Tarris Reed Jr. delivered a sensational performance to save UConn from an upset in the NCAA tournament. Reed scored 31 points and grabbed 27 rebounds in UConn’s 82-71 victory over Furman.
Reed’s stat line was reminiscent of Bill Walton’s performance more than 50 years ago. According to ESPN Research, Reed and Walton are the only players in the past 60 years to have at least 30 points and 20 rebounds on 80% shooting in an NCAA tournament game. Walton had 33 points and 21 rebounds for UCLA in the 1972 national semi-finals against Louisville.
Reed’s Monster Performance
UConn (30-5) needed all of Reed’s production, along with 22 points from Alex Karaban, to secure the win and advance. They will now play UCLA in the second round of the East Region on Sunday.
UConn coach Dan Hurley praised Reed’s dominant performance. “That’s as dominant a performance as you’ve probably seen from a big guy in tournament history,” Hurley said. “This guy’s a total monster, and today he was a real grizzly bear.”
Reed became the first player with at least 30 points and 25 rebounds in an NCAA tournament game since Elvin Hayes did it twice in 1968. Hayes played when the field had only 23 teams.
Furman’s Fight
UConn were heavily favoured. However, Furman put up a strong fight for much of the game.
The Huskies missed 20 of 25 3-pointers. Alex Wilkins hit a 3 to cut UConn’s lead to 69-64, and the Paladins stayed within five with 5:49 left.
Furman coach Bob Richey said that if they could have scored at that moment, they could have made the game interesting.
Huskies Survive Late Scare
Led by Reed, the Huskies closed the game on a 12-4 run to secure the victory. Reed said he knew early he would dominate.
“I feel like just watching film, from the jump,” Reed said. “Knowing what the scout was, trusting in my teammates, trusting in the coaching staff, knowing that I was really going to be able to dominate down low and take advantage of the bigs they had and just take advantage of the paint.”
UConn played without Silas Demary Jr. and Jaylin Stewart due to injuries. Hurley hopes one if not both will play Sunday.