Storrs — Senior Jalen Adams has never seen anything like it.

As the UConn guard checked on teammate Josh Carlton, who dove into the stands behind the basket chasing after a loose ball during Thursday's regular-season-opening victory, first-year coach Dan Hurley sprinted to the scene from the bench.

To say the least, Hurley was fired up about Carlton's hustle play.

"That was crazy," Adams said. "I actually have never seen a coach do that. Just to see him to do stuff like that just shows how much he's in tune to the game and how much he cares about us as players and just about the game.

"That's the right thing to do. We want the fans and people on the outside to see how connected we are. That just shows that when you see the head coach getting dirty running out to the stands to help a guy up. I was hyped when I saw that. I even got a couple of smacks on the head."

The sold-out Gampel Pavilion crowd roared its approval for Hurley. UConn made a positive first impression in Hurley's debut in an 80-70 win over Morehead State.

"That's a message for the whole team," Hurley said of rushing over to pat Carlton on the back. "We want our team to get excited more about that type of effort and even made buckets."

It was a bumpy ride at times for the Huskies but a fun one to watch. They never trailed and led by as many as 14 against Morehead State (1-1) and had trouble putting away a team that won just eight games last season.

"Obviously, thrilled to get the first one of the season under our belts here," Hurley said. "We just lacked a little bit of killer (instinct). You can't go from not good to a team with a killer instinct. But there were pockets in that game where we had a chance to extend it. We were playing with fire.

"... Overall, first night, we got some jitters out and I'm happy with the performance."

There were several promising signs.

Carlton, an improving center, was a reliable inside presence, scoring a career-high 17 points and adding a team-high tying eight rebounds. The Huskies need the young big man to play at a high level to be successful this season, Hurley said.

Carlton fed off energy from Hurley and his teammates.

"There's excitement around the whole program," Carlton said. "We have a fresh start and everybody has a new slate to work with. ... One thing you can guarantee every night, we're going to be the hardest working team on the floor."

UConn's backcourt depth was on full display.

Redshirt sophomore Alterique Gilbert, graduate transfer Tarin Smith and freshman reserve Brendan Adams kept the Huskies ahead when Jalen Adams (16 points in 22 minutes) spent stretches on the bench in foul trouble.

Gilbert's comeback from shoulder surgery continued as he chipped in 15 points and Smith contributed 12 points off the bench.

The game remained fairly tight until midway through the second half.

Holding a 56-49 edge, the Huskies kicked into warp drive and increased their defensive intensity. Smith buried a 3-pointer from the corner and then converted a fast-break layup to spark a 7-0 spurt.

When UConn forced a turnover to get the ball back, Hurley turned to the crowd and frantically waved his arms.

Jalen Adams added two free throws to give the Huskies their largest lead at 63-49 with 9:21 left. They buckled down on defense to close out the game. They finished shooting 48.4 percent while limiting the Eagles to 40.3.

UConn will be back in action Sunday afternoon, hosting Missouri-Kansas City.

g.keefe@theday.com