“We’re definitely well rested, so I think that can help us,” Webster said.

The break also provided Curry extra time to prepare to defend UConn guard Kemba Walker, who has emerged as one of the country’s elite players this season.

The junior guard–who scored 20 points against Harvard last year–has led a UConn teamthat started the season unranked to victories over top-10 squads Michigan State and

Kentucky. Walker is second in the nation with 27.2 points per game and also leads the Huskies with 4.0 assists and 2.3 steals per contest.

“Obviously we’re going to pay a lot of attention to him; he’s one of the best players in the country,” McNally said. “I think we’ll try a bunch of different guys on him, [but] we have confidence in Brandyn to put pressure on the ball and try to make him take tough shots.”

After Walker and Oriakhi, the Huskies get scoring from freshman guards Shabazz Napier and Jeremy Lamb, who average 8.6 and 7.6 points per contest respectively.

Despite the Huskies’ ranking and undefeated record, they have been challenged twice by mid-majors this year, only beating Wichita State by four and New Hampshire by seven.

With a big road contest next Monday at No. 6 Pitt, UConn will have to avoid falling prey to the traditional “trap” game against the Crimson. But coming off its seventh win in eight games, Harvard is confident in its own ability to shock the basketball world either way.

“We’re just going to try to play the game we’ve been playing–move the ball, be unselfish, and play inside out,” Webster said. “[If we do that], I feel like we have a good shot at knocking them off.”