Two teams led by college basketball’s all-time great coaches, Dan Hurley and Tom Izzo, met in an exciting Sweet 16 matchup that went down to the final moments, as UConn secured a 67-63 victory over Michigan State to reach the Elite Eight.
Despite the Huskies and Spartans trading leads in the second half, Taris Reed Jr. came up with two clutch free throws down the stretch to extend his team’s lead for good with just four seconds remaining on the clock. Reed had an overall strong performance with 20 points, five rebounds, four assists, two blocks, and a steal to help fuel the Huskies’ win.
However, UConn also received key contributions from Alex Karaban with 17 points and seven rebounds, and Solo Ball, who seemingly found his shot, scoring 12 points, including two three-pointers.
Overall, the Huskies shot 46 percent for the game and had 20 assists, along with six blocks and eight steals in a solid, hard-fought win.
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Immediately after the final buzzer sounded, cameras captured Dan Hurley and Tom Izzo, who met on the sidelines to have a postgame moment.
Hurley and Izzo shook hands and hugged in a heartfelt exchange. Hurley also cupped a hand over his mouth to make some comments to Izzo, who patted his hand on Hurley’s back several times as a nice gesture.
The cameras then moved to show Hurley’s father, Dan Hurley Sr., in the crowd along with Hurley’s mother. They were among the many UConn supporters, who also included Bill Murray, father of UConn assistant Luke Murray, who was recently named the new head coach at Boston College.
As coach Hurley admitted after the game, he wasn’t sure that his team was tougher than the Spartans, but they made a few more shots to get the win. He also praised his veteran leader, Alex Karaban, as someone who deserved to be talked about much more as one of the great winners in college basketball.
The commentators mentioned that UConn now has 17 straight wins in the Sweet 16 or later, extending back to their previous championship runs. Last postseason, their tournament ended with a close loss to the eventual champion, the Florida Gators, in the second round.
Next up for UConn is another challenging matchup: the No. 1 overall team in the tournament, the Duke Blue Devils. Jon Scheyer’s bunch, led by Cameron Boozer, defeated St. John’s in an earlier Sweet 16 game to get one step closer to the Final Four and an NCAA Championship.
Meanwhile, Hurley is once again showing why he’s one of the great minds in college basketball, as he’s managed to defy expectations once again. Multiple individuals predicted that UConn would fall to UCLA and then to Michigan State.
Duke will certainly bring a tougher task, but Hurley has mentioned his respect for the other great coaches in the game, including his friend Izzo, whom he will surely text or call after their emotions have settled down from tonight’s battle.
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