NEWARK, NJ – Donovan Clingan dominated the game, scoring the UConn men's basketball team's first six points of the second half and, for the most part, was the only Husky to really show up at the Prudential Center on Wednesday night.
Then, just under 3 1/2 minutes into the second half, that performance — along with Clingan's 7-foot-2 frame — fell to pieces.
Clingan was whistled for a foul on Seton Hall's Jaden Bediako and fell to the ground, grabbing his right ankle and wincing in pain. He tried to get up but couldn't and ended up limping back to the locker room with coach James Doran.
Clingan returned to the bench about halfway through the half but never got back into the game. He suffered a sprained ankle and was seen wearing a walking boot on his right foot after the game.
“He tried to get back in the game, but I don’t think coach wanted him to,” coach Dan Hurley said. “But tough boy, I wanted to get back in.”
Meanwhile, UConn, which trailed by just four after Clingan's injury, suffered its worst loss in nearly four years.
Kadary Richmond scored 23 points and had eight steals to lead Seton Hall to a 75-60 victory over the fifth-ranked Huskies. By the exact same score of 75-60, this represents the Huskies' worst loss since the Jan. 4, 2020 loss in South Florida.
“We all have to own it,” a heartbroken Hurley said afterwards. “It wasn’t reminiscent of a top team. That was a pretty embarrassing achievement for all of us, myself first and foremost. To have one of my teams go away in a conference opener and have a performance like that is, to me, a…”It's hard for me to even look (the media) in the eye when I'm asked a question. There’s a real sense of shame.”
“To be honest,” added forward Alex Karaban, “we weren’t ready to play, we didn’t show up, we weren’t the strong team, we didn’t play with the UConn identity. We didn't do that.” “Everything we did during the non-conference period. Happens. If you don’t show up ready in the Big East, you’re going to get your ass kicked.”
UConn head coach Dan Hurley watches his team during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Seton Hall in Newark, NJ, Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Peter K. Afriyie)
Peter K. Afriyie/Associated Press
And why weren't the Huskies (10-2) ready to play, especially given last season's heartbreaking 67-66 loss to the Hall in the same building?
“I don’t know if we were too complacent about what happened outside of the conference or if we thought this was an easy game,” Karban responded. “But it is clear that no game is easy in the Big East and we have to be ready every game. Because we know that every game will be a dogfight.”
This was UConn's first Big East regular-season loss since losing at Creighton last season on Feb. 11. It's the Huskies' first double-digit loss since an 85-74 loss to St. John's on Jan. 15 in Hartford.
UConn hosts the Johnnies, now coached by Rick Pitino, on Saturday night in Hartford.
“We need to turn the page quickly,” Hurley warned.
Richmond cemented its reputation as a Husky-killer for Seton Hall (8-4). Two years ago, the 6-6 guard scored a career-high 27 points in the Hall's overtime win against UConn, including a whopping 17 in a row at times.
On Wednesday, Richmond's more modest 7-0 personal run helped the Pirates go on a 15-2 run in the first half that gave them a 34-29 halftime lead.
“Kadary is a tough cover. “We’ve been dealing with him forever,” Hurley noted. “When he doesn’t see bodies and doesn’t drive gaps, and he plays in space with his size and what he can do downhill to the rim, he’s just as good with the ball as he is at that size.”
Newton, who guarded Richmond for most of the game, added: “He's big and strong, he's good in the post. He's just a good player. He can go downhill, he's very physical, can attack the rim well and finish well at the rim.”
Seton Hall guard Kadary Richmond (1) posts up UConn guard Tristen Newton during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Newark, NJ, Wednesday, December 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Peter K. Afriyie)
Peter K. Afriyie/Associated Press
There's no doubt that Clingan's absence over the final 16 1/2 minutes hurt the Huskies.
“We would have kept throwing in,” Hurley said, noting that Clingan scored 14 points in 14 minutes. “It calms the game down. We're not a team full of great 1v1 players. It hasn't just hurt us when it comes to scoring points at low posts. It kind of demoralizes the opponent when they can't stop the big guy.” But he's also a really good passer at the top of the key. It hurt us. And of course it destroyed our rim defense because we were pathetic at the rim.”
But ultimately, the reigning national champions offered no excuses Wednesday night.
“I coached poorly, I prepared the team poorly … everyone on the team, except Donovan on offense, had a poor game,” Hurley said. “(Thursday) will be brutal. The video session will be overwhelming. Because whatever the players think happened out there when they see the film, it doesn't lie. Some of the 1-on-1 things, like… soft like we were.
“We will respond appropriately,” he added, “because when we lose at UConn, it hurts everyone.”