NCAA drama moves to the desert
Fred Jeter | 4/4/2024, 6 p.m.
In the coming days, the University of Connecticut hopes to join the select “Back-to-Back Fraternity.”
Since the inception of the NCAA tournament in 1939, only seven schools have ever won consecutive men’s basketball titles.
Coach Dan Hurley’s Huskies prevailed last year in Houston, defeating San Diego State for the crown. This year, they entered the 68-team playoff as the No. 1 seed and presumed favorite.
Four left standing
(68th NCAA Basketball tournament)
Location: State Farm Stadium,
Phoenix suburb of Glendale, Ariz.
TV: TBS
Semifinals: Saturday, April 6,
Connecticut vs. Alabama, 6:09 p.m.
Purdue vs. North Carolina State,
8:39 p.m. (Eastern)
Final: Monday, April 8, 9:20 p.m.
The other back-to-backers:
Florida (2006, ’07); Duke (1991, ’92), UCLA (1967, ’68, ’69, ’70, ’71, ’72, ’73); Cincinnati (1961, ’62); San Francisco (1955, ’56); Kentucky (1948, ’49); Oklahoma A&M (State) (1945, ’46).
UConn would also enjoy moving past Duke on the all-time list of most championships.
Both UConn and Duke have five each, trailing UCLA (11), Kentucky (eight) and North Carolina (six).
To be fair, UCLA’s unimaginable run carried a bit less degree of difficulty than modern squads. The tournament was just a 23-team affair in 1967 and still just 25 in 1973. It also helped that Coach Johnnie Wooden had a pair of other-worldly centers, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton.
The “March Madness” field went to 64 in 1985 and 68 in 2011. That means a champ has to win six or seven games, instead of four during the UCLA dynasty.
Here’s a glimpse at this year’s Final Four:
