Ken Davis

When a recruit signs a letter of intent to play basketball for Jim Calhoun, he’d better be prepared to accept three basic commandments.

He will be yelled at. He must learn to accept Calhoun’s quick hook, the one that firmly pulls a player to the bench as soon as he makes a mistake. And, finally, there’s no such thing as a free lunch in Calhoun’s cafeteria.

It’s all about hard work.

UConn players earn Calhoun’s respect — and his highest praise — through effort, consistency and performance. When the Hall of Fame coach starts comparing you to the greatest Huskies from the past, it’s a sign you’ve reached a higher level.

Point guard A.J. Price has arrived. It took longer than originally expected. But in a way, that’s a tribute to Price’s resiliency and dedication because any conversation about the junior from Amityville, N.Y., must include the adversity he overcame. Life-and-death adversity.

Teams do not shift gears in mid-season the way UConn has without good reason. If you are looking for a way to explain the 10-game winning streak the Huskies extended after a win against DePaul on Tuesday, then start with the leadership and production of Price. There are other reasons. But one way or another, they all trace back to Price. He has made everyone around him better and his coach has started making those comparisons.

“When you’re a great player and you’re spoiled a little bit, you don’t always share the great gifts that you have,” Calhoun said. “Khalid [El-Amin] always did. Doron [Sheffer] obviously did. Ray Allen did. A.J. is sharing what he has now — leadership. He’s fearless. And those are great things to have.”

Calhoun made those comments Feb. 13, after Price scored a career-high 26 points to help UConn to an 84-78 victory over Notre Dame. But highlighting Price’s point production is a superficial exercise. Go deeper into the box score and you get a better understanding of what he means to his team. Price scored 13 points in each half. He tied his career high with nine assists and committed just one turnover in 39 minutes. He had two steals. He was 10-for-19 from the field and 4-for-10 from 3-point range.

“A.J. took the game over,” Calhoun said.

On this night in Gampel Pavilion, Price confirmed what so many have been thinking in recent weeks. He is the best point guard in the Big East. Price was named Big East Conference player of the week Monday after averaging 24.5 points and eight assists in victories over Notre Dame and South Florida. Saturday he finished with 23 points and seven assists as the Huskies extended that winning streak with a 74-73 victory over South Florida in overtime.

“I was scared to death of him,” Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said. “I think he’s been a key to their run, just how he’s stirring the drink, so to speak. He was fabulous. We had a real hard time with him.”

Brey admitted he threw every defensive package in his playbook at Price. The Irish even utilized a box-and-one. The idea was to play the Huskies four-on-four and hope Price wouldn’t get involved. Needless to say, it didn’t work.

In seven games against ranked opponents this season, Price has averaged 20 points. During UConn’s nine-game winning streak, he has been UConn’s scoring leader, averaging 18. In those nine games, he has 55 assists, 25 turnovers and 12 steals. He averaged 36.6 minutes, shot 45.9 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from three-point range. With those numbers, Price shoudl be considered among the nations' top point guards, along with players like UCLA's Darren Collison, Texas' D.J. Augustin and Memphis' Derrick Rose.

Consider what Price did in a stretch of one minute, 45 seconds early in the second half against Notre Dame. With the Irish leading 47-41, Price triggered a run that gave UConn a 52-49 lead. Price had five points, scoring on a fastbreak layup and hitting a three-point shot. He collected assists on two baskets by Jeff Adrien, a dunk to start the run and a jump shot to end it. He also had two defensive rebounds and a steal.

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