The UConn men are headed to the national championship after outlasting Kentucky 56-55.
The UConn campus at Storrs, CT went wild the second after the game was over. Yelling and screaming everywhere. Dorms were emptying out as kids went outside to celebrate such a spectacular win. I was fortunate enough to go out with some friends to see literally thousands of kids all walking towards Carriage chanting UConn cheers and exclaiming the love they had for their Huskies. It was a very happy night with high fives and cheers everywhere. Tonight was the one night everyone was friendly to each other. On Monday night I'll have the pleasure of joining thousands of students to watch the championship game in Gampel Pavilion and will hopefully be celebrating afterwards. This is just a glimpse of the campus reaction tonight.
And this is what happened the last time the men won it all in 2004.
Kemba Walker led the Huskies with 18 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block. While you may say he didn't play well just because he didn't score 20+, that's not truly representative as to how much impact Walker has on the game. If you combine his 18 points and 7 assists, Kemba is accountable for 32 points out of his team's 56. Freshman star, Jeremy Lamb had 12 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists as he has continued to play excellently throughout the NCAA Tournament. Despite the pressure of being in the Final 4 and under a national spotlight, this young UConn team has yet to falter. Alex Oriakhi played very well scoring 8 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. His play has been vital to Connecticut's success. I think that he's essential to UConn winning. If bigs like him, Roscoe Smith, and Charles Okwandu can score in the paint and outrebound the other team, the Huskies will win. Everyone knows that Kemba can make shots and will get his points, as well as Lamb, but if you want to beat the Huskies you have to limit plays in the paint.
Free throws in this game were key. Kentucky shot a mediocre 4-12 from the line while UConn went 9-11. If Kentucky were to only make 50% of their free throws they would have won the game, it's that simple. You also have to dish out major credit to UConn's defense. They have been playing some of the best defense in the tournament that caused Kentucky to make only 33.9% of their field goals on the night and 9-27 from beyond the arc. It's Connecticut's defense that allowed them to win despite only making 1 three pointer out of their 12 attempts. What sealed the game was when Shabazz Napier sunk 2 free throws with about 1 second to go to put the Huskies up 4. Ever since that Syracuse game in the Big East Tournament where Napier missed a free throw that could have won the game in regulation, he has been clutch in every opportunity he has gotten when put on the line late in games.
Monday will be UConn's third championship game in school history, all of which have been since 1999 when they first won it all. Connecticut won again in 2004 and made the Final 4 in 2009, but lost in the national semi-final game. Coach, Jim Calhoun will be looking to win his 3rd national championship, which will take him to a very prestigious group of coaches to have done so. The Huskies will be facing the Butler Bulldogs who are looking to win their first championship after losing to Duke in the title game last year. The game will be on CBS at 9:23 pm.
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