Solo Ball made seven 3-pointers and finished with 22 points, helping No. 11 UConn beat DePaul 81-68 on Wednesday at Wintrust Arena for its seventh straight win.
Alex Karaban had 18 points for the Huskies (11-3, 3-0 Big East), who have recovered nicely after losing three in a row at the Maui Invitational.
UConn closed out the road win without Liam McNeeley, who exited with 13 minutes, 48 seconds left after going down near midcourt. The freshman forward appeared to be favoring his right leg as he was helped off the floor.
Conor Enright had 18 points and nine assists for DePaul (9-5, 0-3) in its 19th consecutive loss to UConn. Jacob Meyer added 12 points.
The Blue Demons used a 7-0 run to close to 61-52 with 7:58 left. But UConn’s Jayden Ross blocked Troy D’Amico’s layup attempt before Karaban made a big 3-pointer for the Huskies.
After CJ Gunn converted a layup for DePaul on the other end, Ball made a 3 to make it 70-54 with 6:14 remaining.
Takeaways
UConn: Hassan Diarra finished with seven points, but the experienced guard affected the game with his speed and athleticism. He had nine assists and one turnover.
DePaul: The Blue Demons are much improved in their first season under coach Chris Holtmann, but there is still a sizeable talent gap when they take on the Big East’s elite teams.
Key moment
UConn closed the first half with a 9-2 run. Ball made a 3-pointer in the final seconds to lift the Huskies to a 43-22 lead at the break.
Key stat
UConn went 14-for-29 from 3-point range, compared with 3-for-12 for DePaul. The Blue Demons were averaging 11.6 made 3s coming into the day.
Up next
UConn hosts Providence on Sunday. DePaul visits Villanova on Saturday.
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