CINCINNATI, OHIO – JANUARY 10: Cam Spencer #12 of the Connecticut Huskies dribbles the ball while being guarded by Quincy Olivari #8 of the Xavier Musketeers in the second half at Cintas Center on January 10, 2024 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
Cam Spencer scored 19 points and Tristen Newton had 16 as No. 4 UConn held off Xavier 80-75 on Wednesday night.
Alex Karaban added 14 points and Newton finished with 11 assists to help the Huskies (14-2, 4-1 Big East) win their fourth straight game since dropping their conference opener by 15 at Seton Hall.
The defending national champions got some payback against Xavier, which swept the two-game season series last year.
“Happy to come in here and get a win," UConn coach Dan Hurley said. “It was a hard-fought Big East road win. We were in one of the toughest places to play. I just think we responded like a program that believes we’re supposed to win.”
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Freshman guard Stephon Castle had 12 points, eight assists and six rebounds for Connecticut. Hassan Diarra scored 11 off the bench.
Karaban left with 10:34 remaining after taking an elbow above his right eye. He received stitches after the game.
Quincy Olivari scored 24 points and Desmond Claude added 15 for the Musketeers (7-8, 1-3).
Dog House
UConn started out hot from the perimeter. The Huskies made six of their first eight 3-point attempts, including the first three. Spencer, who came in shooting 44.3% from beyond the arc, had two of them.
“The first four minutes of the game was like a video game," Xavier coach Sean Miller said. “They can do that.”
The Musketeers missed their first five 3s before Olivari connected to cut the Huskies’ lead to 35-32 late in the first half.
With UConn ahead 32-22, the Huskies’ Jaylin Stewart was assessed a technical foul as several players scrambled for a loose ball. Fewer than five minutes later, the Musketeers tied the score at 35 on Claude’s jumper.
UConn led 42-38 at halftime.
It was the Musketeers who started hot in the second half. Claude hit a pair of 3s and Trey Green’s 3-pointer gave Xavier its first lead, 52-51.
“They made some tough 3s to start the second half," Hurley said. "But we stayed composed.”
The Huskies' defense held the Musketeers without a field goal for more than five minutes to spark a 10-0 run. Diarra’s 3-pointer made it 61-52.
“We had a lot of stops to get on that run,” Spencer said. “Yes, we were scoring. But it really came down to the defense."
The Huskies led by 14 with 4:24 remaining. The Musketeers rallied to cut the deficit to 76-71 with a minute left, but UConn staved off the comeback.
“It was chaos," Hurley said of the final minute. "We committed some bad fouls to stop the clock. We got a little bit disorganized. We weren’t going to walk out of there with a 17-point win.”
The schools have split six meetings since becoming Big East rivals.
BIG PICTURE
UConn: Every other team ranked in the Top 5 has already lost this week, so the Huskies might have a chance to ascend to No. 1 with a win Sunday over Georgetown.
Xavier: Offensive rebounding in key moments, which contributed to several of the Musketeers’ losses this season, was a focus on Wednesday. UConn is ranked in the top 10 nationally in offensive rebounding, but Xavier won that battle 20-8.
STAT SHEET
UConn shot 54.4% from the field but was outrebounded 42-30 overall. Xavier shot 35.9% from the floor.
UP NEXT
UConn: Will host Georgetown on Sunday.
Xavier: Plays at Providence on Saturday.
