More than a few reasons why UConn will beat the Alabama Crimson Tide
Hold on Alabama basketball fans, this post is not a game prediction. There will be a follow-up piece on reasons why Alabama will beat UConn. Unfortunately, the second one, having fewer reasons, will be shorter.
We don’t have to discuss betting odds to know U Conn is a heavy favorite for the National Semi-Final on Saturday night. Don’t waste time trying to find a national, college basketball pundit picking the Crimson Tide to win. There are none.
Instead there is an abundance of reasons why the Huskies will beat the Crimson Tide. Several of them are discussed below
Using NCAA Tournament Championships, the Huskies are college basketball’s most successful team of the last quarter century. In the forever world of college basketball only UCLA, Kentucky, and North Carolina have more NCAA Tournament Championships. In the last 25 seasons, the Huskies have won five. Duke and North Carolina have won three each. Villanova has won two, with Kentucky and Kansas winning one each.
Jay Wright recently said if the Huskies win again on Monday, they will be on a short-list for consideration as college basketball’s best-ever team.
Since Mar. 20, 2023, UConn is 41-3, including 10 straight NCAA Tournament victories.
Ken Pomeroy’s respected analytics has the Huskies as college basketball’s No. 1 team in Adjusted Offensive Efficiency and No. 4 in Adjusted Defensive Efficiency. Alabama is close offensively at No. 3 and miles behind defensively at No. 105.
The UConn roster is loaded. The Huskies play defense with a passion and bring far more than a dominating defensive big man in Donovan Clingan. 6’6″ freshman guard, Stephon Castle is an elite defender who will likely be a lottery pick in the next NBA Draft. Clingan and Castle are just two UConn players committed to intense defense.
The NCAA games against Northwestern and Illinois are examples of UConn’s defensive prowess. Northwestern’s Boo Buie averages 19 points and makes threes at 43.4%. Buie was 2-for-15 against UConn. The Big Ten Tournament MVP was Illinois guard Terrence Shannon Jr. who averaged 23 points on the season. He was 2-for-12 against UConn. UConn’s gaudy 30-0 run against Illinois gained massive attention, but more impressive is college basketball’s No. 4 offense (per KenPom), the Fighting Illini were held to 25.4% shooting by UConn.
Jay Wright elaborated on UConn with statements “UConn has the best backcourt in the country… the best defensive center in the sport… a deep bench… they beat you on relentless competitiveness on every possession, not on talent. They wear you down possession after possession. When they get a lead, they never relent… They’re the most disciplined team in the tourney.”
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