STORRS – The returners from UConn‘s national championship run gathered in a circle on the center court Husky logo Monday night for one last moment of celebration. Then, after video messages from head coach Dan Hurley and UConn’s newest pros, four staffers climbed the catwalk and dropped the curtain to unveil banner No. 5.
Off came the commemorative Nike warm up hoodies and the sixth-ranked Huskies took their first step toward hanging another with a 95-52 season-opening win over Northern Arizona.
“It was an amazing feeling when we were just standing there on the court with our arms around each other, just talking about trying to go win another one,” sophomore Donovan Clingan said. “The (women’s) side has 11, we’ve got five so we’ve got to keep adding more.”
The record crowd of 10,299 filed into Gampel Pavilion early and made itself heard from the pregame ceremony until walk-on Andrew Hurley made the final shot of the game, a 3-pointer, to extend the lead to 43 with under a minute left.
“Every time we look up at those banners, that’s always gonna be something that we’re proud of. During shootaround you look up there and it’s something you’re never gonna forget about,” Hurley said. “But we’ve been working so hard since June to get this team ready to play and no one was really thinking about that. But that was cool, I got emotional when I saw Adama (Sanogo) and Andre (Jackson) and Jordan (Hawkins and Joey Calcaterra) up there, it almost felt like senior night a little bit.”
Even without those four, who made up 58% of last year’s scoring and are now playing professionally, UConn shot 32 of 57 (56.1%) from the field and 7 of 25 (28%) from 3-point range. Defensively, the Huskies had 10 blocks and five steals as they held Northern Arizona to 33.9% from the field and just 3 of 15 from beyond the arc.
Redshirt sophomore Alex Karaban, who shot over 40% from deep last season and is expected to make a jump in production as a sophomore, made three of the Huskies’ seven 3-pointers on his way to a career-high 22 points. In addition to shooting 8 of 12 from the field (3 of 5 from 3), Karaban had seven rebounds, a block and an assist.
“Coach told me in the offseason he expects me to make a freshman-to-sophomore year jump that we’d seen all of the other great UConn players make,” Karaban said. “But it’s just also credit to my teammates for trusting me, finding me the ball and then just having confidence in myself, too. But I’d definitely say (the confidence is) something that comes when you come back to a program like this.”
Fifth-year guard Tristen Newton was one of five Huskies in double-digit scoring as he added a steady 14 points (4 of 7) with seven rebounds and three assists.
And Donovan Clingan, who missed a month rehabbing a foot strain and returned to practice last week, sparked a roar from the crowd when he was introduced in the starting lineup for the first time in his career. He scored the first points of the season with a second-chance layup.
Fed the ball down low for most of his 15 minutes (he was on a 20-minute limit entering the game), the 7-foot-2 sophomore big man finished with 12 points, eight rebounds and three blocks. He even shot a 3-pointer, though it rattled around the rim and bounced out.
“Felt good to be out there with my guys, I’ve only been back for like a week now so getting out there and playing a game is a great feeling,” Clingan said after the game, noting that he felt his health was at 100%. “A lot to learn from tonight and a lot to be happy about.”
Samson Johnson, the other end of what UConn hopes to be a devastating 1-2 punch at the center position, brought a spark off the bench as he dunked four times and finished with 11 points, five rebounds and three blocks despite finding himself in foul trouble early.
The only freshman in the starting lineup, Stephon Castle led the newcomers with 12 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals. Cam Spencer, the Rutgers transfer, picked his spots and made 2 of 3 from beyond the arc to finish with nine, while Hassan Diarra had six, Jaylin Stewart had five and Solo Ball scored two off the bench. Spencer drew high praise for his willingness to consistently move the ball, he only took three shots but led the team with five assists.
“It’s tough enough when you play at a place like UConn and you’re a freshman in Gampel and the place is rocking, but then add on top of that the emotion (of the) banner, it just added to the electricity and kind of the moment,” Hurley said. “But I thought second half those (freshmen) settled in better, but it was good they got one under their belt. I liked what Stew did there, he made some plays, and I think Solo getting one under his belt now, he’s gonna play offensively much better. And then Steph flashed in the second half.”
The defending champs (1-0) will play their first of the year game at Hartford’s XL Center against Stonehill on Saturday.
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