HARTFORD – When Stonehill College made its Division I debut against UConn last season, East Hampton native and former Xavier High guard Jackson Benigni – who is unabashedly a massive fan of the Huskies – was not able to play because of a knee injury.
Saturday, when the two programs met again, Benigni was back in the starting lineup and ready to live out a dream.
“It’s a childhood dream to play here,” Benigni said after scoring a career-high 22 points (tying Tristen Newton for a game-high) in a 107-67 loss to his hometown Huskies. “Growing up I’ve seen numerous UConn games, I was at the six-overtime Syracuse game in the Garden, I used to always go with my dad and my grandpa before he passed away. It’s just a dream come true to come here… So many friends and family in the stands, it’s just a dream come true for me.”
Benigni, 6-foot-1, missed just five shots, 9 for 14 from the field, and made four of his five 3-point attempts in the game. With 12 minutes to go in the second half, UConn head coach Dan Hurley looked over at Benigni and said, “‘Can you stop scoring?’”
“I gotta say, Jackson – that’s probably one of the best performances that a guard’s had against one of my teams in terms of the way that kid played today,” Hurley said. “I’ve watched that kid on film and I tried to warn our guys that he was gonna be a problem for them today to guard, and he was.”
Benigni has worked out with Donovan Clingan, has gone to a few camps with Alex Karaban and even trained with Hurley’s son, Andrew, who is a walk-on with the Huskies. After scoring 1,000-plus points at Xavier and spending a prep year at Hamden Hall Country Day School, he was a highly-touted recruit when Stonehill competed in the Division II Northeast-10 Conference, and remained with the Skyhawks as they transitioned to the Div. I level.
“Being able to come home and just play against these guys, just a dream come true. I watch all of their games still, besides Stonehill I’m a big Huskies fan and everyone knows,” Benigni said.
“He’s just a true competitor, and I think he brings us a heart and a toughness and a willingness to do whatever it takes,” Stonehill head coach Chris Kraus said. “We love him, I love him and he’s gonna help our program, he’s gonna help our team. Just really proud and excited for him, and he’ll have some bragging rights for the rest of the summer.”
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