Nov. 23
Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun has a lot to be thankful for during this season of thanksgiving.

Calhoun recently celebrated the 600th win of his illustrious career. He has been a solid coach for so many years. Calhoun was magnificent at Northeastern, where often the big-name schools wouldn't give him a chance to compete against them.

	Jim Calhoun's first trip to the Final Four in '99 couldn't have had a better ending for Connecticut.

When Calhoun was given the opportunity to face some of the big boys, he gave them a major scare, scoring several upsets along the way. Then he got a chance to go to UConn. And what a program he has built there.

Connecticut has become very special. Gampel Pavilion is one of my favorite places to call a game, a great atmosphere and environment on a college campus. In fact, I sometimes wish the Huskies would play all of their games there instead of putting some at the Hartford Civic Center, which doesn't have the same feel, even with a much larger crowd.

Calhoun has done it in first-class style. Talk about a gym rat, a guy who loves the game -- that's Calhoun. If you ever get the opportunity to observe a Connecticut practice, you walk away with a tremendous understanding of the game of basketball.

It begins with Calhoun's ability to teach defense and to get his kids to play with emotion. When you look at the great coaches across America, that common denominator stands out. If you face a Mike Krzyzewski, Rick Pitino, Bobby Knight, Tubby Smith or John Chaney, you know their teams will come to play. They may not execute to perfection or handle the ball without errors, but they will play hard.

That has been a trademark of the Huskies. They spill their guts on the floor.

Connecticut has had lots of great players wear that uniform under Calhoun. Ray Allen, Richard Hamilton, Khalid El-Amin, Chris Smith, Scott Burrell ... the list goes on and on. It has always been about the team, because that's what Calhoun stresses; no one player is more important than the whole group.

Calhoun has already won a national title (in 1999), and there are less than a dozen active coaches who can claim a national Division I championship. Adding win No. 600 puts him in a special class.

For Calhoun, it has been more than a championship -- it has been the consistency. The Huskies are always competitive, and this year should be no exception. I really feel Connecticut will become the team to beat in the Big East, which is very wide open. This club will be special because the super sophs will step up.

Look for Caron Butler up front and Taliek Brown at the point to be major keys. Brown can penetrate and provide a spark. The Huskies started out by beating Vanderbilt convincingly.

Calhoun has to be excited about the future. He has to be thrilled to get No. 600! He has been awesome, baby, with a capital A!