By Connor Wilson (@Conman_815)
HARTFORD, Conn. — Dan Hurley summed up UConn’s exhibition matchup against Michigan State as only he could Tuesday night, offering a candid take on the physicality that saw a total of 56 fouls called.
“At halftime, I tried to ask for eight,” he quipped, pleading in jest for a longer leash for players on both sides before they were to foul out.
Coming into the night, not many people knew what to expect when the fourth-ranked Huskies hosted the 22nd-ranked Spartans. UConn was able to pull off a 76-69 win in front of a good October crowd inside PeoplesBank Arena, but it wasn’t the prettiest display of basketball you’ll ever see, to say the least.
“Tonight, we were missing two starters, a flamethrower in Braylon (Mullins), and Tarris (Reed, Jr.), who can potentially be one of the best centers in the country,” Hurley said. “There were a lot of fouls and it was a frustrating game, a long game. We have to clean up the fouling.”
All in all, the two historic programs attempted 74 free throws as a result of the aforementioned foul total, with the Huskies accounting for 34 of the 56 whistles. It got so bad that after Dwayne Koroma was called for his fifth personal foul, there was an announcement on the public address system that Hurley and Tom Izzo agreed each player would get an extra foul due to it being an exhibition game.
“We fouled a lot, a lot of it was a lack of discipline,” Hurley said. “We have to figure it out. We were in foul trouble in the first half even with the six fouls.”
Trying to sway away from the whistles, UConn played a pretty complete game on both sides of the ball. Three Huskies finished in double figures, led by Alex Karaban and Solo Ball dropping 18 points each, with Jayden Ross adding 13.
Perhaps the biggest storyline coming in was Silas Demary, Jr. in his UConn debut after missing the exhibition win two weeks ago against Boston College. The Georgia transfer started out red hot, splashing two triples in the game’s opening minutes before, you guessed it, foul trouble.
“Silas is a big time player for us (and) having him as a big point guard is going to be a big help for us,” Karaban said. “I think it's a good first game in a UConn jersey.”
Another key to monitor was who would step up to replace the production of Braylon Mullins after it was announced last week the freshman guard would miss most of non-conference play with an ankle injury. Enter Jaylin Stewart and Jayden Ross.
Stewart stepped into the starting lineup and had an underwhelming night, scoring just three points in 22 minutes of action. Ross, on the other hand, improved drastically on the offensive end from his performance two weeks ago and looked like a complete player on both ends.
“I loved J-Ross,” Hurley said. “I’ve seen that movie streaming at home in my house, now I’m hoping that it hits theaters for you all to see.”
“It’s been a long time coming,” Ross said. “I’m a junior now, so there’s no reason to hold back. Credit to my teammates.”
With Mullins out, the depth that Hurley raved about is going to be tested right out of the gates. It's crucial for guys like Ross to take that next step into someone you can rely upon to be on the floor in critical moments. The junior wing was in the closing lineup on Tuesday and showed the poise that was inconsistent in his sophomore season.
Freshman Eric Reibe had much better competition against the big veteran frontcourt of the Spartans and struggled a bit, finishing with five points and seven rebounds and being one of the four Huskies with at least five fouls. Even though he wasn’t dominant, the experience going up against a pair of seniors in Carson Cooper and Jaxon Kohler is invaluable in October.
The offensive game plan shifted from jacking up as many threes as possible against Boston College to having a more balanced attack on Tuesday. Karaban took just four triples against the Spartans and hit two, vastly different from his 3-for-10 from deep at Mohegan Sun Arena. Ball had a similar, perhaps slightly concerning, shooting night, as he went 1-for-7 from three after going 1-for-8 two weeks ago.
“With Solo and Alex, I thought that those first threes they took of the game were bad threes,” Hurley said. “You don’t want your first three of the game to be a 28-footer.”
All in all, take away the near-one foul per minute and UConn handled business against a Top 25 team in the country that’s expected to be near the top of the Big Ten with one of the greatest coaches of this generation in Tom Izzo. Oh yeah, the Huskies were down two expected starters. And it’s only October.
“Going into this kind of matchup against a Big Ten team, I think we needed to make a statement and set a standard for this year,” Ross said.
The Huskies are back in action six days from now, when they host New Haven on opening night at Gampel Pavilion to officially tip off the 2025-26 season on Monday night.
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