November 5, 2025

No. 4 UConn Opens the Season With a Hard Lesson From New Haven

By Anthony Price 

University of New Haven players stand for the National Anthem. Photo: University of New Haven Athletics.

​On Monday night, No. 4 UConn beat the University of New Haven, 79-55, to the elation of over 10,000 fans at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs. 
 
Last season, Coach Dan Hurley and the Huskies lost to Florida, 77-75, in the second round of the NCAA tournament, ending a 13-game tournament streak—and resulting in a man-made river of tears in the locker room.

​On this night, the Huskies would protect their turf. While most fans went home happy, Hurley wasn’t satisfied. “That was excruciating,” Hurley said at the postgame press conference. “Games like that are tough. I mean, these games that we play are way more stressful than BYU or Kansas on the road.”
 
Hurley continued, “We played better in the two exhibitions against Boston College and Michigan State, who are significantly better than New Haven. “But credit them,” he said. 
 
His thoughts overflowed like two weeks of dirty laundry. “That game sucked to have to sit through,” Hurley admitted. “For the coaches, it was painful. It was miserable.” 
 
As the consummate motivator, Hurley’s words carried more than just frustration. “But I also love the team. I think the team will get a lot better from this. In a way, it will be a wake-up call.”

Games like that are tough. I mean, these games that we play are way more stressful than BYU or Kansas on the road.

​Different Directions 
 
New Haven made the Husky fans squirm in their seats as the Chargers attacked the rim with fearless energy. UConn responded by swatting and scrapping, but every time they did, New Haven came back swinging. 
 
It was a matchup between two programs at opposite ends of the NCAA hierarchy. The Huskies, a blue blood perched at the top, have won two national championships in the past three years and developed a pipeline to the NBA. 
 
New Haven, meanwhile, is fighting its way up, working toward DI status. This year, the Chargers will take on Penn State, Vanderbilt, Boston College, Seton Hall, and a few DIII teams. 
 
Their roster features 12 scholarship players and five non-scholarship players. To reach the top, New Haven must be creative in generating revenue—the lifeblood of any program. Monday’s matchup was a buy-in game, meaning that UConn paid New Haven for the appearance. That check will go right back into building the Chargers’ future. 

UConn versus the University of New Haven at Gampel Pavilion. Photo: Anthony Price

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The Game 
 
UConn was without two key starters: junior Tarris Reed Jr. and freshman Byron Mullins, both sidelined by injuries. Reed’s presence in the middle and Mullins’ shooting ability from deep behind the three-point line will make a noticeable difference when they’re healthy. 
 
The starting lineup featured Alex Karaban, Jaylin Stewart, Eric Reibe (freshman), Silas Demary Jr. and Solo Ball. Riebe, a 7-foot-2 freshman center from Germany, and point guard Demary Jr.,a transfer, both made their Huskies debuts. 

The usually potent UConn offense, which has been lauded by coaches nationwide over the past three years, struggled to find rhythm for most of the night. At halftime, the Huskies led only 37-24. 
 
UConn missed open looks at the basketball and shot 8 of 23 (34.8 %) from the 3-point range—numbers they’ll need to improve against top teams. Karaban led with 19 points and 10 rebounds, followed by Ball with 18 points, Stewart with 11, and Demary Jr. with 10. 

New Haven’s Unique Talent 
 
When Chargers sophomore Andre Pasha graduated from high school, he wasn’t ready for college. “My grades weren’t the best, so I decided to stay closer to home,” Pasha said calmly over the telephone. 
 
He enrolled at Mohawk Valley Community College, 54 miles west of his Syracuse home, and played for coach Harley Fuller, now an associate coach at Bryant University in Rhode Island.

I think that was like one of the best experiences ever, that year in JUCO.

Under Fuller, the team went 29-1, and won the NJCAA's Division III National Championship in late March. Pasha earned First Team All-American honors. “That wasn’t the expectation coming into [college],” he said. “I wasn’t thinking of a national championship. I think that was like one of the best experiences ever, that year in JUCO. It got me very prepared for physicality, I’d say.”

Making an Impression
 
UConn quickly learned who Pasha is—and who he isn’t.  He’s not the typical bruising center anchored in the post. “His center was driving the ball,” Hurley said, half in disbelief. “He was playing like a quarterback, like a point center.” 
 
Pasha, a 6-foot-9 forward, was a thorn in the Huskies’ paw, scoring 17 points on 8-for-16 shooting and grabbing six rebounds. He hit mid-range jumpers, finished tough shots over 7-foot-2 Reiber, and played with a confidence that belied his experience.
 
“There were some nerves at the start,” Pasha admitted, “but as soon as I got playing, I knew we could compete at a high level. We are going to compete with everybody.” 

New Haven's Andre Pasha dribbles. Photo: University of New Haven Athletics.

​The jump from community college to Division 1 is steep, but Pasha handled it with poise. “It’s a lot different playing against my guys in practice and then going out there against the No. 4 team,” he said. “We knew what we had in store, but I think we definitely competed.”
 
He wasn’t surprised by his success because it hadn’t come overnight. “I can say not in the slightest bit because, obviously, working every day, I’m in the gym twice a day [and] at night. Preparing for the shots I know I’m going to take, and the ones I know I can make.” 
 
Pasha made impossible shots look effortless—a mini version of Nikola Jokic. “I like playing against bigger players. That’s something I thrive in,” he said. “I prefer playing against a seven-footer than somebody who is 6-6.” 

Off the Court 
 
Pasha is from a basketball family. His brother, Marcus, plays basketball at a JUCO, and his sister, Erykah, played in high school. 
 
He understands that winning starts with mindset. “We had nothing to lose out there. It’s our first game,” he said of the matchup—a typical buy-in game that most top NCAA teams avoid scheduling. 
 
People call him Dre—and he sees future upsets. He has goals: “Obviously to shock a lot of people, knowing that we are a first-year DI [program]. I’d say just to make history, man.” 

I watch a lot of sports. I watch hockey, MLB, NFL, a lot of college basketball, and a lot of NBA. I’m really just a major ‘sports head.

On the phone, Pasha is relaxed and thoughtful. But before games, he transforms. His pregame playlist? Loud and heavy—Lil Baby. Rio Da Yung OG and G Herbo. “Stuff that gets me pumped up,” he said with a laugh. 
 
Future opponents might hope he changes his musical diet to something quieter—for their sake. 

Postgame Presser 
 
When asked about Pasha, New Haven coach Ted Hotaling smiled before saying, ”No, I don’t want to talk about Andre Pasha, not in this world of college basketball.” It was a joke, but a telling one. In today’s transfer-portal era, protecting emerging talent matters.
 
“Yes, Andre Pasha is excellent,” Hotaling eventually admitted. “Andre was recruited to be a Division II player at New Haven. The one unique thing about him is he has a [more] unique skillset than most bigs because he can dribble.” 

University of New Haven Coach Ted Hotaling at the postgame press conference. Photo: Anthony Price.

​Hotaling added, “And I don’t think his passing showed up as well tonight, just because UConn’s defense is so good, it’s hard to get back cuts.”
 
Defensive Reflections
 
UConn got beat on straight-line drives to the hoop. Hurley hopes his defensive woes are just early-season kinks the team needs to work out. He attributed UConn’s shortcomings on defense to the smaller bodies and spacing of the floor. 
 
“But sometimes, you know, the buy-games, the games are very different,” he said, as if thinking out loud. “When you play high-major teams, the court is just spaced differently. There are so many small perimeter players on the court.” 
 
It’s clear Hurley’s mind is already working on a future solution. He prefers the challenge of bigger, more physical matchups.  “When you’re playing Michigan State and different people that are high-majors, there are bigger bodies out there,” he said. “Not to make excuses, but that may have something to do with the brutal defense. Because we guarded Michigan State better than we guarded New Haven.” 

​Happy Learning on the Job 
 
New Haven has a tough road ahead. Monday was their introduction to the big stage—a moment not lost on the Chargers graduate student Maison Adeleye, who sat next to Hotaling. 
 
“I think a game like this is truly a blessing just to come out here and play against the Basketball Capital of the World,” said Adeleye, who transferred from DII UT Permian Basin. 

University of New Haven's Maison Adeleye at the postgame press conference. Photo: Anthony Price.

Now in his sixth year of college basketball, he has perspective. “Honestly, so, I feel like it can only just make us better—me as a player and of course as a team as well,” he said, his voice barely audible.  Najimi George scored 14, and Adeleye scored 13. The Chargers had only three assists on 23 made baskets—a reminder that to compete at the DI level, they’ll need more ball movement and shared offense. 
 
Hotaling knows the challenge. “It doesn’t get any easier,” he said, noting that New Haven will face Columbia on Friday and Penn State at home on Saturday. “But those are the games these guys want to play in,” he said. 
 
Hurley said, “It’s going to be fun, I think, to watch him (Hotaling) build that program into a team fighting for NCAA tournament bids.” Then, with a wry smile, he summed up his own team’s uneven night. “I think the team is going to be awesome this year,” Hurley said. “But tonight sucked.”
 
For both programs, opening night was a reminder of what November basketball is all about—learning, adjusting, and believing that the next game will be better.

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Anthony Price is an entrepreneur, author and publisher of CT Hoops Magazine. Jump Ball Journal is basketball beyond the score.