By Steve Habel/Senior Editor
AUSTIN, Texas — On a night when former Texas players LaMarcus Aldridge (now with the San Antonio Spurs) and P.J. Tucker (Phoenix Suns) watched from the crowd at the Frank Erwin Center, it was former UT guard Sterling Gibbs — who transferred from the 40 Acres after his freshman year to Seton Hall and then to Connecticut as a graduate student — who did the most damage against his former team.
Freshman Texas guard Tevin Mack scored a season-high 20 points and junior point guard Isaiah Taylor racked up 19, but it wasn’t enough as Connecticut got a series of clutch free throws down the stretch to beat the Longhorns, 71-66, Tuesday to end the Longhorns’ six-game win streak.
After trailing 63-55 with 3:20 remaining, the Longhorns [s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)](8-4) got to within three points on a Taylor drive, basket and free throw with 57.2 seconds left and then cut the lead to 65-63 on another Taylor free throw with 33.4 to play.
But Gibbs hit four free throws and Daniel Hamilton — the brother of former Longhorn Jordan Hamilton — added two more in the final 26 seconds to give Connecticut (9-3) enough of a cushion to hold off the Longhorns down the stretch.
“We just didn’t get enough stops down the stretch,” Taylor said. “UConn played the pick-and-roll game and wanted to play one-on-one and we didn’t increase the defensive intensity that we needed.
“In the last few minutes, they made some tough three-pointers against some good defense. Coach (Shaka Smart) told us it was going to be a game of runs, and they made the last ones.”
Rodney Purvis led four Huskies in double-figure scoring with 16 points. Shonn Miller and Hamilton added 13 apiece for Connecticut and Gibbs hit for 12. UConn outrebounded the taller Longhorns, 36-34, and outshot Texas (46.6-39 percent) from the floor.
“Purvis was the catalyst for us, even though he has some breakdowns on the defensive end,” Connecticut head coach Kevin Ollie said. “You don’t want to play small in big-time games and he made up for some of his mistakes by playing great in the second half.”
The Huskies, instructed to drive the paint to take advantage of the absence of injured Texas center Cameron Ridley, played NBA-style basketball, either going straight to the rim or pulling up for three-pointers (they hit 3-of-13 from downtown in the first half and finished 6-of-17) — a tactic that seemed to tire out the Longhorns.
“UConn has good, dynamic guards and we weren’t good enough on defense,” Smart said. “Our guys had a good level of enthusiasm for the majority of the game. UConn’s players were going to just put their heads down and go to the basket and we knew that was coming heading into the game, but knowing that and stopping it are different things.”
Mack had 12 of his points in a torrid first half as the Longhorns trailed, 34-33, at halftime. Texas shot 39 percent in the first 20 minutes, compared to the Huskies’ 45 percent, but the game was close because Connecticut missed four of its six free throws in the first half.
“It was good to see some of the shots go in,” Mack said, “but it doesn’t mean much if we don’t win.”
Texas started the second half by missing four of its first six shots, but fought back to take a 53-52 lead on a Mack three-pointer with 8:18 to play. Connecticut answered with back-to-back jumpers by Purvis that sparked a 11-2 run that put the Huskies in control.
The Longhorns return to play Saturday in Lubbock against Texas Tech (10-1).
NOTES:
Smart said Ridley’s foot surgery “went well” Tuesday. Ridley’s estimated time for recovery is eight to 10 weeks, but each player responds differently … Smart also said Mack has a knack for shooting, and said he plays better when he’s hitting shots. Mack hit a career-high five three-pointers Tuesday; Texas had just six in the game.
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