ERIC M. JUKELEVICS/Arizona Daily Wildcat UA junior guard Jason Gardner attempts a jumper in Arizona's 88-72 loss to Arizona State last night in Wells Fargo Arena.

Non-conference foe UConn visits McKale

After a lackluster performance Wednesday against intrastate rival Arizona State, Arizona will get a chance to get away from Pacific 10 Conference play, even if only for one game.

But it will be no vacation as No. 25 Connecticut comes to Tucson tomorrow at 11 a.m.

Though separated by conference boundaries, the Wildcats (13-5, 6-3) and Huskies (13-3. 6-0) are no strangers.

Last season, the two teams familiarized themselves in a game in Storrs, Conn.

With head coach Lute Olson taking a leave of absence from the team to be with his ailing wife, associate head coach Jim Rosborough took charge and nearly led Arizona to victory. A controversial goaltending call on UA center Loren Woods contributed in the final seconds led to a 71-69 UConn victory.

Rosborough said he remembers the game clearly, especially the questionable call that sealed the Wildcats' fate.

"When we played out at UConn, other than the goaltending call, I thought it was a good experience," Rosborough said.

This season, the two teams seem to be in different situations.

UA is coming off a loss to ASU and is currently sitting in fourth place in the Pac-10.

The Huskies have won five straight games and are atop the Big East Conference with a perfect 6-0 record.

UConn survived a late rally by St. John's Wednesday to keep its winning streak alive.

"With UConn's game against St. John's, they look like they were very fresh and very aggressive," Olson said. "They are a very impressive team in terms of their quickness, and their aggressiveness to the boards."

Led by sophomore guard Caron Butler, the Huskies have broken into the top 25 in the Associated Press poll for the first time since last season.

Butler is one of four Huskies averaging double figures. The 6-foot-7 forward is averaging 19.1 points and 6.4 rebounds per game.

Butler and company are by no means satisfied as they will try and establish themselves in front of a national television audience tomorrow.

"The only thing that's changed is that I've raised the bar for them," said UConn head coach Jim Calhoun, referring to the Huskies' slow start. "We're going to keep marching to that beat."

Marching is exactly what UConn has been doing over opponents during itsr winning streak.

Two of the last five wins for Connecticut have come by more than 30 points.

The latest was against North Carolina, which fell to UConn by 32 points Saturday.

Olson said he does not relish the prospect of facing a non-conference team - especially one with a hot streak like Connecticut's - in the middle of the Pac-10 schedule.

"Most (non-conference games) are made-for-TV games," Olson said. "I guess the thinking is to see good teams from other areas of the country. We may be better off without a game on Saturday. We could get a chance to get our legs back after a tough schedule to this point and a tough series with the Los Angeles schools last week."