Huskies Face Quick Turn, Battle Colorado Tuesday

LAHAINA, Hawaii - After suffering its first defeat of the 2024-25 campaign in dramatic fashion on Monday, the No. 2 UConn men's basketball team (4-1) returns to the floor at the Lahaina Civic Center on Tuesday in the consolation play at the 2024 Maui Invitational. The Huskies will take on Colorado (4-1) to open Tuesday action in Lahaina at 3:30 ET / 10:30 HT, airing on ESPN2 with Dan Shulman and Jay Bilas on the call.

UConn and Colorado have squared off once in the past, with the lone meeting coming in the First Round of the 2016 NCAA Tournament. The Huskies came away with a 74-67 victory on March 17, 2016 behind Rodney Purvis' 19 points and a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double from Daniel Hamilton. Connecticut is now 9-4 all-time in Maui, playing in the tournament for the fifth time.

The Huskies saw their 17-game winning streak, the nation's longest, come to an end by way of a 99-97 overtime setback to Memphis in the Maui opener. In a seesaw affair that was tied at the half, Memphis built a double-digit lead late in the second half. The Huskies stormed back in emphatic fashion, erasing a 12-point deficit in the final three minutes to force overtime. Solo Ball hit a clutch 3-pointer in the final second of regulation to send the contest to extra time. In the overtime period the contest was again tied inside of the final minute, but a late rash of free throws for Memphis helped the Tigers secure the upset.

The UConn reserves provided a major spark, as Tarris Reed Jr. had a career day with 22 points and 11 rebounds and Jaylin Stewart set a career high-mark with 16 points. Alex Karaban added 19 points and a game-high six assists as one of six Huskies in double-figures. Karaban leads the Huskies this year with 16.8 points per game, adding 4.2 rebounds and 4.4 assists per contest. Reed Jr. has added 13.8 points and 10.0 rebounds per game on 75.0 percent shooting, posting double-doubles as a reserve in three of his first five games as a Husky.

Colorado also lost its first game of the season on Monday, dropping a 72-56 decision to Michigan State in the Maui quarterfinals. The Buffaloes are led by Elijah Malone's 14.0 points per game and gets 12.2 per contest from Andrej Jakimovski.

Following Tuesday's contest, the Huskies will return to play on Wednesday in Maui with a time and opponent to be determined.

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Players Mentioned

Solo Ball

Alex Karaban

Tarris Reed Jr.

Jaylin Stewart

University of Connecticut Athletics