The University of Connecticut (UConn) Huskies defeated Purdue 75-60 to claim their second consecutive NCAA title after beating San Diego State 76-59 in last year's NCAA Championship Game. Tristen Newton led UConn with 20 points while also dishing for seven assists and snaring five rebounds, becoming the first player to have a 20-5-5 NCAA Championship Game performance since Carmelo Anthony in 2003. Newton won the Final Four Most Outstanding Player award. Consensus National Player of the Year Zach Edey scored a game-high 37 points on 15-25 field goal shooting for Purdue while also grabbing a game-high 10 rebounds in 39 minutes. UConn's strategy was simple: shut down the rest of Purdue's team under the assumption that Edey could not win the game by himself. Edey's teammates scored 23 points on 9-29 field goal shooting.
UConn has won six national titles--all since 1999--and the Huskies are the first back to back champions since the 2006-07 Florida Gators. Duke (1991-92) is the only other school to win consecutive NCAA championships since John Wooden led UCLA to 10 NCAA championships in a 12 year span (1964-65, 1967-73, 1975). UConn has won 12 consecutive Final Four games, with each victory by at least 13 points, and the Huskies became just the sixth team to win all six tournament games by double digits.
It is easy to see how UConn won 37 games this season but--to paraphrase an old line about dominant pitcher Sandy Koufax--it is not easy to see how UConn lost three games this season. UConn coach Dan Hurley declared that UConn has been running college basketball since 1999, a brash statement that is also true. Hurley has transformed himself from being Bobby Hurley's little known brother into being a future Hall of Famer; Bill Self and Rick Pitino are the only active coaches other than Dan Hurley who have won two NCAA titles (but one of Pitino's titles was vacated by the NCAA).
However, it is demonstrably false to suggest that the 2024 Huskies are a better basketball team than the legendary teams from the past, regardless of how many records the Huskies set. Just consider the strategy that worked so well against Purdue: let Edey run wild because his teammates--on a team that was clearly the second best college team this season--could be shut down. That strategy worked brilliantly because Edey may be Purdue's only NBA caliber player. Imagine trying a similar strategy against the 2007 Florida Gators, who had six future NBA players on their roster (including future All-Stars Al Horford and Joakim Noah); no intelligent coach would do that, because Florida had way too much talent and depth. Similarly, the 1992 Duke Blue Devils also had six future NBA players on their roster, including future Hall of Famer Grant Hill, and Christian Laettner, one of the greatest college players of all-time. The 1973 UCLA Bruins featured future Hall of Famer Bill Walton at center, and his teammates included future Hall of Famer Jamaal Wilkes, plus future pros Swen Nater (a two-time All-Star), Dave Meyers, Greg Lee, and Ralph Drollinger.
Teams playing in the NCAA Championship Game used to routinely feature multiple future NBA players because the best college players used to stay in school for four years or at least three. There was no transfer portal, so teams developed chemistry, cohesion, and experience. In contrast, UConn is dominating an era during which the best players go to the NBA as soon as possible; the overall talent level in college basketball is not nearly as good as it used to be, and few teams stay together long enough to develop much chemistry, cohesion, and experience.
I love basketball, and I particularly love championship level basketball. UConn is a great college team in this era, but UConn is not better than the great college teams from the past precisely because the college game in this era is not better than the college game was in the past. It is not UConn's fault that the overall talent level in this era is watered down--but commentators who breathlessly hype up everything that happens now while ignoring the sport's historical realities should consider their words more carefully.
Further Reading:
UConn Defeats San Diego State 76-59 to Claim Fifth NCAA Title Since 1999 (April 2023)
The NCAA Tournament Provides Drama, but Does it Provide Great Basketball? (April 2022)
Baylor Dominates Gonzaga to Win the 2021 NCAA Title (April 2021)
Separating the Grownups From the Kids in Basketball (November 2018)
Heels Stomp Spartans (2009 NCAA Championship)C(h)alm in the Clutch: Kansas Defeats Memphis in OT, 75-68 (2008 NCAA Championship)
Early Entry Players Have Diluted Both College and Pro Basketball (March 2008)
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