University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
29-4,17-3Big East
Georgetown
16-18,6-14Big East
UConn Grinds Past Georgetown, 67-51, In BE Semis
3/14/2026 12:34:00 AM | Men's Basketball
NEW YORK  - The two-seed UConn men's basketball team (29-4) led wire-to-wire and smothered 11-seed Georgetown (16-18) in a 67-51 win on Friday night in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Tournament at Madison Square Garden. With the win, the Huskies advance to play for the BIG EAST Tournament title for the 12th time.Â
The Huskies opened the game on a 7-0 run and never looked back, taking a double-digit lead to the half and swelling their advantage to as many as 19 late in regulation. UConn held Georgetown without a field goal for over six minutes late in the second half to help put the game away along with some timely late shooting.Â
Braylon Mullins became the first freshman in UConn history with 20 points and five rebounds in a conference tournament game in the win. Mullins finished with a game-high 21 points, five rebounds, two assists and a block in 33 minutes. He was one of only two Huskies in double-figures, but Connecticut saw seven different players score at least six points in a balanced offensive effort. Silas Demary Jr. scored 10 points with a team-high nine rebounds, four assists and two steals, while Tarris Reed Jr. finished with six points, a career-high eight assists, seven rebounds and three blocks.Â
UConn received strong performances from the bench for the second-straight day, getting eight points apiece from Eric Reibe and Jayden Ross. Reibe added a steal and two blocks while shooting 4-5 from the floor, while Ross knocked down a pair of second half 3-pointers. The Huskies finished +9 on the glass and dished out 21 assists in the win.  Alex Karaban made his program-record 144th appearance and also set the new UConn record in minutes while scoring seven points with three rebounds and two assists.Â
How it Happened
UConn scored the first seven points of the contest, with five-straight from Mullins capped by a 3-pointer at 16:59. Midway through the first back-to-back transition buckets, the first from Reed Jr. off a slick Malachi Smith feed and the second a ferocious Ross slam via a Demary Jr. steal and find, gave the Huskies a 20-12 lead and triggered a Georgetown timeout at 8:44 of the first.
A pair of Mullins buckets helped Connecticut take its first double-digit lead, with the second putting the Huskies up 28-18 with 4:16 on the first half timer. Inside of the final minute a ferocious Reed Jr. block led to a run-out Mullins lay-in and helped UConn take a 32-21 lead to the break. Mullins led all players with 15 points in the opening stanza and UConn held Georgetown to 32.1 percent shooting and 1-of-11 from three.
UConn's first three buckets of the second half came from beyond the arc, one apiece from Solo Ball, Mullins and Demary Jr. with the third coming at 16:10 and giving UConn its largest lead up 41-27. A 6-0 mini-run for the Hoyas got GU back within single digits, before Demary Jr. found Ross for a corner three with the shot clock expiring that put the Huskies in front 46-35 ahead of a timeout at 11:53.
The Hoyas pulled within eight midway through the second half but again it was Ross who knocked down a big triple and gave UConn a 51-40 edge that triggered a GU timeout with 7:30 to play. A pair of Eric Reibe baskets helped the Huskies push the lead back to 13 inside of five minutes, with Reibe laying one home off an Alex Karaban feed at 4:47 that gave the Huskies a 59-46 advantage.Â
Late in the first the Huskies clamped Georgetown to a six-plus minute field goal drought, holding the Hoyas without a basket from 7:12 to 32.5 seconds. A second chance Demary Jr. 3-pointer at 1:43 capped an 8-0 run and put the Huskies up 67-48 and prompted a Georgetown timeout, effectively putting the victory on ice. Â
Inside The Numbers
- The Huskies shot 47.5 percent (28-59) from the field and 32.0 percent (8-25) from three, while holding the Hoyas to 38.0 percent (19-50) and 12.5 percent (2-16) marks
- UConn finished with a 34-25 edge on the glass and scored 14 second chance points off 13 offensive rebounds
- Connecticut dished out 21 assists on 28 field goals
- Reed Jr. led all players with a career-high eight assists
- Demary Jr. added four, Smith dished out three and Karaban and Mullins had two apiece
- It was the 10th time UConn has dished out at least 20 assists in a BIG EAST Tournament game
- Both sides finished with 30 points in the paint, while UConn out-scored GU, 10-6, off turnovers and 9-4 in fast break points
- The Huskies held a 6-1 edge in blocked shots
News and Notes
- The Huskies are now 43-36 all-time against Georgetown, have won 13-straight in the series and are 7-2 against the Hoyas in the BIG EAST TournamentÂ
- UConn improves to 45-30 all-time at the BIG EAST Tournament and 12-6 in the semifinal round
- Karaban appeared in the 144th game of his UConn career, breaking a tie with Shabazz Napier to become the program's all timeÂ
- He entered the day with 1,769 career points, behind Kemba Walker (1,783) for ninth, Ryan Boatright (1,786) for eighth and Ben Gordon (1,795) for seventh and Corny Thomspon (1,810) for sixth
- With 35 minutes logged he now has 4,647 for his career, passing Napier's previous UConn record of 4,614
- Mullins hit the 20 point mark for the third time this seasonÂ
- He became the sixth UConn freshman to score 20 in a BIG EAST Tournament game and first since Jerome Dyson had 21 against Syracuse on March 7, 2007
- He was the first UConn rookie with at least 20 points and five assists in a BIG EAST Tournament game
- Reed Jr. topped his previous career-high of seven assists, set on Feb. 11 at Butler
Up Next
The top two seeds in the BIG EAST will meet for the tournament title when UConn takes on one seed St. John's at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday night.Â
