Notes & Quotes: On to the Sweet 16 after trouncing Northwestern

Donovan Clingan was unstoppable once again, flirting with a triple-double as top-seeded UConn crushed another opponent on its way to the Sweet 16.

Clingan scored 14 points with 14 rebounds and eight blocks in the Huskies’ 75-58 romp of No. 9 Northwestern in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn Sunday night. His early dominance set the tone for an eventual blowout.

“I feel healthier and lighter than I've ever felt,” Clingan said after the game. “Just really got my confidence back [and] trying to fly around the court and do whatever my team needs me to do to win.”

UConn (33-3) opened with an 11-2 run, built the lead up to 22 points at the half, and cruised to victory — leading by as much as 30 points. It was a school-record eighth straight NCAA victory, one shy of Michigan State’s all-time record. They advance to take on SDSU in the East Region semifinal in Boston.

Tristen Newton scored 20 points with 10 assists, his 11th double-double of the season, while Cam Spencer added 11 as UConn advanced to the Sweet 16 for the second straight season. It’s the first time the program has made consecutive trips to the round since a three-peat from 2002-04.

“Impressed with the performance,” head coach Dan Hurley said. “Really attacked them in the paint… to get that separation while going 3 for 22 from three… and to still win by that margin, it spoke to our defense and obviously the 20 assists on 29 field goals.”

UConn shot 53 percent from the field and outscored NU 52-26 in the paint, holding Northwestern to 26 percent shooting in the first half and 37 percent on the game. Wildcats’ star guard Boo Buie went 2-of-15 from the field in his final college appearance, as Steph Castle and Hassan Diarra handled that assignment.

“I was very impressed in person with their defense,’’ NU coach Chris Collins said. “They have all the ingredients to win another there’s no question about it.”

A closer look at the UConn win:

What Went Well

Admiral Clingan: David Robinson (Navy) and Hakeem Olajuwon (Houston) are the only other players to record at least 14 points, 14 rebounds, and eight blocks in a tournament game. The sophomore big man destroyed the Wildcats, posting a double-double in the first half for the second time in three games (also doing it in the Big East championship). He’s hit double-digit scoring in 11 of his last 14 contests and just set a new career-high for blocks with eight. All five of his double-doubles on the season have occurred since February.