University of Connecticut Athletics
UConn Tops Syracuse, 72-52, In HOF Exhibition
10/13/2026 10:29:00โฏPM | Men's Basketball
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
UConn Tops Syracuse, 72-52, In Hall of Fame Exhibiton
Huskies held the Orange under 31 percent from the field in 20-point win
UNCASVILLE, Conn. โย The UConn men's basketball team opened the preseason with a 72-52 win over Syracuse on Tuesday night in the Hall of Fame Exhibition at Mohegan Sun Arena. The Huskies used a prolonged 15-3 run over five-plus minutes of game time midway through the second half to pull away and open the 2026-27 journey with a victory.ย
Na'jai Hinesย led all scorers with 17 points and snagged a team-high eight rebounds with two blocks, joined in double-figures byย Silas Demary Jr.ย with 13 andย Nik Khameniaย who scored 12.ย Demary Jr.ย added five rebounds, two assists and two steals, whileย Khameniaย stuffed the stat sheet with a team-high eight rebounds, three assists and two steals.ย
As a team the Huskies held Syracuse to 30.6 shooting from the floor and a 21.1 percent mark from three, finishing +8 on the glass and +7 in turnover margin. Nine different Huskies got on the scoresheet and 10 Huskies made their unofficial UConn debuts.ย Junior Countyย scored nine point s and grabbed seven rebounds, whileย Colben Landrewย scored eight with four rebounds and two steals.ย
How it Happenedย
The first five minutes saw both sides start slow, before a deepย Khameniaย 3-pointer at the 15:24 mark kicked off a 9-0 run for the Huskies. At 11:49, aย Jayden Ross-to-Hinesย alley-oop gave the Huskies a 12-6 lead and brought the pro-UConn crowd to its feet.ย
The Orange rallied back with a 7-0 spurt, and a lay-in with 8:32 to play leveled the score. The Huskies answered with five-straight and aย Khameniaย 3-pointer at 6:13 triggered an Orange timeout with UConn ahead 18-13. Later in the half Syracuse used an 8-0 run to level the score again at 26-26 before aย Demary Jr.ย triple stemmed the tide. Connecticut took a 31-26 lead to the break despite a 35.5 percent effort from the field in the opening stanza.ย
Aย Khameniaย 3-pointer got the second half started for the Huskies and a pair from the line viaย Hinesย with 16:14 to play gave Connecticut its largest lead at 37-28. Midway through the firstย Countyย hit his first two 3-pointers in a 90 second span, with the latter giving UConn its largest lead of the day ahead of aย Hinesย lay-up that prompted a Syracuse timeout with 7:21 to play and Connecticut leading 57-40.ย
Overall a 9-0 run pushed UConn's lead over 20 for the first time, going up 61-40 with 6:40 to play. From there all that was left to be decided was the final as the Huskies cruised to the 72-52 triumph.
News and Notes
- While the preseason contest does not count towards the all-time records, UConn is 39-56 all-time against Syracuse and 2-2 since 2015
- Dan Hurleyย is now unofficially 2-0 against Syracuse after a regular season win in 2018
- Tuesday marked the unofficial UConn debuts forย Egor Amosov, Junior County, Elmir Dลพafic, Oskar Giltay, Na'jai Hines, Colben Landrew, Nils Machowski, Jacob Rossย andย Isaiah Shaw
- The Huskies are now 3-0 in the Hall of Fame Exhibiton, making their third-straight appearance after debuting in the inaugural event in 2024
Inside The Numbers
- The Huskies finished 23-of-56 (41.1 percent) from the field and 8-of-20 (40.0 percent) from three, holding the Orange to 15-of-49 (30.6) and 4-of-19 (21.1) marks
- UConn finished with a 41-33 advantage on the glass and out-scored Cuse 18-7 in second chance points
- In the first half, the Huskies out-rebounded the Orange 23-12
- The Huskies turned 14 offensive rebounds into 18 second chance points
- Connecticut turned it over nine times and forced 16 Orange miscues, out-scoring SU 19-6 in points off turnovers
- UConn notched a 9-1 edge in steals and a 4-1 advantage in blocked shots
Up Next
UConn continues preseason play with a trip to East Lansing to take on Michigan State on Tuesday, Oct. 20.ย
