Adama Sanogo poured in 26 points as No. 4 UConn snapped a two-game losing skid with a 69-60 victory over Creighton on Saturday afternoon in Storrs, Conn.
Sanogo connected on 10 of 20 shots and hauled in nine rebounds for the Huskies (15-2, 4-2 Big East), who defeated the Bluejays (9-7, 3-2) for the first time in six all-time meetings.
Jordan Hawkins supplied 17 points and Tristen Newton added 13 for UConn, which took care of the ball all afternoon, committing just five turnovers.
Arthur Kaluma paced Creighton with 14 points and a career-high 16 rebounds. Ryan Nembhard had 12 points, Baylor Scheierman and Trey Alexander each added 11 and Ryan Kalkbrenner was held to nine.
Alexander made just 3 of 14 shots — a microcosm of the Bluejays’ shooting performance as a whole. The visitors shot 32.8 percent, going just 2-for-16 from beyond the arc. They also suffered a nine-plus-minute stretch late in the second half where they didn’t make a field goal.
Creighton erased an eight-point halftime deficit and went up 43-42 with 13:47 left to play when Alexander’s jumper punctuated a 14-2 surge.
But the Huskies responded with a lethal blow, putting together a 14-2 run of their own to claim an 11-point edge. Sanogo had eight points during the decisive rally, and Donovan Clingan added four.
After there were eight lead changes through the opening 11 1/2 minutes of action, UConn pulled away, going on a 15-8 run over the final 6:49 of the period to take a 37-29 lead into the break.
Sanogo led all scorers with 14 points, while Hawkins chipped in with 11 through the first 20 minutes of action. Kaluma had 10 points for the Bluejays, who took nearly 19 minutes to sink their lone 3-pointer of the first half.
Sanogo was forced to play extended minutes before intermission when backup center Clingan picked up two fouls only six seconds apart just over 6 1/2 minutes into the game.
Clingan’s second personal occurred on Kalkbrenner’s alley-oop dunk, which, after the ensuing free throw, gave Creighton its largest lead of the half at 15-11.
–Field Level Media
