The No. 5 UConn Huskies will be taking on a very good team on Saturday as they faceoff against the Villanova Wildcats, who continue to be dark horse contenders. However, Dan Hurley’s squad has been plagued by injuries as of late, including to Alex Karaban and Braylon Mullins.
Ahead of the game, a lot of questions about their availability have been raised, but Hurley himself has spoken to ESPN’s Pete Thamel and provided some updates.
Thamel reported that the two injured Huskies stars will be suiting up on Saturday against Villanova.
In addition, during “College Game Day,” Thamel also reported that Dan Hurley had told him that Alex Karaban had been moving “better than a cargo ship.” Karaban had been dealing with an undisclosed injury, while Mullins had suffered a knee injury.
Despite scoring 25 points in that loss to Creighton, Braylon Mullins was seen with a brace on his knee. Karaban also seemed to be hurt as he struggled against the Blue Jays in that 91-84 loss, tallying only two points, four rebounds, two assists, and a turnover. It was mostly Mullins and big man Taris Reed Jr. who carried the day for the Huskies as they slid to No. 5 in the rankings after that loss.
Dan Hurley Regretted Playing Alex Karaban vs. Creighton
The UConn Huskies were considered one of the best teams in college basketball, but losses to teams like Creighton and BYU raised questions about how good they really are. With his star forward not playing like usual, Dan Hurley noted that he should not have played Alex Karaban.
“Maybe I shouldn’t have played Alex today,” he said. “You know he said he was fine and he’s dealing with something physically. He was not moving well out there on the court.”
Even though Karaban will be playing, Hurley admitted that they struggled in defending the perimeter, adding that he is thinking about adding reserve Jayden Ross. This means that he may pull out one of his usual starters from the starting 5 on Saturday.
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