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NEW YORK – Alex Karaban and Samson Johnson took over down the stretch as the UConn men’s basketball team pulled away from Villanova for a 73-56 win in the quarterfinal round of the Big East Tournament Thursday night.
Johnson set the screen that cleared the way for Karaban’s fourth 3-pointer of the game and Karaban returned the favor, assisting his big man for a tough finish through a foul. It was all part of a vintage 22-5 scoring run to close the game as the Huskies’ lead grew to as many as 19 points in the final minute.
UConn, competing for its ninth Big East Tournament title, will meet No. 2 seed Creighton in Friday’s semifinal round, which features No. 1 St. John’s and No. 5 Marquette on the opposite side of the bracket.
Karaban scored 15 of his team-high 18 points in the second half, when he made all four of his shots from the field, three from beyond the arc. The captain added nine rebounds and six assists. Johnson scored 11 points on 5-for-5 shooting, freshman Liam McNeeley added 12 and seven rebounds, and Solo Ball got up to 11 points.
Johnson began the game in classic form, dunking twice for the game’s only points through the first two minutes. Villanova responded by scoring 17 of the next 21 points as UConn started the late night 0-for-6 from beyond the arc.
Karaban finally ended that drought, nailing a 3-pointer from the left wing, and another drought ended less than 30 seconds later.
The game was paused for a media timeout after a blocking foul on Aidan Mahaney when Dan Hurley voiced his disagreement to the referees and earned his second technical foul of the season. It was his first since the infamous “T” in overtime against Memphis at the Maui Invitational.
The Huskies made seven of their next 11 shots to close the half, hanging within five points of the Wildcats after trailing by as many as nine. Mahaney, who was solid in 10 first-half minutes, hit a corner 3-pointer and picked the pocket of Eric Dixon (8 points, 2-for-15), racing down the court for a layup and a personal 5-0 run that brought UConn to within one. Wooga Poplar (25 points) made a difficult fadeaway jumper and McNeeley tied the game with a triple of his own at the two-minute mark.
Dixon’s first made field goal of the game came on a deep 3-pointer and Poplar hit another mid-range shot just before the buzzer to take a 36-31 lead into the break.
Ball traded shots with Poplar after the break as the Wildcats’ senior guard got to 23 points – one shy of his season-high – on 12 shots before anyone else scratched double figures. Poplar helped Villanova’s lead get back to five before Karaban’s second 3-pointer fell and a sweet left-handed layup, high off the glass from Mahaney tied the game at 46 with less than 11 minutes to go.
Karaban gave the Huskies their first lead since the 14-minute mark in the first half with a pair of free throws and McNeeley finished a tough layup around Dixon to push it to three points, 51-48, with 8:29 to go. The Huskies continued to run, building a seven-point lead as Karaban nailed a straight-on 3-pointer and Johnson finished a layup that gave the crowd its first opportunity for a “U-C-O-N-N” chant as McNeeley puffed his chest.
Trailing for almost 25 minutes in the game, UConn’s lead grew to as many as 19 points in the final minute.
The Huskies finished the game shooting 57.8% from the field and 8-for-20 from beyond the arc. Villanova made just 20.8% of its shots in the second half and didn’t make a shot from the field over the game’s last six minutes.
Friday’s semifinal game against Creighton is set to tip-off at 9 p.m. on FOX.
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Johnson set the screen that cleared the way for Karaban’s fourth 3-pointer of the game and Karaban returned the favor, assisting his big man for a tough finish through a foul. It was all part of a vintage 22-5 scoring run to close the game as the Huskies’ lead grew to as many as 19 points in the final minute.
UConn, competing for its ninth Big East Tournament title, will meet No. 2 seed Creighton in Friday’s semifinal round, which features No. 1 St. John’s and No. 5 Marquette on the opposite side of the bracket.
Karaban scored 15 of his team-high 18 points in the second half, when he made all four of his shots from the field, three from beyond the arc. The captain added nine rebounds and six assists. Johnson scored 11 points on 5-for-5 shooting, freshman Liam McNeeley added 12 and seven rebounds, and Solo Ball got up to 11 points.
Johnson began the game in classic form, dunking twice for the game’s only points through the first two minutes. Villanova responded by scoring 17 of the next 21 points as UConn started the late night 0-for-6 from beyond the arc.
Karaban finally ended that drought, nailing a 3-pointer from the left wing, and another drought ended less than 30 seconds later.
The game was paused for a media timeout after a blocking foul on Aidan Mahaney when Dan Hurley voiced his disagreement to the referees and earned his second technical foul of the season. It was his first since the infamous “T” in overtime against Memphis at the Maui Invitational.
The Huskies made seven of their next 11 shots to close the half, hanging within five points of the Wildcats after trailing by as many as nine. Mahaney, who was solid in 10 first-half minutes, hit a corner 3-pointer and picked the pocket of Eric Dixon (8 points, 2-for-15), racing down the court for a layup and a personal 5-0 run that brought UConn to within one. Wooga Poplar (25 points) made a difficult fadeaway jumper and McNeeley tied the game with a triple of his own at the two-minute mark.
Dixon’s first made field goal of the game came on a deep 3-pointer and Poplar hit another mid-range shot just before the buzzer to take a 36-31 lead into the break.
Ball traded shots with Poplar after the break as the Wildcats’ senior guard got to 23 points – one shy of his season-high – on 12 shots before anyone else scratched double figures. Poplar helped Villanova’s lead get back to five before Karaban’s second 3-pointer fell and a sweet left-handed layup, high off the glass from Mahaney tied the game at 46 with less than 11 minutes to go.
Karaban gave the Huskies their first lead since the 14-minute mark in the first half with a pair of free throws and McNeeley finished a tough layup around Dixon to push it to three points, 51-48, with 8:29 to go. The Huskies continued to run, building a seven-point lead as Karaban nailed a straight-on 3-pointer and Johnson finished a layup that gave the crowd its first opportunity for a “U-C-O-N-N” chant as McNeeley puffed his chest.
Trailing for almost 25 minutes in the game, UConn’s lead grew to as many as 19 points in the final minute.
The Huskies finished the game shooting 57.8% from the field and 8-for-20 from beyond the arc. Villanova made just 20.8% of its shots in the second half and didn’t make a shot from the field over the game’s last six minutes.
Friday’s semifinal game against Creighton is set to tip-off at 9 p.m. on FOX.
Continue reading...
