Huskies are tough enough

UConn, Samuelson have shown their true mettle

STORRS — Geno Auriemma has his own definition of toughness. It’s not, he says, what his team dealt with at times recently.

“Sometimes people confuse what toughness is, you know?,” the UConn coach said Tuesday following practice at the Werth Center. “They think pushing and shoving and showing you’re a tough guy, that’s toughness. We saw some of that the other day.

“Toughness is not getting caught up in that. Toughness is making a pass you have to make, getting a rebound you have to make, making free throws you have to make, making a 3 you have to make.”

The Huskies played one of their most physical games of the year this past Sunday against UCF. The Knights ratcheted up their intensity, hoping to wear their opponent down physically and mentally. Yet, the Huskies kept their composure and escaped unscathed in a 78-41 victory.

“In the second quarter, we didn’t respond to it too well,” guard Crystal Dangerfield said. “But we came out and did it the right way. We kind of took a deep breath, laughed it off, and got back to playing basketball again.”

Auriemma has questioned his team’s toughness

Reinhold Matay / Associated Press UConn’s Katie Lou Samuelson (33) shoots over Central Florida forward Masseny Kaba (5) on Sunday in Orlando, Fla.