UConn men’s basketball took down Michigan State in Friday night’s Sweet 16 matchup, setting up a big game against Duke on Sunday with a Final Four berth on the line.
Where else would you rather be?
The Huskies jumped out to a big early lead before the Spartans punched back, briefly taking the lead before the UConn stars put the game away. It was a stellar team performance, led by their seniors.
Bench Mob
Martin: With the Huskies in cruise control to start, Hurley went to his bench. A lineup of Jayden
Ross, Jaylin Stewart back from injury, Eric Reibe, Malachi Smith, and some rotation of a starter (it was Alex, then Braylon, then Solo). A show of faith to go four deep from the staff that early in the game, given how UConn started.
Malachi Smith hit a three-pointer and had a few assists. Jaylin Stewart knocked a trey down. Ross brought the defensive pressure. While it may not look like it on the statsheet, the bench added to the lead; four players executed their role, and Ball broke out of his slump. That’s the type of versatility UConn had been searching for all season.
Collectively, the Smith-Ross duo was +22 on the day.
UConn’s earliest killshot (10-0 run) of the season — 10 or so minutes into the game — came with the bench in the mix. That stretch gave the starters a rest from their frenetic open and ensured they had the legs to close it out against a Sparty team that pushed the pace every chance it could get.
Everyone will rightfully talk about the heavy lifting Tarris Reed Jr and Karaban did. But those two were able to close it out because they weren’t redlining the engine.
Goldilocks
Martin: Michigan State carried over its first-half momentum into the second, quickly whittling the lead down to two. It looked like we were headed for another inconsistent UConn performance. Up four after a Mullins triple, Reed Jr on the high hedge picked Carson Cooper’s pocket and went coast to coast for the slam to make it a two-possession game again.
Reed had so many highlight reel plays last night that that one will go overlooked, but it was so important because it really settled UConn down. Sets were getting blown up, turnovers were back, and Alex had just rimmed out an open three. The 1v1 matchup vs. Cooper up until then had been a back-and-forth battle. Reed created his own offense out of nowhere, something that’s been at a premium for UConn all year.
It was also the second or third time that game he followed up a negative play with a positive one; he put Cooper in the spin cycle after getting stuffed on his first shot of the game. Prior to his steal and slam, he had just missed a bunny. For a player that thrives off momentum, to see him consistent in the face of a few off plays is incredible maturation.
The way he uses his dribbles to go somewhere — while recognizing how his man is playing him — is some elite stuff. Pair the footwork (which also is bucking its head on the defensive side with his high hedging) and its a thing of beauty down low.
Oh, and it was also Reed’s first game with zero turnovers since Columbia.
For the tournament, UConn’s center is now averaging 20 points, 15 rebounds, three assists, 1.5 blocks per game. Those numbers are a little skewed from the Furman incineration, but my favorite stat among them? He’s 15/20 from the charity stripe. 75%! He’s 59% from the line this season! We’re talking about an All-American level performance from UConn’s center, and it’s complementing Karaban’s play so perfectly.
Point Guard Duo
Wilson – Expanding more on the previous point on Malachi Smith, his minutes in the win over Michigan State were massive on both sides of the ball. Smith finished with seven assists and four steals, providing significant disruption to Jeremy Fears Jr. and making his life hell on that end of the floor. He also knocked down a big three during the early stretch, as UConn hit six of its first eight from deep.
What’s even more crucial about Smith’s game on Friday is how he complemented Silas Demary Jr., especially on defense. Demary still didn’t look like himself as he was coming back from an ankle sprain just two weeks ago against St. John’s. He’s nowhere near as explosive on offense, not driving to the rim much, and just hanging out on the perimeter. On defense, Fears was able to drive by him a couple of times, just naturally having a quicker first step over the hobbled Husky floor general.
Smith came in and changed that, staying on top of everything Fears did and forcing him to think longer on some decisions, ultimately turning the ball over. The way that Smith has evolved this NCAA Tournament has been a pleasant surprise for Husky fans, playing some of his best basketball of the year at the perfect time.
That Was Weird
Kidwai: The Huskies were outrebounded. They had a big lead and lost it, and turned it over too much at inopportune times. They needed Tarris Reed to go perfect from the free-throw line to close the deal.
They also delivered a strong defensive performance and turned in their best assist-to-field goal ratio of the season, as the team that’s 7th-best in that metric over the course of the year. And they got contributions from across the board, including Braylon Mullins and Solo Ball, who had his first multi-three game since the Big East Tournament quarterfinal against Xavier.
Aside from popping off early, the game script probably didn’t follow what UConn wanted, especially on the glass, but that was enough of a buffer for them to bunker down and hold on for the win. It’s a testament to the character in that locker room, which will surely be taking a lot of confidence heading into this Duke matchup, where they’ll be underdogs for the first time in the Big Dance.
