UConn out to break bad habits

Huskies host Coppin St. before an exam break

Storrs — UConn is trying to shake some bad habits prior to heading into an 11-day exam break.

One priority is erasing sluggish starts.

The Huskies have regularly sputtered in the first half, trailing at the break in five straight games by an average of 8.6 points and allowing foes to convert a collective 47.6 percent from the field. They're 2-3 during that stretch and needed to go overtime in the wins.

So how do they reverse that trend starting with Saturday's game (2 p.m., ESPNews) against Coppin State at Gampel Pavilion?

"We've just got to do what we just did in practice and what we've been doing in practice," coach Kevin Ollie said after Friday's practice. "It all comes down to toughness and effort. And toughness is taking care of the ball. We can't turn the ball over, I think it was four of the first five times against Syracuse (Tuesday). That's not toughness. Toughness is not beating on your chest and beating somebody down. It's mental toughness on the offensive end and defensive end.

"... I'm just going to keep coaching them and make sure we understand what we've got to do on a day to day basis to win. But we've got to play harder. We've got to play with more physicality."

UConn (6-3) should show some improvement against winless Coppin State (0-9), which has lost by an average of 23.6 points per game and shoots a dreadful 31.2 percent from the field.

The perimeter-powered Huskies will look to get their big men more involved. Junior Eric Cobb, a versatile forward, was one of the few bright spots in the 72-63 loss to Syracuse in Madison Square Garden. He finished with six points, three rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block in 17 minutes before fouling out.

"I feel like I helped the team in many ways," said Cobb, who's impressed Ollie with his passing skills. "But we've got to learn from that loss and come together as a team."

There's a potential upside to both Cobb and redshirt freshman Mamadou Diarra playing together in the frontcourt. They can give the Huskies a much-needed low post presence on both ends, strengthen the rebounding and allow Ollie to rest his guards, as well as give Terry Larrier more time at the small forward rather than power forward.

The perimeter trio of Jalen Adams, Antwoine Anderson and Christian Vital are racking up marathon minutes and are in need of an occasional break. Alterique Gilbert (shoulder) will be unavailable for a fourth straight game. Diarra thinks the combination can be productive one. "I just feel like we complement each other," Diarra said. "He's not as athletic so I'm probably going to play underneath a little bit more and he uses his body more."

For that all to happen, Cobb and Diarra have to avoid foul trouble.

Cobb's conditioning still needs to improve from sitting out four games with an ankle injury. Diarra, who sat out last season with an injury, is still learning the game. He has fouled out three straight games.

"They've got to keep themselves on the floor," Ollie said. "I would love to play them a little bit more minutes together and get Terry out of that four spot where he can play a little bit more of the three because he's shooting the ball pretty good from the outside.

"For me, it's just them guys staying on the court and being able to play defense and move."

Cobb is trying to figure out what's a foul. There were a couple calls in the Syracuse game that left him shaking his head.

"Oh my gosh," Cobb said. "Did y'all see the calls? I've just got to adjust to the refs and that's it."

The Huskies are in need of some momentum to carry into the exam break. A tough two-game road trip to Arizona (Dec. 21) and Auburn (Dec. 23) is on the horizon. But first they can't overlook Coppin State. "You can't underestimate anybody," Cobb said. "You've got to come out and give 100 percent every time you step on the court. That's what we've got to do (Saturday)."

• Transfer Sidney Wilson is getting closer to finding out his status. He applied to the NCAA for a waiver in attempt to play this season. "We should have a decision soon," Ollie said. "We got everything into the NCAA so it's just a waiting game now."