Watch: UConn vs. Michigan State Postgame Media Availability
HARTFORD — UConn men’s basketball wrapped up exhibition play by hosting Michigan State at the newly-renamed People’s Bank Arena. Dan Hurley’s squad came out on top, 76-69, though the game was hardly that close.
UConn jumped out to an 8-1 start thanks to two threes from Silas Demary Jr. and two early MSU turnovers. The buffer persisted as turnovers and missed shots continued to pile up for the visitors, who ended the first half with eight turnovers and just 7-of-20 made shots.
UConn’s perimeter defense had the Spartans settling for bad shots, and the low-post guys mostly held strong as well.
The Husky defense stayed steady, or maybe the Spartans didn’t have much firepower to test them, as the first half continued in much of the same fashion.
Both teams went without a field goal for about three minutes near the end of the half; a layup by Solo Ball broke the streak before a three from Jayden Ross made it 36-23 at the U-4 time-out. UConn was up 44-33 at the break.
The second half followed a similar path, as the fouls kept coming for both sides. UConn got a little cold towards the end of the game, allowing MSU to cut the lead down to single digits, but the Huskies’ depth persevered. The game ended with 56 fouls and 74 free throws.
As in the first exhibition, Ball and Alex Karaban tied for the team scoring lead, with 18 points each. Ross was the Huskies’ third-leading scorer with 13 as the only other teammate in double digits. Reibe led the team with seven rebounds as the Huskies won the battle on the glass.
Demary cooled off after his two early threes, though he finished strong to end the night with nine points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists, looking like a strong two-way player in his first live outing for the Huskies.
Next up, the Huskies’ season begins with the first regular-season game, tipping off at 7 p.m. from Gampel Pavilion against New Haven. It will be televised on UConn+.
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