UConn Chasing History in March Madness Title Game vs. San Diego State

When the UConn Huskies take the court in the NCAA Basketball Tournament Title Game against San Diego State, they’ll have a chance to make history. 

UConn romps their way to the #NationalChampionship with yet another double digit win, covering 5.5 comfortably pic.twitter.com/zLQDb5Mhf4

— BetOnline (@BetOnline_ag) April 2, 2023

UConn is one win away from claiming its fifth national championship in men’s basketball since 1999. Only UCLA (11), Kentucky (8) and North Carolina (6) would be able to claim more; the Huskies would be in a tie for fourth with Duke and Indiana. 

Part of the Blue Blood discussion

When Jim Calhoun won his first national championship with UConn in 1999, not only had the blue-bloods club been established but UCLA (1995), North Carolina (1993), Duke (1991, 1992) and Kentucky (1996, 1998) had combined to win six of the previous eight national titles.

Since 1999, however, UConn has won four national titles and is chasing its fifth. Five national titles since 1999 is two more than any one of those schools — Duke (3), North Carolina (3), Kentucky (1), UCLA (0) — in that span. The idea of 1999 sounded futuristic once, and then still felt recent, but here in 2023 it’s becoming a fair starting point for modern history era of college basketball. In that era, UConn is not only a blue blood, but perhaps the most dominant of them all.

Even Coach K agrees:

Things I wasn't expecting to see today… Coach K talking about why UConn is a blue blood and how Jim Calhoun might be the greatest program builder of all time. Just out with Colin Cowherd. pic.twitter.com/dcO1Y6cz81

— Jared Kotler (@JaredKotler) April 2, 2023

UConn is one win away from claiming its fifth national championship in men’s basketball since 1999. Only UCLA (11), Kentucky (8) and North Carolina (6) would be able to claim more; the Huskies would be in a tie for fourth with Duke and Indiana.

Sweet 16-0 vs. non-conference opposition

They’ve been the best team in the tournament as evidenced by five consecutive double-digit victories. As impressive as that accomplishment is, it’s dwarfed by what the Huskies have accomplished this year against teams not from the Big East. They are 16-0 against out of conference teams this season and have won all of those games by double digits, with an average winning margin of 24.7.

With the 13-point victory over Miami on Saturday, UConn is the fifth team to win five games in the Big Dance by 13-plus points in the same tournament. And among teams that made the title game by winning all five previous matchups purely by double digits, four of the five went on to win the national title (Michigan State in 2000, Duke in 2001, North Carolina in 2009, and Villanova in 2018).

Suffocating defense has kept opponents in check

In the Elite Eight Gonzaga, which was averaging over 80 points per game, was held to a season-low 54 points by the Huskies. Now Miami exits Houston after scoring a season-worst 59. One of the best shooting teams and most efficient offenses was cut down and knocked out.

So here’s UConn, a team that’s beaten Iona by 24 and Saint Mary’s by 15 and Arkansas by 23 and Gonzaga by 28 and Miami by 13 and who knows what damage they might inflict on San Diego State on Monday night.