Uconn are back to back National Champions for the first time since Florida did it 2007-2008. Being one of the most dominant teams in tournament history. In a tournament with nail biting games, amazing comeback , and Cinderella runs. Here are some the best games from each round.
Round of 64
In the game between 14th seed Oakland and 3rd seed Kentucky, Oaklands sharp-shooter Jack Gohlke exploded for 32 points only shooting three pointers going 10-20, and had help from forward Trey Townsends 17 points and 12 rebound. Helping Oakland get their first ever march madness win.
The 7-10 matchup between Dayton and Nevada looked like it was going to be a blow out with Nevada being up 17 with 7 minutes left, but Dayton would go on a 17-0 run in five minutes with Dayton making 4 threes in that time, and Kobe Brea making three of them. Dayton would go on to win 63-60
Round of 32
The game between 1st seed Houston and 9th seed Texas A&M was like a lot of games with it being close in the first half, and with 1:52 left it seemed like Houston was going to advance to the sweet 16. Texas A&M would make it a three point game with 1.2 seconds and Texas A&M getting the ball, Andersson Garcia make a three pointer as time expired to send the game to overtime. But Houston’s best player Jamal Shead took over in overtime helping get the win 100-95.
3rd seed Creighton vs 11th seed was a very thrilling game with 21 lead changes and 14 ties. It was close for the whole game, N’Faly Dante was fouled up two with 26 seconds left. He missed both shots giving Creighton a chance to either tie or win the game. Baylor Scheierman made a shot with nine seconds left to tie. In overtime it continued being a very intense game. Creighton missed a shot as time expired and it went into second overtime. In 2OT it was all Creighton, with them going on 15-2 run to win the game 86-71.
Sweet 16
In the game between 1st seed Houston and 4th seed Duke. Houston lost their best player Jamal Shead to an injury early in the game and Duke didn’t look back taking an early lead and holding on to it, but Houston did come close to taking the lead but without Shead they couldn’t find a reliable scoring target. Duke would win 54-51 with veteran help from Jeremy Roach and Kyle Filipowski.
In a game 1st UNC with one of the best defenses in the country and 4th seed Alabama one the best offense in the country. The first half was really close with seven lead changes and the score was 54-46 with UNC winning. In the second half both offenses couldn’t be stopped, but UNC kept their lead despite Alabama keeping close. With four minutes left in the game Alabama took the lead for the first time in seven minutes. UNC quickly fired back stopping Alabama on defense and looking dominant on offense. UNC took the lead back with two minutes left and would hold until 38 seconds left when Alabama forward Grant Nelson made a lay up and drew the foul. Alabama held on to win 89-97 and advanced to their first Elite Eight since 2004.
Elite Eight
Defending national champs Uconn and Illinois were tied 23-23 at half time, but opening the second half UConn went on a 30-0 run winning 77-52. 11th seed NC State continued their Cinderella run beating Duke 76-64 going to their first Final Four in 41 years. Alabama beat Clemson 89-82 advancing to their first ever Final Four. Purdue led by Zach Edeys 40 points and 16 rebounds beat Tennessee 72-66 making it to the Final Four a year after being beaten by 16th seed FDU.
Final Four
UConn beat Alabama in the semi-final, and Purdue beat NC State in the other semi-final ending their Cinerella run. Making it a Uconn vs Purdue for the National Championship. The first half was very close with it tied most of it, but Uconn went on a late run taking the lead 36-30. In the second half Uconn didn’t look back, with Zach Edey being no match for Uconn big man Donovan Clingan. Purdue struggled offensively with Edey struggling when Clingan was on him Uconn would win 75-60. Making Uconn back to back National Champions.
Uconn finished with +140 point differential the highest in a March Madness tournament, and beat their opponents by an average of 23.3 points per game. They won all their games in the tournament by at least 13 points going all the back to last year’s tournament making them one of the most dominant teams of all time.
