Dan Hurley, the head coach of UConn, may have fewer nightmares now, which is somewhat relieving for him! He had previously come very close to reaching this stage of the NCAA tournament before. On Sunday, he had much better things to think about thanks to his Huskies.
Photo Cred: New York Post (Hurley) Photo Cred: New York Post
They knew they would play in the Sweet 16 again when Hurley withdrew his starters with 1:47 remaining and a 70-52 lead. This led to a standing ovation from the traveling UConn supporters. The Huskies would be traveling to Las Vegas on Thursday night to play No. 8 Arkansas.
Photo Cred: New York Post Photo Cred: YouTube- Jason Deangelo
Connecticut last advanced this far in the NCAA tournament as a No. 7 seed in 2014. It concluded with the program’s fourth national title. The Huskies proved to be a tough out after destroying Iona and Saint Mary’s in two games. They won both games in a similar fashion, with their depth wearing down the opponent and their star sealing the deal.
Photo Cred: NCAA.com Photo Cred: CBS Sports
Hurley had previously suffered from pain and failure. The same rang true for his players too, as they had exited the NCAA tournament in the first round the previous two seasons. There is some relief in Connecticut now. They can finally get closer to getting back to basketball glory as they had in the past!
Photo Cred: Sports Illustrated (Hurley) Photo Cred: WBUR