No. 2 Connecticut got a battle from No. 15 Furman on Friday night, but the Huskies are moving on thanks to the play of their center.
The No. 2-seed University of Connecticut men's basketball team got a major push from No. 15 Furman on Friday night, but ultimately survived in the Round of 64, winning 82-71 in Philadelphia.
UConn (30-5), will now play No. 7 UCLA in the Round of 32 on Sunday. UCLA defeated Central Florida on Friday.
It wasn't always pretty for the Huskies in the win, but considering they played without starting point guard Silas Demary Jr., simply surviving and advancing will suffice.
Here's what you need to know.
Reed makes history in a big way
Center Tarris Reed Jr. put up one of the most incredible stat lines in NCAA Tournament history, scoring a game-high 31 points and pulling down 27 rebounds. He had 11 offensive rebounds alone and his 27 rebounds were more than the entire Furman team (23).
Per ESPN on social media:
Reed Jr. is the third player since 1960 with 30 PTS and 25 REB in an NCAA Tournament game, joining Elvin Hayes (3 times) and Jerry Lucas (twice).
Building upon that? It's the first 30-25 game in the NCAA Tournament since Baylor in 1968.
The senior, who previously played at Michigan, has averaged 14.3 ppg and 8.7 rebounds this season.
Inside the numbers
--It's a good thing that Reed stepped up, because the Huskies offense didn't provide a ton of help overall. Freshman Braylon Mullins had 12 points, but was 0-of-8 from three-point range in his first NCAA Tournament game. Solo Ball had nine points, but was 1-of-6 from downtown. As a team, Connecticut was just 5-of-25 (20 percent).
--As a team, UConn had 44 rebounds compared to Furman's 23.
--The Huskies committed nine turnovers, while Furman had 11.
--Alex Karaban had 22 points, including four of the team's five three-pointers.
--Freshman Alex Wilkins led the way for Furman with 21 points on 8-of-15 shooting.
What they're saying
"...I've said it a lot recently. He's a top two or three center in the country. When he plays like that, we can win any game against any team in the tournament when we're healthy. We can't afford when Tarris plays like a top 10, top 15 center in the country and we're not an elite team..."
- head coach Dan Hurley
Also on campus
The top-ranked UConn women's basketball team opens up its NCAA Tournament run on Saturday afternoon (3 p.m. ET) against No. 16 Texas San-Antonio. The Roadrunners are apparently not intimidated by the Huskies, who enter play at a perfect 34-0 and winners of 50 straight contests. It's the fifth-longest winning streak in women's D-I history.
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