Walker running the show

Junior the force behind UConn

Every game — five of them, in five days, in the glare of the Big East tournament — seemed better than the previous one. He beat No. 1 seed Pittsburgh with a basket at the buzzer. He beat Syracuse with an amazing overall effort of scoring, rebounding, and defense. He helped beat Louisville in the tournament final with a pass that set up the key basket down the stretch.

When the week was over, the University of Connecticut had its coveted Big East tournament title and junior Kemba Walker, who set a scoring record with 130 points — 46 more than the previous record — had been named MVP.

“The little guy,’’ said UConn coach Jim Calhoun with a smile, looking across the court where the 6-foot-1-inch Walker was cutting down the nets at Madison Square Garden. “is something else, isn’t he?’’

It was very much a rhetorical question, for Calhoun knows that Walker is the something that has thrust UConn back into the mix as a contender in the NCAA Tournament, which begins for the Huskies with tonight’s West Regional game at the Verizon Center against Bucknell.

On paper, UConn (26-9), a No. 3 seed, should beat No. 14 seed Bucknell. But the Huskies know better — especially this season, when all but a few teams had rises and dips.

“We don’t go into the game thinking it’s an automatic win, because anything is possible,’’ said Walker.

But Calhoun knows he has an equalizer.

“Most games we play, we will have the best player on the field, and that is always an advantage,’’ he said.

What amazes Calhoun is that Walker, whose primary role is point guard, has become the go-to when the Huskies need a basket.

“It’s amazing that last week he averaged 30 points a game,’’ said Calhoun. “We’re laughing, because his nickname is ‘E-Z Pass,’ like on a tunnel or a bridge. He’s a great distributor.’’

Take the drop-off pass he made to Jeremy Lamb against Louisville with 33 seconds; Lamb’s basket gave UConn a 65-64 lead in what turned into a 69-66 victory. Or the performance earlier in the week against Syracuse, when he scored 33 points, grabbed 12 rebounds, handed out 5 assists, and came up with 6 steals in a 76-71 overtime victory.

Sometimes Walker is such an overwhelming presence that opposing coaches get caught up. Louisville coach Rick Pitino believed the officials were giving Walker a break on some calls, so he yelled, “He’s not Michael Jordan, he’s not Michael Jordan.’’

When told about that, Walker did not disagree.Continued...

“I’m not Michael Jordan,’’ he said. “I’m Kemba Walker.’’

Just who is Kemba Walker and how did he get to UConn? He came out of New York City and was a backup to future Villanova star Corey Fisher in junior high school and a backup to future Louisville point guard Edgar Sosa at Rice High School. When he arrived at UConn, A.J. Price was the main act in the backcourt.

Even before this season, Walker’s role was unclear on a team that had many freshmen and sophomores but few expectations. But the Huskies started 10-0, surprising a lot of people by winning a tournament in Maui with victories over Michigan State (ranked No. 2 at the time and Kentucky (ranked No. 8).

The Huskies hit a few potholes in late February, as they usually do, and they wound up 9-9 in the Big East, in ninth place (they were picked 10th in preseason).

But with their arrival in New York for the conference tournament, they picked up the pace.

“I just feel like we love the pressure,’’ said Walker, who last summer honed his game with a USA Basketball Select Team, playing against NBAers such as Derrick Rose, Russell Westbrook, and Rajon Rondo.

“Those guys helped me a lot. They guarded me like I’ve never been guarded before. So they just helped me understand the pace of the game.’’

Walker realizes that every game the Huskies play for the remainder of the tournament will be different.

“We all know it’s just one game and you’re done, and we just don’t want to be finished,’’ he said. “We want to go out swinging and fighting. So we’re just going to keep fighting until somebody beats us.’’

“The good thing about this team is that everybody knows their role,’’ said UConn forward Alex Oriakhi, who grew up in Lowell, Mass. “And we all know that we can’t be Jordan and we all know that we’re not going to average 30 points a game because that’s Kemba’s role.’’

Oriakhi laughed as he made the comment, then got serious.

“We all know our role,’’ he said. “That’s the greatest part about it. And a lot of times so much pressure is put on Kemba that they forget about us. So it leaves us open and we’re able to make big plays and make big shots.

“But everybody knows their role and we don’t care who scores. At the end of the day, all we want to do is win.’’

Bucknell is the first obstacle, and the Bison are well aware what UConn and Walker can do.

“We’ve played some pretty good guards,’’ said Bucknell coach Dave Paulsen. “The guards from Villanova are very good, Reggie Jackson from Boston College is a terrific guard. But there is nobody like Kemba Walker.’’

Mark Blaudschun can be reached at blaudschun@globe.com.

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