Huskies Throwing the Bouk At ‘Em; UNC on 2020 Football Schedule

UNC, ODU Round Out A+ Football Schedule

The Story: The football team finalized its excellent schedule for 2020, its first year as an independent, with the additions of North Carolina and Old Dominion, meaning the Huskies will play a variety of games next season that will get the people going.

HERE IT IS: We broke this down in good detail last month, but the schedule, in full:

Sept. 3: UMass
Sept. 12: at Illinois
Sept. 19: at Virginia
Sept. 26: Indiana
Oct. 3: Old Dominion
Oct. 10: Maine
Oct. 17: (Bye)
Oct. 24: at Ole Miss
Oct. 31: Liberty
Nov. 7: at North Carolina
Nov. 14: at San Jose State
Nov. 21: Middle Tennessee State
Nov. 28: Army

WHY THOSE TWO? The Huskies were able to schedule several teams on short notice by breaking up existing games (Middle Tennessee State at Ole Miss, Liberty at Virginia and Army at San Jose State) and convincing teams to play them instead. That’s what happened again with North Carolina and Old Dominion, who were supposed to play each other and will instead each play UConn.

SO MUCH APPEAL: With UNC and ODU on the schedule, the Huskies have something for everyone. They have booked (theoretically) winnable games against UMass, Old Dominion, Maine and San Jose State. They have booked games against regional opponents in UMass, Virginia, Old Dominion, Maine and Army. They have seven home games, which is really incredible given their position. They have booked games against schools in areas vital to recruiting. The only thing missing is a game in Florida, but UCF is on the schedule in 2021 and those games will happen.

POWER FIVE FIVE: The Huskies will play five Power 5 opponents in Illinois, Virginia, Indiana, Ole Miss and North Carolina, which is more than the number of Power 5 opponents any AAC team is scheduled to face next season. And the best part? Unlike East Carolina, North Carolina is actually a state.

WHAT’S NEXT? The task, which has presumably already begun, is to line up start times and television agreements with networks for the games. Some will be added by the conferences’ networks, some by regional sports networks (such as NESN, which drew all the ratings for the UMass game earlier this month) and some by national networks with conference agreements. All in all, we should have a good idea where things stand in a few months, but it’s likely a lot of the games will be televised nationally.

EDSALL SIGNS OFF: Randy Edsall said a classy goodbye to the AAC on the weekly coaches’ teleconference yesterday morning. “This will be our last conference game, so I just want to talk a little bit about the coaches and the players in this league. In the three years I’ve been in this league, there are many, many outstanding football players in this league and great coaches. These guys have done a great job putting this conference in the position that they have, and it doesn’t really get the recognition that it deserves, and hopefully, moving forward for the AAC, they’ll start to get the recognition.”

AS FOR RECRUITING: Edsall landed two more commitments over the weekend. Jhaylin Embry, a 6-foot-1, 170-pound athlete out of Jacksonville, Fla., wrote on Twitter on Sunday that he had committed, and Keelan Marion, a 6-foot-1, 180-pound wide receiver out of Lawrenceville, Ga., announced his commitment yesterday morning. The Huskies are believed to have 13 players ready to suit up next season, but it’s always got to be a secret.

Just Call Him ‘The Future’

The Story: It’s clear James Bouknight wants fans to know exactly how to say his name (for help, consider this fancy illustration), and soon, the whole nation will. After his first appearances for the Huskies, he was named to the Charleston Classic’s all-tournament team and recognized as the AAC Freshman of the Week. He’s the first UConn player to win the award since Christian Vital and Vance Jackson hogged it for themselves in January 2017.

WHAT’D HE DO? Bouknight, if you’ll remember (and of course you remember), had eight points and six rebounds against Buffalo in his debut, 19 points and four rebounds against then-No. 18 Xavier and 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting in 19 minutes against Miami. That rounds out to a lovely 40 points in three games, good enough to make him second to Vital in scoring at 13.3 points per game.

HE LOOKS FAMILIAR: There have been comparisons made between Bouknight and Jeremy Lamb, or even Bouknight and Richard Hamilton, for the way he’s effortlessly scoring. It’s hard to say that after three games, but come back in a few weeks and we can see just how he ranks among the best freshman guards UConn has ever had. (But we think he’ll be up there.)

WHAT DID DAN HURLEY SAY? “We see Bouknight every day in practice, but you can’t anticipate, when the lights would come on, the level he was going to perform at. What separates good from great or really good from special is what happens when the lights come on and you throw them out there with those refs and those fans. The game slows down for him. Some guys beat that initial defender and they go faster, or they can’t slow down. When he makes that first move and gets by somebody, it slows down for him. The finish slows down. He obviously has the athletic ability to just glide around the court. He’s special.”

WHAT DID BOUKNIGHT SAY? “Our first game versus Buffalo, I was scared. But [Hurley] has just been talking to me and telling me how good I am. He instills a lot of confidence in me. And I know I can play so I just go out there and I just play, have fun and do what I do.”

Huskies Ready To Feast On Dayton

The Story: The women’s basketball team will play its final game before Thanksgiving tonight at 7 p.m. against Dayton, but you probably won’t know it’s happening because it’s going to be broadcast only on ESPN+. That means it’s time to fire up the radio and listen to Bob Joyce and Debbie Fiske.

WHAT THE WHAT NOW? Yes, this is the first time the online monster known as ESPN+ strikes UConn’s schedule, and fortunately, it’s the only time. The ESPN+ component was a huge part of the AAC’s new media rights deal, but that doesn’t kick in until next season. And, if you were asking to be kicked in the other shin, here’s you go: There’s no longer a free trial of ESPN+ available, meaning anyone who doesn’t have the service who wants to watch the game has to pay $4.99 for a month. But hey, at least it’s not FloHoops.

STUFFING BEFORE TURKEY: The Huskies are eager to have the opportunity to spend Thanksgiving at home this year, but first, they’ve got what Christyn Williams termed a “business trip” against the Flyers. UConn was tested for the first time on Sunday in a victory at Ohio State, and while Dayton (3-2) figures to be an inferior opponent than the Buckeyes — it lost 75-49 at home to then-No. 6 South Carolina two weeks ago — who knows with this crew.

Mostly, the game will boil down three questions: Is there anyone Geno Auriemma can trust to spell the Huskies’ four heavy-hitters? Can Anna Makurat shake the slump that has followed her at the start of her freshman season and that led to her benching in the second half on Sunday? And how often are we going to be asking those two questions this year?

WHAT DID GENO SAY? “[Makurat] did the same thing [on the bench that] she did when she was playing. Zero, zero, zero, zero all across the board. One of the things we talk about with our players all the time is you have to impact the game somehow. And what Anna’s going to learn is … you can’t just be running around and wait for a shot. So, she learned that if you impact the game and you make a lot of things happen, then it’s worth putting you in. If you don’t, you’re accomplishing the same thing sitting there that you were on the court.”

Morning Reads

STOKING THE FLAMES: The Evina Westbrook transfer saga is only the next chapter in the long rivalry between UConn and Tennessee. (ESPN)

SCARY TIME FOR KEMBA: A Celtics team doctor said Kemba Walker felt numbness and tingling in his hands when he collided with teammate Semi Ojeleye in Friday’s game against the Nuggets. (NESN.com)