The UConn Daily Digest: NCAA Tournament Edition

Exciting times for UConn basketball and hockey.

Author

Aman Kidwai
March 18, 2025

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The Madness of March is upon us! UConn men’s hoops plays its first-round matchup on Friday night in Raleigh, NC while the women are in Storrs for the first two rounds starting on Saturday.

In the latest UConn Daily podcast, Aman and John discuss the bracket fields and how the matchups are shaking out for the Huskies.

Headlines

Tournament woes and selection shows

Karaban Strikes Again. UConn trailed by five heading into the locker room against Villanova Thursday night. The No. 3 Huskies proceeded to outscore the Wildcats 42-20 in the second half behind 15 points from Karaban.

Aidan Mahaney played 16 minutes, his most in a game since Feb. 11, and handled the backup point guard role quite well. He had seven points, three assists, and a steal to aid Dan Hurley in his pursuit of limiting Hassan Diarra’s minutes while he nurses a nagging knee injury.

Not Enough on Friday. UConn fell early the next night, down by as many as 17 in the first half, and while a 14-2 run in the second half brewed some hope, UConn was outmatched. Cold shooting down the stretch kept Creighton in front and the Blue Jays took the win — punctuated by a fast break slam at the buzzer by Jamiya Neal. Hassan Diarra did not take too kindly to the gesture, shoving Neal and inciting a small skirmish.

The selection committee placed UConn in the West region as the No. 8 seed, set to face No. 9 Oklahoma in Raleigh, North Carolina on Friday. 

Women’s Basketball: Big East Domination

Crushing the League, Again. The UConn women’s basketball team did not just win the Big East, they dominated the field. In three games played, their smallest margin of victory was 20 points. They beat Creighton in the championship game 70-50, Villanova the previous game by 28 and St. John’s by 31 the game before that. 

It is on to the NCAA Tournament for Geno Auriemma and his team, sitting at 31-3 and No. 2 in the Spokane 4 Regional. The Huskies will face No. 15 Arkansas State at Gampell on Saturday rated No. 1 in the NET and No. 3 in the final AP top-25 poll. 

Baseball: Hot and cold on the East Coast

The Huskies had momentum. They won their first series of the year in Coral Gables, FL two weekends ago, taking two out of three from the Miami Hurricanes. In the midweek, UConn hosted LIU in its first home game of the season and sent the Sharks home early — an 11-1 lead after the seventh inning enacted the run rule. 

Then, Jim Penders’ squad traveled to Campell, hoping to use the Miami series as a springboard into the weekend, and promptly took the first game Friday. In game one of a doubleheader Saturday, the Huskies led by as many as three runs, but Campell rallied to come back and win. In the latter game, UConn led by as many as four runs, and the story rewrote itself once more. 

The Huskies are now 4-3 in their last seven games and 6-10 overall. They will remain in North Carolina through this week, with games Tuesday and Wednesday against Duke and UNC before taking on UNC Greensboro in a three-game set this weekend.

Men’s Hockey: Hardware and home flare

The postseason is here. After more than a week off, the men’s ice hockey team returned to play Friday night in the opening round of the Hockey East playoffs. During the eight days off, a handful of UConn players got their flowers in recognition of their performances during the regular season. Hudson Schandor and Joey Muldowny both were named Hockey East Second Team All-Stars, while Jack Richard was named a Third Team All-Star. Goaltender Callum Tung was named to the All-Rookie Team. 

Schandor picked up two individual pieces of hardware as well: the Best Defensive Forward award (which he won last year, too) and the Len Ceglarski Sportsmanship Award. 

UConn — Pairwise No. 7 — hosted No. 8 Providence Friday night in the Hockey East quarterfinal round. The Huskies took down the Friars 3-1 and advanced to the semifinal round set to take place at TD Garden, when they will square off against Boston University on March 20 at 4 p.m.

Weekly Rewind

Men’s Basketball

Win over Seton Hall – The Huskies locked up the No. 3 seed in the Big East Tournament with a vengeful win over the Pirates.

Notes and Quotes: Seton Hall – It was senior day to remember for Samson Johnson, who played in front of his mother for the first time as a Husky. He, Karaban and Diarra were all celebrated in a sendoff ceremony. 

Notes and Quotes: Villanova – The Huskies stepped up with the game on the line. 

Notes and Quotes: Creighton – A disappointing ending at MSG. 

What are the Huskies’ odds of a three-peat? – FanDuel weighs in on UConn’s odds from the first round through the Final Four. 

UConn draws Oklahoma in NCAA Tournament opening round – The eight and nine seeds will battle it out in Raleigh, NC looking to make it out of the West region. 

Women’s Basketball

Big East Championship win over Creighton – The Huskies collected their fifth-straight conference title. | Photos

Semifinal win over Villanova – UConn trailed halfway through the second quarter but rallied to put the Wildcats away. | Photos

How UConn’s defense flipped a switch in Villanova win – Defensive woes plagued the Huskies early in the Big East quarterfinal round, but it found a way to turn itself around. 

Quarterfinal win over St. John’s – A season-low turnover total enabled the Huskies’ success. | Photos

Huskies set to play Iowa in 2025 Champions Classic – The matchup is set to take place Dec. 20, 2025 at the Barclays Center. 

Paige Buckers finished off perfect Big East career ($) – Bueckers has solidified herself as one of, if not the most, dominant players in Big East history. 

3/13 Newsletter: Why UConn will likely decide its own fate in the NCAA Tournament – Despite a 31-3 record, one loss can end the Huskies’ entire season. 

Podcast – What stood out from the conference tournament?

No. 2 UConn to face No. 15 Arkansas State in first round – The Huskies will have a home game at Gampell to kick off the big dance. 

Baseball

Series win over Miami (FL) – The offense came alive in Coral Gables.

Mid-week win over LIU – UConn needed only seven innings to win its home opener. 

Weekly Newsletter – Was the Miami series a turning point?


Campbell Recap – The Huskies lost two out of three in Buies Creek, NC.

Hockey

Three Huskies earn All-Hockey East selections – Schandor and Muldowney get the second team nod, while Richard gets the third. 

Award-ception – Tung was named to the All-Rookie Team while Schandor picked up two additional Hockey East honors. 

Bracketology: 3/10 ($) – Where will the Huskies land after finishing up their best season in years?

Photos – Ice Bus’ win over the Friars. 

Ian Bethune

Football

Spring Preview – A preliminary look at UConn’s 2025 roster. 

Highlights

Relive UConn baseball’s 11-1 trouncing over LIU on Wednesday. Production came throughout the lineup, with eight of the team’s nine starters recording at least one hit, four of which had at least two RBI on the day. 

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