The No. 3 UConn men’s basketball team gutted out a top-10 win against the no. 7 BYU Cougars 86-84 to continue the non-conference dominance of Storrs North in Boston. The Huskies improve to 4-0 on the young season.
Silas Demary Jr led UConn with 21 points, seven assists, and five rebounds, including several clutch-time buckets. Alex Karaban added 21 points and seven assists of his own, while Tarris Reed Jr added 21 points and seven rebounds. Jayden Ross was a spark off the bench, supplying 10 points and five rebounds.
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It was a tale of two halves for the Huskies. After looking like an unstoppable, two-way unit in the first half, BYU came charging back in the second half, taking a 20-point deficit down to two at one point. AJ Dybansta went from looking like a bust to a future Boston Celtic in the span of 10 minutes.
Despite the Jekyll and Hyde performance, UConn showed serious grit closing the game out and learning how to win. They found their closer in Demary Jr, and the defense — outside some foul-prone moments — frustrated the Cougars for most of the tilt.
First Half
Jaylin Stewart started on AJ Dybansta, but the bigger story early was the sloppy start; turnovers and fouls plagued the Huskies for the first five minutes. UConn settled in though, with Reed establishing himself on both ends physically.
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Five early turnovers were negated by active hands on defense that disrupted BYU sets. Kevin Young flashed some 1-3-1 and 2-3 zone that exposed the middle, but UConn was uncharacteristically sloppy with the ball and was unable to take advantage. At first.
After the first five minutes, it was crystal clear the Cougars had no answer inside for Reed or Demary Jr, the two combining for their own Evan Miya kill shot. Rob Wright III couldn’t stay in front of the Georgia transfer, who used that spacing to hit his first three of the season and crash the rim with authority.
A collision sent BYU center Keiba Keita to the locker room at 6:45, and six-straight points from Karaban added insult to injury for the Cougars.
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UConn made nothing easy for BYU, which helped offset a 3:30 scoring draught. Stewey’s defense on Dybansta had the star freshman searching, with only one field goal in the first 20.
The defense was the story of the half, holding BYU to two threes and only three assists. The seventh ranked offense per KenPom had 11 turnovers to only 11 made field goals. Defense like that travels, often to Indianapolis.
Second Half
The threes started falling for BYU, but UConn always had an answer on the other end, with Karaban and Ross triples keeping the double-digit separation. Dybansta went 12 minutes without a field goal at one point, Stewart’s clamps dragging his draft stock by the possession.
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Up 20 with 14 to play, UConn was playing complete basketball; getting whatever they wanted on offense and making life difficult enough for BYU on defense that nothing way easy. The only worry would be if the Huskies took their foot off the gas, the fouls would spoil the momentum, and Dybansta would wake up.
Well. UConn’s offense stagnated, with several shots deep in the clock and some silly fouls grinding the game down to a halt. A Wright triple brought it back down to 11, and the Huskies were suddenly struggling with the ball pressure. Enter the Boston folk.
The predominantly UConn Garden crowd was uncomfortable, but the Southborough kid canned a three from the top of the key to return the lead back to 17.
All good, right? Not according to Dybansta.
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BYU kept clawing back with free throws and press, and Dybansta’s momentum from the free throw stripe carried over to live action, with the future top 5 pick suddenly looking like a young Kevin Durant. With Ball, Stewey, and Ross nursing four fouls apiece, the Huskies were only up seven, and the Cougars suddenly couldn’t miss.
Ross soon fouled out, Reed looked hobbled with a bruised tailbone, and the wheels were coming off. UConn needed a spark.
It came from Demary Jr, who finished a tough and-one, and Ball scraped together the missed freebie to bring the lead back to nine.
But UConn had no answer for Dybansta and his pushoffs. The Huskies found their closer though; Demary hit a tough midrange to keep it a two possession game. Up six with 34 seconds, a Dybansta three made it sweaty, and a Dawson Baker three made it even sweatier, bringing UConn’s lead to only two with 20 seconds left.
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Wright III lost the ball with a chance to tie, and Solo hit one free throw to ice it.
Phew. Not the end fans wanted, but on the whole, UConn should be pleased. For three quarters of the game, the Huskies defended at a high level, executed offensively, and flashed their balance. 21 assists on 30 field goals is a high mark, but the 16 turnovers and 21 fouls are areas of improvement. Dybansta pouring in 21 points in the second half was a performance you could only tip your cap to.
A top 10 win is a top 10 win. The team learned how to close out today and should enter the high-level portion of the non-conference schedule with the utmost confidence.
See you in Gampel on Wednesday for Arizona.
