No. 4 UConn slammed the door on Ohio State with an 84-68 win Friday night, but the story didn’t end with the final buzzer. Braylon Mullins, who lit up the scoreboard for 22 points, including five massive 3-pointers, limped off the court in the second half. This adds a serious layer of concern for a Huskies squad that’s already dealing with injuries, even after snagging another W to move to 4-0.
Hines Takes Over, Freshmen Show Up Big
While Mullins was electric early, it was Na’jai Hines who absolutely took over when it mattered most. Dude dropped 17 of his 20 points in the second half, just completely owning the Buckeyes. Talk about clutch, right? And listen, it wasn’t just the vets carrying the load. Freshman Colben Landrew got his first start and straight up delivered with 12 points. Silas Demary Jr. was everywhere, dishing out nine assists and adding 10 points himself, even battling some early foul trouble, picking up his second with 12:59 left in the first half and his third just three minutes into the second. This team’s got some serious fight.
Buckeyes Fought, But UConn Had the Last Word
Ohio State didn’t just roll over, though. They erased a whole 14-point deficit and even led five times early in the second half. Jimmie Williams led their charge with 17 points, and John Mobley Jr. added 16, even hitting a three with six seconds left in the first half to pull them within two points, making it 42-40 at the break. UConn actually went almost five minutes without a field goal to end the first half, letting OSU back in. Justin Pippen even gave the Buckeyes their first lead of the game with a 3-pointer just over a minute into the second half. It was a dogfight. But when UConn was down by two, Mullins hit five consecutive points, then Jayden Ross buried a 3-pointer with 13:57 left on the clock. That was the dagger, man. The Huskies never looked back after that.
Now, about that Mullins situation. He fell hard with just over six minutes left, hobbled off the court, and went straight to the stationary bike. This isn’t great news, especially with starting forward Nik Khamenia already sidelined for several weeks with a foot injury he picked up earlier this week. UConn’s depth is about to get a serious test.
What’s next? Ohio State, now 2-2, hosts Prairie View A&M on Monday. For UConn, they’ve got a massive road game coming up against No. 12 Arizona on Wednesday. They’ll need everyone healthy and ready for that one, for sure.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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