Jerome Dyson scored 18 points to lead five Connecticut players in double figures and the No. 2 Huskies beat Division II UMass Lowell 82-63 on Sunday.
Dyson, a junior who led UConn in scoring as a freshman, but missed nine games last season while on suspension, scored only one point in the Huskies' first preseason game. He was much more aggressive on both ends of the court from the start against UMass Lowell.
A.J Price and Jeff Adrien each had 13 points and Hasheem Thabeet and Kemba Walker added 11 apiece.
Kyle Caiola scored 17 points, including five three-pointers, and Victor Colon added 15 points to pace UMass Lowell.
UConn made its first seven shots on its way to an 18-9 lead before Dyson finally missed with 14:06 remaining in the first half. The lead grew to 29-12 as the Huskies turned up the defense and capitalized on steals and breakaways.
UMass Lowell was able to stay in the game connecting on 3-pointers. The River Hawks' first six baskets were from behind the arc before Craig Heatherly's layup closed the gap to 33-22 with 5:53 left in the first half. UConn led 46-33 at the break.
UConn led 50-41 early in the second half before Dyson led a 21-3 run to put the game away. The Huskies open their regular season at home Friday against Western Carolina.
