UNCASVILLE – The UConn men’s basketball team trailed Boston College by three points with 13 and a half minutes to play in the second half of Monday’s Hall of Fame exhibition game at Mohegan Sun Arena.

Then point guard Malachi Smith ended a drought of more than four scoreless minutes with a layup to begin a 12-0 scoring surge, pushing the lead back to double figures around the nine-minute mark.

Alex Karaban, with a team-best 17 points and 11 rebounds, made sure the Huskies wouldn’t let up as they held on for a 71-52 exhibition victory.

After a 1-for-10 start from beyond the arc, UConn built a lead of as many as 16 points with four minutes left in the first half as Karaban and Solo Ball (12 points) scored 11 consecutive points. But the Eagles closed the half on an 11-3 scoring run, cutting their deficit to eight at the break behind a high-volume scoring effort from star Donald Hand Jr. (23 points, seven rebounds). BC’s momentum continued into the second half, taking a three-point lead and holding the advantage for about three minutes as UConn continued to miss the mark with its barrage of 3-pointers.

UConn shot 12-for-31 from the field in the second half and made all nine of its free throws after taking just two in the first half. Boston College, which shot 19-for-30 from the foul line, went just 7-for-28 from the field in after the break.

Five-star freshman Braylon Mullins, who scored 12 points in his UConn debut, finished the game off with a 3-pointer and a highlight dunk in the final minute.

Two starters missed

The dominant post presence the Huskies expect to have with Tarris Reed Jr. was clearly missed as the senior center sat in street clothes dealing with a hamstring injury. Silas Demary Jr., expected to be the starting point guard come the Nov. 3 opener against New Haven, warmed up but changed into street clothes by tip-off.

In his place, Smith lived up to the Hassan Diarra comparisons, showing his effectiveness at the point of attack on defense and facilitating the offense with a team-high five assists.

Strong defensive start, but foul trouble persists

UConn’s defense, a main focus of the offseason, got off to an impressive start as the Huskies caused trouble at the point of attack and disrupted the Eagles’ offense. BC turned the ball over 12 times in the first half and finished the game with 20 giveaways.

The Eagles shot just 15-for-37 from the field, 3-for-17 from beyond the arc, and 19-for-30 from the free throw line as UConn was whistled for 20 fouls.

Offense slow to come along

UConn made just one of its first 10 attempts from beyond the arc and finished the first half with five makes (from five different players) on 21 attempts (23.8%).

The Huskies couldn’t get anything to fall to start the second half, missing layups and their first five 3-pointers until Karaban buried his second of the game for a surge in momentum. The senior captain had the crowd going with his third triple in 10 attempts fell to give the Huskies a 15-point lead with five and a half minutes to go.

Reibe has strong start

Freshman center Eric Reibe, starting in place of the injured Reed, showed he can be a quality backup to Reed early as he made a pair of hook shots, including one with a BC defender draped over his back. The German freshman grabbed six rebounds and cleaned up his defensive efforts after a pair of early fouls.

Originally Published: October 13, 2025 at 9:32 PM EDT