2024 NCAA Basketball Tournament Brackets
NEW YORK – UConn‘s bus ride from Storrs to Brooklyn was normal on Wednesday evening, just like any other trip. Conversation happened here and there but some players went to sleep, others watched the First Four games to get a taste of the moment before their tournament run begins.
With the pressure of being the No. 1 overall seed, the popular pick to win the whole thing, the Huskies have been able to stay calm and confident.
“We’ve done a great job of just blocking out all the noise, just because we’ve had a target on our back since June,” redshirt sophomore Alex Karaban said Thursday, before the Huskies meet 16-seed Stetson on Friday. “Ever since we won it last year, everyone’s just been wanting to beat us and everyone’s been talking about us repeating, but we’ve really blocked it out this entire year and we’re just excited to (go on) this journey with a new team.”
In NCAA Tournament history, No. 1 seeds are 150-2 all-time against No. 16 seeds.
Both of those major upsets came in the last six years. UMBC broke the seal by taking down Virginia in 2018, and Fairleigh Dickinson shocked the world when it knocked out Purdue last year.
How to watch UConn men vs. 16-seed Stetson in NCAA Tournament first round
Stetson coach Donnie Jones, who won back-to-back titles as an assistant at Florida in 2006 and 2007 and has the Hatters in the NCAA Tournament for the first time, motivated his team with the story of Roger Bannister.
In May, 1954, at Oxford University in England, Bannister became the first person to run a sub-4-minute mile. At 25 years old, finishing the race in 3 minutes and 59.4 seconds, he accomplished what was thought to be impossible. But his record was broken just 46 days later and, a year later, three runners broke the 4-minute barrier in the same race.
“Nobody could break it for a long time, but once he broke it, the next week 10 guys broke it,” Jones said. “So a lot of it is mentality and understanding, you’ve got to have a belief in who you are.”
On the other side, the Huskies, 26.5-point favorites, know that as long as they remain in the moment, getting over the first round hump should be no issue. UConn has advanced to the second weekend in all five of its tournament appearances as a 1-seed, including two trips to the Final Four.
“We’re ready to go,” said fifth-year guard Cam Spencer, who will make his tournament debut against the Hatters on Friday. “We’re focused on doing the things that got us here, taking it one game at a time. We’re all just pretty locked-in right now.”
“We don’t look at it as pressure,” added senior Hassan Diarra. “We’re not really focused on what the outside noise is, we’re just focused on taking this one game at a time and doing what we need to do to win one game. It’s respect for your opponents always. Great respect for the opponent, but we understand that if we do what we need to do we’ll be able to handle business.”
Just a week ago, UConn made a similar trip to the Big Apple, that time stopping in Manhattan where it was the heavy favorite to win the Big East Tournament after a record-setting regular season. The Huskies handled business.
“When you play at a place with the history and the standards and all of the success, I think every game you play at UConn is pressurized,” coach Dan Hurley said. “So I think when you get to these moments, Big East Tournament, MSG, NCAA Tournament, lights are super bright. We’re used to playing with a big target, we’re used to playing with pressure. So we perform well under pressure.”
The Huskies are making their fourth consecutive tournament appearance in year six under Hurley. Since being knocked out in the first round for the second-straight year in 2022, the program holds an overall record of 62-11.
Unselfishness is key
UConn, averaging 18.5 assists per game, is 54 assists shy of the program’s single-season record of 684, which was set last season. All five starters average at least 10.8 points per game.
“Everybody knows their role, and everybody knows what each other are capable of, so nobody is going to go out there and try to score 30. They are going to stick to the script and play defense, get rebounds and move the ball. Nobody is selfish and everybody just follows what Coach says and does what they can do to win the game,” said point guard Tristen Newton, who was named a First Team All-American by the Associated Press and the NABC this week.
The moment Stetson found out it’s NCAA Tournament destination! The Hatters are a no. 16 seed and will match up with no. 1 overall seed UConn this Friday in East Region. @StetsonHatters #MarchMadness2024 pic.twitter.com/eiavnPcB7k
— Jessica Eley FOX 35 (@FOX35Jessica) March 17, 2024
Stetson making the most of the moment
When the Hatters heard their name called during the NCAA’s Selection Show, the packed room where they had been watching erupted. In the moment, finding out they had an opportunity to play UConn, the No. 1 overall seed and reigning national champion, was “surreal,” senior guard Alec Oglesby said.
“(UConn has) all the pressure in the world, and obviously it’s our first time there,” point guard Stephan Swenson said. “It’s a great opportunity for us to just play with teammates and enjoy this moment to the fullest and just make the best out of it.”
Stetson (22-12) won the Atlantic Sun tournament to earn an automatic bid, its first in 53 years as a Division I program. The Hatters beat Austin Peay in the A-Sun championship game, 94-91, behind 43 points from guard Jalen Blackmon, who scored 34 in the second half alone.
“It’s exciting. We’re playing the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. If you could have told me at the beginning of the year that you’re going to the NCAA Tournament and you’re going to play UConn, I think we’d be pretty excited,” coach Jones said. “So I think the opportunity, the stage, is everything. It’s not the NBA where you have to win four games in seven. You have to win for 40 minutes.”
