Given the way the UConn Huskies shot the ball in the first half, it was probably a good thing head coach Jim Calhoun wasn’t around. He would have probably blown a gasket or two. But I’d have to think he would be proud of their second half effort.
A second half that saw the Huskies miss just nine shots (17-of-26) helped them to a 75-59 win over the St. John’s Red Storm in front of 14,213 at the XL Center in Hartford, Conn. on Wednesday night.
The win for the Huskies (12-6, 3-3 Big East) ends a three-game losing skid while Norm Roberts’ squad falls to 12-6 (2-4).
With Calhoun shelved for the time being with an undisclosed illness, associate head coach George Blaney took the helm. It’s not the first time he’s done this as he improves to 5-3 while Calhoun is out. As a program, UConn is 18-4 without Calhoun on the bench.
Jerome Dyson led the way for the Huskies with 21 points and had six rebounds and five assists. Stanley Robinson chipped in with 18 points and a game-high nine rebounds. He also had three blocked shots. Point guard Kemba Walker played one of his finer games this season as he had 17 points and six assists.
D.J. Kennedy led the Red Storm with 19 points and seven rebounds. The only other member of the Johnnies in double-digits was Dwight Hardy, who came off the bench to score 12 points.
St. John’s started out quickly racing out to a 5-2 lead and were behind 13-11 early on. Trailing 21-15, the Huskies went on a 6-0 run to tie the game. Two straight three-pointers by Dyson gave the Huskies a 31-25 lead which shrunk to three points at the half (31-28).
The Huskies started out hot in the second half as they went on an 11-4 run that pushed the lead to 10 at 42-32. UConn’s defense held strong as St. John’s was never able to get any closer than seven points the rest of the way.
The difference in the coaching styles isn’t too much. Calhoun’s a yeller, Blaney isn’t. And that was evident on Wednesday night.
Although they shot the ball like crap in the first half, they looked a little more relaxed. This is more than likely due to the fact they didn’t have to look over their shoulder when they made a mistake. They ran their offense and played good defense. Had they done what they did in the second half in the first half, they would have won this game by 30 easily.
The Huskies will need to play a complete 40 minutes on Saturday when the No. 1 Texas Longhorns come to Gampel Pavilion for a nationally-televised non-conference matchup. The game is scheduled to start at 4 p.m. and will be shown on CBS.
Notes and musings:
St. John’s Red Storm @ UConn Huskies 1.20.10 box score
The starters were Kemba Walker, Jerome Dyson, Stanley Robinson, Charles Okwandu and Alex Oriakhi.
The Huskies shot 56.9% (29-of-51) from the floor while St. John’s shot 34.3% (23-of-67).
UConn had 15 assists on their 29 made baskets.
The Huskies were 6-of-14 (42.9%) from three-point land while the Red Storm were 2-of-17 (11.8%).
UConn shot 91.7% (11-of-12) from the free throw line. This is what needs to happen on a nightly basis.
The Huskies barely won the battle on the boards 35-33.
UConn was outscored in the paint 35-33.
St. John’s turned the ball over just nine times which UConn converted into 14 points. UConn had 14 turnovers which St. John’s converted into just nine points.
The Huskies outscored St. John’s 16-6 on the fast break.
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