Tarris Reed Jr. turned in one of the great March Madness performances in the modern history of the tournament, erupting for 31 points and 27 rebounds to lead the two-seed UConn men’s basketball team (30-5) to an 82-71 win over No. 15 Furman (22-13) late on Friday night in the First Round of the 2026 East Regional at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
Reed Jr. became the first player in 58 years to record a 30p-25r line in an NCAA Tournament and one of three men (Elvin Hayes and Jerry Lucas the others) to ever post such a line in the Big Dance.
The huge performance from the big man helped the Huskies overcome a cold shooting day from the outside and hold a hot-shooting Paladin squad at bay.
UConn led by only four at the break, before Alex Karaban scored15 of his 22 points in the second half to support Reed Jr. and help sustain the lead. Reed Jr. out-rebounded Furman by his lonesome as he posted career-highs in scoring and on the glass, shattering his previous high marks of 24 and 18. He was 12-of-15 from the field and 7-of-9 from the line, adding three assists for good measure.
Braylon Mullins was the third Husky in double-figures with 12 points, adding a career-high six assists and three clutch steals. Solo Ball finished with nine points and five rebounds, while Malachi Smith dished out seven assists in his first start of the season. For Furman, Tom House and Alex Wilkins both scored 21 points and combined to hit eight 3-pointers.
The Huskies opened the aggressor, putting home the game’s first three baskets in a game-starting 9-2 run. A trio of 3-pointers from Wilkins, who scored 11 of Furman’s first 13 points, pulled the Paladins within one ahead of a timeout at 12:00 with the score 16-15. At 10:05 Furman briefly took its first lead, before a run of four-straight buckets from Reed Jr. gave the Huskies a 26-19 edge with 8:11 on the first half timer.
The Paladins used the three-ball to keep it tight in the first, and one from Tom House cut the lead to 33-31 at 3:19 to play. The Huskies answered that with a 9-2 mini-run keyed by Reed Jr. and Mullins, before Furman’s sixth triple of the opening stanza cut the lead to four with UConn taking a 40-36 advantage to the half. The lead came despite a dismal 1-of-14 start from three thanks to Reed Jr.’s monstrous 19-point, 16-rebound first half double-double.
A strong start to the second half included much-needed 3-pointer makes from Ball and Karaban, with the latter scoring seven points during a 10-4 burst to start the frame that prompted a Furman timeout at 17:24 with the Huskies ahead 50-40. At 13:35 another Karaban triple pushed the lead back to 51-42 after Furman closed within six.
The Paladins kept coming with the three ball to keep the Huskies from pulling away, and another from Wilkins at 6:41 cut the lead to 69-64. A Mullins steal and a runaway slam from Reed Jr. at 5:02 got the lead back to seven at 72-65. Mullins came away with another swipe on the ensuing possession and minutes later, Karaban delivered a dagger 3-pointer at 2:06 to push the lead to 11 and put the game on ice. UConn did not let Furman within single-digits the rest of the way.
The Huskies will take on 7-seed UCLA in a battle of two of the bluest bloods in the sport in the Second Round on Sunday, with tip - from South Philadelphia set for approximately 8:45 p.m.
