Dyson scores 24 points and No. 14 Connecticut holds off Harvard 79-73

No. 14 Connecticut beats Harvard 79-73

STORRS, Conn. — Jerome Dyson scored 24 points and came within an assist of a triple-double as No. 14 Connecticut held off Harvard 79-73 on Sunday.

The 6-foot-4 Dyson, who has scored over 20 points in five of UConn’s seven games, grabbed 14 rebounds.

Kemba Walker had 20 points and Stanley Robinson added 18 points and 12 rebounds for the Huskies (6-1), who travel to New York to take on No. 5 Kentucky in the SEC/Big East Invitational on Wednesday.

Jeremy Lin had 30 points for Harvard (6-2). The Crimson came within four points in the last 10 seconds, after trailing by as many as 16 in the second half.

UConn, which led by seven points at halftime, built a 58-42 lead. But Lin, who hit 11 of his 18 shots, scored eight points in a 10-0 run that made it 58-52.

The Huskies extended the lead back to nine by hitting free throws, but a 3-pointer by Lin that banked off the glass made it 72-67 with just over 1 minute left.

Dyson hit five free throws on four trips to the line down the stretch, before two more baskets by Lin cut the lead to 77-73 with 7 seconds left.

Robinson made two free throws to seal the win.

Dyson hit seven of 11 shots in the first half, but made just one of 12 in the second.

Robinson had six points and four rebounds as UConn took a 12-8 lead. Harvard scored the next five points, to take their only lead of the game, 13-12.

UConn responded with a 21-4 run, sparked by two 3-pointers by Walker and the shooting of Dyson.

But Harvard put together a 10-1 run. Lin, held scoreless for much of the half, scored eight points in the final 4 minutes, and UConn led 41-34 at halftime.

UConn, which finished with a 39-38 rebound advantage, shot 32 percent from the field in the second half, and was outscored 39-38.