MEN’S BASKETBALL GAMEDAY

UCONN at DEPAUL

When: Monday, 6 p.m.

Where: Wintrust Arena

Records: UConn 6-1 (3-1 Big East), DePaul 1-3 (0-3 Big East)

TV: Fox Sports 1

Radio: UConn Sports Network (97.9 FM-ESPN Hartford, WAVZ 1300 AM, WICC 600 AM, WINE 940 AM, WGCH 1490 AM, WILI 1400 AM)

KEEP AN EYE ON

Reading Bouk: Big East leading scorer James Bouknight sat out of Saturday’s win at Butler with a hyper-extended left elbow, and coach Dan Hurley isn’t sure of his status for Monday night.

UConn bussed from Indianapolis to Chicago on Saturday night and had a light practice on Sunday morning, so it was hard to gauge Bouknight’s physical readiness.

“We’ll see how he feels (Monday),” Hurley reported. “He’ll remain game-time (decision) until further notice.”

Utililzing Akok: Akok Akok made his return for the first time in nearly 11 months in the Butler game, scoring two points in six minutes in his first game action since tearing his Achilles tendon in a game last Feb. 16.

“He’s got so much joy, his personality is so happy to be back as part of game night,” Hurley noted.

The coach added that the team will bring him along incrementally as the 6-foot-9 sophomore makes his way back a serious injury in the throes of Big East competition.

Familiar foes: After hitting 10 3-pointers in each of its first two games, DePaul has combined to shoot just 8-for-30 (26.7 percent) from beyond the arc in its last two contests.

The Huskies, of course, are familiar with the Blue Demons, rolling to an 82-61 win on Dec. 30 at Gampel Pavilion. DePaul has played just four games this season, a result of numerous shutdowns and postponements due to COVID-19 issues both in its own program and its scheduled opponents’. In fact, Monday’s game was originally supposed to be played on Dec. 23.

“After not being able to leave Storrs, we feel like we’ve been on the road for a while,” said Hurley. “Playing three in a row on the road, it’s been emotional. Marquette was an emotional win, losing James, getting Akok back, winning (Saturday), and obviously the news on Coach Rowe on just a one-day turnaround.”

“We’ve got to get that level of passion and energy firing, because that’s the type of team we are. I’ll have these guys ready (Monday) night.”