UConn, Hartford men join the dance

UConn men’s basketball players, coaches and fans had been waiting for what felt like forever.

University of Hartford players, coaches and fans had been waiting forever.

The long waits ended for both

Sunday night when the NCAATournament’s field of 68 was announced.

UConn, watching the Selection Show from its hotel in New York, earned a No. 7 seed in the East Region and will play No. 10 Maryland on Saturday in the first round in Indianapolis (time and arena to be announced). It will be the Huskies’ first trip to the tournament since 2016, after which a program with four national championships fell on difficult times.

“UConn is built for March, this is where we belong,” said sophomore James Bouknight,

the Huskies’ top player. “This is us. This is our identity. This is when we should thrive. This is our time of year.”

With a win, the Huskies would play the winner of Alabama-Iona in the second round. Michigan is the top seed in the region. UConn fell from its fourth national title in 2014 to three consecutive losing seasons before starting its new ascent under Dan Hurley, hired in March 2018.

“I love these rebuilds,” said Hurley, who took Rhode Island to the NCAA Tournament before coming to UConn. “I love these type of jobs in coaching, rebuilding a program. It’s very gratifying to think of where we were a couple of years ago.”

Hartford, which moved from Division II to Division I in 1984, has been working and building and falling short for decades. The Hawks broke through to win the America East title Saturday, flew to Indianapolis, quarantined all day and then gathered to watch the Selection Show.

The Hawks are a No. 16 seed in the South Region and will play No. 1 seed Baylor on Friday.

“We’re going to have our hands full [with Baylor],” coach John Gallagher said. “But it’s a great opportunity. ... Wehave to prepare like we normally prepare, and we have to do what Hartford does. I expect us on Friday to have a great game plan.”

All the games will be played in Indiana, nearly all in Indianapolis with some first-round games in Bloomington and West Lafayette.