At Phoenix

No. 10 Gonzaga (28-6) vs. No. 1 Connecticut (31-2)

Time: 3: 40 p.m. today

Line: Connecticut by 10 1/2

TV: Chs. 13, 9

Conference records: Gonzaga won the West Coast Conference with a 12-2 record. Connecticut won the Big East with a 16-2 mark.

Coaches: Dan Monson is 52-16 in two years at Gonzaga. Jim Calhoun is 301-120 in 13 years at Connecticut, 551-257 in 27 years overall.

Starting lineups: Gonzaga: G Richie Frahm (14.6 ppg, 4.3 rpg, .438 3FG pct.), G Matt Santangelo (13 ppg, 5.3 apg), C Jeremy Eaton (11.7 ppg, 4.3 rpg, .532 FG pct.), G Quentin Hall (11.3 ppg, 1.8 spg), F Casey Calvary (9.4 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 1.7 bpg, .661 FG pct.). Connecticut: G Richard Hamilton (21.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg), G Khalid El-Amin (14.0 ppg, 3.8 apg, 1.7 spg), F Kevin Freeman (12.6 ppg, 7.1 rpg .609 FG pct.), G Ricky Moore (6.4 ppg, 3.8 apg), C Jake Voskuhl (5.7 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 1.5 bpg).

Bench strength: Gonzaga likes to play as many as 10 players, and Axel Dench contributed eight points off the bench on Thursday. Guard Albert Mouring had 11 points and four assists for the Huskies against Iowa, while forward Edmund Saunders is averaging nearly 10 points in the tournament.

Key matchup: Hall vs. El-Amin. Can the 5-8 Hall -- who had five steals against Florida on Thursday night -- limit the efficiency of the 5-10 El-Amin, who had 21 points, five assists and two steals against Iowa?

What Gonzaga needs to do to win: Avoid all notions of running with Connecticut, though a fast start -- like the one against Stanford -- wouldn't hurt. Keep turnovers and damage done by Hamilton to a minimum.

What Connecticut needs to do to win: The Huskies would serve themselves well by allowing fewer than the 12 three-pointers that Gonzaga made against Florida. The rest of the recipe stands -- press, force turnovers, run, score.

Bottom line: UConn may have more than Gonzaga can handle.

Pub Date: 3/20/99