UConn men's basketball survives late run and edges Seton Hall, 69-64

Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant on Jan 13, 2026

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NEWARK, N.J. — The scene was familiar.

With 48 seconds to play at the Prudential Center on Tuesday night, the UConn men’s basketball team saw its lead, once as large as 18 points, trimmed to just one. The Seton Hall crowd was loud and its press was defiant, but this time the Huskies escaped.

UConn’s poised point guard Silas Demary Jr. sealed the game from the free-throw line, where it was almost lost, and snapped the program’s four-game losing streak in Newark with a 69-64 win over the 25th-ranked Pirates.

Tarris Reed Jr., despite his 5-for-13 effort from the stripe, matched his season-high 21 points to go with nine rebounds and three blocks to lead the Huskies. Alex Karaban, determined to get this box checked off his list, added 13 points and five rebounds while Braylon Mullins added 11 points, three steals and a pair of blocks. Both Demary and Solo Ball added eight points.

Third-ranked UConn improved to 17-1 on the season and 7-0 in Big East play as Seton Hall dropped to 14-3 and 4-2 in the league. It was the 13th consecutive victory for the Huskies.

There were eight lead changes in the first 14 minutes and no leads larger than three points until UConn, which missed 12 of its first 16 shots from the field, went up four with Reed, who scored 12 of the team’s first 22 points, assisting Mullins at the rim. After a Jaylin Stewart block on the other end, Demary assisted Mullins on a 3-pointer through contact and Malachi Smith, who’s had some recent struggles, hustled for an offensive rebound in the corner and nailed a long mid-range jumper to put the Huskies up nine with four minutes left in the first half.

It was a 14-0 UConn run over 4:12 that opened the game up as the Huskies’ lead grew to as many as 13 points before the break. Ball put the final punctuation on the half with a right-handed slam in transition, making it a 35-22 lead at halftime.

The matchup of top-10 defenses, UConn No. 5 and Seton Hall No. 9, resulted in nine turnovers for the Pirates in the first half and seven for the Huskies, who had six shots blocked — mostly early on. UConn needed to match Seton Hall’s effort and asserted itself inside for a 22-13 rebounding advantage over the first 20 minutes.

Ball started the second half with a 3-pointer and UConn’s lead grew to as many as 18 points, where it returned after Seton Hall coach Shaheen Holloway earned a technical foul with 15 minutes left in regulation.

The Pirates pressed full court and made a push, scoring inside when Reed went out to rest, but UConn was able to handle it better than it has in year’s past and answer shot-for-shot. Still, Seton Hall forced a series of turnovers and made it tough in the half court defensively, cutting its deficit to six as the building came alive with eight minutes to play.

UConn responded with a bucket from Mullins and a trip to the free-throw line for Demary to push it back to 10, but Trey Parker wasn’t phased by the Huskies’ interior defense and made a series of tough layups under the basket. And Adam Clark, whose mid-range shot caused problems all night, made another off an offensive rebound to make it a two-point game with 2:18 to play.

Seton Hall, after starting the game 0 for 13 from beyond the arc, saw its first 3-pointer fall from the hands of Mike Williams III with 48 seconds left, cutting UConn’s lead to one. Demary made two free throws and Mullins blocked a 3-point attempt from Williams at the other end, allowing the Huskies’ poised point guard to seal the game from the free throw line.

UConn finished the game 16 for 26 from the stripe (61.5%) and 3 for 17 from beyond the arc. The Huskies were outrebounded 37-34, 24-12 in the second half and turned the ball over 17 times.