UConn men to play Southern Cal, N.C. State in adjusted schedule at Mohegan Sun
UConn's stay in Bubbleville at the Mohegan Sun will be shorter than previously expected but will still include some challenging games.
The Huskies will play two instead of three basketball games this week, facing Southern Cal at 7 p.m. Thursday night in the Legends Classic and taking on North Carolina State at noon on Saturday, both at the Mohegan Sun Arena.
The absence of Vanderbilt, which was supposed to be UConn's Legends Classic opponent on Tuesday but withdrew for COVID-19 reasons, forced Bubbleville organizers to adjust the schedule.
The Legends Classic is now a showcase format instead of a tournament, with UConn playing only one game in that event.
USC and Brigham Young, two other Legends Classic participants, will still play at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Bubbleville organizers filled the vacancy left by the cancellation of the UConn-Vanderbilt game at 5 p.m. Tuesday with Villanova taking on Hartford.
Odds are the scheduling change made UConn coach Dan Hurley happy. He wasn't thrilled about playing three games in five days this week. Now he gets more time to prepare to face USC, which went 22-9 last season. It will be the first meeting between the two teams. The non-conference game will be televised on ESPN.
Like the Huskies, the Trojans are off to a 2-0 start. USC beat California Baptist, 95-87, in overtime on Wednesday and defeated Montana, 76-62, on Saturday. The Trojans belong to the Pac-12 Conference.
UConn will battle North Carolina State, a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference, for the first time since 2012 and trail the overall series, 3-2. The game will be televised on ESPNU.
N.C. State (2-0) had its home game on Monday against William & Mary canceled by the visitors for COVID-19 issues. The Wolfpack beat Charleston Southern, 95-61, on Wednesday and downed North Florida, 86-51, on Friday
• In other news, UConn sophomore James Bouknight earned Big East weekly honor roll status after averaging 19 points, six rebounds and two steals in wins over Central Connecticut State University and Hartford.
g.keefe@theday.com
Comment threads are monitored for 48 hours after publication and then closed.
