Outside shooting freezes out Michigan basketball in UConn rematch

BOSTON −The game didn’t matter nearly as much as the last time the two teams met, but the atmosphere was rocking for a November basketball game.

Michigan basketball and UConn gave a capacity TD Garden crowd their money’s worth in a national championship game rematch seven months to the day. This time, however, the Huskies prevailed in an 85-77 victory, fueled by an 18-4 run covering the end of the first half and the first four minutes of the second half.

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U-M’s offense was stagnant much of the evening, shooting just 26-for-63 (41.3%) from the floor and 7-for-28 (25%) from 3. U-M made one shot outside the paint in the first half and didn’t get its second until Quinn Costello hit a corner 3 with 15:39 left.

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That, however, only cut the deficit to 54-39 – a hole by then far too large to climb out of.

The game flipped late in the first half when UConn, up 32-27, was called for a loose ball foul and its bench was assessed a technical foul for letting the refs hear its displeasure.

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Trey McKenney missed both free throws for the tech, bringing the fervent UConn crowd to its feet, and J.P. Estrella missed his first before finally giving the Wolverines one make in four tries. U-M and UConn exchanged baskets before the Huskies ripped off a 9-0 run in 2:12 to close the half up by 13. In the second half, they led by nine or more until the final 18 seconds, when U-M cut it to eight.

UConn Huskies forward Jayden Ross (23) shoots the ball against Michigan Wolverines guard Roddy Gayle Jr. (11) during the first half at TD Garden in Boston on Friday, Nov. 6, 2026.

McKenney, who missed his first eight shots, including all seven in the first half, got hot in the second and finished with a team-high 22 points as U-M cut its 18-point deficit in half. But with Elliot Cadeau and Moustapha Thiam on the bench much of the second half with four fouls apiece, there wasn’t enough…

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Publish date : 2026-11-07 03:54:00

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