Freshman Daniel Hamilton is a rising star.

  The latest evidence came in UConn's 75-72 loss at Memphis on Thursday night.

  Hamilton nearly rallied the Huskies from a double-digit deficit. UConn closed to within three points, but Hamilton misfired on a game-tying 3-point attempt at the buzzer.

  He finished with a career-high 25 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists and three steals. It was his fifth double-double.

  Sophomore Amida Brimah had 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Huskies.

  Senior Ryan Boatright crumbled under constant defensive pressure, scoring just seven points on 2-for-6 shooting. He came into the game averaging a league-best 18 points per game. He also received a technical foul.

  Poor shooting and a sluggish start contributed to UConn's demise. The Huskies converted 41.3 percent from the field and 26.3 percent (5-for-19) from 3-point range. They fell behind 39-33 at the break.

  Kedren Johnson had career-high 21 points for the Tigers (16-10, 8-5). Austin Nichols, who had missed the previous two games with a sprained ankle, added 16 points and eight rebounds.

  With the loss, the Huskies (14-11, 7-6) slipped to sixth place in the conference with five regular season games to go. The top five teams will receive first round byes in the AAC tournament next month in Hartford.

  They've dropped six of their last seven road games.

  They return to action Sunday, hosting Tulane at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs. Other remaining games: at East Carolina Wednesday, SMU March 1 in Hartford, Memphis March 5 in Storrs, and at Temple March 7 in Philadelphia.