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UConn Sports Weekly: The End of Basketball Season
What a blessing to see two Final Four runs on the hardwood this year.
Aman Kidwai
April 10, 2026
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It’s sad to see the end of basketball season, but at least both teams made it to April. Plus, we’ve still got baseball & softball season to go! (and the portal, and the draft…)
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Headlines
The Road Ends in Indy
After Braylon Mullins’ incredible buzzer-beater to send the Huskies to the Final Four as East Region champs, Dan Hurley’s squad delivered two more performances to be proud of, even though they came up short at the end.
On Saturday, they firmly clamped down on Illinois, a program making its first Final Four appearance since 2005. They had a home court advantage in the semifinal game played less than two hours from campus.
None of that mattered. Braylon Mullins had a quick start in front of the hometown crowd while Tarris Reed Jr. led the way with 17 points in the Final Four win.
In Monday night’s national championship game, the Huskies executed their game plan masterfully, vying for the program’s seventh national championship, but foul trouble and Michigan’s length were their undoing. Despite holding Michigan to its weakest shooting performance of the season, they couldn’t close in by the end as they did so many times before.
Having seven title-game appearances is still great, and for Dan Hurley to have three in four years is a sign of a really strong apparatus in place in Storrs. This is a dynasty. Nobody has had a stretch like this in the modern era.
UConn is the most successful men’s college program right now. Considering its resources compared to other schools at the top of the game, it’s clear Hurley is working wonders with his staff in recruiting, development, and on-court strategy.
With a little bit of March magic thrown in.
Transfer announcements begin
So far, two players on the women’s team and two on the men’s team have announced their intentions to leave.
Ayanna Patterson is expected to enter the transfer portal. The junior forward has struggled to make an impact with the Huskies thanks to a lengthy injury history.
Two days later, reports of Ice Brady followed. She and Patterson were members of the same recruiting class, and much like Patterson, Brady has battled injuries over a rocky Husky career.
If those two end up leaving, the Huskies will have three roster spots to fill before next season, and with the transfer portal open, moves are underway.
On the men’s side, center Rrezon Elezaj was the first to announce his name in the portal. An August addition to the roster, he logged five minutes this past season.
Later in the afternoon, news broke that Eric Reibe would be entering the portal. Another freshman center gone, this one had played a bit more and seemed to be in line for a big role next year.
Reibe is a quality player with an enticing skill set who could have brought a lot to next year’s team.
Meanwhile, Dan Hurley is publicly appealing to Braylon Mullins to consider staying at UConn over declaring for the NBA Draft. What an intriguing possibility…
Baseball is buzzing
There is promise at Elliot Ballpark, as the UConn baseball team has finally flipped the page on a sluggish nonconference schedule and has started the Big East slate hot.
The Huskies took Game 1 and Game 2 of their weekend set with Xavier before dropping the season finale. In the midweek, they battered Northeastern 21-5, but watched as their bats went silent in the series opener against Creighton last weekend. The Huskies rallied back to steal the series with wins Saturday and Sunday, moving to 4-2 in conference play in a much-needed hot start to their Big East slate.
Their win streak moved to three games, tied for their season high, with a 6-2 triumph over Bryant on Tuesday. The Huskies are laying the groundwork for a big second half and look ahead to a series at Butler this weekend. At 18-16, UConn is multiple games over .500 for the first time this season.
We took a comprehensive look at the team’s performance in the first half of the season, dishing out grades to each of the four position groups in the latest edition of our newsletter. Included as well are updated RPI rankings and NCAA tournament projections, the latter of which breaks down three midyear projections, each picking a different Big East champion. Check it out below.
The Huskies will travel to Indianapolis to face Butler this weekend. First pitch Friday is 3 p.m. at Bulldog Park.
Football Spring Game on Saturday
We aren’t sure what to expect when UConn football takes the field for the program’s first spring game since 2024, but we know we’ll see something. According to Storrs Central, it will be more of a showcase than a game in terms of format, but there will be some live action.
The Huskies have a new look roster, including a whole new QB room. With more than 70 new players, every position group will have new starters and key contributors.
Hopefully, we see some live action, some big plays, and get a little bit of what these signal callers look like. The Huskies have a challenging schedule coming up this fall. At least the weather and the tailgating at the Rent will be cooperative on this Saturday afternoon.
Lots open at 12 p.m. and the event starts at 2 p.m. in East Hartford.
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Weekly Rewind
Men’s Basketball
The UConn Fast Break: What A Run – Back from Indy and feeling blessed.
UConn Transfer Portal Watch: Best Forwards and Karaban-Style Fits ($) – Brian Kervick looks at which available players could best fit UConn’s system.
Hawkins Flying High Again, What a Double-Double in the G League Finals Means for McNeeley – Huskies are getting it done at all levels of the Association.
UConn men’s basketball comes up short vs. Michigan in title game, 63-69 – UConn’s quest for a third title in four years fell just short.
UConn takes down Illinois in Final Four, 71-62 – The Huskies clinched a berth in the national title game without much of a challenge.
Notes & Quotes: Another UConn Final Four Triumph ($) – The Huskies' win streak in games in the Sweet 16 or later under Dan Hurley reached 11 games.
Women’s Basketball
Chasing Perfection: Making sense of UConn’s loss to South Carolina – Daniel Connolly looks at what went wrong in the latest episode of his podcast.
The Weekly: UConn’s offseason gets underway – Everything you need to know about 2025-26’s end and 2026-27’s beginning.
Geno apologizes to Dawn Staley following Final Four altercation: ‘I lost myself’ – After issuing an initial statement, Auriemma follows up with a personal apology for Staley.
UConn’s offense shut down in Final Four loss to South Carolina – It was an ugly game on all fronts.
What went wrong in UConn’s season-ending loss to South Carolina – The Huskies’ first loss of the season ended it. Where’d they go wrong?
Geno Auriemma apologizes following loss to South Carolina – Auriemma and Staley exchanged words in a heated incident to end South Carolina-UConn.
Geno explains altercation with Dawn Staley in handshake line – UConn’s Final Four loss ended with some unusual fireworks.
Sarah Strong wins three more National Player of the Year awards – The hardware keeps piling up for the best player in the country.
Azzi Fudd, Sarah Strong named WBCA All-Americans – It marks the 17th time multiple Huskies have made the ABCA All-American team in the same season.
How the 2025 Final Four sparked Azzi Fudd to the best season of her career ($) – It may be over, but Fudd was incredible for the Huskies in 2025-26
Baseball
Hockey
Viking Gustafsson Nyberg signs with Minnesota Wild – UConn will lose its top defenseman to the AHL on an amateur tryout.
Softball
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