University of Connecticut Athletics
Huskies Fall to Georgia Tech in Preseason NIT Semifinal
11/26/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
NEW YORK, NY (November 26) -- Georgia Tech's one-two punch of B.J. Elder and Isma'il Muhammad proved to be more than the Huskies could handle as the University of Connecticut men's basketball team was defeated 77-61 Wednesday evening in the semifinal round of the Preseason NIT in Madison Square Garden. With the loss, UConn slips to 3-1 on the year, while the Ramblin' Wreck remain unbeaten at 4-0.
Muhammad poured in 22 points for Tech on 9-of-13 shooting from the field, and Elder matched him with 22 of his own.
Hampered by back spasms, junior Emeka Okafor scored just nine points on 2-of-10 shooting, but still managed to snatch a game-high 13 rebounds and block six shots.
The Huskies struggled in the first half, falling behind by as many twelve, 40-28, with 2:20 remaining in the first session. UConn shot 40.5% from the field, and labored from the charity stripe, missing 13-of-17 first half free-throws. The Huskies showed signs of life late in the first half, as the UConn defense dug in and went on a 7-to-2 run to end the first stanza, capped by a Marcus White offensive rebound and put-back as time expired as the Ramblin' Wreck took a 42-35 advantage into the locker-room.
The Huskies pulled to within six-points, 42-36 in the early goings of the second half, but Georgia Tech would extend its lead to 15 points on two occasions, and led by 17, 75-58, with 1:50 to go.
Free throw shooting was the story of the night as UConn hit on only 10-of-30 from the line, while Tech made 11 of its 15 attempts.
Both Denham Brown and Ben Gordon led UConn with 13 points.
The Huskies return to action on Friday, November 28 to take on Utah in the Preseason NIT Consolation Game. Tip-off is slated for 4:00 p.m. at Madison Square Garden.
