No. 3 UConn once again made short work of Xavier on Tuesday night, claiming a 92-60 victory at PeopleBank Arena in Hartford, Conn.
The 32-point win was the Huskies’ (22-1, 12-0) largest scoring margin over a Big East opponent, eclipsing their previous best in the team’s last outing against Creighton on Saturday night, when they won by 27. The 12-0 start to Big East play is the second-best start in program history.
The Huskies jumped out to an early lead in similar fashion in their 23-point win over the Musketeers (12-11, 4-8) on New Year’s Eve. Braylon Mullins picked up right where he left off against the Blue Jays when he led UConn in scoring by knocking down a three from the top of the key.
Mullins’ basket sparked the fuse that detonated a nuclear warhead from UConn’s offense. The five-star freshman scored eight during a 10-0 run that broke open the first half. He capped off the surge with a fast break dunk that forced Xavier head coach Richard Pitino to call a timeout.
While the signal stopped the clock, it could not stop the Musketeers’ bleeding. The Huskies’ offense would not relent. Mullins finished the half with 13 points, joined in double digits by Tarris Reed Jr. who was a perfect 5/5 around the basket through the first 20 minutes. UConn entered the intermission with a 50-22 lead, its largest halftime lead against a conference opponent this season.
Silas Demary Jr. was honored for scoring 1,000 career points prior to the game and played like he wanted to reach 2,000 that same night. His fingerprints were all over the Huskies’ offense. Demary was the game’s leading scorer with 17 points while also dishing out eight assists. He was still lunging for loose balls even as the team led by well over 20 in the second half.
Reed continued to dominate the paint. He converted on all seven attempts and finished the game with 14 points. The performance tacked on to a 14-made shot streak that carried over from UConn’s 87-81 win over Providence on Jan. 27. Reed pulled down eight rebounds which led the game.
The Huskies controlled the glass throughout, comfortably winning the rebounding battle by 17. Eric Reibe trailed behind Reed with seven rebounds, while Alex Karaban grabbed six.
The Huskies’ perimeter barrage was just as potent as its interior presence. UConn buried 13 threes in its first meeting with the Musketeers this season. While the Huskies didn’t quite hit that number, 10 threes were more than enough to get the job done this time around. Silas Demary Jr. and Jayden Ross each contributed three triples to lead the team from beyond the arc.
Seven UConn players finished with at least nine points, five of which were in double figures, as the buzzer sounded through a triumphant PeoplesBank Arena. The Huskies 34 shots came from 26 assists. It was the team’s third straight 80-point game, boosting its KenPom offensive rating to No. 26 in the country.
UConn will turn its attention to Pitino’s father, two-time national champion head coach Rick Pitino, and the St. John’s Red Storm in the second ranked Big East game of the season. The Huskies were swept by St. John’s last season.
The highly anticipated matchup will tip off at 8 p.m. and can be watched on Fox.