UConn men’s basketball put its foot on the gas and never looked back Friday night, dismantling the UMass Lowell River Hawks 110-47 in one of the biggest wins of the Dan Hurley era. The Huskies (2-0) raced
out to a breakneck start and put the clamps on Pat Duquette’s team, an entirely different scenario than UConn’s commanding but otherwise uninspiring season opening win against New Haven.
Tarris Reed got things started in his season debut with an easy layup, and the Huskies raced out to an 11-0 lead early on. UMass Lowell first got on the board with one made free throw at 16:19 in the first half, and struggled to convert from anywhere other than the free throw line. In the meantime, UConn poured it in, rattling off a 20-0 run to a take an astounding 35-2 lead. UMass Lowell couldn’t answer from anywhere other than the charity stripe, adding three more free throws as the Huskies extended the lead to 44-5.
By the time UMass Lowell (1-1) scored its first basket from the field on a bucket from Austin Green with 6:20 left in the first half, the game was all but decided. The Huskies held a 44-7 lead at the time of Green’s basket, and the River Hawks would only score two more times from the field in the first half. By the time Jared Frey made a 3-pointer with four seconds left in the first half, UConn would head to the locker room with a 64-17 lead, with a 47-point lead being the largest halftime lead in program history.
The first half stats for UMass Lowell were grotesque. The Huskies held the River Hawks to 12 percent (3-25) shooting from the field and 2-8 shooting from deep. UMass Lowell coughed up the ball 13 times in the first 20 minutes alone and was just 9-13 from the free throw line. Meanwhile, UConn shot a blistering 68.6 percent from the field and 53.8 percent from three in the first 20 minutes, and already had three players in double figures. Reed scored 14 of his game-high 20 points and added eight of his game-high 12 rebounds in the opening frame, while Alex Karaban and Malachi Smith each reached the 10-point mark.
While UConn didn’t necessarily run up the score, the Huskies didn’t coast to victory either. Every starter played nearly half of the game’s final 20 minutes, and a Silas Demary Jr’s strength in transition helped grow the UConn lead. The Georgia transfer finished with 16 points, seven assists, four steals and two rebounds and looked firmly in control of a Huskies offense firing on all cylinders. His backcourt mate Smith also looked great, finishing with 14 points, three rebounds and three steals.
By the time the final buzzer sounded, the Huskies secured the 63-point victory, the largest of the Dan Hurley era. Seven Huskies reached double figures, as Alex Karaban tallied 13 points, Solo Ball added 14, and Eric Reibe reached double figures for the first time with 11 points. Jaylin Stewart also added 10 points, three rebounds and six assists in another standout performance from junior. Frey led the River Hawks with 12 points, while junior Xavier Spencer was the only other River Hawk in double figures with 11.
The dominant win over the River Hawks sent ripples across the basketball world and vaulted the Huskies up in KenPom. Prior to tip, UConn ranked seventh overall in KenPom, with an offensive efficiency ranked fifth and defensive efficiency ranked 12th. After holding UMass Lowell to just 0.63 points per possession and averaging 1.47 points per possession on offense, the Huskies moved up to fourth overall in KenPom. The team’s offensive efficiency also moved up to fourth, while defensive efficiency moved up to ninth. As of Friday, just three teams in the country — UConn, Florida and Kentucky — rank in the top 10 in both offensive and defensive efficiency.
Up next, the Huskies return to Gampel Pavilion to take on Columbia on Monday, Nov. 11, who just defeated New Haven by 18 points on the road. The matchup against the Lions serves as UConn’s final tune up before taking No. 8 BYU at TD Garden in Boston on Saturday, Nov. 15. Tip off against Columbia is set for 6:30 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on FS1.
