UConn Wins, but Still Is Hurt

Jim Calhoun was wrong, at least this time.

The Connecticut coach, who a day earlier said it was only a matter of time before a No. 1 seed lost a first-round NCAA tournament game, didn’t have much to worry about on Thursday.

Led by All-American Ray Allen, who scored 12 of his 24 points during a 15-0 first-half run, the top-seeded Huskies beat 16th-seeded Colgate 68-59 in the opening round of the Southeast Regional.

The victory sent Connecticut (31-2) into Saturday’s second round at the RCA Dome against Eastern Michigan, which beat Duke 75-60.

Calhoun said the only thing that kept the game reasonably close was an injury to reserve guard Ricky Moore, who separated his shoulder late in the first half and is likely out for the rest of the tournament.

“That’s not an excuse, but that’s what happened,” Calhoun said. “We weren’t afraid of losing, but we just didn’t have the zip after that.

“We were not the same psychologically. Give Colgate credit. They played terrific. But clearly, there was an emotional impact with the loss of Ricky.”

Moore, who also separated his right shoulder earlier in the season, re-injured it after he landed on it with 4:50 left in the first half. He was taken to the locker room after lying on the floor in pain for several minutes.

A No. 16 seed has never won a tourney game, and except for a brief flurry at the end, the Red Raiders (15-15) never came close to ending that jinx.

“We didn’t pass as well as we did in the first half,” Allen said. “We kept ourselves from scoring.”

Allen said part of the problem may have been the Huskies’ concern for Moore.

“We always have somebody to step in and take his spot, but I was more worried about him as a person,” Allen said.

Colgate, which gained its second NCAA berth by winning the Patriot League tournament, never led. The only tie was 8-8 after a layup by Mike Roberts completed a 6-0 Colgate run four minutes into the game. But the Red Raiders’ only baskets over the next eight minutes were on two 3-pointers by Seth Schaeffer.

“We got off to a slow start. We were rattled and nervous,” Colgate coach Jack Bruen said. “We settled down more in the second half, trying to shut down Allen and (Doron) Sheffer, and we were able to get back in the game.”

The Huskies, who lost to eventual champion UCLA in the West Regional final last year, led only 16-14 after the second of Schaeffer’s six 3-pointers. But Allen, who averaged 23.3 points this season, had two 3-pointers and three 2-point baskets and Rashamel Jones added a steal, layup and free throw during the 15-0 streak that broke the game open.

Colgate, which lost to top-seeded Kansas in last year’s tournament, shot only 27 percent in the first half and fell behind by as many as 19 points after another steal and layup by Jones.

The Red Raiders closed within 14 on a 3-pointer by Roberts and a rebound basket by Russ Lynch before Doron Sheffer’s 3-pointer gave Connecticut a 43-26 lead at the half.

The biggest lead was 54-32 before Colgate’s comeback. A 3-pointer by Brendan Tuohey pulled the Red Raiders to 63-54 with 6:35 to go before two straight baskets and a free throw by Sheffer, who finished with 19 points. Another 3-pointer by Schaeffer with 25 seconds left was the final basket of the game.

Adonal Foyle, the Patriot League player of the year, led Colgate with 21 points, 14 rebounds and six blocked shots.

“You just want to go in and play as hard as you can,” Bruen said. “We got it to nine and then Sheffer got a 3-point drive and that basket really hurt us.”

“We held our own in the second half,” said Colgate’s Jimmy Maloney. “It was a great feeling to play a solid second half.”