Males’s Remaining 4 takeaways: UConn cements ‘Blue Blood’ standing with fifth title

The One Shining Second montage has performed, and it’s time to say goodbye to a different season of NCAA school basketball.

This yr’s match had somewhat little bit of every little thing for basketball followers. We had a Remaining 4 buzzer-beater, a No. 1 seed being upset by a No. 16 seed for simply the second time in match historical past, shirtless coaches celebrating and loads of different must-see moments.

But when we bear in mind the 2023 match for one factor, it is going to be that the group taking part in the very best basketball completed the season on prime.

The Connecticut Huskies received their fifth nationwide championship in program historical past on Monday after probably the most dominant NCAA tournaments in historical past. With a 76-59 win over the San Diego St. Aztecs within the title recreation, the Huskies grew to become the primary group since Indiana in 1981 to win all of its match video games by a minimum of 13 factors.

Dan Hurely’s squad seemed a notch above each single considered one of their six opponents, trailing for lower than 5 minutes all match.

Listed here are some takeaways from UConn’s dominant nationwide championship victory:

Blue Blood standing full

One of many huge storylines heading into this yr’s Remaining 4 was the absence of the normal “Blue Bloods” in school basketball.

However maintain on only a second.

After we focus on the Blue Bloods in males’s school basketball, the Huskies are by no means talked about. Positive, they don’t have the general historical past of the Kentucky’s and UCLA’s of the world, however over the previous 24 years you’ll be hard-pressed to discover a higher resume than UConn’s.

The Huskies 5 championships put them in a tie for fourth on the all-time record with Duke and Indiana, with all 5 coming previously 24 seasons.

“We’ve got the 4 nationwide championships coming in, proper?” coach Dan Hurley mentioned after the sport. “We had been striving for No. 5. Now we’ve acquired our personal.”

In addition they don’t know learn how to lose in nationwide championships. With the win, they enhance to 5-0 once they advance to the ultimate.

Of all the normal powerhouse applications, UConn is the one one that may say they don’t know what it appears like to look at one other group handed the trophy. North Carolina six and Duke have every misplaced six nationwide championships, Kentucky 4, UCLA two and Indiana one.

Former star guard Kemba Walker, who received considered one of UConn’s 5 titles, made positive to let the cameras know the place his alma mater now ranks:

And I’m positive Walker would agree, it’s time to present the Huskies the credit score they deserve.

Every thing, in all places, all on the court docket

The Huskies have just a few gamers which have turn into family names all through this match.

Their huge man Adama Sanogo, who was named match MVP, was dominant on each ends in all six video games. He picked up his fourth double-double in six tourney video games in opposition to the Aztecs when he scored 17 factors and grabbed 10 rebounds to assist carry dwelling the championship.

Jordan Hawkins is the very best NBA prospect on the Huskies’ roster and made numerous huge photographs in a variety of huge spots, together with the largest shot of the title recreation with simply 5 minutes remaining within the recreation.

However the true energy of this Huskies group was their means to achieve contributions from up and down their roster. Each single participant that performed multiple minute scored a minimum of 4 factors.

Tristen Newton was instrumental all match working UConn’s offence. He additionally was the group’s main scorer on Monday, placing up 19 factors whereas additionally snatching 10 boards to guide his squad over the Aztecs.

Junior guard Andre Jackson Jr. was a veteran chief all season and helped regular his group all through any instances of uncertainty.

Alex Karaban and Joey Calcaterra each all the time appeared to make an enormous three when the Huskies wanted it, together with three of the group’s 5 within the nationwide championship.

And Donovan Clingan all the time made a big effect when he was requested to present Sanogo a breather on the within.

It was a complete group effort all through the match and the Huskies had been simply too deep and too robust for all their opponents.

Sibling bragging rights

Impulsively household dinners on the Hurley home simply acquired somewhat extra attention-grabbing.

Almost 31 years after Dan’s brother Bobby Hurley received his second nationwide championship as a participant with the Duke Blue Devils, Dan wins his first as a coach.

Dan is now not fully within the shadow of his brother and now has a declare as the higher school basketball coach as Bobby is at present the top coach of the Arizona State Solar Devils.

UConn additionally has a stable recruiting class coming in subsequent yr, so this very nicely could possibly be the primary of an extended profitable run for Dan and the Huskies.

They each could have some work to do earlier than they catch as much as their father Bob Hurley, nevertheless, as Bob is broadly considered one of many best highschool basketball coaches in historical past and has been inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Corridor of Fame.

The great, the dangerous and the ugly of faculty basketball

Nobody who watched the nationwide championship between the Huskies and Aztecs would let you know it was the very best basketball they’ve ever watched.

In actual fact, most would let you know it was fairly ugly.

San Diego State shot simply 32 per cent for the sport, together with a putrid 28.6 per cent within the first half that finally sealed their destiny.

Nonetheless, as ugly as the sport was, that’s the fantastic thing about this match. The unpredictability of beginner sports activities offers us the jaw-dropping moments that all of us affiliate with March Insanity.

Plus, should you had been on the lookout for a extremely expert nationwide championship, fortunately the ladies’s ultimate on Sunday offered all that and extra.

No, the faculty recreation just isn’t all the time fairly, and we aren’t going to get a traditional yearly. But it surely’s stunning in its personal means, and we already can’t wait to see the bracket subsequent yr.

Extra from Sportsnet

UConn beats San Diego State to carry dwelling program’s fifth NCAA title

Ladies’s Remaining 4 takeaways: LSU brings dwelling program’s first NCAA title

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