UConn Hoops: Huskies win BET, escape slog against Marquette
Just over one year ago, the UConn men’s basketball team walked off the Madison Square garden floor heartbroken. Sophomore guard Jordan Hawkins missed a three pointer that would have won the Huskies their semifinal game against Marquette, finishing off a loss that irritated Connecticut coach Dan Hurley into the offseason. After all, it was their final defeat before they ripped off six straight to win the National Championship.
On Saturday, the Huskies had an opportunity to avenge the loss, playing the same Golden Eagles team, this time for the Big East tournament championship. The start of the game was a brutal watch, with points coming at a premium. As the scoring began to trickle in, UConn had more gas in the tank, pulling away with a 73-56 victory.
“It felt amazing,” forward Alex Karaban said of avenging last year’s defeat. “ It’s always a motivating factor, with the amount of pain they caused us from last year. Carrying it into the offseason was super important for us. We have a lot of respect for Marquette, they’re going to do big things in March Madness. Just great being able to beat a quality team, in the finals especially.”
Hurley also spoke highly of the Golden Eagles and was thrilled with his team’s effort.
“It was a privilege to play Marquette,” Hurley noted postgame. “I say that a lot. But I think those are two championship programs on the court. I think we mirror each other in so many ways. I've just got so much respect for [head coach] Shaka [Smart]. I've got so much respect for their team and the way they go about their program. I don't hear them tampering with players in the portal. It's a privilege to play against them. Classy program, championship program, and awesome, classy fans.”
The tournament’s Most Outstanding Player was well-deserving of the award, scoring 13 points and dishing 10 assists. That player was Tristen Newton, the fifth year guard who continues to prove why he deserves to be an All-American. His shot was not as accurate as it often is, but he did what the team needed to at the right times. Newton played incredible basketball all weekend, but his mark of the most assists in a BET Final game since Pearl Washington in 1986 may have been the most impressive.
While Newton was the tournament’s MOP, Donovan Clingan had a more dominant outing against Marquette. He was electric throughout the final three quarters of competition, finishing with 22 points and 16 rebounds on 8-11 shooting from the charity stripe. These numbers are the BET finals’ best point/rebound combination since Patrick Ewing in the early 1980s. It was a special game from the center in particular, as the cherry on the top of his case to be in the NBA draft lottery.
“To have my name against someone who's a legend really in basketball–in college basketball and even at the next level–means a lot,” Clingan mentioned of the comparison to Ewing. “But I try not to let that stuff really get to my head. I'm just out here trying to help my team win any way possible, and tonight I realized I had to attack the glass as best I can. And I was just trying to be as strong as I can and finish the contact. And like I said, knocking down my free throws definitely helped me.”
After jokingly telling Clingan to not listen to what he was going to say about him to make sure nothing got to his head, Hurley shared immensely high praise.
“Obviously he's going to be a lottery pick coming up here in the very near future, but he never makes it about himself,” Hurley said. “He's just about the team. He's got an incredible personality…But this guy right here, Donovan, he's one of the two or three most impactful players in college basketball. If your eyes don't–if you don't see that with your eyes, then look at the analytics.”
This contest was not easy on the eyes from the very start, with neither team able to do much in the scoring department. Difficulties scoring is nothing new for the Huskies, who had been jumped from the start in each of their previous three games, but never had the game been this hideous.
After 7:30 of action, the only bucket for either team had come from an Oso Ighodaro and UConn’s efforts were fruitless. Stephon Castle led UConn’s strong defensive effort, but the lack of points was also a product of players missing open looks.
The ball slowly began to find its way into the hoop over the final portion of the half, with Clingan spearheading the effort. Both sides went back and forth, with Newton ultimately using a pretty stepback jumper to steal the lead heading into the locker room.
Scoring continued to flow throughout the early portion of the second half, but nobody could find an edge. Kam Jones twice took the lead with a three and a layup, as the Huskies answered each time.
A David Joplin jumper made it a two point game, but then came the Connecticut run everyone had been waiting for. Stewart drilled a corner three and Newton followed with one of his own. Clingan muscled his way in for a layup, which Stewart followed by banking in a shot from distance.
Stewart was phenomenal in his role against the Golden Eagles, scoring three treys in the run that ultimately ended up winning them the contest. His 17 points across the past two nights has been invaluable for Connecticut, giving them a ton of energy with his fresh legs and showing his star-potential for next year.
“We see on a daily basis what he displayed out there on the court,” Hurley noted of his freshman forward. “He built on yesterday's performance. He came in with a lot of confidence. He's a guy that, like a number of our freshmen, if they wait their turn, there's going to be some turnover from this year's team…He's a future star. You're looking at a future star at UConn.”
“I think it was just a buildup of giving good minutes to my team the past two games,” Stewart mentioned. “I feel like going into today, I had a bit of a rhythm, so my job was easy.”
And as for the bank three? That was no sure thing
“Honestly I didn’t think it was going in at all,” Stewart said with a laugh.
Newton added another deuce and Hassan Diarra canned one from the wing. This 19-5 run proved to be too much for the Golden Eagles to handle, as they went back to Wisconsin empty handed.
The Huskies finished the Big East campaign 21-2 overall, sweeping both the conference’s trophies. All that’s left to do is wait and see if the committee tabs them as the tournament’s top team on Selection Sunday. Their 31-3 mark and resume gives UConn as good a shot as any squad. Their likely location for the first weekend is Brooklyn, NY, but we’ll know for sure at 6 p.m. Sunday.
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