UConn beats Purdue and cruises to sixth NCAA championship

GLENDALE, Ariz. — On paper, the plan wasn’t working.

Zach Edey had 14 factors, the reigning Wood Award winner was speaking trash to Dan Hurley and the UConn bench, and Purdue led the Huskies with 8 minutes left within the first half.

UConn had elected to protect Edey one-on-one with Donovan Clingan, primarily permitting him to attain at will, whereas focusing most of their defensive consideration on the Boilermakers’ different gamers. Edey was dominating UConn’s projected lottery decide middle like no one else had all season.

However UConn, because it has executed constantly over the previous two years, stayed the course and trusted its recreation plan. Edey could not beat the Huskies by himself, and his teammates weren’t doing a lot to assist.

The floodgates opened for UConn within the second half, and the Huskies finally beat Purdue 75-60, profitable their second straight males’s nationwide championship and turning into the primary crew to go back-to-back since Florida in 2006 and 2007.

“What may you say?” UConn coach Dan Hurley mentioned. “We received — by lots once more.”

And after one of the crucial dominant NCAA event runs in historical past final 12 months, when UConn beat its six opponents by 20.0 factors per recreation, it was much more unbeatable this 12 months. The Huskies’ common scoring margin of their six 2024 NCAA event wins was 23.3 factors.

As soon as once more, all six wins got here by double digits — making that 12 straight NCAA event wins by no less than 10 factors relationship again to final season.

“I feel it is up there when it comes to the best two-year runs {that a} program perhaps has ever had,” Hurley mentioned. “I simply assume it is the very best two-year run I feel in a really, very very long time simply due to all the pieces we misplaced from final 12 months’s crew. To lose that a lot, and once more, to do what we did once more, it is received to be as spectacular a two-year run as a program’s had since previous to whoever did it earlier than Duke. To me, it is extra spectacular than what Florida and Duke did as a result of they introduced again their complete groups. We misplaced some main gamers.”

Purdue was anticipated to be UConn’s most troublesome take a look at in two years. The Boilermakers have been arguably the second-best crew within the nation all season, boasted the very best participant within the faculty basketball and have been a related group that additionally occurred to be the second-best 3-point capturing crew within the nation.

The numbers supported the Huskies’ choice to focus most of their defensive effort on Purdue’s complementary gamers. In Purdue’s wins this season, Edey averaged 24.9 factors. In Purdue’s losses, Edey averaged 25.0 factors. The 7-foot-4 middle was going to get his manufacturing regardless.

Because of this, the much-anticipated matchup between Edey and Clingan was one-sided within the early minutes of the sport. Edey short-armed his first shot over Clingan, hitting the entrance rim. For the following 11 minutes, although, he did no matter he needed in opposition to UConn’s massive man. He scored over Clingan, absorbed contact to complete via Clingan, and even caught a lob and dunked in opposition to Clingan.

Purdue was getting Edey the ball in good place, and he was scoring constantly.

After he scored his thirteenth and 14th factors with 8:07 left within the first half to present Purdue a 2-point lead, he regarded over on the UConn bench and exchanged a couple of phrases with Hurley as the 2 groups jogged again to their respective huddles on the media timeout.

“I received a pair appears,” joked Huskies assistant coach Luke Murray, who was assigned to scout and plan for Purdue in preparation for Monday’s recreation.

“Their offensive effectivity numbers actually do not fluctuate that a lot relying on whether or not he is actually good or nice or glorious. The place it actually begins to alter is when [Fletcher] Loyer, [Braden] Smith and [Lance] Jones and [Mason] Gillis and people guys make 3s. … We felt if Zach had an amazing recreation and we did an amazing job of holding these different guys in verify, that we might have a extremely good shot to win.”

After Edey’s opening salvo, although, he struggled for a protracted stretch, and Purdue could not sustain with the Huskies. He made only one subject purpose within the subsequent 14:28 as UConn turned a 2-point deficit right into a 9-point lead.

UConn tasked freshman Stephon Citadel, who had beforehand helped shut down Northwestern’s Boo Buie and Illinois’ Terrence Shannon Jr. earlier within the event, with pressuring Purdue level guard Smith, whereas veteran guards Tristen Newton and Cam Spencer regarded to maintain Purdue’s perimeter gamers from getting clear appears.

The Boilermakers tried simply two 3-pointers within the first half and 7 within the recreation, with the lone made 3 coming when Smith needed to put up a desperation jumper with the shot clock winding down within the first half.

“We watched the movie,” Newton mentioned. “They get their 3-pointers off, individuals taking place there and serving to on Edey. They did an amazing job recreation planning and made certain it was a spotlight that we did not go away the 3-point line and let Edey do his harm. He solely shoots 2s. He would not shoot 3s. If he makes 15 2s like he did in the present day, that is 30. The place are the remainder of the factors going to come back from?”

“I simply assume it is the very best two-year run I feel in a really, very very long time simply due to all the pieces we misplaced from final 12 months’s crew. To lose that a lot, and once more, to do what we did once more, it is received to be as spectacular a two-year run as a program’s had since previous to whoever did it earlier than Duke. To me, it is extra spectacular than what Florida and Duke did as a result of they introduced again their complete groups. We misplaced some main gamers.”

UConn coach Dan Hurley

“The coaches made some extent that we might be actually locked in if we may management their 3-point makes an attempt,” Spencer added. “I feel holding them to seven, we have been simply actually locked in on not letting these different guys become involved within the recreation.”

Purdue briefly threatened UConn early within the second half, when Camden Heide had an aggressive put-back dunk to chop the result in seven and when Edey scored 4 straight factors to chop the result in 9. However the Huskies consistently countered with key photographs when it mattered and led by double-digits for practically quarter-hour within the second half.

They grew to become the third crew to win a number of title video games by 15-plus factors and simply the second crew to do it in consecutive years, becoming a member of UCLA’s three-year run from 1967 to 1969, in line with ESPN Stats & Info analysis.

“To win [by] double digits these previous two years, it is only a tribute to our tradition right here,” ahead Alex Karaban mentioned. “We’re by no means happy. We’re at all times hungry. We’re at all times going to go on runs and we’re at all times going to proceed to play arduous to the place we’ll break the opposite crew. No crew practices like us, no crew goes as arduous as us. It confirmed within the second half.”

Newton received the NCAA event’s Most Excellent Participant award after ending with 20 factors, 5 rebounds and seven assists — the second time he has been UConn’s finest participant within the championship recreation. Within the 2023 title recreation win over San Diego State, Newton went for 19 factors, 10 rebounds and 4 assists.

Citadel continued his stellar postseason, ending with 15 factors and 5 rebounds after tallying 21 factors and 5 rebounds in opposition to Alabama within the semifinals.

Edey had 37 factors for probably the most factors scored in a shedding effort within the nationwide championship recreation.

Whereas final 12 months’s fifth championship seemingly settled the controversy round UConn’s blue-blood standing, going back-to-back for the Huskies’ sixth title in 26 years places this system in actually rarified air. Solely six different colleges have produced back-to-back males’s basketball champions, and UConn is now tied for third all time with six championships.

“We will attempt to replicate it once more. We will preserve a championship tradition,” Hurley mentioned.

“I do not assume that we’re going anyplace.”