Nov. 16, 2012

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ST. THOMAS, U.S. Virgin Islands - No. 23-ranked Connecticut used a 12-0 run midway through the second half to erase a Wake Forest lead en route a 77-71 defeat of the Demon Deacons Friday evening at the UVI Sports and Fitness Center on the island of St. Thomas.

Wake Forest (1-1) had battled back from a 46-40 deficit with a 10-0 run that was capped by consecutive 3-pointers from Travis McKie and Arnaud William Adala Moto.

With the Deacons leading 52-49 after a pair of Tyler Cavanaugh free throws at the 10:14 mark, the Huskies (3-0) scored 12 straight points, 10 of which came from Shabazz Napier, to take a 61-52 lead with under eight minutes to play.

Wake Forest was able to cut the deficit to four, 73-69, on a 3-pointer from McKie with 58 seconds left, but UConn went 4-for-4 at the free throw line in the final minute to seal the win.

Freshman point guard Codi Miller-McIntyre turned in game-highs of 21 points and five assists to lead the Deacons. Miller-McIntyre went 3-for-6 from 3-point range.

McKie battled early foul trouble to finish with 16 points and eight rebounds. C.J. Harris went 7-for-9 from the floor for 17 points, while Devin Thomas had seven points, seven rebounds, three assists and a pair of blocks.

The Deacons were plagued by a cold shooting night at the foul line. One of the ACC's top free throw shooting teams the previous two seasons, Wake Forest went just 12-for-22 at the line for 54.5 percent against UConn.

The Huskies, on the other hand, did a majority of their damage at the line going 24-for-30 for 80 percent. Guards Ryan Boatright (10-of-13) and Napier (9-for-11) combined to go 19-for-24 at the line. Each scored 16 points to lead the Huskies.

UConn held the early advantage, using an 8-0 run to take a 13-6 lead eight minutes into the game. The Huskies pushed their lead to 16-8 at the 10:53 mark, but the Deacons fought back.

Wake Forest used a 9-2 run to pull within one, 18-17. Harris and Miller-McIntyre fueled the run by combining for all nine points during the stretch. Three straight buckets gave the Deacons a 25-22 advantage with 5:35 left in the half. Wake made 8-of-10 shots during the stretch that saw it re-take the lead.

With the Deacons leading 26-23, the Huskies ripped off a 7-0 run to reclaim the lead and go up 30-26. A tip-in from Cavanaugh just before the half sent the Deacons into the locker room trailing 36-32.

Miller-McIntyre and Harris led Wake Forest in the first half with 13 and nine points respectively. Miller-McIntyre went 6-for-9 from the floor in the period, while Harris was 4-for-5.

The Deacons return to action at the Paradise Jam on Saturday at 5 p.m. ET. Wake Forest will face the loser of tonight's Iona/Quinnipiac matchup. The game will be streamed for free online at ParadiseJam.com and can also be heard on the Wake Forest IMG College Radio Network.