

This is the last chance for seniors Jerome Dyson, Stanley Robinson and Gavin Edwards to win a conference tournament game.

"I definitely thought about it," Edwards said. "We're definitely ready to make a good run in the tournament and see what we can do."

UConn's seniors have recovered from their benching for the final 16 minutes of Saturday's loss at South Florida. According to Calhoun, the Huskies showed a sharper focus and increased intensity in the last two days of practice. He declined to disclose his starting lineup.

Edwards has seen a difference, too.

"The team has been a lot more focused than it has been in a long time," Edwards said. "Coach has really gotten rid of any nonsense that has gone on before. Everything is strictly basketball and strictly things that we need to be doing."

The outcome today will likely be determined by effort and determination. A lack of intensity is the last thing that the Huskies can afford against a St. John's team that's rarely outworked.

"They play hard all the time," Calhoun said. "And we're certainly going to have to at least match that. It's a 40-minute season. As soon as you don't play well in 40 minutes or somebody plays better than you, you go home. … I don't want to go home early."

UConn easily handled St. John's, 75-59, on Jan. 20 in Hartford. The Red Storm will likely be without second-leading scorer Dwight Hardy, who missed the last game with a sprained left knee.

Still, the Huskies couldn't beat Notre Dame without leading scorer Luke Harangody.

"If I ever could figure this team out, then I probably wouldn't be losing my mind," Calhoun said.

Calhoun is sure of at least one thing: UConn has to play together and receive strong performances from its seniors to make a run deep in the tournament. Today's winner earns a Wednesday afternoon meeting with No. 5 Marquette.

"At this point, it's do or die," sophomore Kemba Walker said. "We've got to win some games in this tournament. Right now our main focus is to win the whole tournament. We want to take it one game at a time. I'm sure everybody is on the same track and knows what it takes to win the tournament.

"We know that if we put it all together we can be a good team and come out with victories. We've got to play hard and everything will fall into place for us."