UConn’s Dynasty Reigns Supreme Amidst NBA Final Week Chaos

Good morning! UConn is the totality.

While You Were Sleeping: The Unstoppable Journey of UConn

Watching a basketball game at UConn is like watching a Denis Villeneuve movie. Both sensations have a certain speed and tension. Most importantly, the storyline is unrelenting. forward at all times. Never give up.

You know who looked great early in last night’s national title game? Purdue’s Zach Edey, a 7-foot-4, towering, mostly unguardable human. For a brief while, UConn—a merciless crusher of teams—appeared to be mortal. Next came the spike.

The Huskies brushed aside Edey’s early excellence en route to the program’s second straight national title last night. Frankly, it was startling to watch the 75-60 victory. In less than five minutes, UConn’s halftime lead of six points ballooned to eleven. The difference in 10 was 16. The match was finished.
It’s easy to say Dan Hurley is now college basketball’s best coach. It’s hard to repeat a title in any major sport. The way UConn did it, especially in the tournament — the average margin of victory was 22.8 points, and the total +140 point differential is a tournament record — was pure dominance. Hurley isn’t going to Kentucky, by the way.
Incredibly, UConn is now tied for the third-most national championships in NCAA history with six, and the first one occurred in 1999, hardly 25 years ago. In their title game appearances, they are also 6-0. That kind of run is best described as “dynastic,” both in the short and long terms.

While no box score can fully convey the story of a game, the one from last night can. Even without a standout effort from any player Friday night, UConn easily defeated the top seed. Purdue got 37 from Edey and that was about it.

Since John Wooden’s UCLA teams won seven straight from 1967 to 1973 (the Bruins won nine of ten at that time), no one has three-peated. Right now, Duke appears to be the betting favorite for the upcoming season, but Hurley is too strong to ignore.

News to Know

Auston Matthews nears 70
The superstar from Toronto, who was born in the United States, scored his 65th goal of the year Friday night, making NHL history as only the 13th player to do so. It will take Matthews five more games to reach the legendary 70-goal milestone—a feat not accomplished since 1992–1993. Whether Toronto rests Matthews before to the playoffs is now the biggest unknown.

Another viewership record smashed
Another record for the sport in a season full of them was set by the women’s college basketball national championship game between South Carolina and Iowa, which averaged 18.7 million viewers. It is an astounding figure, but considering the pattern we have witnessed, it is also not surprising. It surpasses the majority of recent World Series games and even the majority of NBA Finals contests. Here is the complete list of those.

More news

Photos of the Day: You can look at the sun here

Even better pictures from around the world capture the amazing spectacle of yesterday’s solar eclipse, which we got here in New Orleans in the form of clouds. Before the White Sox vs. Giants game in Cleveland, the above picture was captured in the early afternoon. Observe how gloomy it is!

I also loved this one of a caddie at the Masters stopping mid-practice round to get a glimpse:

We have plenty more eclipse pics from the sports world here. So fun.

Down the Stretch: The NBA’s frantic final week

This last week of the NBA regular season has been underwhelming in many years. There are rarely the stakes that we see this week, whether we are squabbling over a final playoff place or some middle seeds. Three items to be aware of this week:

Who gets No. 1 in the West? The Thunder, Timberwolves, and Nuggets are all within a game of one another. For Minnesota and Oklahoma City, two clubs with more youthful rosters, it feels more significant in the playoffs. When playing anybody, Denver will be the favored.
Who do those teams play? The Suns, Pelicans, Lakers, Kings, and Lakers teams ranked 6 9 are all located within 1.5 games of one another. The difference between taking a chance on a Play-In game and then perhaps drawing one of the top two seeds (if you make it) and winning the No. 6 seed and complete entry into the playoffs is significant.
Where do the Sixers land? With reigning MVP Joel Embiid back in the lineup after an extended hiatus and appearing like his old self, Philadelphia may be our most intriguing tale. The Sixers are currently in eighth place, but they are only 2.5 games behind Orlando for the third spot, demonstrating how close the East is to a deadlock. Once more, there is a significant distinction between having home-court advantage for a playoff series and having to endure a single Play-In game.

The good news about all this: No one outside of Boston will be resting stars down the stretch with so much on the line. We win.

Watch This Game

NHL: Capitals at Red Wings (get tickets)
7 p.m. ET on ESPN
Detroit is in a tight race for a wild-card spot with just a week to play, sitting just one point up on the Penguins right now. High-pressure hockey is an elite product.

NBA: Celtics at Bucks (get tickets)
7:30 p.m. ET on TNT
Yes, this is a potential Eastern Conference finals matchup, but I’m more invested in the vibe check on both. Boston is 15 games up on everyone else in the East. Are they coasting? Meanwhile, Milwaukee has endured a bizarre season that’s left no one happy.

Pulse Picks

Trevor Immelman Despite being new to the CBS lead analyst position at the Masters, he has already lived many different golf lives. Brendan Quinn has an excellent profile of the clever Immelman that is well worth reading today. The guy is quite endearing.

I thought Ken Rosenthal’s column on the pitcher-injury wave was smart. Baseball has, for better or worse, reached peaked velocity and spin. That probably needs to change.

Has Klay Thompson, the player benched early in the season, been playing well recently? In addition to helping the Warriors earn a position in the Play-In round, Thompson’s impending free agency has increased in cost, according to Tim Kawakami. If the franchise legend disappears the following year, do not be astonished.

As Kentucky and John Calipari split, Kyle Tucker has been and will remain essential reading. He wrote yesterday that the alliance was stuck and that Arkansas had spared them both from ruin.

(Photo: Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images)