Huskies roll by Illinois and back to the Final Four
Boston — In a flash, UConn turned a tight NCAA tournament East regional final game into a wildly impressive blowout on Saturday night.
The top-seeded Huskies were stunningly good to start the second half.
Their crazy run kept growing and growing, reaching 25-0.
All No. 3 Illinois could do was helplessly watch.
UConn is heading to the program's seventh Final Four after posting a convincing 77-52 victory at TD Garden.
The Huskies (35-3) set an NCAA tournament record with their 10th straight postseason win by double digits and established a school mark for most victories in a season.
There was no stopping the UConn juggernaut on Saturday.
The Huskies received a monster game from sophomore center Donovan Clingan, the East regional's most valuable player. He had 22 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks.
Veteran Cam Spencer chipped in 11 points and a career-best 12 rebounds and redshirt sophomore Alex Karaban had 10 points. Senior Hassan Diarra (10 points) and junior Samson Johnson (10) made valuable contributions off the bench.
Spencer and freshman Stephon Castle also made the all regional team
UConn's stingy defense was the big story, as it limited Illinois (29-9), a talented Big Ten team, to an icy 25.4% from the field. Star guard Terrence Shannon, Jr., had just eight points on 2 for 12 shooting after averaging 28.3 points in the previous three tournament games.
The Huskies will head to Phoenix, the site of the Final Four, and play the winner of Saturday's late game between No. 4 Alabama and No. 6 Clemson. It is the first time the program will go to consecutive Final Fours.
UConn closed the first half with a 5-0 run to seize the lead for good.
And then the Huskies really took off.
Clingan was everywhere, dominating on both ends of the court. He spun around a defender and emphatically dunked the ball, forcing Illinois to call a timeout at the 17:09 mark with UConn leading 35-23.
The Huskies kept their foot on the gas. Their defense forced Illinois to miss its first 14 shots.
Diarra's fast break basket pushed the gap to 53-23 and capped a 25-0 spurt and 30 straight points since the game was tied at 23-all at the 1:48 mark of the first half.
It was UConn's longest run since 1990 when it scored the first 32
points to start the game against New Hampshire.
The Huskies clearly enjoyed themselves.
Heading into a timeout with 3:33 left, coach Dan Hurley stepped toward center court and wildly waved his arms, encouraging the throngs of UConn fans in attendance.
Hurley emptied his bench.
Once the buzzer sounded, UConn prepared to cut down the nets for the second straight year. The Huskies are the first reigning national champions to reach the Final Four since Florida in 2007. They've won five straight Elite Eight games.
A shootout between the two top rated offensive teams in the country never materialized in the first half. The game started out more tractor pull than track meet.
UConn never trailed in the first half and led by as many as eight but never looked comfortable on the way to a 28-23 halftime advantage.
At the start, UConn's game plan clearly centered around the 7-foot-2 Clingan, who scored the game's first seven points and helped his team take a 9-0 lead.
Illinois, on the other hand, struggled to find open shots against a stingy defense that allowed just 54 points per game in the first three tournament games.
A deep freeze set in for both teams.
The Huskies continued a recent trend of struggling from the perimeter. They missed their first 10 3-point shots after sinking just 30.6% in the previous three games.
With Clingan on the bench, Illinois closed an eight-point gap to two (15-13), riding the hot hand of veteran guard Marcus Domask, who had nine early points and 15 by the break.
UConn's best perimeter defender Castle played only 12 minutes due to foul trouble.
UConn's torrid offense was nowhere in sight.
While searching for their potent offense, the Huskies dug in on defense, limiting the Fighting Illini to a 5 for 23 start. Clingan protected the rim, blocking and altering shots.
After scoring just one field goal in a 5:14 span, UConn converted back to back baskets. Diarra finished off a feed from Spencer and Clingan powered inside.
UConn closed the half with a 5-0 spurt. Diarra's 3-pointer – UConn's first of the game – put the Huskies ahead. Then Newton hit two free throws.
Diarra provided a huge lift off the bench, scoring seven points. His contribution was desperately needed considering starters Karaban, Castle and Tristen Newton went a combined 0 for 13 from the field and had just four points.