UConn freshman Braylon Mullins is heading to his first – and maybe only – Big East tournament final.

And the No. 6 Huskies can thank the projected first-round NBA draft pick for leading them there.

Mullins scored 21 points on Friday night in a 67-51 win for the second-seeded Huskies against the 11th seed, Georgetown, in New York. He was dominant in the first half, dropping 15 points – including UConn’s final eight – as the Huskies took a 32-21 lead at the intermission.

UConn (29-4) will face top-seeded St. John’s (27-6) in the final Saturday night at Madison Square Garden, the home arena of the Red Storm, in what will be a packed house. No. 13-ranked St. John’s eliminated fourth-seeded Seton Hall 78-68 in the day’s first semifinal.

The Huskies will be playing for a record ninth Big East title. UConn and St. John's split the season series, each winning on its home court. St. John's is the defending tournament champion, defeating Creighton.

"I think both programs have pushed each other the whole year. Two of the best teams in the country," UConn coach Dan Hurley said of his team and St. John's. "It’s gonna be a death match for the Big East championship."

The hallmark of UConn this season has been the ability of one player to pick up for another when needed. On Friday, it was Mullins helping out in the absence of leading scorer Solo Ball, who was limited to six minutes in the first half because of foul trouble.

Mullins was 7-of-12 shooting in the half, with the rest of the team 8 of 21.

On the night, UConn shot 47.5%, just less than their season average of 48.7%, and scored below their average of 78.6 points per game. And while the Huskies weren’t at their best offensively, their defense was another story.

UConn entered the game 13th in the nation in scoring defense at 65.3 points per game and kept Georgetown well below that. The Huskies held the Hoyas (16-18) to just 12.5% (2 of 16) from 3-point range and outrebounded them 34-25.

And they stifled Georgetown 7-footer Julius Halaifonua, who scored 21 points on Thursday night in a quarterfinal win against Villanova but managed only 10 against UConn. Leading scorer Malik Mack (13.8 points per game) was held to nine points.

In the second half, Georgetown closed the deficit to eight points with 8:54 remaining after a 3-pointer by Caleb Williams. But UConn quickly restored the lead to 13, and the Hoyas couldn’t recover.

Silas Demary Jr. was the only other UConn player to score in double figures, adding 10 points. In a reversal from the norm, point guard Demary led UConn in rebounds with nine and center Tarris Reed Jr. had a team-high eight assists.

Reed, who scored six points, became the first Huskies player in 15 seasons to have at least eight assists, seven rebounds and three blocked shots in a game.

Vincent Iwuchukwu led the Hoyas with 11 points.

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