March 13, 2026; New York, New York, USA; UConn Huskies guard Braylon Mullins (24) shoots at Georgetown Hoyas guard Kayvaun Mulready (45) during the first half at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-Imagn Image NEW YORK — Braylon Mullins scored 15 of his 21 points in the first half as second-seeded UConn never trailed and held off 11th-seeded Georgetown during a 67-51 win in the Big East semifinals Friday night.
The sixth-seeded Huskies (29-4) advanced to the title game, where they faced top-seeded St. Louis after the Red Storm won 78-68 over fourth-seeded Seton Hall in the first semifinal. It will be against St. John’s. UConn is seeking its ninth Big East tournament title and second in three seasons.
The Hoyas (16-18) saw their magic run out after advancing to the semifinals. Georgetown missed its chance to win its first title since a surprise run as an eighth seed in 2021.
Mullins recorded his third 20-point game of his freshman season and finished three points short of his career high on February 18 against Creighton. On a night when the Huskies attempted just four free throws, the guard made 8 of 17 and had three foul shots.
Silas DeMary Jr. added 10 points, nine rebounds and four assists. DeMary was UConn’s leading rebounder and helped the Huskies build a 34-25 advantage on the glass.
Mullins’ big performance offset quiet nights from Solo Ball, Alex Karaban and Tarris Reed Jr. Ball and Karaban each finished with seven points and Reed had six points and seven rebounds after recording a double-double in Thursday’s 25-point rout of Xavier.
The Huskies shot 47.5 percent and made 8 of 25 3-pointers after a pair of close wins over the Hoyas during the regular season.
Vince Iwuchukwu led Georgetown with 11 points, but Julius Halaiforua was unable to follow up his first career double-double in Thursday’s 14-point win over Villanova. Halaiponua finished with 10 points after picking up his third foul early in the second half and failing to get a rebound while sitting out more than 11 minutes.
The Hoyas shot 38% and were 2 of 16 from 3-point range. Georgetown also went 9-for-18 on layups.
After scoring the first seven points of the game, the Huskies took a 24-14 lead with 6:48 left in the first half on a powerful dunk by Reed followed by a backdoor layup by Karaban. Mullins hit three jumpers and a reverse layup in the final 4:16 to score UConn’s final eight points, giving the Huskies a 32-21 lead at the half.
Mullins and DeMary hit 3s on back-to-back possessions for a 41-27 lead less than four minutes into the second. Caleb Williams’ 3 moved Georgetown within 48-40 with 8:54 left, and UConn never let the lead get any closer.
The Huskies got a 15-point lead when Mullins found Erik Reibe for a dunk to make it 57-44 with 5:28 left and Karaban’s basket with 3:02 left.
–Larry Fleisher, Field Level Media
