UConn beats Ohio State 84-68, Braylon Mullins Scores 22 Points

Braylon Mullins scored 22 points to lead No. 4 UConn past Ohio State 84-68 on Friday night at PeoplesBank Arena in Hartford, Connecticut.

The victory improved the Huskies to 4-0 as they opened a rigorous stretch of their schedule without injured forward Nik Khamenia, who is sidelined with a left foot injury suffered against Wagner. Mullins hit five 3-pointers and shot 7-for-13 from the field, pacing an offense that clicked at 61.2 percent overall.

Ohio State (2-2) used a 13-1 run late in the first half to erase a double-digit deficit and head into the locker room trailing just 42-40, the Hartford Courant reported. Justin Pippen opened the second half with a 3-pointer to give the Buckeyes their first lead of the night.

UConn responded immediately. Colben Landrew added 12 points in his first career start for the Huskies, while Silas Demary Jr. also contributed early before foul trouble temporarily sidelined him and teammate Na’jai Hines in the first half. The UConn bench successfully held the line during that stretch as Landrew and Mullins finished consecutive three-point plays under the basket.

Friday’s matchup marked a home game for the program in Hartford. It represented the first time UConn shot at least 60 percent from the field against a high-major non-conference opponent since a 2015 win over Ohio State.

“I think it could be a win that ages well for us,” coach Dan Hurley said, noting that Na'jai Hines provided 20 points off the bench on 7-of-8 shooting for the Huskies, scoring 17 of them after halftime. UConn shot 47.4 percent from beyond the arc on 9-for-19 shooting.

Jimmie Williams led Ohio State with 17 points off the bench, scoring 11 of the team’s first 16 points in the second half. Point guard John Mobley Jr. added 16 points for the Buckeyes. The Buckeyes shot 49.0 percent overall but were held to 40.0 percent shooting in the second half by the Huskies, per Source 5.

“They made us really work for it… I loved the second-half response. And, obviously, with losing a guy of Nik's caliber, we're gonna have to find offense and production and quality from some other spots. And I thought Na'jai took a big step forward, backcourt played like, again, potentially the best backcourt in the country and the wings were really good,” coach Dan Hurley said.

“I mean, we’re UConn.” We’re UConn, we’re dealing with some medical stuff, not just with Nik, but, you know, we just got a culture and a mindset, Hurley told TNT Sports’ Andy Katz.

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