Dec. 28, 2006

Connecticut is ready to finally take its young team on the road.

Starting three sophomores and two freshmen, and without an upperclassman on scholarship, the 12th-ranked Huskies have used a season-opening homestand to run up an 11-0 record.

"I think we're going to prove we're pretty good when it's all said and done," Huskies coach Jim Calhoun said after Wednesday night's 84-41 victory over Coppin State. "But we've got places to go and certainly some people to play against."

UConn will play just two of its next six games at home, with road games against West Virginia, No. 17 Louisiana State, St. John's and No. 10 Pittsburgh.

"We're anxious to go on the road and anxious to play some tough games," Huskies point guard A.J. Price said. "By no means do I think any team was taken lightly. We did a good job preparing for every game."

And winning them easily.

The Huskies have won by an average of 27 points and played just one opponent from a major conference, an 18-point win over Mississippi on Nov. 19.

"I can't ask any more of them," Calhoun said. "They've won them all."

Sophomore forward Jeff Adrien and 7-foot-3 freshman center Hasheem Thabeet anchored UConn's dominant inside game against Coppin State as the Huskies pulled down a season-high 64 rebounds to the Eagles' 33. Adrien had 16 points and 11 rebounds and Thabeet finished with 11 points, 12 rebounds and had four of UConn's 14 blocked shots.

The Huskies extended their home winning streak to 30 games: 17 at the Hartford Civic Center, where they won Wednesday, and 13 at the on-campus Gampel Pavilion.

"We want to go out there and win all of our games," Adrien said. "Win the Big East regular season and hopefully the Big East tournament. Our expectations are always high. It doesn't matter how young we are."