Huskies face BC in Big East showdown

UConn men's soccer hosts No. 14 Boston College at Morrone Stadium tonight at 7:30 p.m. in their biggest game of the season so far. The Huskies (7-4-2 overall, 3-1-1 Big East) ride the momentum of their second Big East win, a 1-0 double overtime victory over Rutgers this past Saturday, into a key conference match-up.

"I think there is a lot of momentum now after starting out rough," UConn assistant coach Paul McDonough said following Saturday's game.

The Huskies started the season 1-3, but have only lost one of their last nine games. The only loss came at St. John's on Oct. 9 and since the loss the Huskies have quickly bounced back with two straight wins.

Tonight's game against the Eagles is the second to last home game this season, and as McDonough stressed, every conference game at home is three points in the Big East standings the Huskies need to take with a win.

The Huskies currently have 10 points - three wins and a tie - in the standings, which is good for just seventh place. The number is slightly misleading, however, as the Huskies have only played five conference games. Every team above UConn in the standings has played at least seven games and St. John's, Boston College and Villanova have played eight. Every game that remains on the Huskies' schedule is a Big East game.

The Huskies continue to get great defensive play out of their backs, as they shutout Rutgers for 107 minutes in the last game. Defender Julius James was honored as Big East Defensive Player of the Week for his play in that shutout, as well as a 2-1 victory over Boston University in which the Huskies didn't allow a goal for the final 65 minutes. James also scored the game-winning goal in double overtime against Rutgers, off a corner kick from Easton Wilson. James was the ninth player on the team to score a goal this season, passing last season's total of eight with four games left to play.

Boston College (9-3 overall, 5-3 Big East) is second in the Big East with 15 points. The Eagles are surpassing their expectations this season. They were picked to finish fourth in the Big East and finished just 6-7-4 last season.

Much of the turnaround the Eagles have enjoyed this season is due to forward Charlie Davies. Davies has eight goals and three assists this season and was named Big East Offensive Player of the Week Monday. Davies scored game-winning goals in both of his team's wins this past week against Yale and Pittsburgh. And scarier still is the fact that Davies is just a freshman. Davies came to Boston College as the Soccer America No. 6 recruit in the country and has lived up to his billing.

Senior defender Pat Haggerty has four goals this season, after scoring just two in his first three years at Boston College. He is still a big body on defense though, at 6-feet-3-inches tall and 185 pounds.

The Eagles defense is a real strong point on their team. Senior back Guy Melamed was named the Preseason Big East Defensive Player of the Year and was a First Team Big East member the past two seasons. Melamed, like UConn's top defender Moshe Shalchon, is a native of Israel.

Boston College goalkeeper, Issey Maholo, is one of the top keepers in the conference. Maholo was named Big East Goalkeeper of the Week for the fourth time this week after earning two shutouts. Maholo has allowed just six goals in 12 games this season.

UConn has dominated the Eagles historically, with an all-time record of 27-6-3 against them, including a 7-1-1 record since 1996.

Tonight's game is part of a doubleheader with the UConn women's soccer team, which means the men's game won't start until after the women's game is over. The women's game starts at 5 p.m.