Karaban turns into Captain Clutch again as UConn escapes Oklahoma in March Madness opener

From L-R: Alex Karaban, Liam McNeeley and Solo Ball look on as UConn holds off Oklahoma in NCAA Tournament opener. Karaban’s dagger three late in second half delivered final blow for Huskies. (Photo by UConn Men’s Basketball)

RALEIGH, N.C. — Hardly anything about UConn has been anything close to a cliche in the past two-plus seasons. Maybe, then, it’s fitting that in the year that has been so atypical of recent Connecticut basketball, the Huskies epitomized a tried and true cliche of the third month of the year.

Survive and advance.

UConn did just that on Friday, holding off Oklahoma for most of the night until an avalanche of fouls and missed opportunities propelled the Sooners into the lead late in the second half. Then, with the game on the line, Alex Karaban donned Superman’s cape one more time.

Leading by one with less than four minutes to play in regulation, the redshirt junior had eschewed a 3-point attempt moments before that his coach and teammates had openly encouraged him to take. He did not pass the second time around, burying a triple from the right wing to put the Huskies up four. Oklahoma would get no closer, becoming UConn’s 13th straight NCAA Tournament victim in a gritty, 67-59 street fight.

“It felt good,” Karaban said of the shot that turned out to be the dagger. “It felt really good. I passed one up in the corner and everyone told me to shoot that one. I don’t know why I didn’t shoot that, and I knew the next one, I just had to let it fly.”

Dan Hurley agreed with that sentiment.

“Alex is such a perfectionist and a smart player,” he explained. “He knows the quality of shots. Just with this team and this roster that he has around him, he’s gotta take more contested shots. He’s gotta let it fly more.”

Just over a week ago, Karaban spoke at length following UConn’s Big East tournament quarterfinal win over Villanova about the desperation of March and how the stakes were raised around the program. On Friday, the crafty veteran proved it again, but not without offering yet another honest appraisal of his resume.

“I can’t wait until the last five minutes to get myself going and show up,” he admitted. “That’s something I gotta do better. I’m always confident in my work, I always trust my work and everyone in this locker room does as well.”

“Liam (McNeeley) and Alex were both struggling,” Hurley echoed. “We were on life support. We needed one of them to step up and make shots, and it was Alex.”

For a majority of the night, it looked as though the two-time defending champions might not even need a savior, as the Huskies’ defense stymied Oklahoma until the whistles—most notably against Samson Johnson and Tarris Reed, Jr.— ramped up. As that occurred, so too did the Sooners finding somewhat of a rhythm offensively, parading to the free throw line to fuel a 15-5 run that swung the pendulum their way with 9:03 to play.

“That’s been a microcosm of the season,” Hurley conceded. “Whenever we’ve been able to start playing good basketball and getting separation, we’ve tended to shoot ourselves in the foot. But the thing about this team is we’re really battle-tested, and we’ve had to fight so hard all year that we showed a lot of toughness down the stretch to execute some things, make some critical shots and make some critical stops.”

UConn has been no stranger to pressure this season, but the close nature of this game may have seemed surprising considering the relative ease with which the Huskies have blown through the NCAA Tournament field the past two years. With that said, the tight nature of Friday’s opener could be a blessing in disguise, says Karaban.

“For this group especially, it’s probably better for it to be close, because we’re able to embrace the pressure and really learn from it,” he said. “A lot of these guys, it’s their first time playing in March Madness, so the excitement’s there, probably some nerves, too, knowing the anticipation of this tournament. Getting one win is always key to gain momentum, but at the same time, we can’t ride this high of a win. In a weird way, you gotta remember the moments and the emotions of the game, but also flush the joy.”