UConn is a win away from back-to-back national championships.
The Huskies pulled away from a pesky Alabama team late in the second half of their Final Four matchup on Saturday to dispatch the Crimson Tide 86-72 and set up a meeting with Purdue for the national title on Monday.
UConn led by four at halftime and didn’t incinerate the Tide after halftime like it did Illinois in the Elite Eight. Instead, UConn weathered multiple pushes by the Crimson Tide at the start of the second half before Alabama’s 3-point shooting regressed to the mean.
The Huskies opened up their first double-digit lead of the game with 4:36 to go when Cam Spencer gave UConn a 73-63 lead on a free-throw line jumper. A minute later, Alex Karaban delivered the knockout blow with a 3-pointer that extended UConn’s lead to 11.
After Alabama’s Mark Sears cut the lead to eight again with a 3-pointer of his own, Donovan Clingan served as an eraser on the defensive end with a block and the clincher on the offensive end.
The big plays from Spencer, Karaban and Clingan all came while Stephon Castle was on the bench with four fouls. The freshman was the Huskies’ leading scorer on Saturday night but picked up three fouls in the second half and spent the waning moments of the game on the bench as his veteran teammates played pivotal roles.
Source Agencies
