HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Tristen Newton had 22 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds to lead No. 25 UConn past Buffalo 84-64 on Tuesday night.
Joey Calcaterra came off the bench to score 15 points and Nahiem Alleyne added 12 for the Huskies (3-0).
Armoni Foster led the Bulls (1-2) with 11 points.
The Huskies were missing two injured starters (Jordan Hawkins and Andre Jackson), and preseason Big East Player of the Year Adama Sanogo got into foul trouble, but the newly acquired veterans in its backcourt brought UConn to life.
Newton was an offseason transfer from East Carolina, Calcaterra came by way of San Diego and Alleyne from Virginia Tech.
Sanogo, who averaged 23 points in UConn's first two games, scored a season-low 11 points. He picked up his third foul less than a minute into the second half with UConn leading 44-28. When he returned, the Huskies’ lead had grown to 63-39.
The Huskies struggled at the onset, hitting only 4 of 22 from the field, including a stretch of 11 straight misses.
Isaiah Adams gave Buffalo its final lead at 14-13 with 8:55 left in the first half.
Newton and Calcaterra reinvigorated the Huskies. Newton scored 12 of his 15 first-half points and Calcaterra adding 10 during a 31-14 closing run that pushed UConn in front 44-28 at the half.
BIG PICTURE
After winning two straight, Buffalo has fallen to .500 as it grinds through one of the toughest nonconference schedules in the Mid-American Conference.
UConn opened the week by cracking the AP Top 25 and showed it belongs there with a dominant victory.
UP NEXT
Buffalo: Hosts Drake on Friday before leaving for two games at the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
UConn: Continues its five-game homestand to open the season with UNC-Wilmington on Friday at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs.
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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25
