WASHINGTON — Last year in the Raleigh, N.C., sub-regional, Dan Hurley was going through it.
The UConn men’s basketball coach, well known for being overly animated in every direction on the sideline, was an emotional mess. Tears flowed in the locker room and the news conference after a second-round exit. Hugs were exchanged freely. It was far from the picture that was painted across the previous two NCAA tournaments where the Huskies ran roughshod over their opponents, capturing a pair of national titles with a smiling, and even joking, head coach leading the charge.
It felt like the end of an era in a funereal atmosphere. The program’s 13-game winning streak came to an end against eventual national champion Florida by just two points to deny a trip to the second weekend in 2025. The core group of players, which transfixed the sport for much of the past three years, looked on the verge of breaking up like a popular band that finally was ready to experience a solo tour.
While there were some changes around Storrs, Conn., over the offseason, the abrupt ending in the Big Dance was not the last dance that it was made out to be. Instead, veteran Alex Karaban came back to school instead of departing for the NBA as expected. Guard Solo Ball reaffirmed his commitment, too. Other upperclassmen, most not a part of the title runs, either came back hungry or arrived via the portal.
It has all led to Sunday in the East Regional final, a historic meeting of two old rivals in Duke and UConn, aiming to keep two special seasons with a close-knit group alive a little bit longer.
“You’re not always going to have the best team in the country. You’re not always going to have the 2024 team, and you can’t coach your team like mad the whole year,” Hurley said Saturday. “When you go back-to-back and your ego is so wrapped up in three-peat, dynasty, anything less than a national championship is unacceptable—just a warped way of thinking. You’re not going to win this tournament every year. It’s a really hard tournament to advance in, and it’s gotten even harder with the way things are set up now with NIL and portal.”
There’s little argument that it’s gotten more difficult given the roster flux every program experiences nowadays in college basketball. It’s also a notable testament to Hurley and the Huskies that they’ve managed to keep so many familiar faces in the fold from the 2023 and ’24 titles around for one more run, a huge benefit at this time of year when the prep can be difficult given the tight turnarounds surrounding two games in a three-day span.
It also helps to have a rotation that leans on the older side, particularly with the Huskies’ complicated offense that involves plenty of movement, screens and cuts. During Friday night’s Sweet 16 victory over Michigan State, previous title-winners Ball, Karaban, Jayden Ross and Jaylin Stewart combined for 51% of UConn’s points while senior center Tarris Reed Jr. chipped in with a game-high 20.
“They have as good of shooting that there is in the country, and obviously Reed down low is a handful. I credit their staff, what they do offensively is terrific, it’s unique,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “I just want to say I have so much respect for Karaban and what he’s done in his career at UConn. He’s such a winning player. You can tell he’s all about the right stuff and makes everybody better on the floor. Big fan of his.”
Maybe not on Sunday night at Capital One Arena, but it’s understandable why both coaches and nearly every player spoke in glowing terms about the 6' 8" sharpshooter from Massachusetts. Karaban has 16 tournament victories—just a few behind Hurley’s brother Bobby (18) and Christian Laettner (21) for the most all time—and has picked a good spot on the calendar to have his most productive three-game stretch of the season with at least 17 points in each game.
“He’s a great player. Anyone who wins two national championships is a big-time player, especially in those two runs. I think his off-ball movement is great, especially for someone his size. He’s a great shooter. He shoots from way behind the line as well,” Blue Devils forward Cameron Boozer said. “At the end of the day also, he’s just a competitor and a winner. He’s a great player. I’m really excited for that matchup. Should be a lot of fun.”
Karaban can be deadly when left open, but his real trick is to make the offense tick in so many more ways. He has played a big role in drawing an extra defender before dumping it down low to Reed and can help swing it to any of the Huskies’ other productive guards.
“I definitely feel like I’m playing my best. I feel the most confident I’ve felt my entire career, just riding the hot hand I have right now,” Karaban said. “I feel great. I feel coaches are putting me in great positions, teammates are having a lot of trust in me to take the shot. So I’m feeling confident right now.
“On the court, I try to use my experiences and confidence, who I am as a player, to really try to make life easier for my teammates out there.”
The key is to keep that going against Duke, which has KenPom’s No. 6 offense in adjusted rating and the nation’s No. 2 defense.
The good news for the Huskies is they have plenty of points of reference in dealing with that caliber of team at this point in the tournament. The only question is if they’ll have 40 more minutes together or if they’re set to make last season’s early exit look like an even greater aberration than it was at the time.
“We’ve got a great locker room. I don’t bring anyone into the circle or into the locker room that the player’s going to look at me and say, ‘Hey, who’s this guy?’ ” Hurley said. “The locker room is filled with great guys.”
Hurley certainly knows that to be the case after being through thick and thin with most of them during the most stressful games a college coach can have. Now all that’s left is to write one final chapter together and see just how far they can all keep putting off another emotional ending.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as UConn Thought Its Run Was Over a Year Ago. Turns Out, It Was Just Beginning..
