STORRS – Alex Karaban scored seven-straight UConn points, including a game-sealing 3-pointer, in the final minutes of a 72-66 win for the men's basketball team (21-9, 13-6 BIG EAST) over No. 20 Marquette on Wednesday night at Gampel Pavilion. Karaban finished with a team-high 21 points in the win including 16 coming in the second half as the Huskies rallied from a halftime deficit in a win for the seventh time this season.

The Huskies trailed by four at the half despite leading for much of the opening stanza, and were down six in the second before a Karaban 3-pointer cut the lead to one midway through the final frame. That set the stage for a decisive 10-0 UConn run that flipped a three-point deficit to a seven-point lead which the Huskies would not relent.  MU closed back to within three in the final five, but that was when Karaban took over to keep the Golden Eagles at bay.

In support of their captain's 21 points each of the Huskies' four other starters finished in double-figures, led by Liam McNeeley with 11 while Solo Ball, Hassan Diarra and Samson Johnson scored 10 apiece. Johnson added a career-high 11 rebounds to notch his first double-double in the senior's penultimate Gampel game. Diarra added a game-high five assists and five rebounds and Ball also finished with five caroms. For Marquette, David Joplin pumped in a game-high 23 points and Kam Jones added 21, but needed 20 shots to get there and one of the top playmakers in the league was held to one assist.

How it Happened

The two sides traded punches in the early goings, and at 13:45 UConn took its first lead with a McNeeley 3-pointer to go up 12-11. A stop-and-pop transition 3-pointer from Ball kicked off a 7-2 mini-run to give the Huskies a 21-16 lead midway through the first. McNeeley drilled his third 3-pointer of the half at 7:30 and made it 28-22, the largest advantage of the day for either side.

UConn called for time up two with 5:11 to play in the first half, then got an inside bucket from Tarris Reed Jr. to make it 30-26 on the ensuing trip. At 3:24, Karaban came up with a block on one end and buried a corner 3-pointer on the other to put the Huskies back up five.

The Golden Eagles answered and put together a prolonged 9-0 run over the final 3:07 of the first to take a 37-33 to the break. Joplin and Jones combined for 24 points in the opening half for MU.

At 16:10 of the second UConn pulled back even with a soaring Ball lay-in, tying the score at 41 up. The Golden Eagles pushed the lead back to two possessions, where it held until a Karaban 3-pointer at 11:39 slimmed the margin to 52-51 ahead of a timeout on the floor. Midway through the frame back-to-back slams from Jaylin Stewart and Reed Jr., the former a ferocious one-handed put-back, gave the Huskies their first lead of the second half at 55-54.

Those two slams ignited a 10-0 burst to put the Huskies up seven, prompting a Marquette timeout with 7:49 to play. The Golden Eagles buried a 3-pointer after the break to end the run, and the Huskies called for time with 4:22 on the clock and a 63-60 lead. A pair of second-chance Karaban free throws after the stop pushed the lead back to two possessions with under four to play.

Karaban connected again on a driving lay-in to push it back to five inside of two minutes, but back-to-back stops and quick buckets got MU within a point and UConn called for time up 67-66 with 42.8 to play. After the blow, the Huskies dialed up Karaban again and the Husky captain delivered, drilling a wing 3-pointer with 23.8 ticks left to make it a 70-66 game. From there Diarra iced the contest with a pair from the line after a stop to seal the six-point win.

Inside The Numbers

• The Huskies were dominant on the glass to the tune of a 44-29 rebounding edge
  • Johnson led the way with 11 rebounds, including seven offensive rebounds
  • UConn turned 19 offensive boards into a 14-8 edge in second chance points
  • Karaban added seven caroms and Reed Jr. hauled in six
• Neither team shot particularly well from the floor, with UConn going 26-of-65 (40.0 percent) from the floor and Marquette shooting 25-of-57 (43.9 percent)
• UConn stifled the 3-point line, holding Marquette to 3-of-22 shooting from distance
• Connecticut finished with 16 assists on 26 field goals against only eight turnovers
• The UConn reserves out-scored the MU bench 10-2
• The Huskies did not shoot a free throw in the first half but made their freebies count in the second half, going 13-of-14 from the charity stripe

News and Notes

• UConn is now 13-8 all-time against Marquette and 10-2 vs. MU under Dan Hurley
• The Huskies improve to 7-6 this season when trailing at half
• Johnson's double-double was the first of his career and he became the seventh Husky this year to double up
• With 21 points Karaban now has 1,288 career points, passing former teammate Adama Sanogo (1,268), Vin Yokabaskas (1,275) and A.J. Price (1,284) to move into a tie with Bob Staak for 31^st place on the program's all-time scoring list
• The 11 rebounds for Johnson topped his previous career-best of eight, set vs. #15 Texas on Nov. 20, 2023 at MSG
• Karaban finished 6-of-6 from the line to improve his career percentage to 84.6 percent, vaulting him back to third in program history

Up Next

Connecticut is home for its final regular season contest when it hosts Seton Hall on Saturday for Senior Day at Gampel Pavilion. Prior to the 2:30 p.m. tip the Huskies will honor the graduating class of Hassan Diarra, Alex Karaban and Samson Johnson.