BOSTON — Late within the first half of Saturday’s East Regional closing between No. 1 seed UConn and No. 3 Illinois, the Huskies’ dominant march towards back-to-back nationwide championships appeared in peril. Not simply their streak of double-digit wins, however staying alive within the NCAA event.
The Combating Illini had fought again from an early deficit to tie the rating with 1:49 left till halftime.
Lower than eight minutes of sport motion later, UConn led by 30.
The Huskies ran off 30 straight factors, an onslaught not seen this late within the NCAA event just lately, en path to a 77-52 victory to advance to their second straight Closing 4. UConn will face Alabama, an 89-82 winner over Clemson within the late sport Saturday evening, within the Closing 4 subsequent weekend.
The 30-0 run was UConn’s largest since Dan Hurley took over as coach in 2018.
“30-0 is loopy,” mentioned Tristen Newton, UConn’s All-American level guard.
Added Hurley: “It was a particular stage of basketball that we have been enjoying.”
Coming into Saturday’s sport, one of many key tactical questions was how UConn would defend smooth-shooting middle Coleman Hawkins and whether or not Illinois might make the most of its 5-out offense to pull 7-foot-2 Donovan Clingan away from the basket and open driving lanes.
It shortly grew to become obvious Illinois had no resolution in coping with Clingan. The projected lottery decide scored the primary seven factors and produced a virtuoso defensive efficiency.
“What he did to them on the rim defensively spooked them,” Hurley mentioned. “And clearly that they had no solutions for him on the offensive finish.”
Clingan’s presence within the paint was inconceivable to beat. He was formally credited with 5 blocks, however that may have been one or two brief. Illinois merely could not rating on the rim; the Illini missed eight of their first 10 layups and shot simply 28.6% from 2-point vary within the first half. Illinois star Terrence Shannon Jr. shot 2-for-12 and utterly stopped driving to the basket halfway via the second half.
“Does not everybody have him projected within the lottery or near it?” Illinois coach Brad Underwood mentioned of Clingan. “We talked advert nauseam about spacing them. … Give him quite a lot of credit score. Acquired an elite man again there.”
In Clingan’s first 17 minutes on the ground, Illinois managed simply 4 factors. In keeping with ESPN Stats & Info analysis, Illinois went 0-for-19 on discipline purpose makes an attempt contested by Clingan.
He completed with 22 factors, 10 rebounds, 5 blocks and three steals in 22 minutes.
“When he is in there, he is such an enormous presence. He is gonna block pictures, he is gonna actually make all the things robust. That is precisely what he did,” sophomore ahead Alex Karaban mentioned. “He did the most effective job he did of walling up. He did not get in foul hassle for us, the place in different video games he may need. However he simply went vertical each time he blocked it. It is simply an enormous confidence increase. This actually was one among his finest performances.”
UConn didn’t reap the benefits of Illinois’ early struggles, with an sudden defensive slog breaking out between the 2 finest offenses within the nation. The Huskies missed their first 10 3-point makes an attempt and had solely two made pictures outdoors the paint.
Newton did not make a shot within the first half, going 0-for-6. Whereas Shannon struggled, Southern Illinois switch Marcus Domask stored the Illini within the sport, making a pair of early 3s after which utilizing his dimension to attain over smaller defenders within the submit.
Again-to-back baskets by Domask late within the half tied the rating at 23, however UConn scored the ultimate 5 factors for a 28-23 lead on the break.
“We weren’t anxious in any respect,” Newton mentioned. “We all know what sort of labor we put in and the way simple it’s for us to attain. We knew it was gonna begin flowing. And we simply knew when it began flowing, the sport was going to be over.”
The Huskies opened the second half by scoring the following 25 factors, placing the sport effectively out of attain and persevering with a dominant two-year NCAA event run. UConn has gained its previous 10 NCAA event video games by at the least 13 factors, changing into the primary workforce to win that many by double-digits. The Huskies have trailed for under 28 seconds on this 12 months’s event and have overwhelmed their 4 opponents by a mean of 27.8 factors.
Additionally they grew to become the third workforce in NCAA event historical past to win by 25-plus factors in every of its two video games straight main as much as the Closing 4, becoming a member of 1993 Kentucky and 1955 La Salle.
Within the 80 second-half minutes UConn has performed on this 12 months’s NCAA event, the Huskies have led by double digits for 76 minutes and three seconds.
“Our protection is elite. Our offense is elite. We rebound the ball. These guys play each possession prefer it’s the top of the world,” Hurley mentioned. “Kimani [Young] and Luke [Murray] put together these guys with scouts at a high quality stage that any head coach within the nation could be proud to place forth. These two guys are superb.
“We have got NBA-level gamers which are simply keen to share and have created an unbelievable tradition. We will be robust to beat.”
BOSTON — Late within the first half of Saturday’s East Regional closing between No. 1 seed UConn and No. 3 Illinois, the Huskies’ dominant march towards back-to-back nationwide championships appeared in peril. Not simply their streak of double-digit wins, however staying alive within the NCAA event.
The Combating Illini had fought again from an early deficit to tie the rating with 1:49 left till halftime.
Lower than eight minutes of sport motion later, UConn led by 30.
The Huskies ran off 30 straight factors, an onslaught not seen this late within the NCAA event just lately, en path to a 77-52 victory to advance to their second straight Closing 4. UConn will face Alabama, an 89-82 winner over Clemson within the late sport Saturday evening, within the Closing 4 subsequent weekend.
The 30-0 run was UConn’s largest since Dan Hurley took over as coach in 2018.
“30-0 is loopy,” mentioned Tristen Newton, UConn’s All-American level guard.
Added Hurley: “It was a particular stage of basketball that we have been enjoying.”
Coming into Saturday’s sport, one of many key tactical questions was how UConn would defend smooth-shooting middle Coleman Hawkins and whether or not Illinois might make the most of its 5-out offense to pull 7-foot-2 Donovan Clingan away from the basket and open driving lanes.
It shortly grew to become obvious Illinois had no resolution in coping with Clingan. The projected lottery decide scored the primary seven factors and produced a virtuoso defensive efficiency.
“What he did to them on the rim defensively spooked them,” Hurley mentioned. “And clearly that they had no solutions for him on the offensive finish.”
Clingan’s presence within the paint was inconceivable to beat. He was formally credited with 5 blocks, however that may have been one or two brief. Illinois merely could not rating on the rim; the Illini missed eight of their first 10 layups and shot simply 28.6% from 2-point vary within the first half. Illinois star Terrence Shannon Jr. shot 2-for-12 and utterly stopped driving to the basket halfway via the second half.
“Does not everybody have him projected within the lottery or near it?” Illinois coach Brad Underwood mentioned of Clingan. “We talked advert nauseam about spacing them. … Give him quite a lot of credit score. Acquired an elite man again there.”
In Clingan’s first 17 minutes on the ground, Illinois managed simply 4 factors. In keeping with ESPN Stats & Info analysis, Illinois went 0-for-19 on discipline purpose makes an attempt contested by Clingan.
He completed with 22 factors, 10 rebounds, 5 blocks and three steals in 22 minutes.
“When he is in there, he is such an enormous presence. He is gonna block pictures, he is gonna actually make all the things robust. That is precisely what he did,” sophomore ahead Alex Karaban mentioned. “He did the most effective job he did of walling up. He did not get in foul hassle for us, the place in different video games he may need. However he simply went vertical each time he blocked it. It is simply an enormous confidence increase. This actually was one among his finest performances.”
UConn didn’t reap the benefits of Illinois’ early struggles, with an sudden defensive slog breaking out between the 2 finest offenses within the nation. The Huskies missed their first 10 3-point makes an attempt and had solely two made pictures outdoors the paint.
Newton did not make a shot within the first half, going 0-for-6. Whereas Shannon struggled, Southern Illinois switch Marcus Domask stored the Illini within the sport, making a pair of early 3s after which utilizing his dimension to attain over smaller defenders within the submit.
Again-to-back baskets by Domask late within the half tied the rating at 23, however UConn scored the ultimate 5 factors for a 28-23 lead on the break.
“We weren’t anxious in any respect,” Newton mentioned. “We all know what sort of labor we put in and the way simple it’s for us to attain. We knew it was gonna begin flowing. And we simply knew when it began flowing, the sport was going to be over.”
The Huskies opened the second half by scoring the following 25 factors, placing the sport effectively out of attain and persevering with a dominant two-year NCAA event run. UConn has gained its previous 10 NCAA event video games by at the least 13 factors, changing into the primary workforce to win that many by double-digits. The Huskies have trailed for under 28 seconds on this 12 months’s event and have overwhelmed their 4 opponents by a mean of 27.8 factors.
Additionally they grew to become the third workforce in NCAA event historical past to win by 25-plus factors in every of its two video games straight main as much as the Closing 4, becoming a member of 1993 Kentucky and 1955 La Salle.
Within the 80 second-half minutes UConn has performed on this 12 months’s NCAA event, the Huskies have led by double digits for 76 minutes and three seconds.
“Our protection is elite. Our offense is elite. We rebound the ball. These guys play each possession prefer it’s the top of the world,” Hurley mentioned. “Kimani [Young] and Luke [Murray] put together these guys with scouts at a high quality stage that any head coach within the nation could be proud to place forth. These two guys are superb.
“We have got NBA-level gamers which are simply keen to share and have created an unbelievable tradition. We will be robust to beat.”
BOSTON — Late within the first half of Saturday’s East Regional closing between No. 1 seed UConn and No. 3 Illinois, the Huskies’ dominant march towards back-to-back nationwide championships appeared in peril. Not simply their streak of double-digit wins, however staying alive within the NCAA event.
The Combating Illini had fought again from an early deficit to tie the rating with 1:49 left till halftime.
Lower than eight minutes of sport motion later, UConn led by 30.
The Huskies ran off 30 straight factors, an onslaught not seen this late within the NCAA event just lately, en path to a 77-52 victory to advance to their second straight Closing 4. UConn will face Alabama, an 89-82 winner over Clemson within the late sport Saturday evening, within the Closing 4 subsequent weekend.
The 30-0 run was UConn’s largest since Dan Hurley took over as coach in 2018.
“30-0 is loopy,” mentioned Tristen Newton, UConn’s All-American level guard.
Added Hurley: “It was a particular stage of basketball that we have been enjoying.”
Coming into Saturday’s sport, one of many key tactical questions was how UConn would defend smooth-shooting middle Coleman Hawkins and whether or not Illinois might make the most of its 5-out offense to pull 7-foot-2 Donovan Clingan away from the basket and open driving lanes.
It shortly grew to become obvious Illinois had no resolution in coping with Clingan. The projected lottery decide scored the primary seven factors and produced a virtuoso defensive efficiency.
“What he did to them on the rim defensively spooked them,” Hurley mentioned. “And clearly that they had no solutions for him on the offensive finish.”
Clingan’s presence within the paint was inconceivable to beat. He was formally credited with 5 blocks, however that may have been one or two brief. Illinois merely could not rating on the rim; the Illini missed eight of their first 10 layups and shot simply 28.6% from 2-point vary within the first half. Illinois star Terrence Shannon Jr. shot 2-for-12 and utterly stopped driving to the basket halfway via the second half.
“Does not everybody have him projected within the lottery or near it?” Illinois coach Brad Underwood mentioned of Clingan. “We talked advert nauseam about spacing them. … Give him quite a lot of credit score. Acquired an elite man again there.”
In Clingan’s first 17 minutes on the ground, Illinois managed simply 4 factors. In keeping with ESPN Stats & Info analysis, Illinois went 0-for-19 on discipline purpose makes an attempt contested by Clingan.
He completed with 22 factors, 10 rebounds, 5 blocks and three steals in 22 minutes.
“When he is in there, he is such an enormous presence. He is gonna block pictures, he is gonna actually make all the things robust. That is precisely what he did,” sophomore ahead Alex Karaban mentioned. “He did the most effective job he did of walling up. He did not get in foul hassle for us, the place in different video games he may need. However he simply went vertical each time he blocked it. It is simply an enormous confidence increase. This actually was one among his finest performances.”
UConn didn’t reap the benefits of Illinois’ early struggles, with an sudden defensive slog breaking out between the 2 finest offenses within the nation. The Huskies missed their first 10 3-point makes an attempt and had solely two made pictures outdoors the paint.
Newton did not make a shot within the first half, going 0-for-6. Whereas Shannon struggled, Southern Illinois switch Marcus Domask stored the Illini within the sport, making a pair of early 3s after which utilizing his dimension to attain over smaller defenders within the submit.
Again-to-back baskets by Domask late within the half tied the rating at 23, however UConn scored the ultimate 5 factors for a 28-23 lead on the break.
“We weren’t anxious in any respect,” Newton mentioned. “We all know what sort of labor we put in and the way simple it’s for us to attain. We knew it was gonna begin flowing. And we simply knew when it began flowing, the sport was going to be over.”
The Huskies opened the second half by scoring the following 25 factors, placing the sport effectively out of attain and persevering with a dominant two-year NCAA event run. UConn has gained its previous 10 NCAA event video games by at the least 13 factors, changing into the primary workforce to win that many by double-digits. The Huskies have trailed for under 28 seconds on this 12 months’s event and have overwhelmed their 4 opponents by a mean of 27.8 factors.
Additionally they grew to become the third workforce in NCAA event historical past to win by 25-plus factors in every of its two video games straight main as much as the Closing 4, becoming a member of 1993 Kentucky and 1955 La Salle.
Within the 80 second-half minutes UConn has performed on this 12 months’s NCAA event, the Huskies have led by double digits for 76 minutes and three seconds.
“Our protection is elite. Our offense is elite. We rebound the ball. These guys play each possession prefer it’s the top of the world,” Hurley mentioned. “Kimani [Young] and Luke [Murray] put together these guys with scouts at a high quality stage that any head coach within the nation could be proud to place forth. These two guys are superb.
“We have got NBA-level gamers which are simply keen to share and have created an unbelievable tradition. We will be robust to beat.”
BOSTON — Late within the first half of Saturday’s East Regional closing between No. 1 seed UConn and No. 3 Illinois, the Huskies’ dominant march towards back-to-back nationwide championships appeared in peril. Not simply their streak of double-digit wins, however staying alive within the NCAA event.
The Combating Illini had fought again from an early deficit to tie the rating with 1:49 left till halftime.
Lower than eight minutes of sport motion later, UConn led by 30.
The Huskies ran off 30 straight factors, an onslaught not seen this late within the NCAA event just lately, en path to a 77-52 victory to advance to their second straight Closing 4. UConn will face Alabama, an 89-82 winner over Clemson within the late sport Saturday evening, within the Closing 4 subsequent weekend.
The 30-0 run was UConn’s largest since Dan Hurley took over as coach in 2018.
“30-0 is loopy,” mentioned Tristen Newton, UConn’s All-American level guard.
Added Hurley: “It was a particular stage of basketball that we have been enjoying.”
Coming into Saturday’s sport, one of many key tactical questions was how UConn would defend smooth-shooting middle Coleman Hawkins and whether or not Illinois might make the most of its 5-out offense to pull 7-foot-2 Donovan Clingan away from the basket and open driving lanes.
It shortly grew to become obvious Illinois had no resolution in coping with Clingan. The projected lottery decide scored the primary seven factors and produced a virtuoso defensive efficiency.
“What he did to them on the rim defensively spooked them,” Hurley mentioned. “And clearly that they had no solutions for him on the offensive finish.”
Clingan’s presence within the paint was inconceivable to beat. He was formally credited with 5 blocks, however that may have been one or two brief. Illinois merely could not rating on the rim; the Illini missed eight of their first 10 layups and shot simply 28.6% from 2-point vary within the first half. Illinois star Terrence Shannon Jr. shot 2-for-12 and utterly stopped driving to the basket halfway via the second half.
“Does not everybody have him projected within the lottery or near it?” Illinois coach Brad Underwood mentioned of Clingan. “We talked advert nauseam about spacing them. … Give him quite a lot of credit score. Acquired an elite man again there.”
In Clingan’s first 17 minutes on the ground, Illinois managed simply 4 factors. In keeping with ESPN Stats & Info analysis, Illinois went 0-for-19 on discipline purpose makes an attempt contested by Clingan.
He completed with 22 factors, 10 rebounds, 5 blocks and three steals in 22 minutes.
“When he is in there, he is such an enormous presence. He is gonna block pictures, he is gonna actually make all the things robust. That is precisely what he did,” sophomore ahead Alex Karaban mentioned. “He did the most effective job he did of walling up. He did not get in foul hassle for us, the place in different video games he may need. However he simply went vertical each time he blocked it. It is simply an enormous confidence increase. This actually was one among his finest performances.”
UConn didn’t reap the benefits of Illinois’ early struggles, with an sudden defensive slog breaking out between the 2 finest offenses within the nation. The Huskies missed their first 10 3-point makes an attempt and had solely two made pictures outdoors the paint.
Newton did not make a shot within the first half, going 0-for-6. Whereas Shannon struggled, Southern Illinois switch Marcus Domask stored the Illini within the sport, making a pair of early 3s after which utilizing his dimension to attain over smaller defenders within the submit.
Again-to-back baskets by Domask late within the half tied the rating at 23, however UConn scored the ultimate 5 factors for a 28-23 lead on the break.
“We weren’t anxious in any respect,” Newton mentioned. “We all know what sort of labor we put in and the way simple it’s for us to attain. We knew it was gonna begin flowing. And we simply knew when it began flowing, the sport was going to be over.”
The Huskies opened the second half by scoring the following 25 factors, placing the sport effectively out of attain and persevering with a dominant two-year NCAA event run. UConn has gained its previous 10 NCAA event video games by at the least 13 factors, changing into the primary workforce to win that many by double-digits. The Huskies have trailed for under 28 seconds on this 12 months’s event and have overwhelmed their 4 opponents by a mean of 27.8 factors.
Additionally they grew to become the third workforce in NCAA event historical past to win by 25-plus factors in every of its two video games straight main as much as the Closing 4, becoming a member of 1993 Kentucky and 1955 La Salle.
Within the 80 second-half minutes UConn has performed on this 12 months’s NCAA event, the Huskies have led by double digits for 76 minutes and three seconds.
“Our protection is elite. Our offense is elite. We rebound the ball. These guys play each possession prefer it’s the top of the world,” Hurley mentioned. “Kimani [Young] and Luke [Murray] put together these guys with scouts at a high quality stage that any head coach within the nation could be proud to place forth. These two guys are superb.
“We have got NBA-level gamers which are simply keen to share and have created an unbelievable tradition. We will be robust to beat.”
BOSTON — Late within the first half of Saturday’s East Regional closing between No. 1 seed UConn and No. 3 Illinois, the Huskies’ dominant march towards back-to-back nationwide championships appeared in peril. Not simply their streak of double-digit wins, however staying alive within the NCAA event.
The Combating Illini had fought again from an early deficit to tie the rating with 1:49 left till halftime.
Lower than eight minutes of sport motion later, UConn led by 30.
The Huskies ran off 30 straight factors, an onslaught not seen this late within the NCAA event just lately, en path to a 77-52 victory to advance to their second straight Closing 4. UConn will face Alabama, an 89-82 winner over Clemson within the late sport Saturday evening, within the Closing 4 subsequent weekend.
The 30-0 run was UConn’s largest since Dan Hurley took over as coach in 2018.
“30-0 is loopy,” mentioned Tristen Newton, UConn’s All-American level guard.
Added Hurley: “It was a particular stage of basketball that we have been enjoying.”
Coming into Saturday’s sport, one of many key tactical questions was how UConn would defend smooth-shooting middle Coleman Hawkins and whether or not Illinois might make the most of its 5-out offense to pull 7-foot-2 Donovan Clingan away from the basket and open driving lanes.
It shortly grew to become obvious Illinois had no resolution in coping with Clingan. The projected lottery decide scored the primary seven factors and produced a virtuoso defensive efficiency.
“What he did to them on the rim defensively spooked them,” Hurley mentioned. “And clearly that they had no solutions for him on the offensive finish.”
Clingan’s presence within the paint was inconceivable to beat. He was formally credited with 5 blocks, however that may have been one or two brief. Illinois merely could not rating on the rim; the Illini missed eight of their first 10 layups and shot simply 28.6% from 2-point vary within the first half. Illinois star Terrence Shannon Jr. shot 2-for-12 and utterly stopped driving to the basket halfway via the second half.
“Does not everybody have him projected within the lottery or near it?” Illinois coach Brad Underwood mentioned of Clingan. “We talked advert nauseam about spacing them. … Give him quite a lot of credit score. Acquired an elite man again there.”
In Clingan’s first 17 minutes on the ground, Illinois managed simply 4 factors. In keeping with ESPN Stats & Info analysis, Illinois went 0-for-19 on discipline purpose makes an attempt contested by Clingan.
He completed with 22 factors, 10 rebounds, 5 blocks and three steals in 22 minutes.
“When he is in there, he is such an enormous presence. He is gonna block pictures, he is gonna actually make all the things robust. That is precisely what he did,” sophomore ahead Alex Karaban mentioned. “He did the most effective job he did of walling up. He did not get in foul hassle for us, the place in different video games he may need. However he simply went vertical each time he blocked it. It is simply an enormous confidence increase. This actually was one among his finest performances.”
UConn didn’t reap the benefits of Illinois’ early struggles, with an sudden defensive slog breaking out between the 2 finest offenses within the nation. The Huskies missed their first 10 3-point makes an attempt and had solely two made pictures outdoors the paint.
Newton did not make a shot within the first half, going 0-for-6. Whereas Shannon struggled, Southern Illinois switch Marcus Domask stored the Illini within the sport, making a pair of early 3s after which utilizing his dimension to attain over smaller defenders within the submit.
Again-to-back baskets by Domask late within the half tied the rating at 23, however UConn scored the ultimate 5 factors for a 28-23 lead on the break.
“We weren’t anxious in any respect,” Newton mentioned. “We all know what sort of labor we put in and the way simple it’s for us to attain. We knew it was gonna begin flowing. And we simply knew when it began flowing, the sport was going to be over.”
The Huskies opened the second half by scoring the following 25 factors, placing the sport effectively out of attain and persevering with a dominant two-year NCAA event run. UConn has gained its previous 10 NCAA event video games by at the least 13 factors, changing into the primary workforce to win that many by double-digits. The Huskies have trailed for under 28 seconds on this 12 months’s event and have overwhelmed their 4 opponents by a mean of 27.8 factors.
Additionally they grew to become the third workforce in NCAA event historical past to win by 25-plus factors in every of its two video games straight main as much as the Closing 4, becoming a member of 1993 Kentucky and 1955 La Salle.
Within the 80 second-half minutes UConn has performed on this 12 months’s NCAA event, the Huskies have led by double digits for 76 minutes and three seconds.
“Our protection is elite. Our offense is elite. We rebound the ball. These guys play each possession prefer it’s the top of the world,” Hurley mentioned. “Kimani [Young] and Luke [Murray] put together these guys with scouts at a high quality stage that any head coach within the nation could be proud to place forth. These two guys are superb.
“We have got NBA-level gamers which are simply keen to share and have created an unbelievable tradition. We will be robust to beat.”
BOSTON — Late within the first half of Saturday’s East Regional closing between No. 1 seed UConn and No. 3 Illinois, the Huskies’ dominant march towards back-to-back nationwide championships appeared in peril. Not simply their streak of double-digit wins, however staying alive within the NCAA event.
The Combating Illini had fought again from an early deficit to tie the rating with 1:49 left till halftime.
Lower than eight minutes of sport motion later, UConn led by 30.
The Huskies ran off 30 straight factors, an onslaught not seen this late within the NCAA event just lately, en path to a 77-52 victory to advance to their second straight Closing 4. UConn will face Alabama, an 89-82 winner over Clemson within the late sport Saturday evening, within the Closing 4 subsequent weekend.
The 30-0 run was UConn’s largest since Dan Hurley took over as coach in 2018.
“30-0 is loopy,” mentioned Tristen Newton, UConn’s All-American level guard.
Added Hurley: “It was a particular stage of basketball that we have been enjoying.”
Coming into Saturday’s sport, one of many key tactical questions was how UConn would defend smooth-shooting middle Coleman Hawkins and whether or not Illinois might make the most of its 5-out offense to pull 7-foot-2 Donovan Clingan away from the basket and open driving lanes.
It shortly grew to become obvious Illinois had no resolution in coping with Clingan. The projected lottery decide scored the primary seven factors and produced a virtuoso defensive efficiency.
“What he did to them on the rim defensively spooked them,” Hurley mentioned. “And clearly that they had no solutions for him on the offensive finish.”
Clingan’s presence within the paint was inconceivable to beat. He was formally credited with 5 blocks, however that may have been one or two brief. Illinois merely could not rating on the rim; the Illini missed eight of their first 10 layups and shot simply 28.6% from 2-point vary within the first half. Illinois star Terrence Shannon Jr. shot 2-for-12 and utterly stopped driving to the basket halfway via the second half.
“Does not everybody have him projected within the lottery or near it?” Illinois coach Brad Underwood mentioned of Clingan. “We talked advert nauseam about spacing them. … Give him quite a lot of credit score. Acquired an elite man again there.”
In Clingan’s first 17 minutes on the ground, Illinois managed simply 4 factors. In keeping with ESPN Stats & Info analysis, Illinois went 0-for-19 on discipline purpose makes an attempt contested by Clingan.
He completed with 22 factors, 10 rebounds, 5 blocks and three steals in 22 minutes.
“When he is in there, he is such an enormous presence. He is gonna block pictures, he is gonna actually make all the things robust. That is precisely what he did,” sophomore ahead Alex Karaban mentioned. “He did the most effective job he did of walling up. He did not get in foul hassle for us, the place in different video games he may need. However he simply went vertical each time he blocked it. It is simply an enormous confidence increase. This actually was one among his finest performances.”
UConn didn’t reap the benefits of Illinois’ early struggles, with an sudden defensive slog breaking out between the 2 finest offenses within the nation. The Huskies missed their first 10 3-point makes an attempt and had solely two made pictures outdoors the paint.
Newton did not make a shot within the first half, going 0-for-6. Whereas Shannon struggled, Southern Illinois switch Marcus Domask stored the Illini within the sport, making a pair of early 3s after which utilizing his dimension to attain over smaller defenders within the submit.
Again-to-back baskets by Domask late within the half tied the rating at 23, however UConn scored the ultimate 5 factors for a 28-23 lead on the break.
“We weren’t anxious in any respect,” Newton mentioned. “We all know what sort of labor we put in and the way simple it’s for us to attain. We knew it was gonna begin flowing. And we simply knew when it began flowing, the sport was going to be over.”
The Huskies opened the second half by scoring the following 25 factors, placing the sport effectively out of attain and persevering with a dominant two-year NCAA event run. UConn has gained its previous 10 NCAA event video games by at the least 13 factors, changing into the primary workforce to win that many by double-digits. The Huskies have trailed for under 28 seconds on this 12 months’s event and have overwhelmed their 4 opponents by a mean of 27.8 factors.
Additionally they grew to become the third workforce in NCAA event historical past to win by 25-plus factors in every of its two video games straight main as much as the Closing 4, becoming a member of 1993 Kentucky and 1955 La Salle.
Within the 80 second-half minutes UConn has performed on this 12 months’s NCAA event, the Huskies have led by double digits for 76 minutes and three seconds.
“Our protection is elite. Our offense is elite. We rebound the ball. These guys play each possession prefer it’s the top of the world,” Hurley mentioned. “Kimani [Young] and Luke [Murray] put together these guys with scouts at a high quality stage that any head coach within the nation could be proud to place forth. These two guys are superb.
“We have got NBA-level gamers which are simply keen to share and have created an unbelievable tradition. We will be robust to beat.”
BOSTON — Late within the first half of Saturday’s East Regional closing between No. 1 seed UConn and No. 3 Illinois, the Huskies’ dominant march towards back-to-back nationwide championships appeared in peril. Not simply their streak of double-digit wins, however staying alive within the NCAA event.
The Combating Illini had fought again from an early deficit to tie the rating with 1:49 left till halftime.
Lower than eight minutes of sport motion later, UConn led by 30.
The Huskies ran off 30 straight factors, an onslaught not seen this late within the NCAA event just lately, en path to a 77-52 victory to advance to their second straight Closing 4. UConn will face Alabama, an 89-82 winner over Clemson within the late sport Saturday evening, within the Closing 4 subsequent weekend.
The 30-0 run was UConn’s largest since Dan Hurley took over as coach in 2018.
“30-0 is loopy,” mentioned Tristen Newton, UConn’s All-American level guard.
Added Hurley: “It was a particular stage of basketball that we have been enjoying.”
Coming into Saturday’s sport, one of many key tactical questions was how UConn would defend smooth-shooting middle Coleman Hawkins and whether or not Illinois might make the most of its 5-out offense to pull 7-foot-2 Donovan Clingan away from the basket and open driving lanes.
It shortly grew to become obvious Illinois had no resolution in coping with Clingan. The projected lottery decide scored the primary seven factors and produced a virtuoso defensive efficiency.
“What he did to them on the rim defensively spooked them,” Hurley mentioned. “And clearly that they had no solutions for him on the offensive finish.”
Clingan’s presence within the paint was inconceivable to beat. He was formally credited with 5 blocks, however that may have been one or two brief. Illinois merely could not rating on the rim; the Illini missed eight of their first 10 layups and shot simply 28.6% from 2-point vary within the first half. Illinois star Terrence Shannon Jr. shot 2-for-12 and utterly stopped driving to the basket halfway via the second half.
“Does not everybody have him projected within the lottery or near it?” Illinois coach Brad Underwood mentioned of Clingan. “We talked advert nauseam about spacing them. … Give him quite a lot of credit score. Acquired an elite man again there.”
In Clingan’s first 17 minutes on the ground, Illinois managed simply 4 factors. In keeping with ESPN Stats & Info analysis, Illinois went 0-for-19 on discipline purpose makes an attempt contested by Clingan.
He completed with 22 factors, 10 rebounds, 5 blocks and three steals in 22 minutes.
“When he is in there, he is such an enormous presence. He is gonna block pictures, he is gonna actually make all the things robust. That is precisely what he did,” sophomore ahead Alex Karaban mentioned. “He did the most effective job he did of walling up. He did not get in foul hassle for us, the place in different video games he may need. However he simply went vertical each time he blocked it. It is simply an enormous confidence increase. This actually was one among his finest performances.”
UConn didn’t reap the benefits of Illinois’ early struggles, with an sudden defensive slog breaking out between the 2 finest offenses within the nation. The Huskies missed their first 10 3-point makes an attempt and had solely two made pictures outdoors the paint.
Newton did not make a shot within the first half, going 0-for-6. Whereas Shannon struggled, Southern Illinois switch Marcus Domask stored the Illini within the sport, making a pair of early 3s after which utilizing his dimension to attain over smaller defenders within the submit.
Again-to-back baskets by Domask late within the half tied the rating at 23, however UConn scored the ultimate 5 factors for a 28-23 lead on the break.
“We weren’t anxious in any respect,” Newton mentioned. “We all know what sort of labor we put in and the way simple it’s for us to attain. We knew it was gonna begin flowing. And we simply knew when it began flowing, the sport was going to be over.”
The Huskies opened the second half by scoring the following 25 factors, placing the sport effectively out of attain and persevering with a dominant two-year NCAA event run. UConn has gained its previous 10 NCAA event video games by at the least 13 factors, changing into the primary workforce to win that many by double-digits. The Huskies have trailed for under 28 seconds on this 12 months’s event and have overwhelmed their 4 opponents by a mean of 27.8 factors.
Additionally they grew to become the third workforce in NCAA event historical past to win by 25-plus factors in every of its two video games straight main as much as the Closing 4, becoming a member of 1993 Kentucky and 1955 La Salle.
Within the 80 second-half minutes UConn has performed on this 12 months’s NCAA event, the Huskies have led by double digits for 76 minutes and three seconds.
“Our protection is elite. Our offense is elite. We rebound the ball. These guys play each possession prefer it’s the top of the world,” Hurley mentioned. “Kimani [Young] and Luke [Murray] put together these guys with scouts at a high quality stage that any head coach within the nation could be proud to place forth. These two guys are superb.
“We have got NBA-level gamers which are simply keen to share and have created an unbelievable tradition. We will be robust to beat.”
BOSTON — Late within the first half of Saturday’s East Regional closing between No. 1 seed UConn and No. 3 Illinois, the Huskies’ dominant march towards back-to-back nationwide championships appeared in peril. Not simply their streak of double-digit wins, however staying alive within the NCAA event.
The Combating Illini had fought again from an early deficit to tie the rating with 1:49 left till halftime.
Lower than eight minutes of sport motion later, UConn led by 30.
The Huskies ran off 30 straight factors, an onslaught not seen this late within the NCAA event just lately, en path to a 77-52 victory to advance to their second straight Closing 4. UConn will face Alabama, an 89-82 winner over Clemson within the late sport Saturday evening, within the Closing 4 subsequent weekend.
The 30-0 run was UConn’s largest since Dan Hurley took over as coach in 2018.
“30-0 is loopy,” mentioned Tristen Newton, UConn’s All-American level guard.
Added Hurley: “It was a particular stage of basketball that we have been enjoying.”
Coming into Saturday’s sport, one of many key tactical questions was how UConn would defend smooth-shooting middle Coleman Hawkins and whether or not Illinois might make the most of its 5-out offense to pull 7-foot-2 Donovan Clingan away from the basket and open driving lanes.
It shortly grew to become obvious Illinois had no resolution in coping with Clingan. The projected lottery decide scored the primary seven factors and produced a virtuoso defensive efficiency.
“What he did to them on the rim defensively spooked them,” Hurley mentioned. “And clearly that they had no solutions for him on the offensive finish.”
Clingan’s presence within the paint was inconceivable to beat. He was formally credited with 5 blocks, however that may have been one or two brief. Illinois merely could not rating on the rim; the Illini missed eight of their first 10 layups and shot simply 28.6% from 2-point vary within the first half. Illinois star Terrence Shannon Jr. shot 2-for-12 and utterly stopped driving to the basket halfway via the second half.
“Does not everybody have him projected within the lottery or near it?” Illinois coach Brad Underwood mentioned of Clingan. “We talked advert nauseam about spacing them. … Give him quite a lot of credit score. Acquired an elite man again there.”
In Clingan’s first 17 minutes on the ground, Illinois managed simply 4 factors. In keeping with ESPN Stats & Info analysis, Illinois went 0-for-19 on discipline purpose makes an attempt contested by Clingan.
He completed with 22 factors, 10 rebounds, 5 blocks and three steals in 22 minutes.
“When he is in there, he is such an enormous presence. He is gonna block pictures, he is gonna actually make all the things robust. That is precisely what he did,” sophomore ahead Alex Karaban mentioned. “He did the most effective job he did of walling up. He did not get in foul hassle for us, the place in different video games he may need. However he simply went vertical each time he blocked it. It is simply an enormous confidence increase. This actually was one among his finest performances.”
UConn didn’t reap the benefits of Illinois’ early struggles, with an sudden defensive slog breaking out between the 2 finest offenses within the nation. The Huskies missed their first 10 3-point makes an attempt and had solely two made pictures outdoors the paint.
Newton did not make a shot within the first half, going 0-for-6. Whereas Shannon struggled, Southern Illinois switch Marcus Domask stored the Illini within the sport, making a pair of early 3s after which utilizing his dimension to attain over smaller defenders within the submit.
Again-to-back baskets by Domask late within the half tied the rating at 23, however UConn scored the ultimate 5 factors for a 28-23 lead on the break.
“We weren’t anxious in any respect,” Newton mentioned. “We all know what sort of labor we put in and the way simple it’s for us to attain. We knew it was gonna begin flowing. And we simply knew when it began flowing, the sport was going to be over.”
The Huskies opened the second half by scoring the following 25 factors, placing the sport effectively out of attain and persevering with a dominant two-year NCAA event run. UConn has gained its previous 10 NCAA event video games by at the least 13 factors, changing into the primary workforce to win that many by double-digits. The Huskies have trailed for under 28 seconds on this 12 months’s event and have overwhelmed their 4 opponents by a mean of 27.8 factors.
Additionally they grew to become the third workforce in NCAA event historical past to win by 25-plus factors in every of its two video games straight main as much as the Closing 4, becoming a member of 1993 Kentucky and 1955 La Salle.
Within the 80 second-half minutes UConn has performed on this 12 months’s NCAA event, the Huskies have led by double digits for 76 minutes and three seconds.
“Our protection is elite. Our offense is elite. We rebound the ball. These guys play each possession prefer it’s the top of the world,” Hurley mentioned. “Kimani [Young] and Luke [Murray] put together these guys with scouts at a high quality stage that any head coach within the nation could be proud to place forth. These two guys are superb.
“We have got NBA-level gamers which are simply keen to share and have created an unbelievable tradition. We will be robust to beat.”