Adam Betz: With chips down, Sanogo rises to the occasion

Dec. 18—Following the UConn men's basketball team's win over Boston University Nov. 11, coach Dan Hurley said that if the 2022-23 Huskies wanted to "have the best version of a team that we've had since I've been here," the level of play needed from junior Adama Sanogo was simple.

"He's got to play like an All-American at both ends of the court," Hurley said on that November night at Gampel Pavilion.

The 6-foot-9 forward did just that on Saturday night.

Sanogo recorded his second double-double (27 points, 14 rebounds) of the season and the 12th of his career to lead No. 3 UConn to a 68-46 win over Butler at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.

His scoring matched his season high while his rebounds were one shy of his season best — both highs were achieved in the Boston University game.

"He's one of the best players in the country," Hurley told FS1's Nick Bahe following Saturday's game. "Sometimes he gets overshadowed because of the depth of weapons that we have."

Sanogo certainly wasn't overshadowed Saturday night. But it wasn't necessarily his stats that stuck out.

Instead, it was the big plays he made and the timing of them.

Sanogo finished the first half with numbers on par with what he's had throughout the season: 12 points and eight rebounds as the Huskies (12-0) built an eight-point lead at the break.

In the second half though, just his presence on the court helped UConn stave off a rally by Butler (8-4).

During a 3:22 stretch Sanogo spent on the bench midway through the second half, the Bulldogs trimmed the deficit from 10 to six, then to four 12 seconds after he returned to the court.

But the final 9:37 of the game belonged to Sanogo.

With his team holding a 43-39 lead on its ensuing possession, Sanogo hit a three-pointer — a skill he's worked on all season for a scenario just like this.

The bucket kickstarted a 25-7 run over the final 9:18 of the game, and perhaps more importantly, took the air out of the Hinkle Fieldhouse crowd.

"From that point, that game could've played out a lot differently," Hurley told Bahe. "But he did what All-Americans do."

Sanogo scored 13 points on the run, his final bucket being a thunderous dunk to make it a 19-point game with 3:40 to play and put the icing on the cake for the Huskies.

But Sanogo showcased much more than his ability to score during the final 9:37 Saturday.

He rebounded, including grabbing an offensive board and scoring the putback to make it 48-40.

It was one of seven offensive rebounds for Sanogo on the night, and one of 18 for the Huskies overall.

He passed, assisting on a Jordan Hawkins three-pointer to make it 51-42. And he played defense, stealing the ball before making a jump shot to make it 57-42.

"We just didn't complete the mission with getting the rebounds," Butler coach Thad Matta told reporters in Indianapolis Saturday. "They forced us into rotations some and we didn't close down as effectively as we needed to. They are big and they were coming from a lot of different areas. We were never able to capitalize on some rebounds, get out and run and get some easy baskets in that regard."

Sanogo's play was a big reason why.

The big man has certainly lived up to the Big East preseason Player of the Year recognition he received prior to the season.

He's now averaging 19.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.1 steals in 24.7 minutes per game while also posting a 62.0 shooting percentage and a 40.0 three-point percentage.

Saturday's performance wasn't a star-making one for Sanogo. He's already had plenty of those throughout his career in Storrs.

But it certainly bolstered the argument that Hurley and the rest of the Huskies have made time and again this season: that Sanogo is one of the best players in the country.

Hurley hasn't needed a "All-American" level of play much from Sanogo this season.

But when he needed it during crunch time on Saturday, he got it.

Adam Betz is a Journal Inquirer staff writer.

For coverage of UConn football and men's basketball as well as area high school and local youth sports, follow Adam Betz on Twitter: @AdBetz1, Facebook: Adam Betz — Sports Writer, and Instagram: @AdBetzJI.