Karaban accelerated his graduation at IMG Academy and enrolled at UConn in January 2022. He practiced with the team for the rest of the 2021–2022 season and redshirted the year. Karaban was a unanimous selection to the
Big East Conference's All-Freshman team at the end of his redshirt freshman season. He started the
2023 national championship game and scored five points with five rebounds and three blocked shots as the Huskies won 76–59. Karaban entered his sophomore year on the watchlist for the
Karl Malone Award. He scored a career-high 22 points in the Huskies' season-opener against
Northern Arizona as UConn won 95–52. Karaban averaged 13.3 points and 5.1 rebounds per game as UConn repeated as national champions. He initially declared for the
2024 NBA draft but ultimately decided to return for his redshirt junior season. Karaban was one of the people that UConn coach
Dan Hurley consulted when he was offered a head coaching job by the
Los Angeles Lakers in June 2024. During UConn's senior day on February 28, 2026, Karaban became the first men's player to have been inducted into the
Huskies of Honor, an awards program honoring especially impactful players, teams, coaches, and administrators in both men's and women's basketball, while still active at UConn. By that time, he had become the Huskies' winningest men's player. On March 29, 2026, Karaban passed the ball to
Braylon Mullins for Mullins' "miracle" three-point shot that carried UConn over
Duke in the
2026 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament quarterfinal, 73–72. ==Career statistics==