UConn Athletic Communications / Aug. 7, 2023
BARCELONA, Spain – The UConn men's basketball team learned how to make paella Monday morning and was still cooking with plenty of gas Monday night.
The Huskies enjoyed a fun class at Poble Espanyol in Barcelona, dining on the tasty paella of their own creation for lunch, then proceeded to feast on Spanish Select Team I to the tune of a 103-57 victory at Pabellon Olimpica de Badalona – the arena that was the basketball site for the 1992 Olympic Games, which featured the USA Dream Team – on Monday night.
It was the second lopsided win in as many games for the Huskies, who defeated Le Cannet Basket, 132-66, in Monaco on Saturday. UConn's foreign tour wraps up its basketball competition on Tuesday (4 p.m. Barcelona time, 10 a.m. EDT) at the same venue against Spanish Select Team II, which will exchange some five or six players from Monday night's opponent.
The UConn travel party will attend the FC Barcelona vs. Tottenham Hotspur soccer game on Tuesday night before enjoying a sightseeing-shopping-beach day on Wednesday, then heading home on Thursday morning.
The Huskies' travel party divided up into five different teams that prepared five different kinds of paella at the cooking class, guided by professional chefs. The intricate blending of flavors and slow process culminated in taste tests for all. The winning group celebrated another championship, but was greeted with a chorus of boos from the other four teams.
The basketball game was less competitive as six Huskies scored in double figures, led by freshman guard Stephon Castle with 20 points. Sophomore Alex Karaban and grad Tristen Newton each added 16, grad Cam Spencer tossed in 13, and junior Samson Johnson and freshman Solo Ball each had 10. Newton also topped the rebound list with 9 boards and the assists list with 6.
The Huskies gained the lead in the opening minutes and steadily widened the gap. UConn's advantage was 28-19 at the end of the first quarter, 54-34 at the half and 82-42 after three quarters. UConn's shooting percentages were down just a bit from the game in Monaco, but the Huskies still shot .463 overall, .364 from three-point range and .810 from the foul line.
The UConn defense, which held the Spanish Team to just 8 points in the third quarter, accounted for 14 steals.
The game was played under FIBA rules, including four 10-minute quarters, a 24-second shot clock and a reset of just 14 seconds after an offensive rebound.
Players Mentioned
- F
- 6' 10"
- Sophomore
- G
- 6' 5"
- Senior
- F
- 6' 8"
- Redshirt Freshman
- G
- 6' 6"
- Freshman
- G
- 6' 4"
- Graduate Student
Players Mentioned
- 6' 10"
- Sophomore
- F
- 6' 5"
- Senior
- G
- 6' 8"
- Redshirt Freshman
- F
- 6' 6"
- Freshman
- G
- 6' 4"
- Graduate Student
- G
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