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Price, Dyson help UConn blow out Texas Southern

Dec 3, 2006 - 9:30 PM STORRS, Connecticut (Ticker) -- It was the backcourt of A.J. Price and Jerome Dyson that led Connecticut to another rout.

Price and Dyson scored 23 of their combined 39 points in the first half as the 15th-ranked Huskies rolled to a 106-55 victory over Texas Southern.

Winning its third straight game by at least 31 points, Connecticut (7-0) extended its home winning streak to 26 games, including 13 consecutive here at Gampel Pavilion.

"It's a big improvement from our first game with Quinnipiac," Price said. "Our point total is going up every game and our defense is pretty much staying the same so I think we are getting much better as a team."

"The team is gaining a great deal of confidence," Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun said. "How do we take that confidence and good play and not make it into, 'Well, every game's going to be like this.' The margin's are going to change, and the results may change. But I'm watching what we do."

The guard duo of Price and Dyson led the way early, scoring 12 and 11 points, respectively, in the first half to give the Huskies a 58-28 advantage at the break.

Price finished 6-of-7 from the field with four 3-pointers en route to 20 points and the freshman Dyson added 19.

"Honestly, I don't look at the team and its caliber, I just look at the results and how we played, I just look at the numbers," Price said.

Doug Wiggins, another freshman, shot 5-of-5 with three 3-pointers to end up with 17 points for UConn, which shot 57 percent (34-of-60), including 10-of-18 from the arc.

Defense has been another component of the Huskies' big wins lately, and Sunday was no exception.

UConn held its third straight opponent under 56 points, limiting Texas Southern to just 36 percent (21-of-59) shooting, including 0-of-5 from the arc.

Freshman center Hasheem Thabeet played a huge role in the Tigers' offensive struggles, tying a school record with 10 blocks. The 7-3 player became the third player in school history to reach double digits in rejections, joining Donyell Marshall and Emeka Okafor.

"We can see that every day I play better defense, so I am trying to work more on playing offense," said Thabeet, who scored seven points and grabbed two of his four rebounds on the offensive side. "I belong here is what I am thinking, playing defense, playing hard."

"Hasheem is like a solid brick wall down there," fellow freshman Stanley Robinson said. "He's going to help us out a lot, he's just going to keep feeding, keep providing for the team."

Leonta Matthews was the lone player in double figures for the Tigers, who had 25 turnovers converted into 37 points by the Huskies.

Combined with a 64-point win last season, Connecticut has outscored Texas Southern, 219-104, in two career meetings.