Sports: Vital leads UConn men past NJIT, 69-47
“We're a better team than we were last year. We've got some exciting young players. I think we're potentially very good defensively. Offensively, we've still got some real work to do.” UCONN COACH DAN HURLEY
Hartford — As UConn's most experienced player, senior Christian Vital has developed a good feel for the game.
Vital knew when he had to take over on Sunday.
Whether the Huskies needed a defensive play or timely basket, Vital delivered.
His teammates can count on the veteran guard.
"Each and every game, he's going to come out and play hard," redshirt junior Alterique Gilbert said of his backcourt mate. "That's something we know."
Vital was a driving force in a 69-47 rout of New Jersey Institute of Technology in a non-conference game at the XL Center. He finished with a game-high 23 points, five rebounds and four steals. He made a season-high five 3-pointers on eight attempts.
With UConn struggling on the offensive end, Vital supplied a necessary spark.
"If it's a game a lot of guys are hitting and stuff, there's no need for me to really go create something on my own," Vital said. "But if it's a game like today when we weren't really scoring within the offense, sometimes you've just got to be aggressive.
"That's just when you've got to know when to pick and choose. That's when experience comes in."
UConn (9-3) concluded a favorable stretch of home games against inferior opponents with a third straight double-digit win.
The Huskies head into the American Athletic Conference season on Wednesday with more answers than last year but also some questions, too.
"We're a better team than we were last year," coach Dan Hurley said. "We've got some exciting young players. I think we're potentially very good defensively. Offensively, we've still got some real work to do.
"We shot it well from three. We took better care of the ball and passed it better, but then we didn't finish. When you're at this point in year two, you almost feel like game-by-game you're just plugging holes. A lot of our holes are at the offensive end of the court right now."
Defense continues to be UConn's calling card. The Huskies limited the Highlanders (3-10), who've lost eight of their last nine games, to 32.7 percent shooting and forced 15 turnovers.
They're still searching for some offensive consistency. They hit a high percentage from 3-point range (8 for 16) but shot just 36 percent inside the arc. They converted under 40 percent (39.7) for the fifth time this season.
"That's got to improve if we're going to be better than we've been the last couple of years in conference," Hurley said of his team's finishing skills.
The Huskies quickly shook off any rust from the holiday break, taking the lead for good on redshirt freshman Akok Akok's 3-pointer that made it 7-4. The active Akok provided an early spark and finished with seven points, a career-best 10 rebounds and five blocks overall.
It was Vital who fueled a momentum-changing 13-0 spurt.
Holding a 14-10 edge, Vital drained two free throws and then buried a 3-pointer. He accounted for 13 of UConn's final 21 points in the first half. The Huskies carried a 3520 edge into the break. Still, Hurley wasn't happy. "In the first half, we played pretty well for 16 minutes," Hurley said. "We played really, really well defensively and making the extra pass. And we had four really horrific minutes, all in the same half, which was like inexplicable to me at the time."
Vital continue to push the Huskies toward the finish line in the second half. He drained a jumper and converted a rebound in the opening four minutes. Then he stole the ball and fed sophomore Brendan Adams (12 points) for a fast-break dunk to increase the gap to 46-23.
UConn was in complete command at that point.
The Huskies shut down Zach Cooks, NJIT's leading scorer. GIlbert and his fellow guards combined to hold Cooks, who entered the game averaging 23.1 points, to 12 points on 4 for 12 shooting.
Now they turn their attention to the AAC. They open league play with consecutive road games at Cincinnati on Wednesday and South Florida on Saturday.
"You feel relief getting through this last buy game here, because there's really not a whole lot to gain from winning it and there's a lot to lose from blowing it," Hurley said. "Now we get a chance to play for something."
News and notes
Hurley on the crowd of 10,507: "Big thanks to the fan base. That was a huge lift and a great thing to see." ... UConn freshman guard Jalen Gaffney had a career-best seven assists and zero turnovers in 19 minutes . ... Walk-on Matt Garry, who's from Southington and attended St. Paul, received a huge ovation upon entering the game in the final minutes. The St. Paul basketball team was in attendance. "I couldn't believe that," Hurley said of the ovation. "I turned and thought maybe Ray Allen or Kemba was at the game and they stood up and they got an ovation. They didn't help his cause with that because at the free throw line he had no shot. He was hyperventilating." Garry went 0 for 4 from the line . ... Junior center Josh Carlton (eight points, nine rebounds) struggled to finish around the rim, going 4 for 10 from the field. "I've got to get Josh going," Hurley said . ... After being benched last game, reserve Sid Wilson made his first appearance with about 12 minutes left in the game. He had one rebound.