No. 17 UConn struggles but beats Maryland-Eastern Shore 72-63
Dec. 1—HARTFORD — It wasn't pretty but the UConn men's basketball team won its seventh game in eight tries this season Tuesday.
No. 17 UConn beat Maryland-Eastern Shore 72-63 Tuesday night at the XL Center.
R.J. Cole led the Huskies (7-1) with 25 points, giving him 51 in the team's last two games. Tyler Polley added 14 points.
"We didn't play well. You saw it out there," Cole said. "We allowed them to just shoot anything they wanted out there, get by us on the defensive end."
Adama Sanogo, UConn's leading scorer, had 8 points in 23 minutes before leaving the game with an apparent abdominal injury.
Mike Mensah and Da'Shawn Phillip had 12 points each for Maryland-Eastern Shore (2-5). Zion Styles added 11.
Up by a modest eight points at the half, UConn gave back nearly all of that lead with some sloppy play to start the second half.
The Hawks began the second half with a 7-0 run, pulling to within one at 39-38 and upsetting the sparse crowd that was getting frustrated while "standing until they score," per UConn tradition.
UConn missed eight of its first nine shots from the floor to start the half, as well as its first four free throws.
"They made a lot of tough shots. They drove us," UConn coach Dan Hurley said. "They played great. We obviously had our issues out there but credit them."
In a first half where no one was able to get much separation — neither team scored more than two consecutive baskets — the Hawks stayed close thanks to their work on the glass. Maryland-Eastern Shore out-rebounded UConn 14-11 in the opening half.
Still, UConn ended the stanza on a bit of a high note.
A Polley 3-pointer with three seconds left in the half put the Huskies ahead 39-31 at halftime, their biggest lead of game to that point.
UConn played without guard/forward Tyrese Martin. The senior hurt his left wrist in the Bahamas but played through the injury. On Tuesday night, however, he was sporting a hard cast covering the injury.
Neill covers UConn men's basketball and UConn football teams, and he keeps a finger on the pulse of Connecticut sports. For live game updates, and more insight into UConn athletics, player transfers, and team changes, follow Neill on Twitter: @NeillOstrout, Facebook: JINeillO, and Instagram: @NeillOstrout.
