At the Buzzer: UConn 77, Indiana 57
Quick thoughts on a 77-57 loss to UConn:
How it happened
It was a physical afternoon of basketball on Sunday at Madison Square Garden. Both teams struggled offensively out of the gate and Indiana struggled with the physicality of UConn. It didn’t help that Xavier Johnson picked up two early fouls and then added a third foul in less than four minutes on the court. The Huskies rebounded 47 percent of their misses in the first half, leading to 11 second chance points. Still, Indiana hung tough. Malik Reneau scored 15 points in 18 first half minutes while Kel’el Ware added seven. CJ Gunn came off the bench and scored six points in 10 key minutes. When UConn looked like it might blow the game open, the Hoosiers responded with a 9-2 run to trail just 37-30 at the break.
A key sequence in the second half helped UConn stretch the lead into double figures. After the Hoosiers got a stop in the halfcourt around the 13-minute mark with a chance to cut the lead to five, Johnson had the ball stripped and Tristen Newton hit a layup and was fouled to make it a nine-point lead. Newton missed the free throw, but the Huskies got the rebound and Newton made a jumper to stretch the lead to 11 at 54-43 with 12:08 to play. The Hoosiers never got closer than 10 the rest of the afternoon.
Standout performer
Reneau scored a career-high 18 points, but fouled out in 27 minutes. Reneau was 7-for-9 from the field, 4-for-4 from the free throw line and also three blocked shots, an assist and a steal.
Statistics that stand out
UConn grabbed 15 offensive rebounds (45 OR%) and scored 16 second-chance points. Indiana did not record a second chance point in the loss.
Final IU individual statistics
Final tempo-free statistics
Assembly Call postgame show
(Photo credit: IU Athletics)
Filed to: Connecticut Huskies