During one painfully hard to watch offensive possession in Thursday's loss to Duke, a frustrated Kevin Ollie slammed his hand against his bench chair.

The possession ended with Daniel Hamilton shooting an air ball while rushing to beat the shot clock.

A sputtering attack contributed to UConn's demise that night and raised the blood pressure of Ollie, UConn's head coach. The Huskies (4-4) have scored under 57 points in three of their four losses.

Now they play a defensive-minded Columbia (6-3), which ranks third in the nation in scoring defense at 53.7 points per game. Game time is 7:30 p.m. at the Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport.

They're in search of a solution to their offensive woes.

"It's the same thing," Ollie said Sunday. "We've just got to push the ball. When we have our spurts, we get out in transition and get easy buckets. We've got to move the basketball and we've got to make shots.

"We're just going to work our way out of it."

Only five players scored against the Blue Devils.

Senior Ryan Boatright and Hamilton are the team's most reliable offensive weapons while sophomore Kentan Facey has emerged as an inside threat, scoring in double figures in consecutive games for the first time in his career.

The Huskies need more consistent help from other regulars in the rotation.

Rodney Purvis and Sam Cassell Jr., who both came to UConn with reputations as scorers, have yet to live up to expectations.

Purvis started to shake off the rust from a year off after transferring from North Carolina State, scoring 19 points in a win over Dayton on Nov. 21, before an ankle injury derailed him. He's shooting just 35.4 percent from the field and averaging 7.3 points

Until his defense improves, Cassell may see more pine-time than prime-time. He played a season-low four minutes against Duke. He's converting an icy 29.8 percent from the field and averaging 6.1 points.

Ollie laid out his expectations for Cassell.

"I'm just looking for Sam to be a great teammate and be available when his name is being called, know our principles on defense," Ollie said. "And when he gets his opportunities on offense, make a play for himself and make a play for his teammates."

Eight games into the season, several Huskies are still adjusting to their new and expanded roles.

Junior center Amida Brimah's offensive game has evolved to the point that he scored a career-high 40 points in a rout of Coppin State Dec. 14. But he's sometimes hampered by foul trouble. He went scoreless against Duke before fouling out.

"Through those tough battles and through those tests, you become stronger," Ollie said. "I know he doesn't have any quit in him. He's going to come out there and perform and play at a high level on Monday."

The search continues for a productive player off the bench.

It's hard to say when Omar Calhoun, who played his first game of the season on Thursday after sitting out with a knee injury, will re-locate his jump shot. Reserve guard Terrence Samuel joined the injury list, spraining his ankle against Duke. He's considered day-to-day.

UConn will try to shake its offensive funk tonight against a stingy defense that frustrated top-ranked Kentucky, which managed just 56 points in a 10-point victory on Dec. 10.

"They're doing a great job defensively…," Ollie said. "Hopefully, we can solve the puzzle against them."

Ollie remembers watching junior guard Maodo Lo play at Wilbraham & Monson during the recruiting process. Lo, a former German national team teammate of Niels Giffey, is the only Lion averaging in double figures, scoring 17.6 per game.

"He's the ace of spades of that team…," Ollie said. "We're going to have to play a lot of attention to him."

Defense hasn't been the issue for the Huskies, who limited Duke to a season-low for points and field goal percentage.

Ollie believes that with continued hard work the Huskies will improve in all areas.

"We're getting better…," Ollie said. "I keep saying, we're going to plant seeds. I told you there were going to be some ups and downs. But we're building something special. We're going to burst something soon. I don't know when it's going to happen, but we're going to burst something."

g.keefe@theday.com

Twitter: @GavinKeefe

COLUMBIA at UCONN

Location: Webster Bank Arena, Bridgeport

Tip-off: 7:30 p.m. (SNY)

Records: Columbia 6-3, UConn 4-4

Last game: Columbia beat Hofstra, 82-77, Saturday; UConn lost to. No. 2 Duke, 66-56, Thursday

Probable starters: Columbia, 6-4 jr. guard Isaac Cohen (3.6 pts, 6.7 rebs, 4.4 assists), 6-3 jr. guard Maodo Lo (17.6 pts, 5.1 rebs), 6-4 fr. guard Kyle Castlin (8.8 pts, 4.1 rebs), 6-8 so. forward Chris McComber (5 pts, 2 rebs), 6-11 sr. center Cory Osetkowski (7.8 pts, 7.7 rebs)

UConn, 6-0 sr. guard Ryan Boatright (19.3 pts, 5.8 rebs, 3.9 assists), red-shirt so. Rodney Purvis (7.3 pts), 6-7 fr. forward Daniel Hamilton (11.9 pts, 6.1 rebs), 6-9 so. forward Kentan Facey (7 pts, 6.6 rebs), 7-0 so. center Amida Brimah (12 pts, 4.4 rebs)

Noteworthy: Huskies dropped four of last five. … First time at .500 this deep into regular season since 1987-88. … Second ever game at Webster Bank for Huskies, who beat Eastern Washington 82-65 last season. …. Series: UConn leads 7-2, winning last meeting 70-57 in Nov. 2011. ... Lions held seven of nine foes under 58 pts, including Kentucky (56). Rank third in nation in scoring defense at 53.7 pts. … Top reserve: 6-2 sr. guard Steve Frankoski (7 pts, 2.1 rebs). ... Lo, who's from Berlin, Germany, once a national team teammate of Niels Giffey. … Hot: Facey 13 for 18 from field last two games. Cold: Calhoun missed last 16 FG attempts over 12 games dating back to last season. … Huskies forced 36 turnovers in last two games. … Injury update: UConn reserve Terrence Samuel (ankle) day-to-day. … Up next: UConn hosts Central Connecticut Dec. 28 in Hartford.

- Gavin Keefe