Huskies Know There’s No Margin of Error Left

Georgetown a Roadblock to the Dance

The Story: The men’s basketball team has another rivalry game tonight when it takes on Georgetown at 9 p.m. on FS1. The Hoyas aren’t quite the power we remember, but that doesn’t make the game any less important as the Huskies vie for the postseason.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: The Hoyas are rebuilding under Patrick Ewing, who took over for John Thompson III in 2017. The Hoyas (7-10, 5-7 Big East) have won two straight and are coming off a win over Seton Hall on Saturday.

WHAT’S AT STAKE? Every game is a big game for the Huskies from here on out. They are 10-6 with four games left and can nary afford a slip up on the schedule. They need wins. Looking at all projections, predictions and rankings, the Huskies need 14 wins for a decent shot at the NCAA Tournament. Anything less than 14 wins puts the Huskies in major jeopardy with a bubble that will likely pop. As of late last night, even ESPN’s Joe Lunardi had them as the first team out.

MANAGING BOUKNIGHT: Dan Hurley isn’t going to push James Bouknight. The fatigue late in the second half on Saturday against Villanova was readily apparent and the key now will be to space out his minutes. How far can Bouknight go? Hurley said about 30 minutes is the limit. That means, for 25 percent of the game, the Huskies are going to have to find offense somewhere else. Is that R.J. Cole? Is that Tyrese Martin? Is that Adama Sanogo, or Tyler Polley? We’d really like to know.

ABOUT GEORGETOWN: Georgetown is led by senior guard Jahvon Blair, who is scoring 16.2 points per game, senior forward Jamorko Pickett (12.7 points per game) and sophomore center Qudus Wahab (11.7 points per game). Pickett and Wahab are the top rebounders, with each grabbing more than eight a game, and Blair leads the team with 4.5 assists. The remaining two starters are usually grad student forward Chudier Bile, who scores 9.6 points per game, and freshman guard Dante Harris. Georgetown is trying to get the Hoya Paranoia back and play up-tempo. It is 0-6 this season in games in which it has scored 69 or fewer points. Expect Georgetown to push the pace.

A LITTLE NOSTALGIA: How old are these rivals? The first game between the teams was in 1958, and they have played 58 times. To get nostalgic, the best game we can remember was the 1996 Big East final, when Ray Allen outdueled Allen Iverson. (Listen to the crowd at that game. It gave us goosebumps watching it again.) It was one of those games you never forget, as the game lived up to the hype. Not bad when there are two Hall of Famers on the floor and two Hall of Famers coaching the game. That game was peak college basketball and it gets better with age.

Don’t Forget the Other Freshman Phenom

The Story: Although Paige Bueckers has won all of the awards (and our hearts) this season, let’s not overlook the immense contributions from Aaliyah Edwards, who is destined for greatness in Storrs.

WHAT’S HER DEAL? Edwards, our favorite Canadian since Kia Nurse, has been electric in her first season for the Huskies. The 6-foot-3 forward is averaging 9.7 points and 4.8 rebounds in just over 20 minutes a game, and she had her first double-double in the win over poor overmatched Xavier on Saturday when she had 16 points and 11 rebounds.

HOW DOMINANT IS SHE? According to our resident genius, Carl Adamec, Edwards’ 67.6 field-goal percentage is the best in the Big East, and she would be No. 1 in all of Division I if she took enough shots. That threshold seems to be about eight per game, and she’s averaging about six.

PAIRED UP: The Huskies have gone with a unique look (for them) at times this season, pairing Edwards with 6-foot-5 junior Olivia Nelson-Ododa. There are few teams that can match their height, and Nelson-Ododa, who likes to play/drift into in the midrange and the high post, gets more of an opportunity to do that with Edwards down low. When was the last time the Huskies had the chance to do that, let alone do it frequently and reliably — Breanna Stewart and Kiah Stokes in 2014-15?

WHAT DID GENO SAY? “Whether Aaliyah is in the starting lineup or coming off the bench, whether she is playing 25 minutes or 35 or 15, I want her to be the toughest kid on the floor. I want her to be the most aggressive player on the floor. I want her to run the floor harder than anybody else. I want her to be an impact player on every possession at both ends of the floor. I see no really why she can’t be that and then some from now until the end of the season.”

Morning Reads

NAPIER STARS FOR PUERTO RICO: We don’t know why Shabazz Napier isn’t in the NBA (and Jeff Teague is) but he starred for Puerto Rico in the FIBA AmeriCup on Sunday with 22 points. (Swish Cultures on Twitter)

HONORS FOR METZLER: Midfielder Felix Metzler was named the Big East Defender of the Week after scoring a goal in the men’s soccer team’s win over Sacred Heart a week ago. (UConnHuskies.com)

WALKER ON THE BLOCK? It seems Celtics GM Danny Ainge tried to trade Kemba Walker earlier this season, even though he was still overcoming a knee injury. That ain’t right. (MassLive.com)

CLINGAN’S RECRUITING PICKS UP: Bristol junior Donovan Clingan, one of the Huskies’ top targets, addressed his recruitment this weekend after he picked up a scholarship offer from Michigan. (Stockrisers)