'The greatest moment in my life'

Good morning! I think Connecticut fans are still shaking from last night’s excitement. Let’s dive in.

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1. UConn’s thriller vs. Duke sends it to 3rd Final Four since ‘23

UConn’s no stranger to incredible NCAA Tournament games. It won back-to-back titles this decade. It streaked to the title as a 7-seed, it rode Kemba Walker to a title. Heck, it even pulled off one of the great finals upsets against Duke in 1999.

But Sunday’s 73-72 win over 1-seed Duke in the East Region final might be the best moment of them all because of how it got there.

Duke led UConn by 19 points late in the first half, and nursed a lead throughout the second half. And when Silas Demary only made one of two free throws with 10 seconds left, the Huskies needed a miracle to win. It got one on a defensive play, then a bomb from Braylon Mullins.

There’s even more context needed. Mullins was 19% from deep in his previous eight games. He was 0-of-4 before that shot. Even he admitted his was “looking for someone who’d made one.” But his stroke was pure, and the moment his.

“It’s single-handedly the greatest moment in my life.”

Again, Duke had this game in hand. It'd made a 14-0 run on UConn — the largest single run against the Huskies since they moved back to the Big East in 2020 — and just needed to maintain possession and force UConn to foul. Instead, it lost for the fourth time in the last 365 days, and all four losses were double-digit blown leads. The odds were heavily in Duke’s favor each time.

No wonder Duke coach Jon Scheyer “could not be more disappointed … I don’t have the words.”

Mullins’ game-winner was the sixth in Elite Eight history, and the first time as a 3-pointer. It was a remarkable finish for an all-time thriller.

"We missed a lot of really good shots throughout the game, and we had to make a really hard shot,” coach Dan Hurley said. “Things just evened out at that point."

Mullins finished with 10 points, while center Tarris Reed (26 points, nine rebounds, four blocks) was once again a monster inside. He’s scored 87 points in four NCAA Tournament games and was named Most Outstanding Player in the region. The Huskies (33-5) will be in their third Final Four in four seasons, while Duke (35-3) will be left with another agonizing finish.

2. Michigan mows down Tennessee

Few teams are playing better than Arizona, which is one of six teams in NCAA Tournament to start the event with four-straight wins of at least 12 points.

And yet, Michigan is the favorite to cut down the net next Monday in Indianapolis. How can it not be after its 95-62 win over Tennessee in the Midwest Region final?

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