UConn seniors Brimah, Facey and Purvis play for final time at Gampel today
Storrs — College basketball careers tend to roar by like an express train. There's barely time to look at the scenery before the last stop.
UConn's Amida Brimah, Kentan Facey and Rodney Purvis all are approaching their final destinations. And what a glorious ride it's been. Brimah and Facey played reserve roles on the 2014 national championship team while Purvis sat out the title season after transferring from North Carolina State. The trio helped the Huskies capture their first American Athletic Conference tournament championship last season and advance to the second round of the NCAA tournament. They've gone a combined 91-49 and been iron men, appearing in a total of 348 career games.
They're hoping to celebrate Senior Day with an upset of No. 18 Cincinnati (26-4, 15-2) in today's regular-season finale at Gampel Pavilion (noon, Ch. 3). A win would clinch the No. 5 seed and a first-round bye for the Huskies (14-15, 9-8) in next week's AAC tournament in Hartford.
"Hopefully, we can send them out the right way," coach Kevin Ollie said. "This is the last time that they'll play in Gampel and hopefully they've got fond memories. There's no better (sendoff than) to beat one of our rivals in the AAC, Cincinnati, and hopefully try to secure a fifth spot, if we can."
The Huskies will be short-handed again.
Freshman Vance Jackson, a starting forward, is sidelined indefinitely with a concussion suffered in Wednesday's loss at East Carolina. Ollie called the playing status of sophomore Jalen Adams (sprained ankle) and freshman Christian Vital game-time decisions. Vital, who's near the end of his concussion protocol, needs to be cleared by a doctor. There's a good chance both will play.
"It's never good to see guys go down with injuries or things like that," Purvis said. "It seems like each game it was a new guy. It was kind of like, man, what's next? I think we did the best we could as far as staying positive and playing with what what we have.
"... I just feel like the season is not over. We've been down for a large amount of time this year. I just feel like something good is going to happen for us.
The fun-loving Purvis is always looking on the sunny side, even when he's struggling. This season, he's been inconsistent, shooting a career-low 36.2 percent. But he's set career highs for scoring average (13.2 points), assists (80), rebound average (4.2), free throw percentage (79.2) and minutes played at an AAC-leading 37.0. He has 1,228 career points.
"It's been fun, man," Purvis said. "Just the relationships I've gained here ever since I've been here. A lot of ups and downs. But it's life. This is just one stage of my life that's complete." Facey and Brimah, from Jamaica and Ghana, respectively, have made sacrifices and overcome obstacles on and off the court.
"They came from different countries and they had to come in and adjust to different ways of life," Ollie said. "They've done great and they've been great ambassadors for our university . ... I just wish their families were able to see them a little bit more."
A few times during his career, Facey considered transferring but elected to stay after talking to Ollie.
"He told the truth about what I need to do to be relevant as a player here," Facey said. "I'm happy that this year I was able to come out and have a decent year for my senior year. ... If I had to do it again, I'd do the same thing."
One of the AAC's most improved players, Facey's enjoying a breakout year, averaging a personal best nine points and 7.4 rebounds. Through hard work, he's gotten stronger and tougher. His mindset also has changed for the better.
Facey also has served as a mentor for freshman forward Juwan Durham.
"He's been playing great," Ollie said. "I just appreciate him."
Brimah will forever be remembered for his game-saving 3-point play that forced overtime in 2014 NCAA tournament first round against Saint Joseph's that UConn eventually won, 89-81. A defensive force, he ranks third all-time at UConn in blocks with 359. He's on pace to establish a record for career field goal percentage, entering today's game at 64.2 percent.
"I knew I grew as a person," Brimah said. "Everything is not all about basketball. It's about maturing as a person. I came here to graduate and make my parents proud."
All three veterans are on track to graduate in the spring.
"All of them are graduating, and that's the biggest thing I want to see happen," Ollie said. "We can win and lose games, but to graduate you really won the game of life. So it's going to give them options and opportunities outside of basketball. I'm very proud of that."
It will be difficult for the senior trio to walk away with a win in their last regular season game. UConn was overmatched and never led in the first meeting, losing 82-68 on Feb. 4 in Cincinnati. The Huskies struggled to score against a match-up zone and failed to contain forward Gary Clark and Kyle Washington who combined for 47 points and 19 rebounds.
It will take UConn's best effort to pull off the upset.
"The mindset is to try to get a win any way we can," Facey said. "They have really good guys and that showed last game. I feel like we have to come out with more energy and challenge them." g.keefe@theday.com