2006-07 Record : 17-14, 6-10 in the Big East, missed out on the Big Dance for the first time in 20 years.
Returning Players: Jeff Adrien, Craig Austrie, Jerome Dyson, Gavin Edwards, Curtis Kelly, Jonathan Mandeldove, A.J. Price, Stanley Robinson, Hasheem Thabeet, Doug Wiggins
Who’s gone: Associate head coach Tom Moore (Quinnipiac), Marcus Johnson (decided to transfer on 11/5), Ben Eaves (transferred), Rob Garrison (transferred)
New faces: Donnell Beverly, Beau Archibald (Director of Basketball Operations)
Last season: The Huskies started out strong last year as they opened up their season with 11 straight wins, all at home. They then went to West Virginia and looked a little bit lost as it was their first road game. Their play was marred by a lot of turnovers as expected when most of your team is freshman and sophomores. Their scoring was streaky as well as you would expect with the turnovers. Thabeet was non-existent in the paint on offense. The team defense was strong again last year as they led the nations in blocks and scoring defense.
Looking forward to: Having a year under their belt, last year’s freshman should help the team improve. Head coach Jim Calhoun has said the team will press a lot more and play more of an up-tempo game. The Huskies will need to improve upon their awful free throw shooting to win those close games in the Big East this year.
Key Player(s): There are two. A.J. Price and Hasheem Thabeet. With a year under his belt after missing the past two, Price needs to show Calhoun why he recruited him and be that leader. Thabeet needs to show improvement on the offensive end to help the Huskies out. While he won’t be the go-to guy on the offensive side, it would be nice to see Thabeet attempt a few shows let alone make them.
Prediction: 5th in the Big East, lose in the semifinals of the Big East tournament and receive an 8 seed in the NCAA tournament
