UConn has experienced its share of road woes this season.

That's not even including what's transpired on the basketball court.

A brutal American Athletic Conference schedule has forced the Huskies to spend 26 days on the road, take 16 flights and cover about 20,500 miles since Jan. 1, counting their most recent adventure to East Carolina that had a rocky start on Tuesday.

Bad weather caused the Huskies to alter their travel plans, landing in Raleigh, N.C., instead of Greenville. They were expected to board a bus for the almost two-hour ride to their final destination.

Adding to an already challenging trip, UConn (15-11, 8-6) plays an East Carolina (12-15, 5-9) team tonight at 7 (ESPNU) that has one of the best home records in the conference. Eleven of the Pirates' wins have come at Minges Coliseum, where they've lost only three times.

"They play really well at home," coach Kevin Ollie said.

The Huskies, on the other hand, often forget to pack their intensity and focus, losing four of their last five on the road and going 2-5 in conference play away from home. Something has to change to reverse that losing trend.

"We've got to come out more aggressive," sophomore Amida Brimah said.

UConn's remaining regular season schedule is difficult as it hosts league-leading Southern Methodist on Sunday and Memphis, a team that beat them last week, on March 5, before finishing up at Temple on March 7.

"We've got to get the last two games on the road and then take care of business at home," senior Ryan Boatright said.

Easier said than done for the Huskies, who've played very few complete games this season. They displayed some nice finishing skills in Sunday's 67-60 win over Tulane, making all the winning plays in the decisive final minutes.

"When it came down the stretch, we were able to make plays," Ollie said. "That's encouraging going forward. We got stops. The only thing we have to do is clean up the 3-point defense. We're allowing teams to shoot too high a percentage."

UConn ranks 10th in the conference in 3-point field goal percentage defense. In the last two games, both Tulane and Memphis took advantage of open looks to get hot from distance, combining to sink 18 3-pointers.

Perimeter-powered East Carolina is the top 3-point shooting team in AAC games, averaging 8.1 per game and a league-high 38.3 percent from beyond the arc. Junior Terry Whisnant and sophomore Caleb White are the deadliest threats.

In the first meeting on Feb. 4 in Storrs, UConn posted a 65-52 victory despite East Carolina going 11 from 21 from 3-point range. Guard B.J. Tyson, an AAC rookie of the year candidate, came off the bench to score 20 points but had little help.

Boatright rescued the Huskies, scoring a game-high 23 points.

It hasn't just been the Boat Show in recent games. Brimah and freshman Daniel Hamilton are carrying their share of the scoring load, averaging 19 and 16 points, respectively, in the last two games.

Hamilton, a do-it-all swingman, is really coming into his own while the key for Brimah is staying out of foul trouble and remaining on the court.

Boatright, Hamilton and Brimah combine to form the highest scoring trio in the AAC, averaging 38.7 points per game.

"Any time guys can step up and make shots, it's a lot easier," Boatright said. "It takes pressure off me to score the ball so much."

g.keefe@theday.com

Twitter: @GavinKeefe