HARTFORD, Conn. — UConn experienced its first dose of adversity this season in the first half of Monday’s win over Wagner, when sophomore forward Nik Khamenia suffered a foot injury and did not return to the Huskies’ 83-41 win.
UConn later learned Khamenia would need surgery on his foot and be sidelined for approximately six to eight weeks. Naturally, the first question surrounding the fourth-ranked team in the nation was whether the Duke transfer’s absence would have an adverse effect on operations.
As it turned out, Friday’s first act without one of the Huskies’ newcomers was business as usual.
Beginning its three-week gauntlet of power conference opponents, UConn dominated Ohio State for most of the first half before the Buckeyes made a brief run early in the second stanza. But behind 22 points from Braylon Mullins and a career-high 20 from Na’jai Hines, the Huskies outscored their visitors by a 32-16 margin over the final 15 minutes, turning a 52-all tie into a decisive 84-68 victory at PeoplesBank Arena:
“I’m obviously thrilled with the win and the response in the second half,” head coach Dan Hurley remarked as UConn (4-0) shot 61 percent from the floor, the highest mark against a power conference opponent in a non-conference game since 2015, also against Ohio State. “It feels like a good win, but I think it could be a win that ages well for us. Losing a guy of Nik’s caliber, we’re gonna have to find offense, production and quality from some other spots.”
Hines was arguably the greatest beneficiary of the extra points Friday, connecting on seven of his eight field goal attempts in 20 minutes, but it was the Huskies’ two freshmen who played roles just as integral in the triumph. Making his first career start, Colben Landrew met the moment in the form of 12 points and four rebounds in 32 minutes, earning plaudits from one of his senior teammates in the process.
“Ever since he came here, he’s kind of left his imprint so far of who he is,” Silas Demary, Jr. explained. “I think Colben being able to step into the starting lineup and keep us growing, the coaches have been on him and Egor (Amosov) about being ready for the moment, being able to pick up some of those minutes that Nik gave us.”
“That’s his biggest thing, just rolling. Whether he starts or he’s coming off the bench, he’s gonna flow and he’s gonna pick his spots where to score and where to be off the center as well.”
Demary’s understudy also made an impact Friday, as Junior County was thrust into the point guard role for 23 minutes after the former spent most of the first half mired in foul trouble. County only scored five points, but supplemented his offense with three rebounds, three assists and two steals, playing beyond his years and underscoring UConn’s massive depth that is now even more significant while Khamenia is on the shelf.
“Junior’s just a freshman that came into the moment always being ready,” Demary said. “Ever since he’s been here, since June, he’s shown progress and shown maturity. When he steps in, I have no doubt in my mind he’s going to play to the best of his ability. The biggest thing is him just getting more and more confident within the offense, and I think (Friday), he was able to get to the paint, get some assists, get some big-time rebounds. His maturity has been the biggest thing I’ve seen since he’s been here. That’s how I know he’s always gonna be ready when his number is called.”
Hurley mentioned the sadness around the UConn locker room when it became apparent that Khamenia would miss time this season, highlighting how beloved a teammate he has become, no easy task in its own right given his role as the de facto successor to Alex Karaban. The coach hopes that his roster can soldier on in the present, but is optimistic that the injury is not going to be a longer-term situation.
“Absolutely,” Hurley said when asked of his confidence in Khamenia returning. “If people see him, if students see him or something, you gotta tell him to stay off his foot and boot. He’s a madman, he’s gonna do everything he can to be back. We’re going to have to adjust some things that we do on offense with him not in there. We basically can plug and play a guy like that into the Karaban role and just keep doing what we do, but players like that for our system are very hard to find.”
“That’s a heavy, heavy loss for us, but he’s gonna have a chance to get healthy, and hopefully we can win enough games without him that he’s got a team that’s put themselves in a great position (for him) to return to. It’ll be a real shot in the arm for us.”
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