Matchup sparks memories
When UConn, Maryland last met in tourney it was Butler’s farewell
INDIANAPOLIS — The last time UConn and Maryland played in the NCAA Tournament, it was at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, of all places, and it was an unforgettable end to the college career of one of the Huskies’ greats.
It was in the 2002 East Regional final, the Elite Eight ... next step would be another Final Four for UConn.
“It was a great, great game,” former UConn coach Jim Calhoun said. “Five or six pros on the court. A lot of people who saw it still say it was one of the better games they’ve seen. Both teams could smell a national championship. One thing I remember, when it was over, I was just exhausted, it was one of those games you thought you were going to win.”
Maryland prevailed, 90-82. The current Huskies and Terrapins meet in the NCAA’s Round of 64 on Saturday at 7:10 p.m. at the Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind., where the Huskies, including R.J. Cole, recovering from his concussion, got in a full practice on Thursday.
Back on March 24, 2002, Caron Butler, having played two years of prep school in Maine before coming to UConn, was at the point where his draft stock couldn’t have been higher. But before his second and final UConn season came to an end, he left a calling card before he would become the NBA’s 10th overall pick soon after.
“We had a really good team,” Calhoun said, “Caron, and we had a couple of young guys named Ben [Gordon] and Emeka [Okafor].”
Taliek Brown, now on Dan Hurley’s staff, and Tony Robertson were there, too. TomMoore was an assistant on Calhoun’s staff then, Hurley’s today. UConnwent27-7, including 13-3 in the original Big East, winning the conference tournament. In the NCAA Tournament, the Huskies were the No. 2 seed in
the East, and beat Hampton, NC State and Southern Illinois to get their shot against No. 1 Maryland. There were 29,000 in the Carrier Dome, and Calhoun remembers sending a letter to express how great the fans in Syracuse treated the rival Huskies.
Maryland had more experience, and got Butler into firsthalf foul trouble, limiting him to six points and built a 44-37 lead. “I remember saying, the halves are too long in college basketball,” Calhoun said. “They spent 20 minutes beating the heck out of Caron.”
The second half was nearly too long for the Terrapins. Butler dominated, scoring 26 points, to finish with 32, seven rebounds and four assists. UConn was within three when Steve Blake hit a killer 3-pointer with 25.4 seconds left. LonnyBaxterscored29,JuanDixon 27 for Maryland, which went on to the Final Four in Atlanta and won the national championship.
“Caron had so many great moments,” Calhoun said. “He had a tremendous second half and when it was over, I just hugged him. I told him, ‘I knew you would respond,” or something of that nature. A short time later, I told him, ‘You’ve got to go. You’re going to make a lot of money. I don’t want you to go, but it’s time.”
Butler, 41, went on to a long, distinguished NBA career and is now an assistant coach with the Miami Heat.
“That was probably the highest-level NCAA Tournament game I was ever a part of,” former Maryland coach Gary Williams said this week on the Al Galdi podcast. “I mean, we held Caron Butler to 26 in the second half. … and we were
Cole practices
Mackey Arena, at Pudue, is about 70 miles from Indianapolis, where the Huskies are staying. They made the trip there Thursday to get their practice in at the game site.
Cole, who sustained a concussion last Friday in the Big East semifinal, was cleared to practice Thursday. The first contact practice was considered the final phase of his concussion protocol, and was to be evaluated afterward.
“R.J. is like the head of the horse,” James Bouknight said. “He’s everything to us. He brings so much emotion to the game. His passion, energy, everything about R.J., he’s our team.”
Cole’s importance is even greater against a team like Maryland, that plays extra guards.
“He’s huge for us,” Isaiah Whaley said. “He brings toughness on defensive end, and whenever there pressure on Bouk, he takes load off on offensive and he shares the ball.”