No. 25 UConn shuts down UNC Wilmington

Connecticut Huskies head coach Dan Hurley yells for a stop in the second half of the NCAA men's basketball game between the Xavier Musketeers and the Connecticut Huskies on Saturday, Feb. 13, 2021, in Cincinnati.

Connecticut At Xavier

Credit: Albert Cesare / The Enquirer via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Adama Sanogo scored 24 points and Jordan Hawkins added a career-high 20 to lead No. 25 UConn to an 86-50 win over UNC Wilmington on Friday night in Storrs, Conn.

Sanogo added five rebounds and went 8 of 12 from the field and Hawkins sunk five 3-pointers as the Huskies (4-0) remained undefeated. Alex Karaban contributed 12 points, and UConn racked up 20 assists on 28 made baskets.

Jamarii Thomas paced the Seahawks (1-3) with 16 points and four rebounds on 6-of-8 shooting. Shykeim Phillips also had 16 points, while Trazarien White, who averaged 18.3 points through UNCW’s first three games, was held to just two.

After leading by 12 at the intermission, the Huskies wasted no time doubling their advantage, going up by 25 6:34 into the second.

Meanwhile, the Seahawks went cold.

Over 5 1/2 minutes passed between made free throws from Thomas and Phillips, and UNCW found itself on the wrong end of a 17-0 run that put it down 31.

Wilmington never got within 26 for the remainder of the game.

It looked like the entire first half was going to be closely contested since neither team led by more than five through the opening 17 minutes, but the Huskies’ offense kicked things into another gear for the final 150 seconds.

Sanogo scored five of his 17 first-half points during a 14-6 run over the final 2:30 that also featured six points from Hawkins and a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Karaban. That sequence sent UConn into the break with a 40-28 lead.

Thomas paced the Seahawks through the first 20 minutes, totaling 10 points.

UNCW got off to a quick start, outscoring the Huskies 7-2 to open the game. UConn answered with a 6-0 burst to move ahead, though, with the Seahawks missing five straight shots to face their first deficit.

Huskies co-captain Andre Jackson Jr. made his season debut after missing the first three games due to a broken finger. He finished with two points, three rebounds, five assists and two blocks.

–Field Level Media

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