For most Huskies, it's their first chance to dance

Hasheem Thabeet's arrival in the United States was nothing short of perfect timing. It was right around March when he remembers first settling in, watching the NCAA tournament on TV. It was new, exciting, but also somewhat foreign. So much that he never pictured himself even taking part.

"By the time I got in the country, I didn't have confidence in myself that I'm going to make it in basketball," Thabeet said. "A lot of people are thinking you're not going to be a Division-I basketball player. I was watching games, but I never thought that one day I would make it to Division-I."

Now, here he is. So is the NCAA tournament.

Thabeet, like most of his UConn men's basketball teammates, will be making his Dancing debut this Friday when the fourth-seeded Huskies (24-8) play 13th-seeded San Diego in a West Region first-round game in Tampa, Fla. The unknown - or three losses in six games - aren't enough to temper their expectations.

"We're real confident," said sophomore Jerome Dyson. "I don't think anything has changed as far as how we think we can play and our ability to play the game. We know we just have to play more as a team and get it done."

The tournament introduction comes a year later than most wanted after a 17-14 season left UConn practicing on Selection Sunday last March. Knowing full-well it never had a chance to get in, few, if any, of the players even watched the selection special. Some didn't even bother watching the tournament.

"No (I didn't), I was all business," Dyson said. "I was just all about trying to get myself better. I felt like we should have been there, and it hurt looking at those teams and not being there."

It was all smiles this time, though. UConn got the seed it wanted, a region it favored and a team it expected. When coach Jim Calhoun met with reporters directly following the announcement Sunday, he was already holding a packet of San Diego's stats, roster and box scores.

Reminded of how well the Toreros (13 wins in 15 games) and forward Gyno Pomare (two straight double-doubles) have been playing, Calhoun was fully prepared to answer. Remember, this is his 15th go-around.

"He had some very good games," the coach said of Pomare. "It should be an interesting battle because we have a big guy, too.

"(Thabeet) walked into practice with a big smile, (and) I told him, 'I haven't seen you since Wednesday,'" Calhoun continued, jokingly referring to the sophomore's poor performance in the Big East quarterfinals last Thursday. "It's a great opportunity for him, it's a great opportunity for all our kids."

Two, though, have been there before. Jeff Adrien and Craig Austrie both advanced to the Elite 8 two years ago, and are expected to impart at least some knowledge upon their teammates.

"I think the younger guys will lean on them more," said junior A.J. Price. "Even though this is my first time in the tournament, I'm not going to take it any different. I'm still going to do what I do really, and I think this team has to approach it the same way as well."

Calhoun (36-11 in the NCAA tournament at UConn) knows what can happen either way.

"My experience is if you win, the band's all around you, it's playing," he said. "If you lose, all of a sudden you hear in the distance, the band marching up the street.

"And it leaves you in a little bit of a puddle right there."

Reach Matt Stout at 425-4250 or mstout@norwichbulletin.com.