Hassan Diarra Stats Tonight: How did UConn star fare vs Colorado (Nov 26)

Senior guard Hassan Diarra showcased his versatility for No. 2 UConn, but the Huskies suffered their second consecutive loss at the Maui Invitational, falling 73-72 to Colorado on Tuesday.

Coach Dan Hurley opted to shake up the lineup, benching starting point guard Aidan Mahaney for the first time this season in favor of Diarra. The 6-foot-2 guard made the most of his opportunity, contributing 11 points, six assists, two rebounds, a steal and a block in 21 minutes. Despite three fouls and two turnovers, Diarra performed well in his first start of the year.

Hasan Diarra got off to a strong start, assisting on two early baskets that gave UConn a 5-0 lead and hitting a 3-pointer within the first two minutes. However, he went quiet for the rest of the first half. In the second half, he added six points by the 17:36 mark and made a layup with 13:35 remaining but struggled offensively in the closing minutes.

Colorado mounted an 11-0 run and shot an impressive 62.5% in the second half, overtaking UConn’s early advantage. The Buffaloes grabbed their first lead with just over 14 minutes left and ultimately sealed the victory when Andrej Jakimovski scored a pivotal layup in the final moments.

Known as a tough defender, Hassan Diarra faced challenges as a creator. He had three opportunities to secure the win for UConn but came up short. Diarra missed a layup late in the game, though teammate Jaylin Stewart’s offensive rebound temporarily put UConn ahead 72-69.

With 47 seconds remaining, Diarra’s jumper was blocked by Javon Ruffin, and his last-second 3-point attempt missed the mark, allowing Colorado to clinch the upset.

UConn Faces Early Season Struggles

UConn is grappling with unexpected challenges early this season. The Huskies arrived at the Maui Invitational riding a 17-game winning streak dating back to February. However, according to ESPN Stats & Information, UConn became just the fifth top-two team in AP poll history to lose to unranked opponents on consecutive days.

Dan Hurley candidly assessed his team’s performance, calling their defense “dreadful” during their games in Hawaii.

“Obviously, we didn’t expect to find ourselves in this position out here based on where we’ve been, but this is where we are,” Hurley said. “Just defensively, the second half (was) really, really bad. We’ve been bad out here defensively.”

Colorado, which had been held to season lows in points (56) and field goal percentage (37%) in a 16-point loss to Michigan State the previous day, bounced back to shoot 51.1% against UConn. The Buffaloes also lit up the Huskies from beyond the arc, shooting 9-for-16 from 3-point range—following Memphis’ 12-for-22 3-point performance the day before.

Statistically, UConn had the edge in assists (17-12) and points off turnovers (15-11), but Colorado outrebounded the Huskies 28-26 and dominated in transition, scoring 12 fast break points compared to UConn’s five.

Ranked No. 2 entering the week, the Huskies can now finish no better than seventh in the tournament. They will face the Dayton Flyers in the seventh-place game, while Colorado advances to play Iowa State, an 89-84 winner over Dayton, in the fifth-place game on Wednesday.