Busting Brackets
Fansided

AAC Basketball: Hot shooting first half helps SMU defeat UConn

By Andrew Nostvick

Feb 25, 2017; Hartford, CT, USA; Southern Methodist Mustangs guard Shake Milton (1) works the ball against Connecticut Huskies guard Christian Vital (1) in the second half at XL Center. SMU defeated UConn 69-61. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 25, 2017; Hartford, CT, USA; Southern Methodist Mustangs guard Shake Milton (1) works the ball against Connecticut Huskies guard Christian Vital (1) in the second half at XL Center. SMU defeated UConn 69-61. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

Nine first half three-pointers help the SMU Mustangs as they complete a season sweep of the UConn Huskies.

The SMU Mustangs continue their win streak, which now stands at 11 games, as they defeated the UConn Huskies 69-61 Saturday afternoon.

The perimeter game played a big role for the Mustangs early. SMU went 9-for-13 from three-point range in the first half, as they took a commanding early lead.

Shake Milton provided the spark for the perimeter game as he went 6-for-7 from three in the first half and would go on to finish with 20 points.

UConn stayed close thanks to their offensive rebounding efforts. The Huskies had 10 offensive boards and relied on Kentan Facey to keep them in the game. Facey had 15 points and nine rebounds.

SMU went into halftime with a 40-31 lead.

The Huskies battled back in the second half, doing so without star guard Jalen Adams, who went down with an ankle injury late in the first half. Defensively, the Huskies allowed just one three-pointer in the second half.

UConn, through Facey, Vance Jackson, and Christian Vital, got the lead down to five points.

However, SMU went on a 6-0 run over the next few minutes, which helped the Mustangs put the game out of reach for the Huskies. The Huskies had the opportunity, even with Adams out of the game. However, the fouls piled up towards the end for UConn. Jackson fouled out, while Facey had four fouls.

It would have been easy for UConn to fade away with no Adams in the game. However, they got a lot out of their freshmen Jackson and Vital, who each scored 14.

SMU, meanwhile, gets to head back home for its final two games before the conference tournament.

The two teams left on the schedule, Tulsa and Memphis, are teams they’ve defeated before. However, the Memphis game was a little closer than SMU probably would’ve liked.

If they win out, they’ll at least get a share of the regular season conference title, regardless of what Cincinnati does.

UConn, meanwhile has dropped their second straight. The Houston loss didn’t help their cause; neither will this one to SMU. They’ll need to win out in the conference tournament, which won’t necessarily be easy, knowing they’ll likely face SMU, Cincinnati, or possibly both along the way.

Next: Picks for three huge NCAA basketball match-ups

The Huskies will be back in action Wednesday at East Carolina. Will Adams be able to play? That is what UConn will need to know.