Gampel Pavilion celebrated UConn’s past and present on Saturday night. Former No. 2 overall pick Hasheem Thabeet joined the Huskies of Honor, and 1,000-point scorers were recognized. Yet when the buzzer sounded, the spotlight belonged to Alex Karaban.
Karaban became the winningest player in program history when No. 6 UConn defeated Georgetown 79-75, marking his 116th career victory.
“When I first came to UConn, I was worried about playing, just getting out there and making an impact,” Karaban said. “To now have my name at the top of that list… it’s special.”
The UConn Huskies take on the St. John’s Red Storm at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Feb. 6, 2026. Despite a close game, the Huskies lost 72-81. Photos by Emma Meidinger, Associate Photo Editor/The Daily Campus.
The two-time national champion finished his 136th start, also a program record, with 18 points and four three-pointers on six attempts. But Karaban’s impact was felt the most in the games closing moments.
Georgetown (13-12, 5-9) surged back from a once 14-point deficit to make it a two-point game in the final minute. Karaban pulled down a rebound off a missed free throw with 11.4 seconds left in the game before getting fouled and put on the free throw line. He stepped up to the stripe and buried both to ice the game for UConn (24-2, 14-1).
UConn head coach Dan Hurley said the night “was about Alex’s greatness.”
“He almost didn’t play today… and then just gutted it out,” Hurley said. “He is who he is; the most accomplished player in college basketball.”
Karaban has been dealing with a “leg thing,” as Hurley put it, which has limited his involvement in practice.
Unlike January’s meeting between these two teams — when the Huskies shot just 36.2% from the field and 19.2% from three, both season lows — UConn found a shooting rhythm early.
Connecticut buried four threes to start the game ahead 12-7. Karaban, Solo Ball and Braylon Mullins all connected on their first attempts from deep. The Huskies shot 56% in the first half to take a 41-33 lead at the break. UConn finished with 11 made threes, marking its fifth double-digit three-point performance in the last six games.
Ball continued his recent shooting resurgence. He led all scorers with 20 on five threes, following a 24-point performance against Butler on Wednesday. Ball’s three-point struggles have been well documented this season, but this week marked the first-time all-season he finished back-to-back games with more than two three-pointers.
He knocked down three with 10:42 to play in the game to eclipse 1,000 career points, an achievement that his teammate, Tarris Reed Jr., was honored for prior to the game.
That’s just something you just dream up in your backyard, playing college basketball level, scoring 1,000 points,” Ball said. “But it’s a very minuscule goal compared to the goals we have in mind this year.
The UConn Huskies take on the St. John’s Red Storm at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Feb. 6, 2026. Despite a close game, the Huskies lost 72-81. Photos by Emma Meidinger, Associate Photo Editor/The Daily Campus.
Silas Demary Jr.’s fingerprints were all over this game. He stuffed the stat sheet and was just an assist shy of his second triple double of the season. 15 points and 12 rebounds marked Demary’s fourth double-double of the season. His rebounding was critical during Georgetown’s late push as the Huskies only got three boards from their centers.
“I was just trying to get the win,” Demary said. “They kept clawing back into the game.”
He was the primary defender on Malik Mack, who entered the game averaging 14.5 points per game. Demary limited him to just eight points on 3/7 shooting from the field. The Hoyas still managed to claw back in even with their point guard getting shut off.
KJ Lewis led Georgetown with 24 points while pulling down nine rebounds. He repeatedly was able to get downhill and generated several transition opportunities. Kayvaun Mulready came off the bench to score 15 points. He was averaging just over three points per game before Saturday. The Hoyas bench scored 37 points in comparison to UConn’s 12.
Mulready hit four of Georgetown’s 12 three-pointers. Seven of those threes came in the second half, as the Hoyas finished the night shooting at a 42.9% clip. Every time it seemed UConn had a chance to pull away, Georgetown had someone open for three.
Foul trouble made matters worse for the Huskies.
Reed was limited to just 17 minutes of action, with only seven coming in the second half during the Hoyas comeback. Freshman Eric Reibe was forced to step up. The former five-star recruit is no stranger to these moments, as Reed has missed or been limited in several games this season due to injury.
Reibe scored 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting in 22 minutes of burn. He was impactful at the rim on the defensive end. While Reibe didn’t make any blocks, his length helped him force misses at the basket.
“If Eric doesn’t step up the way he did today, we don’t win the game,” Hurley said.
UConn led for over 38 minutes but were never able to put down the Hoyas. Free throws have been a cause of concern for the Huskies all season, but their second half shooting from the line thwarted the potential comeback. They shot 12-of-15 in the second half, and 72% overall.
The win completed UConn’s fifth regular season sweep of a Big East opponent this season and was Hurley’s 12th straight win over Georgetown.
The Huskies will stay close to home when they welcome Creighton to Gampel Pavilion on Wednesday. It will be UConn’s first time playing back-to-back games at its on-campus venue this season.
The game tips off at 7 p.m. and is available on TNT.