UConn Huskies men's basketball


The UConn Huskies men's basketball program is the intercollegiate men's basketball team of the University of Connecticut, in Storrs, Connecticut. They currently play in the Big East Conference and are coached by Dan Hurley.
The Huskies have won 4 NCAA Tournament Championships, which puts the program at sixth-most all-time. The Huskies are tied for the most Big East Tournament Championships with Georgetown at seven each. The Huskies also have the most Big East regular season titles with ten and one American Athletic Conference Tournament Championship. Numerous players have gone on to achieve professional success after their time at UConn, including Clifford Robinson, Ray Allen, Richard Hamilton, Kemba Walker, Ben Gordon, Emeka Okafor, Caron Butler, Jeremy Lamb, Andre Drummond, Shabazz Napier, and Rudy Gay. The Huskies have participated in 5 NCAA Final Fours and appeared in the NCAA tournament 33 times. The team has been a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament 5 times, most recently in 2009.

History

Early history

Men's basketball at UConn began in 1901 with a single game played by Connecticut Agricultural College against Windham High School in January of that year. The college team won, and by 1903 basketball was a varsity sport.

Hugh Greer era

After graduating from the Connecticut Agricultural College, former player Hugh Greer returned to his alma mater as a freshman coach. He was later named head coach of the Huskies six games into the 1946–47 season. Greer led Connecticut to a perfect 12–0 mark for the remainder of his first season. Posting a record of 16–2, this was the best single season finish in school history to that point. UConn won 12 Yankee Conference titles under Greer in 16 completed seasons, including ten consecutive titles from 1951 to 1960. Greer also led UConn to its first seven NCAA berths and one NIT appearance while compiling an overall head coaching record of 286–112. Greer died of a heart attack in 1963, ten games into the 1962–63 season. He was replaced by assistant George Wigton, who led them to the Elite Eight. UConn men's basketball was a regional power under Greer, winning 12 Yankee Conference titles, including 10 in a row from 1950 to 1960.

Jim Calhoun era

Throughout the 1960s and 70s, Connecticut remained a regional power, winning an additional six Yankee Conference titles before the conference dropped basketball in 1975 and earning multiple NCAA tournament berths. In 1979, UConn became one of the seven founding schools of the Big East Conference, which was created to focus on basketball.
Prior to the 1986–87 season UConn hired Northeastern head coach Jim Calhoun to take over the program. Calhoun's first team finished the season with a record of 9–19. In 1988, the team showed significant improvement and gained a berth in the National Invitation Tournament. UConn went on a run in the tournament and defeated Ohio State 72–67 at Madison Square Garden to win the NIT, the school's first national basketball title.
The 1990 "Dream Season" would bring UConn basketball back to the national stage. Led by Chris Smith, Nadav Henefeld, Scott Burrell, Tate George, Rod Sellers and John Gwynn, UConn went from unranked in the preseason to winning the Big East Regular Season and Tournament Championships, both for the first time. 1990 also marked the opening of Gampel Pavilion, the program's new on-campus home. In the NCAA Tournament the Huskies garnered a #1 seed in the East Region, but trailed Clemson 70–69 with 1 second remaining in the Sweet 16. Burrell's full-court pass found Tate George on the far baseline. George spun, fired, and hit a buzzer-beater that is known in Connecticut simply as "The Shot". They would be eliminated on a buzzer-beater 2 days later by Duke, losing in overtime 79–78.
During the 1994-1995 campaign, the Huskies hosted Syracuse on ESPN. During an exciting stretch of the second half of that game, ESPN color commentator Dick Vitale claimed that Storrs, CT was the "basketball capital of the world" as both the men's and women's teams were having undefeated seasons so far. The Huskies beat Syracuse but then got blown out by Kansas in Kansas City on CBS.
UConn continued to rise as a national program throughout the 1990s, winning five more Big East Regular Season and three more Big East Tournament Championships, as well as reaching several regional finals. The Final Four still eluded Calhoun and the program until the 1999 NCAA Tournament. With Richard "Rip" Hamilton leading the way, they claimed the program's first national title that same year. Calhoun's teams would go on to win two more national championships during his tenure at UConn.
Calhoun was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005, and officially announced his retirement in September 2012.
After the breakup of the old Big East in 2013, UConn remained as a member of the American Athletic Conference, the legal successor to the original conference. It is therefore the only charter member of the original Big East still playing in that conference.

Kevin Ollie era

was hired as UConn's men's basketball coach shortly after Calhoun's retirement. Ollie played for Jim Calhoun from 1991 to 1995 and was a key player on those early 1990s Husky teams. During his first season, the Huskies record was 20–10. That year the Huskies were banned from postseason play by the NCAA because of a low APR score in 2010. In Ollie's second season, the team made the NCAA tournament. On March 30, 2014, Ollie became the first UConn coach other than Jim Calhoun to lead the Huskies to a Final Four. They won the Men's NCAA tournament on April 7, 2014, defeating the University of Kentucky 60–54. His team was the first #7 seed to ever win the NCAA tournament. Ollie led Connecticut to the American Athletic Conference tournament championship and another NCAA tournament appearance in 2015–16. The Huskies defeated Colorado 74–67 in the Second Round but were eliminated by the number one overall seed Kansas Jayhawks 73–61 in the third round of the tournament.
Kevin Ollie was fired for just cause related to an NCAA investigation of the program on March 10, 2018.

Dan Hurley era

Former Wagner College and Rhode Island head coach Dan Hurley was introduced by UConn on March 23, 2018 to be the next Head men's basketball coach following the firing of Kevin Ollie.

National Championships

1999 NCAA Title

The Huskies were the top seed in the West region, and a win over Gonzaga in the regional final sent UConn to Tropicana Field for the program's first Final Four appearance. They defeated Ohio State 64–58 in the semi-final to face off against Duke in the final. Despite having been ranked #1 for half of the year, the Huskies entered the national championship game as 9-point underdogs.
UConn won their first national title with a 77–74 victory. Richard Hamilton was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.

2004 NCAA Title

In 2004, the Huskies returned to the Final Four. Once again they faced Duke, this time in the National Semifinal, and used a late run to beat the Blue Devils 79–78. Two nights later, led by Emeka Okafor and Ben Gordon, Connecticut won their second national title with an 82–73 victory over Georgia Tech. Okafor was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
One day later the UConn women's basketball team also won a national title, making UConn the first and only school in NCAA Division I history to have its men's and women's basketball programs win a national championship in the same season.

2011 NCAA Title

The 2011 Huskies won 11 straight games in postseason play, the final six of which resulted in the program's third national championship. On April 4, 2011, they defeated the Butler Bulldogs, 53–41. UConn junior Kemba Walker was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
Many consider UConn's win in the Championship Game to be a great defensive performance, as the Huskies held Butler to only 18.8% shooting from the field and tied a title game record with ten blocked shots. An analysis by Sports Illustrated columnist Luke Winn credited the Huskies' defense by demonstrating, for instance, that they blocked or altered a staggering 26.6% of Butler's shots – compared to just 3.8 percent by Pittsburgh and 12.1 percent by VCU in earlier rounds. The 53 points scored by Connecticut was, in turn, the lowest point total by a winning team in a championship game since 1949.

2014 NCAA Title

In 2014 led by American Athletic Conference Player of the Year Shabazz Napier, UConn became the first #7 seed to win the NCAA Championship, getting past No. 1 seed Florida, No. 2 seed Villanova, No. 3 seed Iowa State, and No. 4 seed Michigan State, before defeating the Kentucky Wildcats 60–54 in the championship game in Arlington, Texas. UConn is undefeated in the state of Texas in the Final Four.
As in 2004, the UConn women's basketball team also won a national title, making UConn the first and only school in NCAA Division I history to have its men's and women's basketball programs win a national championship in the same season twice.

Postseason

NCAA tournament results

The Huskies have appeared in the NCAA Tournament 33 times. Their combined record is 59–30. They have been to five Final Fours and are four time National Champions.
YearSeedRoundOpponentResult
1951Sweet SixteenSt. John'sL 52–63
1954First RoundNavyL 80–85
1956First Round
Sweet Sixteen
Regional 3rd Place Game
Manhattan
Temple
Dartmouth
W 84–75
L 59–65
L 64–85
1957First RoundSyracuseL 76–82
1958First RoundDartmouthL 64–75
1959First RoundBoston UniversityL 58–60
1960First RoundNYUL 59–78
1963First RoundWest VirginiaL 71–77
1964First Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Temple
Princeton
Duke
W 53–48
W 52–50
L 54–101
1965First RoundSaint Joseph'sL 61–67
1967First RoundBoston CollegeL 42–48
1976First Round
Sweet Sixteen
Hofstra
Rutgers
W 80–79OT
L 79–93
1979#5Second Round#4 SyracuseL 81–89
1990#1First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
#16 Boston University
  1. 9 California
  2. 5 Clemson
  3. 3 Duke
W 76–52W 74–54
W 71–70
L 78–79OT
1991#11First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
#6 LSU
  1. 14 Xavier
  2. 2 Duke
W 79–62W 66–50
L 67–81
1992#9First Round
Second Round
#8 Nebraska
  1. 1 Ohio State
W 86–65L 55–78
1994#2First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
#15 Rider
  1. 10 George Washington
  2. 3 Florida
W 64–46W 75–63
L 60–69OT
1995#2First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
#15 Chattanooga
  1. 7 Cincinnati
  2. 3 Maryland
  3. 1 UCLA
W 100–71W 96–91
W 99–89
L 96–102
1996#1First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
#16 Colgate
  1. 9 Eastern Michigan
  2. 5 Mississippi State
W 68–59W 95–81
L 55–60
1998#2First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
#15 Fairleigh Dickinson
  1. 7 Indiana
  2. 11 Washington
  3. 1 North Carolina
W 93–85W 78–68
W 75–74
L 64–75
1999#1First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
National Championship
#16 UTSA
  1. 9 New Mexico
  2. 5 Iowa
  3. 10 Gonzaga
  4. 4 Ohio State
  5. 1 Duke
W 91–66W 78–56
W 78–68
W 67–62
W 64–58
W 77–74
2000#5First Round
Second Round
#12 Utah State
  1. 4 Tennessee
W 75–67L 51–65
2002#2First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
#15 Hampton
  1. 7 NC State
  2. 11 Southern Illinois
  3. 1 Maryland
W 78–67W 77–74
W 71–59
L 82–90
2003#5First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
#12 BYU
  1. 4 Stanford
  2. 1 Texas
W 58–53W 85–74
L 78–82
2004#2First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
National Championship
#15 Vermont
  1. 7 DePaul
  2. 6 Vanderbilt
  3. 8 Alabama
  4. 1 Duke
  5. 3 Georgia Tech
W 70–53W 72–55
W 73–53
W 87–71
W 79–78
W 82–73
2005#2First Round
Second Round
#15 UCF
  1. 10 NC State
W 77–71L 62–65
2006#1First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
#16 Albany
  1. 8 Kentucky
  2. 5 Washington
  3. 11 George Mason
W 72–59W 87–83
W 98–92OT
L 84–86OT
2008#4First Round#13 San DiegoL 69–70OT
2009#1First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
#16 Chattanooga
  1. 9 Texas A&M
  2. 5 Purdue
  3. 3 Missouri
  4. 2 Michigan State
W 103–47W 92–66
W 72–60
W 82–75
L 73–82
2011#3Second Round
Third Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
National Championship
#14 Bucknell
  1. 6 Cincinnati
  2. 2 San Diego State
  3. 5 Arizona
  4. 3 Kentucky
  5. 8 Butler
W 81–52W 69–58
W 74–67
W 65–63
W 56–55
W 53–41
2012#9Second Round#8 Iowa StateL 64–77
2014#7Second Round
Third Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
National Championship
#10 Saint Joseph's
  1. 2 Villanova
  2. 3 Iowa State
  3. 4 Michigan State
  4. 1 Florida
  5. 8 Kentucky
W 89–81OTW 77–65
W 81–76
W 60–54
W 63–53
W 60–54
2016#9First Round
Second Round
#8 Colorado
  1. 1 Kansas
W 74–67L 61–73

NCAA Tournament seeding history

The NCAA began seeding the tournament with the 1979 edition.
Year →'79'90'91'92'94'95'96'98'99'00'02'03'04'05'06'08'09'11'12'14'16
Seed →5111922121525221413979

NIT results

The Huskies have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament 13 times. Their combined record is 15–12. They were NIT champions in 1988.
YearRoundOpponentResults
1955First RoundSaint LouisL 103–110
1974First Round
Quarterfinals
St. John's
Boston College
W 82–70
L 75–76
1975First RoundSouth CarolinaL 61–71
1980First RoundSaint Peter'sL 56–71
1981First Round
Second Round
South Florida
Minnesota
W 66–55
L 66–84
1982First RoundDaytonL 75–76
1988First Round
Second Round
Quarterfials
Semifinals
Final
West Virginia
Louisiana Tech
VCU
Boston College
Ohio State
W 62–57
W 65–59
W 69–60
W 73–67
W 72–67
1989First Round
Second Round
Quarterfinals
Charlotte
California
UAB
W 67–62
W 73–72
L 79–85
1993First RoundJackson StateL 88–90
1997First Round
Second Round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
3rd Place Game
Iona
Bradley
Nebraska
Florida State
Arkansas
W 71–66
W 63–47
W 76–67
L 65–71
W 74–64
2001First Round
Second Round
South Carolina
Detroit
W 72–65
L 61–67
2010First Round
Second Round
Northeastern
Virginia Tech
W 59–57
L 63–65
2015First RoundArizona StateL 61–68

Coaches

The following is a list of Connecticut Huskies men's basketball head coaches. The Connecticut Huskies have had 18 coaches in their 116-season history. The team is currently coached by Dan Hurley.
TenureCoachYearsRecordPct.
1900–15No Coach1545–44.506
1915–19John F. Donahue411–23.324
1919–21M.R. Swartz214–14.500
1921–22J. Wilder Tasker215–5.750
1922–23Roy J. Guyer18–6.571
1923–27Sumner A. Dole439–25.609
1927–31Louis A. Alexander435–19.648
1931–36John J. Heldman, Jr.519–42.311
1935–36J. Orlean Christian 13–10.231
1936–45Don White994–59.614
1945–46Blair Gullion214–7.667
1946–63Hugh Greer17287–113.718
1963George Wigton 111–4.733
1963–67Fred A. Shabel472–29.713
1967–69Burr Carlson216–32.333
1969–77Donald "Dee" Rowe8120–88.577
1977–86Dominic "Dom" Perno9139–114.549
1986–2012Jim Calhoun26625–243.720
2012–2018Kevin Ollie6127–79.617
2018–presentDan Hurley235–29.547

As of the end of the 2011–2012 season, the Huskies had 17 coaches, and had amassed a record of 1567 wins to 877 losses. Its current record, after 116 seasons with Ollie as its head coach, is 1664 wins to 921 losses.

Huskies of Honor

On December 26, 2006, UConn announced inaugural inductees into the "Huskies of Honor" recognition program, a class of 13 players and 3 coaches that were later introduced at halftime during the February 5, 2007 UConn-Syracuse game. Former athletic director John Toner was inducted on February 28, 2009. On April 5, 2011, Kemba Walker was the first men's basketball player to be added to the program since the inaugural inductees, an honor he was bestowed after leading the team to a national championship.
The Huskies of Honor are each recognized by a four by five foot panel which displays his name, jersey number and years of service, and a plaque which summarizes each's career accomplishments; Both the panels and the plaques are on permanent display at Gampel Pavilion on the University of Connecticut campus in Storrs, Connecticut.

Players

On December 7, 2018, UConn announced that the #34 worn by Ray Allen would be permanently retired, effective with ceremonies to be held during the Huskies' final 2018–19 home game on March 3, 2019. In its announcement, UConn stated that going forward, number retirement would be reserved for former Huskies players inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, as Allen was earlier that year. At the same time, the Huskies announced that the #50 worn by Rebecca Lobo, a 2017 Naismith Hall inductee, would be retired by UConn women's basketball, with ceremonies held during the season's final women's home game on March 2, 2019. UConn's announcement did not make it clear whether both numbers would be retired across both men's and women's programs, but a university spokesperson clarified that the retirements applied only to the teams that Allen and Lobo competed for, meaning that #50 will remain available in men's basketball and #34 in women's.

Notable victories

Source
AP National Coach of the Year
NABC National Player of the Year
Consensus First Team All-Americans
National Defensive Player of the Year
Pete Newell Big Man Award
Bob Cousy Award
Big East Player of the Year
AAC Player of the Year
Big East Defensive Player of the Year
AAC Defensive Player of the Year
Big East Tournament MVP
AAC Tournament MVP
Big East Coach of the Year
Big East Rookie of the Year
NCAA Tournament MOP
AAC Rookie of the Year
Since the 1990s, UConn has been recognized as being a consistent pipeline for players to enter the National Basketball Association. During the 2006–2007 season, there were an NBA-high 14 former Huskies on active rosters. During the 2013–14 season, 13 former Huskies were on active NBA rosters.
UConn has had 13 players selected as lottery picks in the NBA Draft:
NBA Players Past and Present