UConn Defeats Saint Joseph’s In Overtime, Advances In NCAA Tournament

UConn advanced to the third round of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament Thursday night with an 89-81 overtime victory over Saint Joseph’s in the East Region.

It’s the seventh-seeded Huskies’ first March Madness win since their 2011 national championship, and their next game is Saturday against No. 2 Villanova, which defeated No. 15 Milwaukee 73-53 later in the night.

Senior guard Shabazz Napier scored nine of his 24 points in overtime to lead the Huskies (27-8). He also had eight rebounds and six assists.

UConn trailed 35-30 at halftime but outscored St. Joe’s 54-41 in the final 25 minutes. Junior forward DeAndre Daniels and junior guard Ryan Boatright chipped in 18 and 17 points, respectively. The Huskies overcame a mediocre shooting night by hitting 90 percent (18 of 20) of their free-throw attempts.

Senior guard Langston Galloway led 10th-seeded Saint Joseph’s (24-10) with 25 points in the final game of his collegiate career.

Photo via Twitter/@TheBuffaloNews