Adama Sanogo, UConn men’s basketball team snap two-game skid, power past Creighton — finally

STORRS — Adama Sanogo was named Big East preseason player of the year. Ryan Kalkbrenner was a little bit miffed about that.

In the big men’s first head-to-head battle of the season, Sanogo proved more than worthy of the honor. 

The 6-foot-9 Sanogo dominated on Saturday with 26 points, many of them on inside spin moves around and even over the 7-1 Kalkbrenner, to lead the UConn men’s basketball team to a 69-60 win over Creighton at sold-out Gampel Pavilion.

Sanogo added eight rebounds for No. 4 UConn (15-2, 4-2 Big East), which had lost two games in a row this season and five in a row to Creighton, dating back to the Huskies’ first season back in the Big East in 2020-21.

Of course, UConn has now won 17 straight games inside of Gampel, also dating back to that 2020-21 season.

Kalkbrenner, meanwhile, finished with a relatively harmless nine points in 32 foul-plagued minutes for Creighton, which fell to 9-7, 3-2.

Sanogo came alive when the Huskies needed him the most on Saturday. UConn led by 11 inside the first minute of the second half, but Creighton pulled off a 14-2 run, during which UConn missed its final six shots, to take a 43-42 lead — its first since midway through the first half.

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Dan Hurley called a timeout, and the Huskies found Sanogo inside to take back a lead they’d never relinquish. Sanogo followed with a spinning baseline move around Kalkbrenner, and with 11:14 left hit a 3-pointer from the wing.

After Creighton’s Arthur Kaluma hit a pair of free throws, Sanogo drew Kalkbrenner’s third foul and hit one of two free throws. Alex Karaban followed with a second-effort hoop, Donovan Clingan converted a conventional 3-point play, then hit one of two free throws to complete a head-spinning, 14-2 Husky run.

Jordan Hawkins added 17 points for the Huskies and Tristen Newton. Andre Jackson finished with seven points and nine rebounds.

At Big East Media Day in October, Kalkbrenner was asked about Sanogo.

“I see he’s on preseason All-American lists,” Kalkbrenner replied. “He’s above me in preseason honors. I see that. That just means I gotta show people they were wrong when we play.”

It was Sanogo who seemed like he had something to prove on Saturday.

Midway through the first half, Creighton led 19-16 after a Ryan Nembhard layup, then Sanogo went to work. He sandwiched a pair of nifty spin moves past Kalkbrenner around a fast-break layup off a steal and assist from Hassan Diarra for a personal 6-0 run.

Shortly thereafter, Kalkbrenner picked up his second foul on a moving screen and went to the bench for the rest of the half. UConn outscored the Bluejays 11-7 the rest of the way, capped by a Newton 3-pointer with 10 seconds left to give the Huskies a 37-29 halftime advantage.

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• A host of former UConn basketball (and baseball) players were at the game, including 2014 national champion Terrence Samuel and 1991 graduate Lyman DePriest, as well as former UConn closer Matt Barnes, now a bullpen arm for the Red Sox.

david.borges@hearstmediact.com @DaveBorges