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HARTFORD, Conn. – Junior transfer Danny Upchurch (Bridgeport, Conn./Notre Dame Catholic) finished his first game in a Blue and Gold uniform with 33 points and five assists, leading the University of New Haven men's basketball team in its only exhibition of the season, an 83-68 loss to No. 16 UConn on Sunday afternoon at the XL Center in Hartford.

Upchurch's 33 points represented the only Charger in double figures, while six other players joined him in the scoring column. Among the leaders with Upchurch was junior transfer Mihailo Vasic (Novi Sad, Serbia) and freshman Kessly Felizor (Hightstown, N.J./Hightstown) who finished with nine and eight points respectively. Roy Kane, Jr. (Norwalk, Conn./Norwalk) finished with seven points in his debut for the Chargers, while Michael Bourke (South Orange, N.J./The Hun School of Princeton) rounded out the leaders with six points.

As a team, New Haven finished the game shooting 40.4 percent from the field, making 23 of their 57 field goal attempts. Included were 10 three pointers, seven of which came in the first half as the Chargers trailed by one at the break, 36-35.

Upchurch's five assists led New Haven who finished with 12 total among their 23 field goals, while the Chargers dropped the battle of the boards by a 39-28 margin. Leading New Haven on the glass was freshman Darius Roundtree (Plainfield, N.J./The Patrick School) with six and Vasic and Najee Larcher (Brooklyn, N.Y./Xaverian) who each pulled down four boards.  

FIRST HALF NOTES

·         Facing its largest deficit of the half, 10-3, the New Haven long ball quickly pulled the Chargers back within one with back-to-back three pointers from Upchurch and Kane.

·         Overall, the Chargers first five baskets all came from beyond the arc, including a pair from Upchurch that each provided a one-point advantage at 15-14 and 18-17.

·         The Chargers largest lead of the half came with just over six minutes remaining. After a layup from Kane provided a 23-22 margin for the Blue and Gold, Bourke drained his first three pointer of the game with 6:06 remaining in the half which netted New Haven a 26-24 lead.

·         A field goal with 10 seconds remaining from Upchurch would provide the final margin at the break as his layup provided a one-point deficit, 36-35, heading into the locker room.

·         Leading the Chargers in the opening stanza was Upchurch who finished with 13 points, a high among all players in the game. As a team New Haven shot 36.7 percent (11-of-30) in the opening half, including making 7-of-19 attempts from beyond the arc.

·         The Chargers also capitalized on UConn's four first half turnovers, turning those miscues into 10 points, while giving up just three points on four turnovers.

SECOND HALF HIGHLIGHTS

·         The teams traded baskets for the first four minutes of the half before a reverse layup from Upchurch knotted the game at 43, the fifth tie of the afternoon. He would hit again 40 seconds later, as the shot clock expired, on a fade away to pull within one, 46-45.

·         UConn began to pull away using a 10-0 run, holding the Chargers without a basket for just over three minutes before Upchurch broke that momentum with a layup.

·         Facing its largest deficit of the day, 72-51, the Chargers mounted their own rally, a 10-0 run that included seven straight points from Upchurch. Defensively, the Blue and Gold held UConn without a field goal for over four minutes during that stretch.

·         A three pointer from Upchurch and a pair of free throws from Vasic pulled New Haven back within 10, while the Chargers had back-to-back opportunities, three point attempts from Bourke, to get the deficit back into single digits within the final two minutes of the game.

·         Overall, the New Haven defense held UConn to just three field goals in the final seven minutes of the game.

·         Upchurch again led New Haven in the second half as he finished the final 20 minutes with 20 points, shooting 7-of-11 in the second half alone.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

·         The 33 points for Upchurch is a career-high for the transfer from Charleston Southern. It is also the most points for a Charger since Feb. 24, 2015 when Eric Anderson netted 35 against Adelphi.

·         The 10 three pointers is a good sign for New Haven who finished the 2015-16 season with a program-best 225 made three point field goals.

·         New Haven suffered just 11 turnovers, an impressive feat against a larger, quicker Division I UConn team. That number stands out as last season the Chargers finished the year sixth in the nation in fewest turnovers.

TWEETABLES (140 characters or less)

·         JR Danny Upchurch (Bridgeport, Conn./Notre Dame Catholic) scored a game-high 33 points to lead @GoChargersMBB in their only exhibition before opening up a 27-game slate in 2016-17.

·         @GoChargersMBB finished with 10 3-pt field goals in their first appearance of the year, after coming off a program best 225 last season.

NEXT ON TAP
The Chargers will open their 27-game 2016-17 schedule with a pair of games at the Saint Thomas Aquinas Tournament against Mercy and the host Spartans. The season opener against Mercy is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 11 at 7:00 p.m. at STAC's Aquinas Hall. The Chargers will then face the Spartans on Saturday with an approximate opening tip of 7:30 p.m.