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Liam McNeeley bounced back from his worst outings in the 2024-25 college basketball season, scoring 16 points to lead No. 2 UConn to a 99-45 victory over Maryland Eastern Shore on Saturday at the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut.
The 6-foot-7 five-star freshman still had a so-so performance on the court, making 4-of-12 shots, including 1-of-8 from the free-throw line. However, McNeeley thrived on the foul line, making all seven attempts.
The Richardson, Texas native notched up five rebounds and one assist in 27 minutes of action for the Huskies, who broke their three-game losing skid to improve to 5-3. In UConn's previous game against Dayton, McNeeley failed to score on nine shot attempts but had four rebounds, five assists and a steal.
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Playing without frontcourt mate Alex Karaban, McNeeley went to work immediately, scoring nine points on two layups, a 3-pointer and two free throws. He also recorded three rebounds and his lone assist of the game to Hassan Diarra in the early goings of the first half.
McNeeley's struggles from long distance continued in the first 20 minutes of the game, missing five 3-point attempts. But that didn't matter as UConn was up 40-18
The freshman breached double figures on an and-one play that gave UConn a 56-20 advantage with 15:28 left. He closed out his night making four more free throws that further increased the Huskies' lead to 51, with four minutes remaining.
Huskies vs Hawks Game Recap: Liam McNeeley, Jaylin Stewart shine as UConn drubs Maryland Eastern Shore
Liam McNeeley and Jaylin Stewart scored 16 points each to fill the void left by starting power forward Alex Karaban. UConn vented its ire on Maryland Eastern Shore and won by 54 points on Saturday.
McNeeley and Stewart delivered for Dan Hurley, making 8-of-19 from the field and 14-of-15 on the free-throw line. The duo grabbed 12 rebounds and dished off four assists, as the No. 2 Huskies finally recorded a win back home in Hartford, Connecticut after losing three straight in Hawaii.
Before the game, the sophomore Stewart averaged 4.7 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists.
Four other UConn players scored double figures with Solo Ball adding 12 while Aidan Mahaney contributed 11. Tarris Reed Jr came up with 10 points and 12 rebounds for the Huskies while Jayden Ross finished with 10 markers and 10 boards.
UConn dominated all departments, shooting 54.2% from the field, including 37.0% from deep, and made 25 of 27 free-throw attempts. They also dominated rebounding (48-23), assists (23-4) and steals (9-4) by a wide margin and had a 17-4 edge in fastbreak points.
The Huskies' next game is at home against No. 17 Baylor on Wednesday in the Big East-Big 12 Battle at the Gampel Pavilion in Storrs.
What do you think about Liam McNeeley's game against Maryland Eastern Shore? Let us know your views in the comments section below.
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