MBB: UConn Downs Butler Creates Long-Sought Winning Streak

Adama Sanogo couldn’t create more personal history as a Connecticut Husky for the sweetest of reasons on Tuesday night at XL Center.

HARTFORD - Adama Sanogo couldn’t create more personal history as a Connecticut Husky for the sweetest of reasons on Tuesday night at XL Center.

The sophomore stud and reigning Big East men’s basketball Player of the Week failed to set another new career-best in single-game rebounding, having done so in each of his prior two contests. Fortunately for the Huskies, they only needed Sanogo for 25 minutes in handling their business against the Butler Bulldogs, running away with a 76-59 victory. Through the win, No. 25 UConn (12-4, 3-2 Big East) earned consecutive victories for the first time since a three-game winning streak that ended in December.

Though Tuesday’s game offered a relative sabbatical for Sanogo (who played 40 minutes in last Wednesday’s overtime win over St. John’s), he nonetheless earned his third consecutive double-double with 13 points and 15 boards, all but two of the former tally coming in the second half. He also blocked four shots, part of a 10-swat tally for the hosting Huskies (Akok Akok lingered close behind with three rejections of his own). Since the calendar flipped to 2022, Sanogo has averaged 19 points, 16.3 rebounds, and 4.3 blocks in his return from an abdominal injury that cost him most of December.

UConn’s season has had a flair for the dramatics, but they took full advantage of a visit from the reeling Bulldogs (9-8, 2-4 Big East), who finally made their way to Hartford after COVID cases erased the original matchup date of New Year’s Day. Despite a cold shooting start from the field, the Huskies took a permanent lead through an early 10-0 run, one sustained mostly through R.J. Cole free throws, in the first half after Butler scored the first basket of the game. Their lead never dipped below 10 after a pair of Andre Jackson triples established a 31-16 lead shortly before the final media timeout of the first half.

The Connecticut lead reached as high as 21 in the latter period, clinching the Huskies’ first win by a double-digit margin since Dec. 11’s neutral site triumph over St. Bonaventure.

In addition to the expected production from Sanogo, the Huskies also enjoyed the first career double-double for the sophomore Jackson, who earned 12 points and 10 rebounds. Cole led the Huskies’ scoring efforts with 17 while Jordan Hawkins and Tyler Polley united for 24 off the bench.

On the visiting side, Butler’s scoring was mostly tallied by Jayden Taylor (19) and Simas Lukosius (17), who united for 36 of their 59 points. The Bulldogs have now dropped four of their last five games by over a 21-point margin in the new calendar year, with each loss coming against a ranked opponent.

UConn and Butler won’t have to wait long for a rematch, as the second half of a home-and-home set will be staged on Thursday night in Indianapolis (9 p.m. ET, FS1). The Huskies are now 3-0 against the Bulldogs since re-entering the Big East and will go for their second consecutive season sweep.

Geoff Magliocchetii is on Twitter @GeoffJMags