After recognizing the path ahead in UConn’s pursuit of a third consecutive national title, coach Dan Hurley was determined not to repeat his previous mistake.
The last time the Huskies lost in the NCAA Tournament, they hadn’t recovered from a loss in the Big East tournament semifinals. Hurley and his staff tried to address the mistakes while moving on, but UConn ended up losing their 2022 NCAA opener to New Mexico.
The Huskies have won their last 12 games in the NCAA Tournament, putting them in a position to secure a threepeat, a feat not done since the early 1970s by UCLA. The loss to Creighton in this year’s Big East semifinals is now forgotten.
“I am not going to make the same mistake I did in ’22 when I let it linger too long,” Hurley said. “We didn’t do that.”
UConn will begin this year’s tournament against Oklahoma on Friday night in Raleigh. North Carolina, which had a difficult season that included a three-game losing streak at the Maui Invitational and no Big East titles, had a rough year. A team that started the season ranked No. 3 in the AP Top 25 eventually dropped out of the poll, and it was clear that having continued success would be tough for a team that returned only one starter.
Even though the journey was challenging, the process remained the same
“(A third straight national title) is something that quite honestly, early in the year, it was something that was talked about around here,” Hurley said. “With the way that we played to this point, it is not something we are talking about. Right now, let’s just get our best performance together and lock in on Oklahoma.”
If UConn and Florida meet in the second round, there will be many references to the Gators, who were the last team to win back-to-back national titles (2006-07) before UConn. For now, the team is fully focused on Oklahoma.
“It is March and you want to play your best basketball as a team and individually. I am trying to do everything in my power to help this team win,” said UConn forward Alex Karaban, the only returning starter.
Karaban, Hassan Diarra, and Samson Johnson are the only players who were part of the last two national championship teams. The three of them got together to talk after a surprising loss to Seton Hall and a home defeat to Creighton. They had moments of self-reflection, discussing what they could do to help the Huskies get back on track for another national title run.
“We haven’t had the year as a team that we wanted and we lost some games that we wish we could have back,” Karaban said. “We’ve learned a lot together and we are all going through this as one unit. We are embracing the struggles and everything that has come with it.”
Alex Karban in the 1st halfIt wasn’t easy to play without star freshman Liam McNeeley for eight games or to miss Karaban for two others. Diarra also struggled with an ankle injury for many late-season games. However, all three say they are now healthy.
“We are holding up great,” UConn sophomore guard Solo Ball said. “Having a tight-knit locker room helps a lot. When you have someone to go to on the team, those situations where you can go and talk to a teammate or a peer helps so much.”
That was especially clear in a win over Marquette on March 5, when Karaban made a 3-pointer in the final minute, helping the Huskies earn their fifth win of the season against a ranked team.
“This year is different because we are still juggling a rotation and still trying to shore up some major vulnerabilities as a team,” Hurley said. “The last two years we were just trying to keep our team sharp and confident. We were excellent at both ends of the court. We were deep, and we knew who was playing when.”
“Now, we are still searching a little bit. We are still trying to find a better version of ourselves. We are trying to play a complete game. We are still looking for production and minutes at critical spots.”
UConn is a No. 8 seed in the West Region. The Huskies have won national titles as the West Regional champion before, and not all of their six previous national titles began with the Huskies as the pre-tournament favorite.
“We are all in it together because I don’t think any of us coaches or players feel right now that if any of us walked away if the season ended now and be happy with the year that we had,” Hurley said. “We are a group of people who are together in this.”
