A bear was set loose in Xfinity Mobile Arena on Friday night. A bear named Tarris Reed Jr.
A historic performance from Reed carried No. 2-seed UConn to an 82-71 win over No. 15-seed Furman in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
31 points and 27 rebounds on 80% shooting. A tournament performance college basketball hasn’t seen the likes of in decades. The last time a player scored 30 points with 25 rebounds in an NCAA Tournament Game was Elvin Hayes in 1968.
My mindset coming into the game was really just to be dominant,” Reed said. “This is my last March Madness. My days are numbered in college basketball.”
Reed alone outrebounded the Paladins (22-13, 10-8) by a margin of four. UConn (30-5, 17-3) claimed a 44-23 advantage on the glass, which included an 18-4 difference on offensive rebounds.
The All-Big East First Team selection acknowledged the weight of his performance, yet he doesn’t believe he gave his team “a complete 40” minutes that he is capable of.
“I feel like I let my foot off the gas a little bit in that second half,” Reed said. “There was a period where I let a couple rebounds go by, wasn’t as strong with the ball.”
Head Coach Dan Hurley heralded the outing from Reed, restating how important Reed is to the success of his team.
“He’s a top two or three center in the country,” Hurley said. “When he plays like that, we can win any game against any team in the tournament.”
UConn was without its starting point guard Silas Demary Jr., who was ruled out with an ankle injury before the game. He was helped off the court during the closing minutes of the team’s loss in the Big East Tournament Championship on Mar. 14.
Hurley has previously credited Demary for helping establish the team’s defensive identity. He has also referred to him as the team’s quarterback. Demary is one of the best passers in the country, averaging 6.2 assists per game this season.
UConn coasted to the basket on three easy looks to start the game on a 6-0 run. Four straight misses from three set the Paladins back 12-4. That’s when the Huskies were introduced to Alex Wilkins.
Furman’s freshman guard unleashed a trifecta of three-pointers to bring the game back within one point. Five consecutive makes for Wilkins, followed by a pair of free throws from Charles Johnston, gave the Paladins their first lead of the game, 19-18.
An individual 8-0 run from Reed put the Huskies back in front, but Wilkins refused to let the game get out of reach. He had scored 17 points by the end of the half, keeping the game within just four points at the intermission.
“We’re missing a starting point guard who would have been, I think, a much better match-up for Wilkins because Silas has size and is a ball hawk and could have made it tougher on him,” Hurley said.
Wilkins’ hot hand cooled in the second half. He missed all four of his attempts from three after being perfect in the first half. UConn managed to hold him to 2-for-7 shooting and just four points, which stalled Furman’s offense.
An abysmal 1-for-14 start from three prevented the Huskies from taking a larger lead at the break. Their shooting struggles have been apparent in the postseason. UConn is shooting 27.7% from deep in four playoff games.
Alex Karaban helped steer the offense on course. He became the Huskies’ all-time leader in three-pointers by knocking down his first attempt of the game. The shot also surpassed Ryan Boatright’s for No. 8 on the program’s all-time scoring list.
The two-time national champion knocked down three more in the second half on his way to a 22-point night. His last came with two minutes to go in the game, which extended UConn’s lead to 11 and sealed the win.
“It’s my job being the veteran guy on this team, having the most experience in college basketball…and to make sure I step up when my team needs me,” Karaban said.
The win advanced the Huskies to their fourth straight appearance in the second round of the tournament. They also maintained a 15-0 record in tournament games as the seed favorite under Hurley.
The Huskies will face off against UCLA on Sunday night in the Round of 32. It will be the first meeting between the two programs in almost 30 years.
The game will tip off at 8:45 and will be available on TBS.