Shabazz Napier, Jeremy Lamb Lead Huskies to Big East Meeting with Syracuse

College Hoops Player of the Day for Wednesday, March 7, 2012

It may not have been the prettiest of performances, but Connecticut's 71-67 overtime win against West Virginia was the 13th straight post-season victory for Jim Calhoun's Huskies.

UConn, the reigning national champion, won all five of their Big East games last season, six NCAA tourney tilts and now have won two straight in the current Big East feast.

The Huskies (20-12, 8-10) trailed the Mountaineers late in the second half by nine points, but that's whenShabazz Napier- who scored a game high 26 points, went off, scoring nine straight points to bring UConn even at 63-all. Throughout the game, Napier was aided by timely buckets from Jeremy Lamb,who went 9-for-18 with three triples for 22 points and added six rebounds.

Napier was not sharp from the field, making just seven of 22 shots, but that included four three-pointers and he was 8 of 9 from the foul line and dished six assists.

Connecticut shot just 40% for the game, but their defense held West Virginia to 28% from the field.

Connecticut's win - their second in as many days - put them into a third round match-up with second-ranked Syracuse, which took the Huskies' measure on February 25 with a 71-69 win. Tip time at Madison Square Garden is noon ET on Thursday.

Shabazz Napier, Jeremy Lamb Lead UConn to OT Win at Villanova

College Hoops Player of the Day for Monday, February 20, 2012

In overtime, Villanova's Ty Johnson tied the game with Connecticut at 70-all on a layup, leaving just 5.8 seconds on the clock. It looked like the game was going into double overtime, but Shabazz Napier had other ideas, racing down the court and throwing up a very long 3-point attempt that swished through the net, giving UConn a 73-70 lead that would hold up as the Wildcats had no answer with just 0.6 seconds left on the clock.

Napier and the Huskies saved their season, for the moment. With head coach Jim Calhoun sidelined with health issues, the Huskies had entered the road game at Villanova with just two wins in its last nine contests. The losses had been piling up and there was even talk that Connecticut, the reigning NCAA champions, might not make it into the NCAA field.

The Huskies fell behind early on, down 18 points in the first half, but rallied to tie the score at 30-30 at the break. Jeremy Lamb finished with a career high 32 points, scoring in just about every conceivable manner as the Huskies struggled to stay in the game. Lamb was 11-for-19 from the field with two 3-pointers. He was also 8-for-11 from the line and scored all 10 of Connecticut's points in overtime prior to Napier's game-winner.

Napier scored just six points, all on a pair three-pointers, but the last one was truly epic and important, getting the Huskies to 7-8 in conference play and 17-10 overall. For now, Connecticut appears to have found a path back to the big dance, though they face Syracuse, Providence and Pitt to close out the regular season and will probably have to earn a few wins in the Big East tourney to secure a spot.

As big as the win was for the Huskies, it cannot be overstated that the team they beat is just 4-11 in conference play and has an overall mark of 11-16. Connecticut earned their road win, but the opposition was not what most people would call a quality team.

NOTABLE: Quincy Acy scored 22 points to go with 16 rebounds (8 offensive) as #13 Baylor (23-5) took down Texas, 77-72, an important road win for the Bears who came into the game losers of three of their last four.

The loss left the unranked Longhorns (7-8, 17-11) roundly on the tournament bubble.

Backcourt Duo Shabazz Napier and Jeremy Lamb Lead Huskies to 16th Straight Win; Upsets Rule Holiday Tourneys

College Hoops Player of the Day for Thursday, November 24, 2011

As reigning national champions, the Connecticut Huskies get their share of perks, like a Thanksgiving trip to the Bahamas to compete in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament at the Atlantis Resort in Nassau.

The Huskies wasted little time establishing their dominance in their opening game vs. NC Asheville, taking a 39-28 leas at the half and cruising to their 16th straight win with a 73-63 victory.

Led by their backcourt tandem of Shabazz Napier and Jeremy Lamb, each of whom has 23 points, the Huskies improved their current season record to 5-0, maintaining their spot at #4 in the AP poll, behind the top three of North Carolina, Kentucky and Ohio State.

Napier had seven assists and three steal to go with his 7-for-14 shooting, with four 3-pointers, He was a perfect 5-for-5 from the foul line.

Lamb pitched in eight of 13 shots from the field with three 3-pointers. He was also flawless at the line, making 4 of 4, to go with six rebounds.

The Huskies will face the University of Central Florida in the semi-finals of the tourney on Friday. UCF dispatched the College of Charleston, 74-63.

NOTABLE: The other half of the draw at the Battle 4 Atlantis saw Harvard blow out Utah, 75-47, in a day full of surprises and upsets.

At the Old Spice Classic in Kissimmee, Florida, Indiana State downed Texas Tech, 60-49, the Dayton Flyers downed Wake Forest, 80-76, and Fairfield dominated Wake Forest, 54-45.

In the only game of the Old Spice Classic that went somewhat according to plan, Minnesota knocked off DePaul, 80-79.

Rounding out the Thanksgiving Day upsets, St. Louis put down Boston College, 62-51 at the 76 Classic at Anahiem, California.

Jeremy Lamb Scores 30 as Defending Champion Huskies Open Season with Win

College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, November 11, 2011

As a freshman, Jeremy Lamb played a key role down the stretch as the Connecticut Huskies rolled through the NCAA tourney field to capture the national championship.

Now a sophomore, Lamb, elevated to a starting role by coach Jim Calhoun, is set to lead the Huskies' campaign through the Big East.

In Connecticut's 70-57 win over Columbia Lamb topped all scorers with 30 points on 11-for-17 shooting, including 5 of 8 from 3-point range. The 6'5" sophomore played 38 minutes, torching the overmatched Lions from everywhere on the court. For good measure, he added a couple of assists, four steals, a block and three boards as the Huskies extended their win streak to 12 games, currently the longest in the nation, after steamrolling through the Big East and NCAA tournaments to the national championship.

Shabazz Napier, another sophomore, added 21 points, six rebounds and eight assists.

Barring any major mishaps, the Huskies should run their winning streak to at least 20 games, as they have eight home games ahead before Big East play begins on December 28 when the Huskies visit South Florida.

NOTABLE: One team that has to start a winning streak of their own would be the UCLA Bruins, who opened their season with a 69-58 home loss to Loyola Marymount.

The loss could be traced to poor shooting overall by the Bruins, especially starting guard Lazeric Jones, who was 1-for-11 (9.1%), including 0-for-3 from beyond the arc. UCLA shot 41% from the field (24-59) and were just 2-for-15 from 3-point range. Loyola Marymount took a 34-33 lead into intermission, but broke the game open in the second half, hitting 10-of-15 3-pointers for the game.