MBB: History, Returns Dominate Huskies’ First Conference Win
MILWAUKEE-The Connecticut Huskies welcomed back their former top scorer with historic antics and their first conference win of the season on Tuesday night at Marquette.
Adama Sanogo took the floor for the first time since Nov. 30th, just in time to witness teammates R.J. Cole and Tyrese Martin cross the respective 2,000 and 1,000-point plateaus in their respective collegiate careers. Their united efforts allowed UConn (10-3, 1-1 Big East) to pick up its first conference win of the season through a 78-70 victory over the Golden Eagles at Fiserv Forum.
Martin paced the Huskies with 25 points, while Cole and Andre Jackson also reached double-figures with 20 and 10 respectively. Sanogo had six points and two rebounds in a dozen minutes off the bench.
UConn led for the final half-hour of game time after Tyler Polley sank a three-pointer that created a 22-20 advantage just before the midway point of the first half, part of a 10-2 that stifled Marquette momentum. Crucial triples would bookend a 43-37 lead brought into the halftime break: Jackson kicked scoring off from deep at the start of the game while Martin delivered a gut punch with a buzzer-beater to close things out.
But the pesky Golden Eagles (8-5, 0-2 Big East) put up a valiant effort despite missing second-leading scorer Darryl Morsell to health and safety protocols. UConn upped its lead to as high as 11 courtesy of a 10-0 spree punctuated by Cole’s successful and-one opportunity. Marquette kept things close for the remainder of the game, instantly countering the Huskies’ run with seven unanswered of their own. The eternal UConn lead was pushed to the absolute brink at several points, as Marquette narrowed the gap to one twice over the final seven minutes.
The final media timeout kicked off a permanent shift of momentum back to the Connecticut side: six consecutive tallies from Martin, highlighted by yet another converted and-one chance, allowed the Huskies to take a seven-point lead into the final minute, capping the game on a 12-5 advantage. Polley helped the Huskies clip Marquette for good, uniting with Isaiah Whaley’s assist to withstand the desperate Golden Eagles’ late press for a show-stopping dunk that re-established a nine-point lead with 35 seconds remaining. UConn captured its third win in a row over Marquette, having swept last year’s pair.
On the losing side, the Golden Eagles’ scoring efforts were paced by 20 from Justin Lewis. Marquette will visit Hartford on Feb. 8 for a rematch.
Connecticut returns to the Big East circuit on Dec. 28 when they travel to Cincinnati to battle No. 18 Xavier (7 p.m. ET, FS1), who dropped a 71-58 road decision to Villanova earlier on Tuesday evening. Cole scored 24 points in the lone meeting between the teams last season, an 80-72 UConn win at Cintas Center.
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
