UConn MBB Postgame Media Availability - DePaul (Hurley, Mullins, Demary Jr., Karaban)
HARTFORD– UConn men’s basketball claimed a wire-to-wire victory over DePaul, 72-60, on Saturday at PeoplesBank Arena to pick up its 12th straight victory and sweep the season series with the Blue Demons.
The Huskies controlled the game from the opening tip. The defense was sharp, forcing tough looks late in the shot clock and generating turnovers that led to transition opportunities.
Braylon Mullins was the centerpiece of the UConn offense, scoring a team-high 16 points. Alex Karaban dropped 15 while Silas Demary Jr. addeded with 14, his third straight game in double figures.
Chris Holtmann has had the Blue Demons playing well since the last time these two teams faced off in late December. DePaul came into Saturday winners of two straight with a top-50 defense in the country.
The Huskies got things going right away offensively, particularly Mullins. The freshman hit a tough runner in the lane and connected on a four-point play in the first few minutes, picking up right where he left off on Wednesday. At the first media timeout, UConn led 10-5.
After a weak outing from the bench on Wednesday, the Husky reserves got back on track. In the first 12 minutes, Malachi Smith finished a tough three-point play through the trees, and Jayden Ross drew a foul at the top of the key while shooting and made three free throws.
The Blue Demons started 3-of-15 from the field with four turnovers in the first 13 minutes, settling for tough looks deep in the shot clock. UConn built a 21-11 lead at that point.
From there, DePaul woke up a bit and hit its next four shots to pull things closer at the under-4 timeout at 25-21. After the stoppage, Demary scored on back-to-back possessions to increase the lead back to eight and get the crowd in Hartford on their feet.
Mullins finished a strong three-point play in transition, and Demary splashed a three off an offensive rebound right as the buzzer sounded, giving UConn its largest lead at the break, 37-27.
On the first possession of the second half, Karaban picked up a steal and connected with Demary on a give-and-go for what looked like a three-point play thanks to a goaltending call, but a successful Blue Demon challenge negated the bucket. The Husky captain still knocked down a pair at the line to increase the lead to 39-27.
On the ensuing possession, Solo Ball entered the scoring column with a three-point play on a nice lefty finish. On the next trip up, UConn grabbed two offensive rebounds off DePaul blocks before Tarris Reed Jr. converted a righty hook to make it 44-28, forcing a Holtmann timeout with 17:17 to play.
UConn led by as much as 23 points. But in the middle of the second half, UConn went scoreless for nearly three minutes and DePaul nearly four. Eric Reibe snapped the streak for the Huskies with a finish inside to make it 52-36 with 10:40 to play.
Demary and Mullins each knocked down threes to get the lead 64-44. After knocking down a program record 18 threes in the win over the Friars, the Huskies had a much more pedestrian six on Saturday.
Ball finished with a fastbreak layup before a Mullins steal on the inbounds ended up with an open three for Karaban that the senior buried to make it 69-46.
The Blue Demons made a late push after UConn subbed out its starters, going on a 6-0 run in 87 seconds to make it a 16-point game at 71-55 with 1:30 to play. This forced Hurley to put his first unit back in to hold on for the win even though DePaul cut a 23-point deficit to 12 thanks to an 11-1 run over the final three minutes.
Next up, the Huskies are back on the road to face Seton Hall on Tuesday evening.
Tip-off is set for 8:00 p.m. from the Prudential Center and will be televised on truTV. UConn has dropped four straight meetings on the road against the Pirates, with its last win coming in 2021.
Led by Shaheen Holloway, the Pirates entered Saturday at 3-1 in conference play after a strong 10-1 non-conference slate. They’re ranked 46th in KenPom overall efficiency (134th Offense, 9th Defense).
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