The UConn Huskies traveled down to Washington DC to pay a visit to their old Big East rival, the Georgetown Hoyas. They leave with a disappointing loss, 72-69, at the Verizon Center.
The Huskies started off strong thanks to a couple of confident buckets from Rodney Purvis. Jalen Adams scored five in the first half but also did a great job of facilitating as just about everybody got in on the scoring action. Freshman Vance Jackson led the way with 11 at the break, though he finished with 13 points after a quiet second half.
As we have come to expect, the Husky defense played tremendously. But they faltered late.
UConn came out just as motivated at the start of the second half, pushing the lead into double digits. It looked like the Huskies were about to ride to another confidence-building victory, but Georgetown was intent on making it a game.
An amazing alley-oop finish by Rodney Pryor sparked a 16-2 run which tied things up at 45 nearly halfway through the second half. L.J. Peak, the Hoyas’ second-leading scorer, finished a three-point play that put them ahead for the first time in a while.
The final 10 minutes of the game were a tribute to the battles these teams had in the old Big East days. The game slowed down, got more physical, and each possession was intense. Georgetown eventually broke out a late lead late thanks to some hot three-point shooting. Adams, who finished with 22 points, helped the Huskies keep it close as time wound down, but the Hoyas held on for the win.
The Huskies (7-10) will be in action next on Thursday at SMU. The game will be at 7 p.m. and televised on ESPN2.