Before the men's basketball team's final exhibition game last weekend, senior guard Jerome Dyson stubbed his toe entering the building. Badly. As coach Jim Calhoun was quick to point out after the game - in which Dyson dropped 32 points on UMass- Lowell - it wasn't the first time he'd stubbed his toe, so to speak.
"He stubbed his toe, which he's done on several other occasions," Calhoun said. "But this time it was actually the physical stubbing of his toe."
While Dyson has been an impact player since his freshman year, his career at UConn has been far from smooth.
As a freshman, Dyson was part of a squad that went 17-15 and missed both the NCAA Tournament and the NIT.
As a sophomore, Dyson (along with then-teammate Doug Wiggins) was suspended after being found in possession of marijuana. After Dyson came back, he was relegated to the bench as Craig Austrie had stepped up in his absence.
In the Huskies' season ending loss to San Diego, Dyson scored 14 points but committed four turnovers and four fouls.
Last year, Dyson looked like a man on a mission - ready to make up for a disappointing sophomore campaign. He was the team's leading scorer heading into the Huskies' regular season matchup with Syracuse. But it would be his last game of the season, after a torn miniscus sidelined him for the remainder of the season and UConn's trip to the Final Four.
Not having Dyson against Michigan State in the National Semifinal hurt a lot. Especially when the Huskies needed a scorer.
"Against Michigan State we needed someone to go off," Calhoun said. "A.J. didn't go off, Stanley didn't go off, Kemba didn't go off, and that's where we needed Jerome."
Does having to watch the end of his team's from the bench add extra motivation for this season? You better believe it.
"I can't wait," Dyson said. "It's been a while since I've been able to get back out there. I got to put my jersey on at the Final Four but it just wasn't the same knowing that I wouldn't be able to get out there and run up and down the court."
With a number of things derailing Dyson's previous three seasons, whether it be injury, suspension or being on an inconsistent young team, the country has yet to see Dyson's full potential - on both sides of the ball. Calhoun thinks he'll get his chance this year.
"Defensively he makes a difference," Calhoun said. "Physically he's healthy and this should be a coming out party for him. We're trying to feature him and Stanley [Robinson] two guys we expect to score in high double figures."
What puts Dyson ahead of where he's been in the past couple seasons is his growth, both on and off the court.
"I think he's matured, and more under control," Calhoun said.
Dyson agrees with his coach.
"I pay a lot more attention to detail. I feel like I've matured a lot since I've been here," Dyson said. "My game is a lot different and I try staying off the ground as much."
If anyone need be reminded of Dyson's drive, consider this: after he almost completely tore off the toenail on his big toe, Dyson told team doctors to do whatever it took to get him on the floor.
"I told them they had to do whatever they could to make sure I could get out there and play," Dyson said.
If Dyson can avoid any figurative toe-stubbing as well as anythe physical ones, he's poised to leave Storrs in style.
"This is my last go around - I really don't have any room for injuries or anything like that," Dyson said. "I'm definitely going to leave it all on the floor."
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