The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Larrier leads Huskies in opener
STORRS — They weren’t exactly jellin’ without Jalen.
But with star point guard Jalen Adams sitting out due to a team suspension, UConn needed someone to step up late in its seasonopener against Colgate on Friday night.
Terry Larrier proved to be that man, scoring a career-high 27 points on 11for-18 shooting to lead the Huskies to a 70-58 win before 7,154 at Gampel Pavilion.
Larrier, who sat out the entire season two years ago after transferring from VCU and was lost for the season after just four games a year ago due to a torn ACL in his left knee, also grabbed six rebounds.
“Terry stepped up bigtime for us,” said coach Kevin Ollie. “He was just
comfortable all night. I was very proud of him. Not having played, really, in two years, to come out and have this performance when we really need it, with one of our players out ...”
Larrier knew he had to step up, and he was never better than late in the game, after the Raiders had closed to within five points (59-54) with 2 minutes, 18 seconds left.
The wiry junior went on a personal 7-0 run, capped by his third 3-pointer of the game, to pretty much seal the deal for UConn.
“We had a soldier down, it’s just the next man up,” said Larrier. “Everybody came in and played their role really well.”
Adams, the junior point guard who led the team in scoring last season, was suspended after being charged with leaving the scene of a scooter accident on campus two nights earlier. After the game, Adams met with reporters and took full responsibility for the incident. He also said he addressed his teammates.
“I told them, ‘Don’t worry about me, it’s about them,’” said Adams. “I’m not the whole team. They’ve got to focus on who’s in the locker room and who’s gonna get that ‘W.’”
Larrier wasn’t the only player to come up big. Grad transfer guard Antwoine Anderson, likely in the starting lineup because of Adams’s absence, was the only other Husky in double figures with 12 points and a team-high six assists in 35 minutes.
“I knew somebody else was gonna have to stp up,” said Anderson, who played three seasons at Fordham. “Obviously, Jalen’s a big (part) of the team. Not having him, it’s not the same. But everybody understands that we all have roles, and we have to be a star in our role.”
The Huskies also got strong efforts out of a pair of freshman forwards. Tyler Polley finished with nine points and four rebounds, while Isaiah Whaley came off the bench and provided his usual instant energy, scoring on a trio of putbacks (including an impressive dunk) and adding eight points, four boards and three blocked shots.
“Coach saw the energy was low, he looked at me and was like, ‘Go in and bring the energy,’” Whaley reported. “I try to bring as much energy as I can to pump the team back up to make a run again.”
Eric Cobb didn’t score but led UConn with eight rebounds in just 16 minutes. It was a rough night for guards Alterique Gilbert and Christian Vital, who combined to shoot 3-for-19.
But on this night, even without Jalen Adams, the Huskies had plenty of other players to step up.
Adams was contrite after the game. He didn’t comment on any specifics of Wednesday night’s incident, but said he understood why Ollie suspended him.
“We see eye-to-eye,” Adams said. “But, we’re putting that behind us. I’ve got to learn from my mistakes, and we’re just moving forward from here.”
Adams may not have played, but he was a vocal presence on the bench throughout the game. Wearing a sports coat and sitting on the very end of the bench along with injured forward David Onuorah, Adams was very supportive of his teammates.
That will help in Ollie’s decision on when to lift Adams’s suspension. The coach said it’s still a “dayto-day” decision. UConn’s next game in on Tuesday night against Stony Brook in Hartford.
“It’s up to Coach,” Adams added. “When he feels I’m ready to be on the floor, that’s when I’ll be back.”
“It’s up to Coach. When he feels I’m ready to be on the floor, that’s when I’ll be back.”