Storrs — Practice is over during a typical day for the UConn basketball team. The Huskies are in no hurry to leave the court.

At one end, sophomore Amida Brimah is polishing his back to the basket moves. Senior Ryan Boatright is firing up 3-pointer after 3-pointer at the other end. Several other teammates also are working overtime.

Chances are some Huskies will likely return to the gym later that evening for additional individual workouts.

Their mindset is to compete at championship level, so they must embrace a championship work ethic.

"You've got to put in the extra stuff and extra work," Boatright said. "Just doing what you're supposed to do isn't going to get it done. It's what you do outside of practice and all that extra stuff that wins championships."

The Huskies certainly know about winning championships, capturing the program's fourth last season. Few people outside the UConn basketball family gave the Huskies a shot at climbing to the top of the NCAA mountaintop.

They are gearing up for another championship run this season, starting with tonight's regular-season opener against Bryant University at Gampel Pavilion (7 p.m., SNY).

Just don't call them defending champions.

"You deserve to win a national championship," coach Kevin Ollie said. "You put the hard work in. But you've got to come out and play. We're not defending the championship. We're going out there to try to win another one."

During an offseason filled with celebrations, UConn showed no signs of resting on its accomplishments.

"After you win a national championship, a lot of kids can fall back and not be as hungry, or not work as hard in offseason," Boatright said. "For me to come back and see the progress that everybody has made, it just lets me know my team is hungry and we want to be successful again."

The Huskies have undergone a significant makeover, losing four of their five leading scorers and top three rebounders. There's a huge leadership void with the departure of inspirational All-American guard Shabazz Napier and big hole left from the loss of DeAndre Daniels and Niels Giffey.

The talent pool is deep again this season, but the Huskies are learning a new stroke.

Returning players are adjusting to different and expanded roles. Four newcomers - North Carolina State transfer Rodney Purvis, junior college transfer Sam Cassell Jr., and freshmen Rakim Lubin and Daniel Hamilton, the American Athletic Conference preseason rookie of the year - are adapting to the UConn basketball way.

Purvis, a starting guard, will have to wait to begin his UConn career. He was suspended for tonight's opener after violating an NCAA rule by playing in two summer leagues.

Junior Omar Calhoun is still sidelined with a knee injury, further cutting into the team's depth and likely meaning more playing time for Cassell and sophomore Terrence Samuel.

The demanding Ollie is pushing the Huskies to play at even a higher energy and intensity level than last season.

Hard work remains at the foundation of UConn's success.

"I think the culture is getting set, where we have to work hard," Ollie said. "We call it touching the lines. That's touching the lines not just on suicides, but that's off the court. Can you touch the line when the coach is not looking, can you work hard?

"...When we started challenging each other and getting better, that's what we had at the end of the season. … Everybody was touching the lines. And everybody was really just giving to one another.

"I don't think we would have lost last year at the end, I don't care who we played. We had something about our team. And that's what I want us to get back to. But it's not going to magically happen overnight. It's a process that we've got to keep working and we've got to keep emphasizing."

It was a process last season, too.

The Huskies didn't rip through the regular season, experiencing their share of ups and downs before hitting their stride in March.

This year's team starts with several question marks, starting with an unproven frontcourt and perimeter shooting. The Huskies wants to play fast to take advantage of their athleticism. To do that, they'll need to rebound better. After playing supporting roles last season, Brimah, sophomore Kentan Facey and junior Phil Nolan, who averaged a combined 8.9 points and 7.2 rebounds last season, will be counted on to produce in the frontcourt.

If the Huskies fall short of expectations - they're picked to win the AAC and are ranked 17th in the preseason polls - it won't be because of a poor work ethic.

Boatright and Brimah, co-captains, are setting an example with their passion, dedication and commitment. During preseason, Boatright regularly finished first running Cemetery Hill during and spent countless hours in the gym. Ollie calls Brimah a worker bee.

"He works and works and works, and you try to kick him out of the gym and he gets in through the back door," Ollie said.

And if you want to play for Ollie, you better join the work crew.

"If you're not doing it, you're going to get exposed," Ollie said. "Then you're going to be probably sitting on the bench with me."

The newcomers already have gotten the message from watching their veteran teammates.

"Every night everybody is pushing each other to get in the gym and get up shots," Cassell said. "One thing you've got to know about this team, is we work hard. On and off the court, we work hard."

g.keefe@theday.com

Twitter: @GavinKeefe