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Connecticut-Georgetown Preview

Jan 8, 2010 - 11:23 PM By SANTOSH VENKATARAMAN STATS Senior Writer

Connecticut (11-3) at Georgetown (11-2), 12:00 p.m. EDT

While Connecticut once enjoyed eight straight years of dominance over Georgetown, the Hoyas have had all the answers the last three seasons.

The No. 13 Huskies try to end a three-game slide against the 12th-ranked Hoyas when the Big East rivals meet Saturday at the Verizon Center.

Connecticut (11-3, 2-1) went 11-0 against Georgetown (11-2, 2-1) from the 1997-98 season to 2005-06, with the Hoyas being unranked in all of those games and the Huskies in the Top 25 in all but one. Georgetown has been ranked in each of the last three matchups, twice winning against unranked Connecticut squads.

Last season, the then-No. 11 Hoyas beat the then-No. 2 Huskies 74-63 in Hartford on Dec. 29, 2008.

"I think we've been lucky," Georgetown coach John Thompson III said. "I don't know that there's any one particular thing. I think we've had some good nights and then we've probably caught them at some times when they've been a little off.

"But you know you have to play for 40 minutes, you know it's going to be an intense, physical game."

The Hoyas have done an excellent job of stopping Connecticut star Jerome Dyson, a Washington-area native. Dyson, third in the Big East with 19.9 points per game, is averaging 7.0 on 29.0 percent shooting in three games against Georgetown.

UConn guards Kemba Walker and Dyson rank first and second in the Big East in assists at 6.1 and 5.5 per game, respectively.

"At the end of the day, between Jerome and Kemba, they kind of make that team go," Thompson said. "It's easy to say, hey let's stop Connecticut's transition, let's keep them off the boards. That's something that they do, that's something that they stress."

The Hoyas lead the Big East in scoring defense, allowing 57.8 points per game, and have limited UConn to an average of 59.3 in the three-game streak.

While the Huskies like to push the pace, the Hoyas prefer a deliberate offense in which they like to get the ball inside to Greg Monroe. The 6-foot-11 center was one of four Georgetown players in double figures in last season's matchup with 16 points.

The Hoyas' leading scorer should face a challenge against a UConn team that boasts a Big East-leading 36.9 defensive field-goal percentage.

"For us (with) Georgetown, we have to have enough patience to guard their offense and then not try to take a quick shot on offense ourselves," coach Jim Calhoun said. "That will be the keys."

Monroe has had trouble with opponents' swarming defenses at times. He matched a season low with nine points and took only six shots in a 62-59 loss at Marquette on Wednesday.

"Greg didn't have a good day," Thompson said. "Give them credit for that, though. Once he got the ball, they were coming from different angles, doubling him and keeping him off balance. But, we anticipated that going in."

It's likely that UConn will use a similar strategy while also hoping to get big efforts offensively from Dyson and Walker. The duo combined for 31 points and 13 assists in Wednesday's 71-63 win over Seton Hall as the Huskies closed the game on a 17-6 run.