UConn played very hard in its American Athletic Conference opener.

The Huskies just didn’t play very well on the offensive end.

And they played long stretches without senior Ryan Boatright, who played a season-low 17 minutes after catching a knee in the left thigh late in the first half. He sat out with a deep bruise and finished with a season-low two points.

Temple (10-4) took advantage, pinning a 57-53 overtime loss on UConn (6-5).

Here’s a post-game breakdown:

-- Boatright is easily the toughest player on the team. So you knew he had to be hurting to sit out the second half and overtime.

He attempted to play in the second half but limped to the sidelines after the opening possession.

“He just couldn’t do it,” coach Kevin Ollie said. “And if he bows out, I know it’s really, really hurting. I’ve never seen that kid bow out of anything. … We had some other guys try to step up and fill in the void for him. Of course, you can’t do that, but I thought the guys really played with some effort.”

Boatright will likely miss Thursday’s practice. He’s considered day-to-day.

The Huskies desperately need him back for Saturday’s game at Florida.

-- Talented freshman Daniel Hamilton is a lot of fun to watch play. He’s also a bit frustrating to watch, because he commits his share of young mistakes.

He had some good (10 points, 12 rebounds, five assists) and some bad (six turnovers, 2-for-5 from the foul line) moments against the Owls. With a chance to win the game, he missed three foul shots with 2.8 seconds left in overtime and UConn trailing by two.

His teammates rallied around him after the game.

“He just has to stay positive,” Rodney Purvis said. “He’s going to get those same shots, those same free throws, and he’s going to make those next time. … He’s kind of down on himself because he’s a really passionate kid who loves the game a lot.”

 -- Sophomore Terrence Samuel was a role player during the national championship season. His role has expanded this season.

When Boatright went out, Samuel filled in, playing a career-high 34 minutes. He finished with five points, four rebounds, but had more turnovers (4) than assists (one).

 -- With Boatright out, Ollie stuck mainly with Samuel, Purvis, Hamilton, Kentan Facey and Amida Brimah.

Only Brimah was a full-time starter last season.

 -- A junior college transfer, Sam Cassell Jr., has yet to locate his jumper.

Cassell Jr. missed his only three field goal attempts and went scoreless.

In the last five games, he’s 1-for-14 from the field and has only five points. He came into the game shooting 28.8 percent from the field.

 -- Junior Omar Calhoun’s hard luck season continues.

He suffered a cut above his left eye late in the second half and had blood running down the side of his face, forcing him to leave the game.

Up until then, he had played well, contributing seven points, three rebounds and two assists in 18 minutes off the bench.

He eventually returned, wearing a bandage and a different uniform (#55), but made only a brief appearance.

“He couldn’t really see out of his (eye) and it was kind of closing, so I took him out of the game,” Ollie said. “I really liked how he was playing.”

-- Temple scored 19 points off of UConn’s 16 turnovers. The Owls hit seven 3-pointers compared to just one for UConn.

 -- UConn needs Purvis, who had seven points on 3-for-11 shooting, to become a reliable offensive weapon. The Huskies are 3-0 this season when the North Carolina State transfer scores in double figures.

 -- The Huskies fell to 4-3 at home. All three losses are by four points or less.

They went 15-3 at home last season.

 -- While the offense is wildly inconsistent, UConn’s defense remains steady. For the second straight game, the Huskies held an opponent under 32 percent from the field.

The Owls finished at 31.6 percent.

“It’s just a grind-it-out kind of game,” Temple coach Fran Dunphy said. “Those will happen periodically and particularly in the first (conference) game.”

 -- They shot a season-low 42.1 percent (8-for-19) from the foul line. They entered the game shooting 73.8 percent.

“We have to get back in the gym and focus on the free throw line,” Purvis said.

 -- It was Temple’s first win over UConn since 1964. The Huskies had won four straight in the series.

  “Hopefully, we’ll learn from this and get better,” Ollie said.

 -- Sophomore Amida Brimah: “We just have to stay positive and stay together. If we play together we’re going to be a great team.”

 -- Up next: UConn has a two-game road trip, visiting Florida Saturday and South Florida on Tuesday.