Around the rim: UB-UConn

Quick tip-ins as we hit the final hour before tipoff of UB-UConn:

---Pretty funny sight to see four traveling beat writers (from papers in Hartford, New Haven, Manchester and Bridgeport) on hand at Wednesday's practice to interview Reggie Witherspoon. That's exactly four more visitors than are usually on hand.

---Stay close, stay close, stay close. It worked for UB against North Carolina in 1999 and again against Pitt two years ago. Keep it within single digits for a half and you go into the break thinking you still have a chance.

---Greg Gamble at point. He says he's up for the challenge. We'll see. It's one thing to do it against mid-majors and fellow MAC schools. It's another thing entirely for him to go head-to-head against A.J. Price.

---You won't catch UConn looking ahead. The Huskies don't have another game until Dec. 15 against Stony Brook.

---Wonder how the crowd will be impacted by folks already heading to Detroit for the MAC championship. Wonder how the crowd will be impacted by the $23 cost for tickets.

---As we wrote today, the Huskies' last trip to Buffalo was for the 2004 NCAA Tournament and their last trip for a true road game was against Canisius in 1963. Longtime Canisius administrator John Maddock emailed today to remind me the Huskies were scheduled to play in the Aud on Feb. 5, 1977 -- a few days afte the Blizzard of '77 hit --  but never came and the game was not rescheduled.

---Mike Harrington