STORRS – Alex Karaban directed the reigning back-to-back national champion UConn men’s basketball team as it opened the 2024-25 season with a 92-56 win over Sacred Heart in Gampel Pavilion on Wednesday.
There was a sold-out crowd on hand as the Huskies unveiled their second national championship banner in as many years about a half hour before tip-off. The ceremony, essentially the same as it was last season, included video messages from the four starters who left the program for the NBA: Donovan Clingan, Stephon Castle, Tristen Newton and Cam Spencer.
Karaban, the fifth starter who decided to pull from the draft and come back to star at UConn, did exactly that once the ball was tipped. He led the way with 20 points, seven assists, six rebounds and seven blocks, only missing two shots from the field.
Returning to live action this week after dealing with a calf strain, freshman Liam McNeeley air-balled his first 3-point attempt but all of the first game nerves seemed to have gone with it. The five-star forward made his next two from deep and recorded a double-double in his debut, finishing with 18 points, 10 rebounds and a pair of assists.
Karaban got the season started with a block on the defensive end and Samson Johnson put the first points on the board with a dunk after he stole the ball in the backcourt and went coast-to-coast. Liam McNeeley converted a layup after another Karaban block and Solo Ball landed the first 3-point attempt of the season as UConn got its sold-out crowd going with a 7-0 flurry to start the game.
Ball made three more from deep and started his sophomore season with a 16-point effort.
Hassan Diarra returned to the sixth-man role he was awarded for last season and was first off the bench on Wednesday. His first made shot from the field was a fastbreak layup through traffic, following a steal from St. Mary’s transfer Aidan Mahaney, who started and was scoreless in 23 minutes played.
UConn’s defensive effort, a question mark entering the season after losing lottery picks Clingan and Castle, was strong in the first few minutes but Sacred Heart refused to go away, shooting 45.8% from the field in the opening period and 3-for-6 from beyond the arc.
Karaban held things down inside with new career-high four blocks – five in the first half. He put his upgraded leadership role on display toward the end of the first half as he knocked down a pair of 3-pointers and scored on a putback. He also assisted Tarris Reed Jr. on a dunk – his first official points as a Husky – and Ball on a 3-pointer with less than a minute before halftime.
UConn, having made eight of its 16 3-point attempts, went into the break with a 46-31 lead.
Karaban hit a 3-pointer to open the second half but both teams lulled after that. Reed, who picked up a pair of quick fouls in the first half, scored seven consecutive points midway through the second half – five at the free throw line – and was a force defensively to keep UConn’s lead growing. The Michigan transfer recorded a 15-point, 10-rebound double-double with two blocks and two steals in his Huskies debut.
UConn shot 46.9% from the fieldin the second half and finished the game with a 51.6% mark from the field, 13-for-31 from 3. Nine different Huskies were involved in the scoring column.
Sacred Heart, which opened its season Monday with a loss at Temple, fell to 0-2 on the year.
UConn will unveil another banner at the XL Center on Saturday before hosting New Hampshire at 8 p.m.
