Huskies Tear Down Hartford
Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun presided over his team's first two home blowouts of the season. On Tuesday night, it was associate coach Dave Leitao's turn.
Calhoun missed the game because of a stomach virus, but a monitor in the locker room allowed him to watch the second-ranked Huskies rout Hartford 95-58.
The Huskies opened the season with a 102-60 win over Quinnipiac and beat Richmond by 20 points last week.
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"Overall, it was a very good chance to get better," Leitao said. "I really think we put the clamps on what I think is a pretty good offensive team."
Richard Hamilton and Kevin Freeman each scored 17 points and turned in solid defensive play. Hamilton made five steals and Freeman had a team-high eight rebounds.
Hamilton likened Calhoun's absence to playing without senior guard Ricky Moore at the point.
"It doesn't feel the same, but you've got to go out there and do your business," he said.
The Huskies took care of business in a hurry.
UConn (3-0) raced out to 14-0 lead on a pair of free throws by Jake Voskuhl and four straight 3-pointers, two by Hamilton and two by Khalid El-Amin.
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| Hartford's Darrick Jackson takes the ball from Connecticut's Jake Voskuhl in the first half. (AP) |
It took Hartford (0-4) nearly eight minutes to get its first field goal, a 3-pointer by Chris Eames. The Hawks made just five field goals in the first half and trailed 47-14 at the break.
"The first half must have made Jim (Calhoun) feel better," said Hartford coach Paul Brazeau. "They are a terrific team."
The Huskies forced Hartford into 25 turnovers and outrebounded the Hawks 45-33.
Leitao credited Moore for keping Hartford's leading scorer Justin Bailey in check. Bailey finished with 11 points, nine below his average. He was the only Hawk in double figures.
"We were real tentative at the start," said Bailey. "When we got down 14-0, we were in shock."
El-Amin finished with 16 points, while Rashamel Jones had 13 and E.J. Harrison 12 for UConn.
UConn improved to 12-1 against Hartford and won its 43rd in a row over an intrastate opponent.
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