UConn rebounds with overtime win
PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas -- Ryan Boatwright was playing in his first game for No. 4 Connecticut. Shabazz Napier was coming off a terrible performance against Central Florida.
No problem.
Boatwright hit three clutch free throws with seven seconds left in regulation, Napier had 26 points, and the Huskies beat No. 22 Florida State 78-76 in overtime in the consolation game of the Battle 4 Atlantis on Saturday.
"I'm proud of our kids," Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun said. "Boatwright doesn't get much play, but he has an awful lot of courage. He didn't know if he was going to play today or two months from now. Our two freshmen made UConn feel healthy about ourselves. You want them to get their feet wet, but they just jumped in."
Boatwright's three foul shots tied it at 71. He finished with 14 points and three assists in 33 minutes.
"I knew everyone thought I was going to miss those," Boatwright said of his trip to the line. "The way I grew up I had pressure every day, in a single-family home with my mom. My grandfather always used to say pressure was my middle name."
Jeremy Lamb added 19 points for Connecticut (6-1), which shot 48 percent from the field, including 11-for-25 from 3-point range. Freshman Andre Drummond had 12 points, 10 rebounds, seven blocked shots and three steals.
Michael Snaer scored 20 points for Florida State (5-2), which lost 46-41 to Harvard on Friday. Deividas Dulkys had 14 points, and Bernard James finished with 11 points and 14 rebounds.
James' three-point play put the Seminoles up 76-75 in overtime, but Napier made his sixth 3-pointer of the game to put the Huskies back in front with 1:08 left.
Napier also had five assists, four rebounds and two steals one day after he committed seven turnovers and shot 1-for-7 from the field in a 68-63 loss to Central Florida.
But Napier thought Boatwright provided the biggest lift for the Huskies.
"He was the missing piece of the puzzle we needed," he said. "To have him beside me is the best I can hope for. We rode the boat today."
Florida State's Luke Loucks missed a 3-point attempt and two free throws in the final minute of overtime, and Snaer missed a 3 at the final buzzer.
"It's a shot I feel I would normally have made," Snaer said.
The Huskies led 63-58 with 8:32 left in regulation, but the Seminoles battled back. James had a dunk and Xavier Gibson made a 3-pointer to tie it at 65.
Connecticut blew a 17-point lead in the second half of its loss to Central Florida.
Calhoun's team appeared to be headed to another frustrating loss before Boatwright made those free throws at the end of regulation. Snaer then missed a last-second jumper, sending the game to overtime.
AROUND THE NATION
• KENTUCKY ROLLS -- At Lexington, Ky., Terrence Jones and Darius Miller had 19 points apiece for No. 2 Kentucky (6-0) in its 87-63 victory over Portland (2-4). The Wildcats, who have won all of their games by double digits, play St. John's and No. 1 North Carolina this week. Nemanja Mitrovic scored a game-high 20 points for the Pilots, who had a 39-38 edge in rebounds.
• BADGERS BEAT BYU -- At Hoffman Estates, Ill., Ben Brust had 21 points for No. 11 Wisconsin (6-0) in its 73-56 win over Brigham Young (4-2) in the Chicago Invitational Challenge title game. Brust, a sophomore reserve, shot 7-for-10 on 3-pointers. Noah Hartsock led the Cougars with 18 points.
• BALANCED ZAGS WIN -- At Spokane, Wash., Robert Sacre and Sam Dower had 15 points apiece for No. 19 Gonzaga (4-0), which shot 52 percent in its 78-58 win over Western Michigan (0-6). The Broncos had 22 turnovers.
REGIONAL
• UNR EDGES BRADLEY -- At Hoffman Estates, Ill., Malik Story had 20 points, including two free throws with six seconds left, as UNR (4-3) held on for a 64-59 win over Bradley (3-3) on the final day of the Chicago Invitational Challenge. Olek Czyz had 18 points for the Wolf Pack, who led by as many as 12 points in the first half.
