Alex Karaban scores 21 as UConn upsets No. 20 Marquette

Alex Karaban scored 21 points to lead the UConn Huskies to a thrilling 72-66 victory over visiting No. 20 Marquette on Wednesday night.

UConn (21-9, 13-6 Big East) moves into third place in the Big East thanks to their tiebreaker over Marquette. Four other players scored in double figures for the Huskies, including a 10-point, 11-rebound double-double from Samson Johnson.

David Joplin led Marquette (22-8, 13-6) with 23 points on 7-for-13 shooting. Kam Jones added 21 on 9-for-20 shooting from the floor.

Marquette closed out the half on a high note as they went into the break on a 9-0 run to take a 37-33 advantage. The Huskies finished the half missing 7-of-8 attempts.

Joplin led Marquette with 14 at the break with Jones adding 10 as Marquette shot 51.7 percent despite going just 2-for-12 from deep. UConn shot 42.4 percent, led by nine from McNeeley.

It was tight for much of the second half, but the Huskies found a spark and surged ahead.

A 10-0 run put UConn ahead 61-54 going into the under-8-minute media timeout, capped off by a fast-break dunk from Johnson.

Marquette slowly clawed their way back. Kam Jones finished two tough layups in the final 1:30 and brought Marquette within one with 46 seconds to go.

Jones' efforts went for naught as Karaban stepped up for UConn and hit a deep 3-pointer to put the Huskies up 70-66 with 25 seconds to play.

Jones then missed a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession. The Golden Eagles shot 3-for-22 from beyond the arc on the night, with Joplin (3-for-6) being the only one to make any.

The Huskies swept the two-game regular-season series for the second consecutive season and won their fifth in a row over Marquette.

--Field Level Media