UConn basketball defeated Bryant in a wire-to-wire win in Hartford.
It was a crisp November night in Hartford and UConn basketball and Bryant played that way as both teams started out ice-cold. With around 10 minutes gone in the first half, the score was just 15 to 5 with UConn basketball holding the lead.
The shots started to fall for both teams as Solo Ball (eight points), Jaylin Stewart (seven points), and Jayden Ross (six points) were first half standouts for UConn basketball. On the Bryant side, Ty Tabales was impressive, scoring 10 of Bryant’s 21 first half points in order to keep his team afloat.
In the second half, Freshman Eric Reibe stole the show, scoring 12 points and grabbing 5 rebounds. Reibe has continued to look more comfortable as he fills in for Tarris Reed Jr., who missed his second straight game with an ankle injury.
Silas Demary Jr. checked out towards the end of the game with an extra loud applause. The reason… he finished with his first career triple-double, something he was close to doing several other times this season.
It wasn’t the best-played game from UConn basketball, but they proved why they are in the upper echelon of college basketball and came away with a wire-to-wire 72 to 49 victory over Bryant.
Back in the win column ✅ pic.twitter.com/iYIlnNuxBh
— UConn Men’s Basketball (@UConnMBB) November 24, 2025
Eric Reibe continues to gain valuable experience for UConn basketball
Freshman Eric Reibe continues to impress as he has been thrust into an unexpected starting role. He has been the leading scorer for UConn basketball in each of his two starts. What is so exciting is how skilled he appears on the offensive side of the ball.
When the ball is fed to him in the post, it is almost always leading to a great shot attempt, or other teams are too overwhelmed by his height and end up fouling him. He shot 4-4 from the free throw line, highlighting how he will be able to continue to punish teams that send him to the line.
Dan Hurley was very complimentary about Reibe’s future in college basketball postgame.
“He’s going to be one of the best offensive weapons from the center position,” said Hurley.
One interesting thought will be to see how the minutes are dispersed once starting center Tarris Reed Jr. returns from injury. Reed Jr. is one of the very best centers in the country in his own right and is more of a force on the defensive side of the ball than Reibe is currently.
It may be worthwhile to see how both players play together on the floor at the same time in the future. The two players seem like they would complement each other well, and with Reibe’s ability to shoot from the perimeter, the floor spacing would not be as awkward as other double big lineups have been in the past.
This one-two punch, along with Alex Karaban in the three spot, has the potential to be one of the most intimidating front-courts in all of college basketball. And it would be an excellent counter to what Arizona did to UConn last game in order to prevent teams in the future from having too many offensive rebounds and second-chance points.
A look ahead for UConn basketball
UConn basketball has a short Thanksgiving break and will be right back on Black Friday to play Illinois in Madison Square Garden in what will be yet another Top 25 showdown for UConn.
Both teams already have a signature win under their belts, with UConn taking down BYU and Illinois defeating Texas Tech. That doesn’t mean either team will be complacent as both will be looking for another high-quality win that will go a long way towards NCAA Tournament seeding.
Illinois has four players who average over 16 points a game and will provide a great test for UConn basketball on the defensive end, an area that the team has been reiterating is their key to the season.
Next for UConn basketball: vs. Illinois (Fri., Nov. 28 at 12:30 p.m. EST)
Next for Bryant: vs. Mercy (Sat., Nov. 26 at 2:00 p.m. EST)