Following their shocking 68-66 loss at Villanova University, the UConn men’s basketball team returned to action on Saturday in the nation’s capital to take on the Georgetown Hoyas. Saturday also marked the third game in a row that Connecticut would be without their star freshman forward, Liam McNeeley. The Huskies shook off last Wednesday’s loss at Villanova, beating Georgetown 68-60.
Saturday’s contest started as a comedy of errors: poor defense, many missed shots and even a few head-scratching turnovers. These were significant reasons why Georgetown got out to a lead early on, and Connecticut looked a step behind. The Georgetown guards, Malik Mack and Micah Peavy, generated 11 points between themselves. Nearly every bucket came at the rim for the pair, whether off a turnover or a defensive breakdown.
Despite only seeing six minutes on the floor in the first half, Aidan Mahaney played as solid of minutes as he did since the program’s Jan. 5 matchup against Providence. The Saint Mary’s College transfer scored six points on 2-2 shooting. However, what stood out about Mahaney’s performance was how aggressive and confident he was in his abilities, including when he splashed a tough step-back three-pointer. On his first bucket, Mahaney exhibited elite body control on a left-handed layup. As good as the guard was playing, Solo Ball was a significant reason UConn was up at the break.
The sophomore guard put up nine first-half points on 3-6 shooting from beyond the arc. However, what made Ball’s shots even more crucial was the time when they came. All the guard’s makes came when the Huskies’ lead was shrinking. This was also a significant change of pace from Connecticut’s last matchup at Villanova, where the sophomore was much more passive in the first half of that contest. Considering that McNeeley is hurt, UConn needs Ball to step up his scoring, and not shooting the rock is detrimental to the offensive gameplan.
The first half also partially belonged to Alex Karaban, who shook off his uncharacteristic performance at Villanova last Wednesday in a significant way. The forward carried most of the scoring load for Connecticut, putting up seven points on 3-6 shooting.
As has been the status quo for UConn basketball this season, the program got torched defensively in the early moments of this contest. The Connecticut guards failed to move their feet and stay in front of their man; as a result, they conceded many looks at the rim. However, luckily enough for the Huskies, Georgetown could not capitalize on the subpar defense, as the Hoyas finished 5/12 on their layup attempts for the first 20 minutes.
However, a major point of concern for the Huskies existed in the free throw department as UConn finished 6-14 (42.9%) from the charity stripe. Despite this, the Huskies led 35-31 at the half, and it was thanks to a true team effort on the offensive end.
The Huskies started off the second twenty minutes on a higher note as the program roared out to a massive 18-4 run thanks to excellent shooting, much-improved defense, and the inability of Georgetown to (again) finish layups.
Karaban went nuclear for the Huskies, leading the way with 12 points on 4-4 shooting, including a trio of shots from beyond the arc. It was also easy to see how locked in the forward was considering that some of the trey balls he knocked down were well beyond NBA range.
While Ball failed to make a shot from beyond the arc in the second half, he showed off his ability as a slasher, scoring six points on 2-5 shooting, including a pair of free throws. This helped UConn build a lead as big as 23 points. However, as well as Connecticut performed early on, the Hoyas stormed back and made it a much closer game than it should have been.
Curtis Williams Jr. came off the bench and carried the bulk of the scoring for Georgetown, accumulating 12 second-half points on a perfect 3-3 shooting, two shots from downtown and another pair from the line. The sophomore Detroit native was truly the Husky killer, as these points came at times when UConn could have turned this game even uglier. Williams Jr. even led the comeback effort, with nine of his points coming in the final five minutes.
To make matters worse for UConn, Dan Hurley’s squad struggled to inbound the ball, turning it over and nearly getting whistled with a five-second violation on numerous occasions. Not to mention, the program played subpar offense while the Hoyas were roaring back as both Hassan Diarra and Mahaney put up awful attempts from three that never had a chance of finding the bottom of the net. However, the Huskies played well enough for the first 12 minutes of the second half, meaning that it didn’t matter Georgetown outscored UConn by 15 points in the last eight, as Connecticut held on for the win 68-60.
Saturday’s win came at a perfect time for UConn, as not only did the program shake off a tough loss at Villanova only three days before, but Karaban had an excellent 19-point performance, shaking off his offensive struggles in that same contest.
UConn will have a week off to recharge and reload, as they will return to Gampel Pavilion on Jan. 18 to host the Creighton Bluejays.
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It was a very nice comeback win for the men’s basketball team and especially Alex Karaban after the poor performance at Villanova. UCONN needs to significantly improve inbounding the ball against a press with big men coming backcourt to help relieve the pressure. They also need an improved close out strategy that doesn’t include Diarra holding the ball until there is 3 seconds left on the shot clock and throwing up a shot that has zero chance of going in.
Things not normally Uconn and need to be addressed: Give away lazy passes, being outrebounded, foul shooting, clutch shots when needed, too many lane openings for layup and lax defensive moments..