UConn rolls by 32 in Pitino’s biggest loss at St. John’s
HARTFORD, Conn. — Tarris Reed Jr.. had 20 factors, 11 rebounds and 6 blocks, and No. 6 UConn held Fifteenth-ranked St. John’s to twenty% taking pictures in a 72-40 blowout Wednesday night time that snapped the Red Storm’s 13-game profitable streak.
Alex Karaban added 14 factors and 5 rebounds for the Huskies, who moved again into first place in the Big East by avenging an 81-72 loss to St. John’s at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 6.
St. John’s missed 12 consecutive pictures in the primary half after which its ultimate 24 discipline aim makes an attempt of the sport because the Huskies (26-3, 16-2) broke to their most lopsided victory in sequence historical past.
“They’ve been playing so well, the streak that they were on. … So it was just our night,” UConn coach Dan Hurley mentioned. “It just starts snowballing on you when you have a night like this. Obviously, we played really good defense on them, and I thought we demoralized them a little bit when the score gets where the score got. And I just think it was one of those nights where everything went great for us and everything went wrong for them. But we did a lot to make that happen.”
It was by far the most important defeat for the Red Storm in three seasons beneath Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino, and their fewest factors in a sport since scoring 40 towards Notre Dame in March 2013. St. John’s had its largest loss as an AP-ranked crew since March 15, 1960, when it fell to St. Bonaventure by 35.
For Pitino, it was his second-largest loss as the top coach of an AP-ranked crew in his profession, behind solely a 33-point loss with then-No. 5 Louisville in February 2009.
“It’s probably only happened to me two times in my career. Once was in my first year at Kentucky when we went into Phog Allen [Fieldhouse] at Kansasbut I was playing with very much an inferior team with walk-ons, not with this type of team,” Pitino mentioned, referring to a 55-point loss with an unranked Wildcats crew in December 1989. “It’s all on me. I’m very disappointed in our performance, offensively especially, sharing the ball, moving the ball. It’s all on me.”
Solo Ball had 11 factors and 4 assists for UConn, and Silas Demary Jr.. seven factors offered, eight rebounds and 5 assists.
Joson Sanon He scored all 10 of his factors in the primary half for St. John’s (22-6, 15-2), which completed 11-of-56 from the sector and fell a half-game behind UConn in the convention standings. The crew’s 13-game profitable streak was its longest in 41 years.
Zuby Ejiofor had two fast baskets for the Red Storm early in the second half, however the Huskies scored the following 16 factors. A driving layup by Karaban put them up by 23 with 13:42 left, and St. John’s went the final 17:27 and not using a discipline aim.
“I don’t know what it is. All I know is we didn’t play good offense,” Pitino mentioned. “We did things that we’ve never done. And again, it’s something that I’ve got to question about myself, and I will question it because the team did not do the things we’ve done in the last 13 games.”
Braylon Mullins had six factors and Karaban scored 5 throughout UConn’s 18-0 run in the primary half. A driving layup by Ball gave the Huskies a 33-12 lead.
Sanon had 10 of the following 12 factors for St. John’s because the Red Storm started to chop into the deficit. Reed grabbed his personal miss and kicked the ball out to Ball for a 3-pointer, and the Huskies went into halftime main 41-26.
UConn’s starters outscored the Red Storm’s beginning 5 61-28, and the Huskies had a 42-12 benefit in the paint.
The Associated Press and ESPN Research contributed to this report.
