HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) – Hasheem Thabeet had 16 points and 12 rebounds and No. 2 Connecticut routed Bryant 88-58, giving coach Jim Calhoun his 780th career win.

The victory moves Calhoun into a tie with Lou Henson and Lute Olson for eighth place on the all-time list.

Thabeet led five Huskies in double figures. Craig Austrie scored 15, A.J. Price and Jeff Adrien each had 14, and Jerome Dyson added 11 for UConn (6-0).

Cecil Gresham, who is from the Hartford suburb of Bloomfield, had 19 points, including 15 in the first half, to lead Bryant (1-3), which is playing its first year in Division I.

He was 6 of 9 from 3-point range.

Connecticut was coming off winning the Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands with back-to-back victories over No. 23 Miami and No. 35 Wisconsin.

But the Huskies came out sluggish against Bryant, which led 15-14 eight minutes in. Austrie responded with a pair of short jumpers and UConn never trailed again.

The Huskies closed the half on a 23-8 run and led 45-28 at intermission. They stretched that out after the half, and led 68-41 when Price hit a 3-pointer from the left wing with 12:50 left.

It was the third time this season the 7-foot-3 Thabeet has had double figures in points and rebounds, and Bryant could not match his size inside. UConn outrebounded the Bulldogs 48-27 and had 24 second-chance points, to just four for Bryant.

Connecticut is now 184-21 in the months of November and December against nonconference opposition under Calhoun.

This was the fifth consecutive year the Huskies and Bulldogs have met, but each of the other four were exhibition games. UConn won all of those, including a 100-65 victory last season.