HARTFORD, Conn. (AP)—With eight freshmen and five sophomores on his team, Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun says he just wants some progress each game.
He got that Friday night.
Freshman Jerome Dyson scored 20 points, and No. 21 UConn (2-0) used a smothering man-to-man defense and speedy transition game to run away from Central Arkansas 88-59 in the opening round of the Hispanic College Fund Classic.
UConn, which has no juniors or seniors, looked much sharper against the Bears (1-2) than in its 53-46 season-opening win over Quinnipiac a week ago. The Huskies dominated inside, scoring 44 points in the paint and 28 off turnovers.
“We played faster, we took much better care of the ball, and I think for us, we have to play faster,” Calhoun said.
Jeff Adrien had 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Huskies, who had five players score in double figures. Stanley Robinson finished with 13 points, Marcus Johnson 10 and A.J. Price had 12 points and eight assists.
One of those came in the first half on a wraparound steal and feed to a streaking Dyson who went in for a tomahawk dunk. It was one of several spectacular slams off steals for the 6-foot-3 guard, who got the Hartford Civic Center crowd into the game.
“Coach has been emphasizing on getting the fast break, and getting those easy baskets,” Dyson said. “A.J.’s just doing a great job of pushing the ball.”
UConn jumped to a quick 10-2 lead after Central Arkansas (1-2) opened the game with an alley-oop dunk from Frederick Campbell to Durrell Nevels.
Campbell led the Bears with 15 points, one shy of his career high.
The Huskies used their pressure defense to go on a 12-0 run midway through the half and led 44-28 at the break.
Central Arkansas coach Rand Chappell said his squad, playing its first season in Division I, just ran into a more talented team.
“They have excellent quickness in the backcourt, just big-time quickness with the guards,” he said. “And of course we’re seeing that out here at 6-2 and 6-3 rather than sometimes what we’re used to seeing it at 5-10 or 5-11.”
Besides dunking the ball, Dyson also hit 3-of-5 three-point shots. Adrien dominated underneath, scoring nine of his points after intermission, all from close range. He helped the Huskies outrebound the Bears 43-32.
“We played offense the way we’re capable of playing,” Adrien said. “We’d rather just fast-break all day and run a team down.”
The Huskies have won 21 consecutive home games, 12 of them at the Hartford Civic Center.
Mississippi beat Fairfield 70-67 in the opening game of the round-robin tournament. Central Arkansas will play Ole Miss on Saturday, and the Huskies will face Fairfield.
“Every night for us is a step forward, and we’re going to be a good basketball team when it’s all said and done,” Calhoun said. “But we’ve got to keep going forward.”
