University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
Georgetown
Huskies Take on Hoyas On Semifinal Friday At MSG
3/13/2026 12:36:00 PM | Men's Basketball
NEW YORK - The two-seed UConn men's basketball team (28-4) will play on Semifinal Friday at the BIG EAST Tournament for the sixth-straight year when it takes on 11-seed Georgetown (16-17) at Madison Square Garden. Tip-off from the World's Most Famous Arena is set for 8 p.m. and will air on FS1Â with Gus Johnson, Jim Jackson and Allison Williams on the call.
The Huskies advanced to Friday night at The Garden with a 93-68 trouncing of 10-seed Xavier in the quarterfinals on Thursday. The Hoyas are in the midst of a run to the semis from the bottom of the bracket, upsetting six-seed DePaul on Wednesday in the first round before taking down third-seeded Villanova on Thursday night in the quarters.Â
UConn swept its regular season series with Georgetown by way of two tight victories. The Huskies tipped the Hoyas 64-62 in Washington on Jan. 17 before a 79–75 triumph on Feb. 14 in Storrs. Connecticut has won 12-straight against Georgetown and holds a 42-36 record in the all-time series between the longtime league rivals. UConn has compiled a 6-2 record against GU in the BIG EAST Tournament, last meeting in 2011. The Huskies and Hoyas are tied for the league record with eight BIG EAST Tournament titles apiece.
Connecticut shot 57.4 percent from the floor and hit 12 threes in its quarterfinal win over Xavier, going up 20 at the half and never trailing in the 25-point romp. Solo Ball led the Huskies with 19 points and hit four 3-pointers, one of seven Huskies that scored at least nine in the balanced offensive effort. Tarris Reed Jr. posted his fourth-straight double-double with 17 points and a season-high 14 rebounds, shooting 8-of-14 and blocking two shots. Reed Jr. became the first UConn player in BIG EAST Tournament history to record 17 and 14 in a game in less than 30 minutes.Â
Ball leads the Huskies in scoring this season with 14.1 points per game and was named a Jerry West Award Shooting Guard of the Year Top Five Finalist last week. Reed Jr. is second on the squad with 13.9 points a night and leads the squad with 8.2 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per contest, while topping the BIG EAST and ranking top-12 nationally with a 63.9 percent mark from the floor. Alex Karaban, who scored 15 on Thursday night, adds 13.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.2 rebounds and 1.7 'stocks' per game. The Husky captain and all-time winningest player appeared in his 143rd game on Thursday, tying Shabazz Napier for the program record while sitting three shy of Napier's record for minutes logged in a UConn uniform.Â
Silas Demary Jr. and Braylon Mullins both scored nine on Thursday night and are among UConn's five starters averaging double-figures. Demary Jr. scores 11.1 per game with a 47.1/41.7/80.0 shooting line while dishing out a league-leading 6.4 assists per game. Mullins adds 11.9 per game and hits 2.3 triples per game. The Huskies got a huge performance from its reserves on Thursday night with 24 points and is 12-0 this season when the bench scores at least 20. Jayden Ross and Eric Reibe both scored nine points in the BIG EAST Tourney opener, with Ross adding four rebounds, three assists and three steals.Â
Georgetown's run to Friday has been led by its defense, holding both opponents under 38 percent from the field and out-rebounding them by 16.5 per game. Jeremiah Williams has led GU with 15.5 points per game in the tournament while Malik Mack and Julius Halaifonua have both scored 14.0 per contest. Vince Iwuchukwu had a 17-point, 11-rebound double-double in the first round against DePaul while Halaifonua posted 21 and 10 in the quarters against Villanova.Â
Should the Huskies advance, they will take on the winner of top seed St. John's and four-seed Seton Hall on Saturday night.Â
