The road to “The World’s Most Famous Arena,” Madison Square Garden, started this Wednesday for the UConn men’s basketball team, as they hosted the Xavier Musketeers at the XL Center. The Huskies got the job done at home, narrowly edging out the Musketeers 94-89 in overtime.
With Samson Johnson out for Wednesday’s contest, Tarris Reed Jr. and Youssouf Singare were called upon to fill in the minutes at the five spot. Reed Jr. finished with 35 minutes, and Singare eight minutes.
Early on for Connecticut, the story was dominance; they were asserting themselves on both sides of the ball and playing their brand of basketball. Initially, the XL Center was the unofficial block party for the Huskies, as their tough at-the-rim defense yielded four swats right off the bat. Even if the program’s defensive efforts weren’t showing up in the box score, their presence made it tough sledding for the Musketeers. Hassan Diarra and the guards were winning their one-on-one matchups, the team was making the proper rotations and the help defense created points for the program. The defensive intensity was so present that the program even forced a pair of shot clock violations; the crowd and the UConn bench were both in rhythm. It seemed like nothing could stop them. However, this euphoric feeling was short-lived, as it took the Musketeers no time to roar back into this contest.
After jumping out to a 20-10 lead, questionable defense, poor offense and a trigger happy officiating crew later and the Huskies were down. The whistle hurt both sides throughout the night, as both sides finished with seven in the half. However, the Huskies got the short end of the stick, as an Alex Karaban three-pointer and a Tarris Reed Jr. bucket were both negated. The Karaban triple hit especially hard, considering the Huskies were scoreless for over five and a half minutes at that point. Conversely, Xavier was making a killing in the paint, and they started to take advantage of Connecticut’s sloppy offense, scoring a pair of buckets off turnovers, putting Xavier up 22-20. However, Solo Ball ended the nearly six-and-a-half-minute scoring drought with a triple. After this, the two sides started to trade triples back and forth, with Xavier getting the upper hand, leading 30-29 at the end of 20 minutes.
Whether in the paint or beyond the arc, Connecticut had no answers to Ryan Conwell, who shot the lights out in the first half, scoring 12 points on 5-7 shooting, including 2-3 from downtown. On the other side of things, Alex Karaban and Diarra led the way early for UConn, scoring seven points apiece. Reed Jr. had six points, though his seven first-half rebounds created numerous offensive possessions for his side, not to mention killing some Musketeer scoring opportunities.
The second half was much smoother than the first, with both sides trading buckets and neither gaining a significant advantage. The largest lead that both sides possessed was only five points. Liam McNeeley shrugged off a scoreless first half and picked up the scoring slack for the program, scoring 14 points on 4-5 shooting. However, where the Texas native excelled was in the paint, drawing three fouls, including numerous And-1 opportunities, getting the XL Center crowd on its feet. McNeeley believes that his second-half performance can be attributed to simply him playing within himself.
“I just let the game come to me. A lot of guys in the locker room told me just keep going, keep your foot on the gas,” the freshman forward told media postgame.
The best offensive performance in the second half for Connecticut belonged to Reed Jr., and it wasn’t particularly close. Considering that Johnson was out for this contest, the program needed as many minutes as possible out of Reed Jr., and since the UConn big man only finished with three fouls, his time tonight was extended; this paid dividends for the program. The Michigan transfer scored 10 points on 3-4 shooting in 18 minutes of work, not to mention snagging six boards. However, it was how he scored these points that kept the Huskies afloat. Reed Jr. created offense on his own, whether it was getting physical in the paint, off the inbound or off an offensive rebound, and this saved possessions for the programs that would have otherwise been lost.
As well as Reed Jr. and McNeeley excelled scoring wise, the second half belonged to Xavier guard Dante Maddox Jr. The Chicago Heights native went nuclear, putting up 13 points on 5-7 shooting in 16 minutes of work, though it seemed the longer the game went, the better he got and the bigger the shots he was hitting. Maddox Jr. was splashing threes left and right off a lethal step back, including one with 36 seconds left that tied the contest at 76 points apiece. Head Coach Dan Hurley noted that he didn’t believe this was directly attributed to poor defense but rather just “NBA level shooting” from the guard and the Musketeers.
“I thought they made some incredibly hard shots. I actually didn’t think our three-point defense was that bad. I just thought that was a ridiculous display of three-point shooting. Off the dribble, sidestep, deep,” Hurley told media postgame.
When it was all said and done, Connecticut finished 8-24 from beyond the arc, while Xavier shot 13-24 from deep.
Whether it was McNeeley charging like a bull into the paint or Ball cashing in a three, the Huskies had the shot makers they needed down the stretch, and so did the Musketeers. As the second half progressed, overtime became an inescapable reality. With nine seconds left in the half, down by two points, Xavier had a chance to win the game. However, Jayden Ross fouled off the ball, sending Xavier to the free-throw line and not allowing them a look from beyond the arc to win the game. While this was dubbed unintentional by Hurley, it was a smart foul to give, as this took away the chance for Xavier to win it. They could miss free throws, which would give Connecticut the final shot of the contest. However, Maddox Jr. swished both shots in, and Ball missed a three after McNeeley was tangled up off a screen, meaning bonus basketball was soon underway.
The third and final period of Wednesday’s contest was the first two halves in a nutshell, with both those in stripes and the pace. However, for the first time all night, Connecticut played complete basketball and finally separated themselves from the contest. Karaban got the scoring underway with a three-pointer, which set the tone for the rest of the five minutes. The program’s defense made a stand, and Xavier started missing the tough shots they had been hitting all night. The pressure was building for Xavier to match the Huskies’ pace, and it soon became overwhelming. Again, it was Reed Jr. creating offense down low, whether of the inbound or off the glass, and it helped create separation, as every possession in this shortened period mattered exponentially more. As the clock kept ticking, it eventually came down to free throws, though Xavier could never mount that comeback that they so desperately needed, meaning the Huskies opened their Big East slate of games 1-0, with the 94-89 victory.
When it was all said and done, Reed Jr. finished with 20 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks in 35 minutes of work. Undoubtedly, Wednesday was Reed Jr.’s most complete performance yet in his first start for Connecticut. Postgame, Hurley noted that this type of performance the team needs out of him and shared with fans the “bear” he has been trying to get out of the center.
“He’s got to decide what type of bear he wants to be. When he’s a Grizzly bear, a Kodiak bear or a vicious Polar Bear, he’s incredible,” Hurley told media personnel. “He’s such a nice guy and a sweetheart that sometimes he doesn’t play with that force and want to be a killer,” adding. “I want him to be the bear from the Revenant up until it gets shot.”
The two-time national champion coach is also enlisting the help of UConn fans, noting that “Maybe fans can DM him pictures of vicious bears.”
Whether fans decide to send Reed Jr. pictures of bears or not, this was a solid outing from him and the program as a whole. The team will need performances like these from him, Ball, Karaban and McNeeley, especially considering that the road to the Big East tournament at Madison Square Garden only gets more treacherous from here.
Connecticut returns to action this Saturday at noon on the road, taking on the Butler Bulldogs.