No. 2 UConn opens Maui Invitational vs. Memphis

On By Littum

LAHANAI, Hawaii – UConn men’s basketball team No. 2 (4-0) will participate in the 2024 Maui Invitational this week. First up in the absolutely loaded field is a quarterfinal against Memphis (4-0) to start the tournament on Monday at 2:30 ET / 9:30 HT. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN2 with Dan Shulman and Jay Bilas on the call.

It is Connecticut’s fifth all-time appearance at the premier Feast Week event as they look to take home the crown, as they did in 2005 and 2010. UConn has performed well in their in-season multi-team events (MTEs) during their most recent success, winning the 2022 Phil Knight Invitational and 2023 Empire Classic before national titles. The Huskies have played in an MTE in each of the last 20 seasons, winning seven. Dan Hurley is 13-3 in MTEs as head coach at UConn.

Along with UConn and Memphis on one side of the bracket are Colorado and Michigan State, one of which the Huskies will face on Tuesday. Rounding out the event are Auburn, Dayton, Iowa State and North Carolina. The 2024 Maui Invitational features four teams in the top-15 of metrics and all eight in the top-70.

UConn and Memphis have previously met 16 times, with all but one meeting coming while the two were league mates in the AAC from 2013-20. The Huskies won the last meeting, 64–61, at the end of the 2019–20 season to even the all-time record at 8–8. The Huskies have faced every member of the field at least once in program history, including both Auburn and Michigan State at the 2021 Battle 4 Atlantis.

The Huskies are off to a 4-0 start this season after opening the year with four home games. Alex Karaban leads a balanced offense with 16.3 points per game as the Preseason All-American connected on 63.6 percent of his attempts from the floor and 54.2 percent from downtown. Karaban anchors a UConn team that ranks top-five in the nation in scoring defense (51.0 points per game) and leads America in scoring margin (+37.8) and blocked shots (10.8).

Solo ball and Liam McNeely ranks second on the team with 13.5 points per match. Ball is connecting on 47.4 percent of his 3-point attempts and has increased his scoring by 10.2 per game during his first year. McNeely is second on the squad with 7.0 rebounds per game and has a pair of double-doubles early in his freshman season. Tarris Reed Jr. is the fourth Husky in double figures with 11.8 points per game. game and ranks first in the BIG EAST with 9.8 rebounds per game. competition.

The Tigers enter Maui with a 4-0 record, most recently knocking off San Francisco at the Chase Center. PJ Haggerty leads Memphis as one of the top scorers in the country with 22.5 points per game. game, where he’s shooting 50.0 percent from 3-point range and adding 5.8 rebounds per game. Tyrese Hunter adds 13.3 per game, while Dain Dainja adds 10.0 and a team-high 7.0 rebounds a contest.

UConn’s opponent and game time for Tuesday will be determined by the results of Colorado vs. The Michigan State game.