... Johnnie Bird, that is.

To say it's been a strange first half for the Huskies here at the XL Center would be an understatement.

At the break ...

***Craig Austrie (11 points) and Donnell Beverly (nine) are the Huskies' leading scorers.

***Johnnie Bird has played and A.J. Price hasn't. Bird is a walk-on. He played just seven seconds, but still.

***Jeff Adrien received mock cheers when he hit his first free throw after missing his first four. He's also missed all four shots from the floor.

***Hasheem Thabeet has two fouls and has played just eight minutes.

***Scottie Haralson still can't hit a shot.

***Jim Calhoun is not a happy man. He pulled three starters (Thabeet, Austrie and Jerome Dyson) after the first 1:29 of play. He's spent most of the first half yelling at various UConn players, substituting in and out like a hockey coach.

The Huskies have a 41-32 lead, thanks in part to 14 free throws (on 22 attempts). Oh, to be a fly on the wall in the UConn locker room right now.