A look inside Alex Karaban’s final game at Villanova

The No. 5 UConn men’s basketball team continued its Big East grind of a schedule this past Saturday night, traveling to the Xfinity Mobile Arena for a road showdown against the Villanova Wildcats. Fresh off a loss at home to the Creighton Bluejays, Saturday night was an important matchup for Alex Karaban and the Huskies, considering that they are in a race for the Big East crown. Not only this, but Connecticut is on the No. 2 seed line for the NCAA Tournament.

If UConn wishes to not only win the Big East but also place well in the tournament, they will need their All-Big East caliber forward firing on all cylinders. Given all of this, I decided to take some inspiration from James L. Edwards III’s piece published in The Athletic. I followed the 6-foot-8 forward from afar in this contest, noting all the ways that he contributed to UConn’s 73-63 win.

First Half

15:17: A nice cut gets Karaban on the board. This seemed to be a bucket that was a long time coming. The redshirt senior has been involved in nearly every offensive possession and finally had his number called.  (UC 13 – VU 12)

13:01: After seven minutes of play, Karaban heads to the bench to take a rest. He has not been a defensive liability or played poorly by any stretch. He has yet to assert himself offensively, but, as has been the norm with him, he can make it rain all at once. Jaylin Stewart checks into the contest.  (UC 15 – VU 16)

10:21: After a brief breather, Karaban returns to the game for Jayden Ross. (UC 21 – VU 18)

8:42: The Huskies are yet again rewarded with points thanks to the screen. Karaban demonstrated great movement off the screen for a great finish at the rim. This bucket was set up by his teammates and, while it won’t be reflected in the box score, Karaban’s teammates deserve an assist. (UC 25 – VU 23)

7:16: Karaban commits his first turnover of the night. At the top of the key, the forward had a great idea, but threw a pass away down low, intended for Tarris Reed Jr. There was a visible disconnect between the ideas that the duo had; the pass went one way, and Reed went the other. (UC 25 – VU 23)

7:03: Tough foul committed by the two-time national champion. Karaban was a step behind and fouled Matt Hodge, who made the layup. The Wildcats’ forward makes the And-1 free throw, giving Villanova a one-point lead. (UC 25 – VU 26)

4:39: Karaban plays great at the rim defense, forcing a Malachi Palmer miss. The Huskies were a little unlucky that Hodge was behind for the easy rebound and second chance points. Despite the points, Karaban did everything he could to defend a one-on-two fastbreak chance. (UC 27 – VU 28)

4:00: After a missed three from Devin Askew, Karaban tips the miss to Solo Ball, who is credited with the rebound. Excellent awareness from Karaban to understand that he couldn’t get the rebound and still does everything he can to kill Villanova’s possession. (UC 30 – VU 30)

2:34: Karaban picks up his second block of the evening, stuffing Askew at the rim. Karaban grabs the rebound, and the Huskies take off running. (UC 30 – VU 30)

2:06: Karaban starts at the wing and looks to put a layup up off a great cut. However, he dishes the rock at the last second to Eric Riebe for the easy layup. (UC 32 – VU 30)

The Huskies only led 34-32 after 20 minutes of action. Despite holding a narrow lead, Connecticut played solidly throughout the half, and Karaban had his fingerprints all over this half. Offensively and defensively, he was making an impact, and when he has halves like this, it is hard for any program to put UConn on the ropes.

Second Half

18:01: Karaban starts his second half scoring early. The forward uses his body to shake off a defender and go up strong for a layup; two Villanova defenders were not enough for Karaban. (UC 41 – VU 34)

17:38: Karaban attempts his first three of the night. It was a fluid shot in transition at the top of the key, but he can’t get this one to go. (UC 41 – VU 34)

16:00: Karaban got himself another good look from downtown, but can’t get this one to fall. This was an efficient shot, and he is good enough to be taking it. When he is open like he was here, Connecticut needs him to take these shots. (UC 44 – VU 34)

15:03: Yet again, Karaban was in a position where he couldn’t get the board, so he slaps another rebound to Ball. (UC 45 – VU 34)

14:50: Karaban wins his matchup and puts up another great look at the rim. All night long, the forward has been slipping right off his man and reaping the reward of easy buckets at the rim. This has been devastating for the Wildcats as they struggle to keep it close. (UC 47 – VU 34)

14:07: Karaban misses a tough look at the rim. These have been going for him all night, but everyone misses, and the Wildcats catch a break. (UC 47 – VU 36)

13:14: Karaban gets his first free throw of the night, fouled going up for a layup with the shot clock winding down. He makes both shots at the line, and a minute later, he heads to the bench to take a breather. (UC 47 – VU 38)

9:13: Braylon Mullins picks up his third foul of the night, and Karaban checks back in for Connecticut. (UC 58 – VU 43)

1:42: Karaban finishes with 12 points on Saturday night with a garbage-time putback after the shot clock nearly expired. (UC 73 – VU 56)

The good and the bad

Final Line: 12 pts, five rebounds, two assists, two blocks and one steal.

After the game, Karaban reflected on what went wrong and what went right for UConn. As has been said so many times before, it all starts on the defensive end. Strong defense sets everything up for Connecticut, and Karaban told the media the tale of the two halves on Saturday night.

“We really lacked in our defensive end, and we went through a stretch where defensively we haven’t played our best basketball, and that’s the most important thing. We felt like we started the game not playing the way we wanted to, and then we closed it out the way we wanted to,” the forward said.

Karaban did everything UConn needed, and the Huskies bounced back to get a win when they needed it most. Karaban logged 34 minutes and remained active throughout. It was a huge win for the Huskies, and getting complete nights like this from the two-time national champion will be massive. All season long, Connecticut has had national championship aspirations; if they are to fulfill them, Karaban needs to impact the rest of the season as he did tonight.

Postgame, head coach Dan Hurley discussed the influence that Karaban has on the court and his teammates in such a big game in a hostile road environment.

“Just the calming influence of being in the huddle or being on the court with a two-time national champion and an all-time wins leader. The four guys that are with him on the court are getting, probably, better advice on what to do than what most players get from me,” Hurley told the media, “Truly, it’s like having an associate head coach on the court.”