HARTFORD, Conn. — The earliest sign that Friday would be a redeeming night for Braylon Mullins came about an hour after wrapping up an effort he would soon rather forget if given the opportunity.
The precocious sophomore labored through a 2-for-12 showing in UConn’s win over Wagner, making just one of his nine three-point attempts and fighting his way to 10 points in Monday’s 83-41 thrashing of the Seahawks. Almost instantly after head coach Dan Hurley broke ranks in the locker room and concluded his postgame press conference, Mullins was back out on the Gampel Pavilion floor, hoisting shots up to flush the uncharacteristic off night.
The ageless tactic worked, as his next act was more in line with what he and UConn fans have come to expect. Mullins poured in 22 points Friday, doing so on a much more palatable 7-for-13 shooting split, draining five of his nine tries from long distance as the fourth-ranked Huskies handled Ohio State, 84-68, at PeoplesBank Arena.
Mullins started the proceedings 13 seconds in, scoring the first points of the night on a triple from the left arc, and did not look back from there as his will to improve helped set the tone for a UConn team that was looking for a spark in the absence of Nik Khamenia.
“It’s just the confidence piece,” he said. “Coming in (Friday), just knowing that I just shoot the ball with all the confidence in the world and when you’re open, making sure it goes up. But I think just from the last game, just getting more reps and not seeing the ball going (in), you gotta work on yourself after the game. Now we just move on from it.”
Mullins’ desire to be infallible has bordered on an obsession in his 18 months with the UConn program since arriving in the summer of 2025. The Indiana native overcame a prolonged slump through the bulk of Big East Conference play last season to rise at an opportune time, culminating in his immortal 35-foot splash to beat Duke and send the Huskies back to the Final Four. His consumption with being better has even compelled his coach to urge him to tone it down somewhat.
“He’s a perfectionist,” Hurley admitted. “He’s like, really hard on himself. If he goes 0-for-2, 0-for-3, he shouldn’t even think about that. He’s just such a stud and he’s so good on defense, too. What he does is so beyond the 5-for-9 and the 7-for-13. It’s rare that you have a guy who’s a shooter, scorer who could also pass it, who also is sturdy on defense. He’s a special guy.”
Mullins has showcased a developing array of interior moves as well four games into the young season, finishing in the paint and above the rim more than last year, where that facet of his game revealed itself sparingly. With UConn’s front line younger and retooled, Mullins took it upon himself to make that part of his game an increased priority to better himself and his team.
“You can definitely see it,” he said. “It’s just different game plans that different teams show, but I think I’m just putting the work in from the summer. You’re just trying to have the ball in your hands more, take a little bit more pressure off Silas (Demary, Jr.). There’s a lot of things you have to do when you don’t have guys like (Alex Karaban) and Tarris (Reed, Jr.) from last year, so I was just trying to put more on the scoring end.”
While Mullins is content with carrying more on his plate, Hurley still implored him to be somewhat calmer about it, even offering a humorous take on what he considers a rarity when coaching the sophomore.
“All the fans should just tell him to stop being so hard on himself, stop being such a perfectionist,” the coach reiterated. “It’s too much. When he misses, you should almost start laughing, because you should never miss.”
“He did (laugh), after the second free throw,” Silas Demary, Jr. acknowledged when Mullins missed a potential go-ahead free throw with 15 minutes remaining in regulation, keeping the score tied at 52.
“Did he laugh?” Hurley shot back, a bemused facial expression accompanying the response. “Oh, God. I cannot wait to see that.”
Nor can UConn fans wait to see a stronger, more well-rounded Mullins. And if by chance he does miss a shot? Maybe there is some humor in that.
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