University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
9-1,0-0Big East
Arkansas Pine Bluff
4-7,0-0SWAC
No. 5 UConn Takes Down UAPB, 101-63
12/9/2023 3:36:00 PM | Men's Basketball
STORRS – Behind a career-high 26 points from Alex Karaban (Southborough, Mass.) and a dominant second half run, the No. 5 UConn men's basketball team (9-1) roared past Arkansas-Pine Bluff by a score of 101-63 on Saturday afternoon at Gampel Pavilion.
The Huskies led by just two late in the first half but closed the opening 20 with a flourish to take a 12-point lead to the break. The second half was all Connecticut, as the Huskies out-scored the Golden Lions 56-23 until a late UAPB spurt in the final two minutes of regulation. In support of Karaban, Tristen Newton (El Paso, Texas) scored 16 points and dished out six assists while Cam Spencer (Davidsonville, Md.) knocked down five 3-pointers to finish with 15 points.
How it Happened
The Huskies were sluggish out of the gate and allowed the Golden Lions to stick around for the majority of the first half, until a 10-0 run in the final minutes of the opening stanza pushed the lead to double-digits for the first time. The strong close to the half gave UConn a 45-33 lead at halftime.
A 10-0 run early in the second half gave UConn its largest lead of the day at 65-42. The Huskies would top that later in the half, ripping off 20-straight points to turn a 72-52 lead to a 92-52 advantage. From there all that was left was the window dressing as UConn cruised to the 38-point win.
Head Coach Dan Hurley on the result
"Happy with the last 22 minutes of that, thought it was really good basketball. I thought overall our defense was pretty decent based on the points they scored against high majors this season. Our goal was to keep them under 60 and they scored 63. Offensively it was good to see us shoot it better. This was more aligned with our expectations so it was good to see that."
Inside The Numbers
- The Huskies finished 33-of-59 (55.9 percent) from the floor and were 13-of-28 (46.4 pecent) from 3-point range while holding UAPB to a 21-of-59 (35.6 percent) shooting effort
- UConn was +14 on the glass, getting seven rebounds apiece from Karaban and Donovan Clingan (Bristol, Conn.)
- Karaban's career-high 26 points came on 9-of-12 shooting and a 6-of-9 effort from 3-point range
- UConn held a 9-2 advantage in blocked shots, getting three apiece from Clingan and Samson Johnson (Lome, Togo)
- The Huskies out-scored the Golden Lions 38-10 in the paint, 17-10 in fast break points and 24-11 in bench points
- UConn dished out 21 assists on 33 baskets
News and Notes
- Karaban topped his previous career-high of 22 points, set in the season opener
- Arkansas-Pine Bluff was the third of three first-time opponents for UConn this year – they are now 3-0 against those foes (Northern Arizona, Mississippi Valley State)
- The Huskies have out-rebounded all 10 opponents this season
- The 13 made 3-pointers and 46.4 percent mark from 3-point range were both season-bests
- UConn hit the 100-point mark for the second time this season
Up Next
The Huskies head west for a date with No. 7 Gonzaga in Seattle. The rematch of last season's West Regional final is set for Dec. 15 at 10 p.m. (ET).
