RUNNING WITH THE DEVIL

It was anything but pretty. The men’s basketball team, in the midst of a three-game losing streak, committed 13 turnovers and shot only 41 percent from the floor. But it was just barely enough to edge out struggling DePaul for a 64-57 win at Gampel Pavilion Saturday night.

Jerome Dyson scored 20 points – going 10-of-11 from the free throw line – to give the Huskies (14-9, 4-6 Big East) a win they desperately needed. It was UConn’s first win since beating then-No. 1 Texas, and although it ended their second three-game skid of the season, it doesn’t make associate head coach George Blaney feel much better.

“I told the team that, after the three losses, I felt sick, and I felt bad,” Blaney said. “Tonight I still feel a little sick, but I feel good because Ws are better than Ls.”

The Huskies slow start likely contributed to making Blaney feel sick. DePaul (8-15,1-10) got out to a quick lead behind Will Walker. Walker finished with 24 points, including going six-for-nine from three-point range. The Blue Demons were up by as much as eight midway through the first half when they lead 20-12 but from that point on UConn was able to clamp down on defense and go on a run to end the half and take a 34-27 lead into the locker room. The defensive intensity was a good sign to Blaney.

“I think we outscored them by 16-4 and kind of took control of the game, which we thought, at halftime, we would have pretty good control from that point on,” Blaney said.

But that would not be the case.Despite opening up a nine point lead in the second half, DePaul would not go quietly – taking a 52-51 lead with 5:49 remaining on a jumper by Devin Hill. As was the case when they got behind in the first half, the Huskies knew they needed to just play better defense.

“In the second half we had a bit of a let down,” Dyson said. “We just had to regroup and get ourselves back together.”

Things seemed uncertain even when the Huskies regained the lead, until Ater Majok grabbed a crucial offensive rebound on a missed Kemba Walker free throw. Majok gave it to Dyson who hit a tough fade-away baseline jumper to open up a six-point lead that helped secure the win.

“It was really key, Ater played with a lot of energy tonight and really helped us,” Dyson said. “He had some great blocks and some dunks early in the game and he really stepped up and made it easier for us on the defensive end.”

Perhaps most important to note was the disparity in free throws. UConn went 25-of-35 from the free throw line, while DePaul only took six, and only made one. Along with Dyson, Gavin Edwards and Stanley Robinson were clutch from the line making six-of-eight and five-of-eight, respectively.

It was encouraging, especially after losing games because of missing free throws earlier in the year.

“It was really important everybody stepped up and made free throws today,” Dyson said.
No. 3 Syracuse is next for the Huskies on Wednesday and a win against one of the top teams in the conference could get them going in the right direction.  It appears sometimes that we play to the competition,” Blaney said. “That’s what it’s starting to look like. So, hopefully, we’ll be jacked up and ready to play against Syracuse.”