University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
William & Mary
Dyson's 27 leads Huskies past Tribe
11/13/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 13, 2009
Storrs, Conn. (November 13, 2009) - Senior guard Jerome Dyson ( Potomac, Md.) scored 27 points and added a game-high eight assists as No.12 ranked Connecticut overcame some solid three-point shooting by William and Mary to hold off the Tribe, 75-66, in the 2009-10 season opener before a crowd of 9,719 at the Harry A. Gampel Pavilion.
William and Mary scored the contest's first basket but never led again, as the Huskies broke open a 9-7 game with a 10-0 run as Dyson and senior forward Stanley Robinson (Birmingham, Ala.) each scored four points. The Huskies pushed the lead up to as many as 14, at 31-17, but the Tribe hit four three-pointers in the final 3:39 of the first half to close to within 37-31 at intermission. William and Mary made half of their 12 first half field goals from beyond the arc.
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The second half was more of the same as the Huskies pushed the lead out to 14 on several occasions only to see the Tribe hit three-pointers to bring them back into the contest. After David Schneider hit a three with 4:35 to play to bring the deficit down to five at 63-58, senior forward Gavin Edwards (Gilbert, Ariz.) made a lay-up off of a pretty pass from Robinson, and Robinson followed with a free throw, and a dunk off of his own missed second free throw to put the Huskies back safely ahead, 68-58.
Dyson finished by making nine-of-17 from the field in scoring at least 20 points for the 15th time in his UConn career. His eight assists were the second most he has had in a game at Connecticut. Dyson also added a game-best four steals.
Robinson finished with 17 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three blocks. Sophomore point guard Kemba Walker (Bronx, N.Y.) had 12 points for the Huskies. Freshman center Alex Oriakhi (Lowell, Mass.) scored eight points (on a perfect four-for-four shooting effort) and yanked down a game-high 10 rebounds.
Quinn McDowell led William and Mary with 20 points, making four of the Tribe's 13 three-pointers. Danny Sumner and David Schneider each scored 14 points for the Tribe.
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The Huskies out-shot the Tribe, 54 percent to 42 percent and forced 15 turnovers, and won the battle of the paint, 44 points to 24.
The Huskies will return to the hardwood on Monday, November 16 when they entertain Colgate in the First Round of the NIT Season Tip-Off North Regional at Gampel Pavilion. Game time is set for approximately 9 p.m. and the contest will be televised by ESPNU. The other first round contest at Gampel is Hofstra against Yale, and the winners will meet Tuesday at 7 p.m.
