Mr. Triple-Double Returns
The Story: The No. 1 UConn men felt the sting of a loss last week and, like Superman out of a phone booth, Tristen Newton’s alter ego returned to lift the Huskies to a decisive 78-54 win over Villanova on Saturday night.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: First off, for the youngsters reading this newsletter, a phone booth had a pay phone in it so people could talk privately after paying to make a call. Now that we’ve started a history class, let’s dive a little more into UConn history. Newton had the fourth triple-double of his career with 10 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists.
• Cam Spencer continues to make a case to be named the Big East’s top player with 25 points as he bounced back from a quiet game in a loss to Creighton last week. He went 9-for-12, including 5-for-8 from 3-point range.
• Stephon Castle added 14 points and Donovan Clingan had 13 as the pair carried the defensive load for the Huskies (25-3, 15-2 Big East).
3-POINTERS A PROBLEM: The way basketball is played in this era, the only stat that seems to matter is the 3-point shooting. Villanova tried to do what Creighton did last week: Get hot from 3 to bounce the Huskies. How did that turn out? Villanova was 3-for-23 from 3-point range and the Huskies rolled to a win. UConn bounced back from a 3-for-16 effort from beyond the line to shot 10-for-32.
• As for how the 3-point shot can come and go, No. 15 Creighton knocked off UConn by going 14-for-28 from distance last week. What happened yesterday? The Bluejays lost to St. John’s after shooting a lowly 6-for-26 from behind the arc.
WHAT DID DAN HURLEY SAY? “We just got back to our identity today in every way … on the backboard, defensively, and obviously, I thought we missed some open shots. It could’ve been a 48, 49, 50 percent shooting night and a 20-assist game if we made more shots.”
BIG EAST RACE: UConn holds a 2.5-game lead on Marquette. They’re off this week and will host Seton Hall on Sunday in their home finale. UConn can wrap up at least a share of the conference title with a win against the Pirates or a loss by Marquette on Wednesday against Providence or Saturday at Creighton. The Huskies play at Marquette on March 6 and end the regular season March 9 at Providence.
NO LONGER NO. 1? UConn’s six-week stay atop the men’s basketball poll is almost certainly going to come to an end today. Houston, which entered the week at No. 2, beat No. 11 Baylor in overtime on Saturday. The Cougars are likely to take over the top spot. We still think the Huskies will only drop to No. 2, but they should fall no further than No. 3 after losing their first game since December last week.
— John Silver
Edwards, Bueckers Power Another Win
The Story: Paige Bueckers scored 30 points and Aaliyah Edwards had 23 points and a season-high 17 rebounds as No. 15 UConn waltzed to a 104-67 win at DePaul last night.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: It was a team effort for the Huskies (24-5, 16-0 Big East), who scored their most points in a Big East game this season behind double-digit performance from all five starters.
• Ashlynn Shade finished with 13 points, KK Arnold had 12 despite battling a bit of foul trouble and Nika Muhl had 10 points to go with her eight assists.
• This one was decided early, with the Huskies up 27-17 after the first quarter and 53-29 at halftime. Edwards had 15 points at the break and Bueckers had 14.
• Edwards, who played 30 minutes, could have probably gotten more rest had Ice Brady not picked up a third foul with three minutes left in the second quarter. She had 10 rebounds at halftime.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE: UConn, which led by as many as 42 points in the closing minutes, shot 57.6 percent (38-for-66) but only went 27.3 percent (6-for-22) from beyond the 3-point line.
• The Huskies turned 18 turnovers into 32 points, which is incredible, and had 14 steals. UConn also had the 41-33 edge in rebounding and a 52-32 advantage in points in the paint, and it outscored the Blue Demons 24-8 in fast-break points.
• DePaul (12-17, 4-12 Big East), which somehow played a closer game in Storrs on Jan. 20 when it lost 88-51, got 24 points from Kate Clarke. It took nearly as many shots as UConn but made just 40.6 percent (26-for-64) and similarly went 30.4 percent (7-for-23) from 3-point range.
WHAT DID GENO SAY? “I thought the flow was way better today. We had more people involved. We know it’s hard to guard them, and tonight they didn’t shoot the ball like they normally do, but you almost have to put up a lot of points. You have to play well offensively against DePaul, because Doug [Bruno] is one of the better offensive coaches in the country.”
UP NEXT: UConn has its last regular-season home game against Villanova on Wednesday at the XL Center before wrapping up with a game at Providence on Saturday night.
— Zac Boyer
Morning Reads
• Thank goodness for the women’s hockey team, which beat Boston University twice over the weekend to end its regular season on a positive note. The Huskies are the No. 1 seed in the Hockey East tournament and will host a first-round winner next weekend.
• Otherwise, it was a tough weekend all around. The baseball team was swept in a three-game series at California, including a 5-4 walk-off loss yesterday afternoon.
• The softball team didn’t fare much better as it lost all four games at the Clemson Classic over the weekend.
• Another late rally came up short for the women’s lacrosse team, which rallied from a five-goal third-quarter deficit but fell 11-10 at St. Joseph’s on Friday.
• And the men’s hockey team faced No. 2 Boston University in a home-and-home series and allowed six goals in back-to-back losses.
Top photo: Tristen Newton passes the ball during the Huskies’ game against Marquette at the XL Center. (Ian Bethune for The UConn Daily)
