University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
University of Oregon
UConn MBB Dominates Oregon In PKI, TO Meet Alabama In Semifinals
11/25/2022 1:18:00 AM | Men's Basketball
UConn Athletic Communications / Nov. 24, 2022
PORTLAND, Ore. – The UConn men's basketball team rode the hot hand of senior guard Tristen Newton as he led the Huskies to a school-record 17 three-pointers and an 83-59 domination over Oregon in the first round of the Phil Knight Invitational on Thursday night at the Moda Center.
Newton, two games removed from a triple-double, was on fire from the outset, hitting 5-of-6 three-pointers on his way to 21 first-half points as the No. 20 Huskies (6-0) took command.
Newton finished with a season-high 23 points, hitting 7-of-10 overall from the floor, and added 4 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 steals in an impressive all-around performance.
Newton had plenty of support as sophomore Jordan Hawkins added 18 points, including 5 three-pointers, junior Adama Sanogo had 12 points, including 2 three-pointers, and grad Joey Calcaterra scored 11, with 3 three-pointers.
Sanogo hit UConn's last three-pointer with 3:56 remaining – the 17th for the Huskies, which broke the record of 16, set against South Florida on Feb. 8, 2017. UConn's 37 three-point attempts also set a new school mark.
The win advances UConn to Friday night's PKI semifinals, where it will face No. 18/18 Alabama, an 81-70 winner over Michigan State in the second half of Thursday's doubleheader. The Huskies and the Crimson Tide (5-0) square off at 9:30 p.m. (EST) at Veterans Memorial Coliseum (ESPN) with a spot in Sunday's championship game on the line.
UConn coach Dan Hurley was naturally happy with the Huskies' outside shooting performance, which negated Oregon's clear height advantage, but he also was pleased with the UConn defense, which followed the game plan of taking advantage of the Ducks' injury-depleted backcourt. Oregon (2-3) committed 17 turnovers, which led to 18 UConn points. Â Â Â
"Obviously, we were thrilled with the performance," Hurley said. "The plan was to pick them up full court, really get after them. I think we knew we would foul a lot today, but I didn't really mind it because of our depth. We knew we had to drag them into a fullcourt game, not a slowdown game with the three monsters they have in the frontcourt. When you have the shooting we have around the center play that we have, you're going to have some nights like this."
The Huskies held a slim 16-15 lead with 8:23 left in the first half, then exploded on an 11-2 run in a 3:00 span as Hawkins, Calcaterra and Newton each hit a three-pointer.
"We didn't respond very well," Oregon coach Dana Altman said. "Bigs really just didn't get out and cover a number of times. Our perimeter defense wasn't good and they hit shots. Newton coming in the game was 4 for 17 and goes 5 for 6 the first half. We let him get a couple of easy ones early and he got on a roll. We didn't help ourselves out with our turnovers, missed some free throws that first half, which could have kept us a little closer. But obviously, we just didn't guard."
Any thoughts Oregon might have had of a comeback from a 39-28 halftime deficit, were crushed when the Huskies came out of the locker room with an 9-2 burst that widened the gap to 48-30.
UConn never let up and stretched the margin to 66-39 in the first 10:00 of the second half and the outcome was only a matter of letting the clock wind down.
It was UConn's sixth straight game scoring 80-plus points. The Huskies had 22 assists on 30 field goals and ended up outrebounding the taller Ducks, 36-30, led by 8 from freshman Donovan Clingan.
UConn will likely face a stiffer challenge from Alabama, a running, high-scoring bunch, averaging 84.0 points per game. The game's winner will meet the winner of the North Carolina-Iowa State semifinal in Sunday's championship game. The losers will meet for third place, also on Sunday.
