UConn basketball snaps streak, defeats Seton Hall in Newark 69-64
Four 3-pointers made. Thirty-one combined turnovers. Forty-three personal fouls yet only 31 free throws made.
The horrors that have populated No. 3 UConn basketball’s (17-1, 7-0) recent series history with No. 25 Seton Hall (14-3, 4-2) at the Prudential Center reared their ugly head again Tuesday.
Connecticut’s lead, which at one point swelled to as large as 18 in the second half, had shrunk to one possession with under a minute to go. Alex Karaban, the Huskies’ venerable on-court leader, picked up his fourth foul and watched from the bench for a majority of the final 10 minutes. Tarris Reed Jr. missed his eighth free throw just seconds before Mike Williams III conveniently hit the Pirates’ first 3-pointer of the night.
It was happening again; UConn was melting down in its house of horrors for a fifth consecutive season.
But not to Karaban, who subbed in at the two minute mark with a weighty four fouls under his belt.
“It was never ‘here we go again,’” Karaban said of Seton Hall’s late push, referencing the Hall’s comeback last season. “It was just staying together out there. Just staying together no matter what, battling through the adversity and making sure we stayed together within our bubble.”
And, thanks in part to a slew of late-game foul shots from Silas Demary Jr., the Huskies did just that, staving off Seton Hall 69-64 for the program’s first win in the Prudential Center in five years.
“There was a lot of chatter about our inability to win here,” Dan Hurley said post-game. “There’s not a lot of Quad 1 games for us in this league this year. So being able to get it for what we’re trying to do in the NCAA Tournament, this was a big, big one.”
It certainly didn’t come easy.
After the two teams traded the lead for the better part of 12 minutes – shooting a combined 21-of-46 and 2-of-12 from deep – the Huskies broke the game open with a 16-3 run to close the half.
It looked like things were (finally) starting to change in Newark; Reed converted on an and-one opportunity to break the tie, which was followed by a Mullins dunk and trey on back-to-back possessions to stretch the lead to nine.
“Let’s go Huskies” chants broke out inside an overflowing Prudential Center. Jaylin Stewart and Solo Ball added six more to the lead before the half to make it 35-22.
But Shaheen Holloway’s Pirates would punch back – like they’ve done year after year against Connecticut.
Adam Clark and Najai Hines, two of the three main offensive engines for Seton Hall, rattled off five straight before TJ Simpkins brought the game back within nine points before the under 12 timeout of the second half.
Elijah Fisher converted at the charity stripe seconds later. Williams added two more to bring the game within six points. Karaban picked up his fourth foul and was escorted to the bench by a raucous Prudential Center crowd. Reed missed another pair of free throws. The Huskies couldn’t buy a basket (or break Seton Hall’s press) for over three minutes.
It was happening – the Huskies were unfurling. Seton Hall was within two possessions with two minutes to play, and Williams’ triple would bring The Hall within a point with under a minute to go.
Hurley engineered a look to get the ball in the hands of the ever-steady Demary to break the press. After catching the inbound, Demary drove hard to the left side of the court and stopped, pivoted to the top of the 3-point line.
Clark bit on the move and grabbed Demary’s arm, drawing a whistle that gave Clark, The Hall’s spark plug, his fifth foul.
Demary tacked on two at the charity stripe to stretch the lead to three with 30 seconds left, shots which proved to be lifesaving insurance for UConn.
Holloway’s scheme for Williams on the wing to tie the game was deflected by Mullins and rebounded by Demary, who again nailed both free throws to stretch the lead to five, where it would stay for the remainder of the game.
💬 Wondering what other UConn fans are saying?
Head to The Husky House forum and jump into the discussion →
