No. 1 UConn men’s basketball beats DePaul 101-65 for its 13th straight win

Alex Karaban scored 21 points as No. 1 seed UConn beat DePaul 101-65 in Chicago on Wednesday for its 13th straight win.

After scoring 25 points at Georgetown last week, Karaban hit five 3-pointers, one of which tied a career high, and the Huskies (23-2, 13-1 Big East) wasted little time in burying the Blue Demons (3-1) 21, 0-13 Big East). They took control in the first minutes and never looked back. UConn will face a tougher test on Saturday when it hosts No. 4 Marquette.

For UConn, Stephon Castle had 15 points and 6 assists, and Cam Spencer had 14 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists.

Jaden Henley scored 15 points for DePaul. But the Blue Demons lost their 12th straight game and sixth since interim coach Matt Brady replaced fired Tony Stubblefield.

UConn showed why it was atop the AP poll for the fifth week in a row by jumping out to a 52-29 lead at halftime.

They took a 22-7 lead when Spencer hit a 3-pointer and Jaylin Stewart broke for a layup in the eighth minute of the game. And while they were up 31-18, they followed that up with a 13-2 run.

Karaban started the half by shooting with 7:15 left. Hassan Diarra made a layup after the steal and made the game 20 points. Spencer rose to take a field goal in the lane and Tristen Newton made it 44-20 with just over four minutes left in the half.

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UConn: The Huskies moved one step closer to their first Big East regular season title since the 2005-06 season when they tied Villanova. The Huskies lead Marquette by 2 1/2 games with six games remaining.

DePaul: The Blue Demons never appeared in this game, falling to 1-19 against UConn.

Next

UConn: Saturday’s game against Marquette in Hartford is the first of two games between the teams. UConn will also visit the Golden Eagles on March 6.

DePaul: The Blue Devils will try again for their first conference victory when they visit Providence on Saturday.