Wayne Norman’s book on UConn basketball

50 YEARS OF UCONN MEN’S HOOPS

Thrilling victories, crushing defeats, comical mishaps, colorful coaches, players, and fans – these are the legendary moments and larger-than-life personalities that have made the UCONN Huskies a basketball favorite.

In HOOP TALES: UCONN HUSKIES MEN’S BASKETBALL (March 2005; Globe Pequot Press), radio analyst Wayne Norman and UCONN alumnus Robert Porter share their favorite memories of this beloved team. From its first moments of regional prominence against Holy Cross in the 1950s to the 2004 NCAA national championship team, this book takes you on a wild ride of New England basketball at its best.

Read about Wes Bialosuknia, the “Poughkeepsie Popper” of 1960s fame, who was perhaps the greatest shooter ever to wear a Husky uniform. Learn about Ray Allen, perhaps the greatest all-around UCONN player ever. Then, of course, there’s the Jim Calhoun era, which has produced scores of great players, two national championships (1999 & 2004), and a lifetime of thrilling basketball moments and memories.

If you’re looking for the ultimate history of UCONN Men’s basketball, this is it, as virtually nothing has been written on the early years (from 1950s through 1980s) until now. These stories are must reading for all Husky fans. They entertain, inspire, and bring back to the spotlight the indomitable spirit and energy that is Huskymania.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

WAYNE NORMAN has been a UCONN basketball and football radio commentator since 1979. His broadcasts are currently heard on WILI, 97.9 ESPN Hartford, and the UConn Sports Network. Wayne broadcast his 1000th UConn game in 2004. He also has the longest continuously running morning radio show in the state at WILI-AM (1400). He was named the 2019 Connecticut Sportscaster of the Year, and in 2018 was inducted into the Connecticut Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame.

ROBERT PORTER is a 1971 graduate of UCONN and a lifelong Huskies fan. While in college, he did play-by-play broadcasts of UCONN basketball games for radio station WHUS. He has also done freelance sports writing for papers in Connecticut and works as a consultant in international banking.

HOOP TALES: UCONN HUSKIES MEN’S BASKETBALL

By Wayne Norman and Robert Porter

ISBN 0-7627-3785-9 — $9.95 trade paper — 4.5″ x 7.5″ — 177 pages — MARCH 2005

Wayne (L) and Bob did a book signing at the UConn Co-op before the March 2, 2005 UConn game against Georgetown at Gampel Pavilion

Bob (L) and Wayne broadcasting a UConn game on WHUS at the Field House in 1969

Wayne Norman signs a copy of Hoop Tales for Bob Choinski on April 30, 2005 at a signing at Walden Books/Eastbrook Mall — Bob Dyer photo

Wayne Norman was signing copies of his UConn basketball book before the August 19, 2005 Norwich Navigators game at Dodd Stadium. He was sitting next to Navigators pitcher Scott Chiasson, who was a member of ECSU’s 1998 NCAA championship team. Wayne broadcast Scott’s ECSU games on WILI.