CHICAGO (AP) — No. 5 UConn played without Solo Ball on Sunday for the first time this season.
It took a while for the Huskies to adjust, but they figured it out eventually.
Ball missed UConn’s 72-54 victory over DePaul with a minor wrist injury. The Huskies pulled away by outscoring the Blue Demons 39-24 in the second half.
“(Ball) just opens up the court so much,” said Alex Karaban, who had 21 points. “So definitely not having Solo probably hurt us in the beginning, but we found a way. I think whenever we have injuries we’re always going to find a way and it’ll make us stronger later down the season.”
Ball, a 6-foot-4 junior guard, is averaging a team-high 15.4 points per game. He scored a career-high 26 points on 8-for-14 shooting Tuesday night in a 79-60 victory over Butler.
“He was kind of questionable from the game the other day and just couldn’t get healthy enough to be able to go today,” coach Dan Hurley said.
Ball started the first 12 games of the season. He made 99 3-pointers while averaging 14.4 points in 35 games as a sophomore.
The Huskies (12-1, 2-0 Big East) lost Silas Demary Jr. early in the second half when the guard got sick on the court. But he returned with 14:28 left.
He finished with 13 points, eight assists and seven rebounds.
“I mean that man just gives everything he got,” Karaban said. “He plays super hard. He does stuff on the stat sheet that doesn’t even show up. He definitely gave his 100 percent today.”
Demary said he was OK and thought he just got sick because of how hard he plays.
“I try to give my all every possession and every play,” he said. “So I think just overexerting and trying to give it my all.”
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