Cam Spencer made seven of his 11 3-point attempts and scored a game-high 25 points to lead No. 5 UConn to an 87-53 victory over Mississippi Valley State on Tuesday night in Hartford, Conn.
It was the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
Spencer, a 6-foot-4 guard who transferred from Rutgers, scored 20 points combined in UConn's first two games, victories over Northern Arizona and Stonehill. He made 4 of 13 3-point attempts in those two contests.
Alex Karaban had 14 points, while Tristen Newton had 10 along with eight rebounds and seven assists for UConn (3-0). Donovan Clingan tossed in 17 points for the Huskies, but he missed six of his nine free-throw attempts.
UConn never trailed and had its largest lead, 81-46, with 6:23 to play.
Senior guard Rayquan Brown led MVSU with 18 points and eight rebounds. Brown entered Tuesday averaging 15.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. Donovan Sanders added 12 points for the Delta Devils, who were 19 of 59 from the field (32.2 percent).
Mississippi Valley State, which will play its first 13 games on the road, was 1 of 9 from 3-point range. The Delta Devils (0-3) have also lost to Oklahoma and LSU.
UConn freshman Stephon Castle didn't play in the game because of a knee injury he sustained during Saturday's 107-67 victory over Stonehill. Castle was named the Big East Freshman of the Week on Monday after he averaged 14.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists in UConn's first two games.
The Huskies took their first double-digit lead when Solomon Ball made a 3-pointer to put UConn up 28-16 with 6:53 remaining in the first half. The trey was part of a 9-0 run that extended UConn's lead to 31-16.
A Spencer layup ended another 9-0 burst that pushed UConn's advantage to 42-20. The Huskies led 44-27 at halftime. Spencer scored 19 points during the first half, when he shot 7 of 9 from the floor and made five of his 7 3-point attempts.
UConn led by at least 15 for the entirety of the second half.
--Field Level Media
Mississippi Valley State | Connecticut | |
Rayquan Brown 18 | Scoring | Cam Spencer 25 |
Danny Washington 3 | Assists | Tristen Newton 7 |
Rayquan Brown 8 | Rebounds | Tristen Newton 8 |
Donovan Sanders 6 | Free Throws Made | Alex Karaban 5 |
Donovan Sanders 2 | Steals | Cam Spencer 2 |
Daniel Umoh 1 | Blocks | Donovan Clingan 3 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Mississippi Valley State | 53 | 32.2 | 1-9 | 14-21 | 7 | 24 | 1 | 7 | 14 |
Connecticut | 87 | 54.7 | 11-28 | 18-30 | 20 | 36 | 3 | 4 | 12 |