What is the best individual, single-game performance in UConn history?

[UCTitleTown]

And give up $40M+? That's a lot of atoning.

Well, maybe kicking some of that back for NIL would equal a million Hail Marys.

 

[simplyben]

Anyone remember that game in late December 1997 at the HCC where Rip had 27 or 28 in the first half?

It was also Calhoun's 500th win.

 

[huskyjawz]

Defensively, it is hard to find a better performance than Sellers and DePriest against Shaq in 1991 Tournament. Shaq was a non-factor and got some garbage time points after game was decided to pad his stats.

Allen in 1995 against UCLA was also a great performance.

In terms of a heroic performance, Toraino Walker in the 1990 Big East Final was epic. Filling in for Sellers, he scored, rebounded, and neutralized Derrick Coleman.

Didn’t Torraino also do the same against GTown in the semi?

 

[Stew Crew]

Didn’t Torraino also do the same against GTown in the semi?

If I recall correctly, Sellers got hurt early in that game and Calhoun used both Cyrulik and Walker on Mourning. Against Syracuse, it was Walker's first ever start. He stepped in and played like a veteran. Really a tragedy. I think he has spent most of the past 30 years behind bars.

The UConn website used to have old pdf files with all the old box scores and team stats going back to the 80s. It all went away when the updated the website.

 

[TribecaHusk]

Donyell’s two 42 point games. But my personal fav is Machine Gun Kelly going toe to toe with the Pearl and upsetting Syracuse a second time in 85 at the Civic Center

 

[Waquoit]

Donyell’s two 42 point games. But my personal fav is Machine Gun Kelly going toe to toe with the Pearl and upsetting Syracuse a second time in 85 at the Civic Center

Mixed blessing. I always thought those Cuse wins helped save Perno's job.

 

[mauconnfan]

Donyell scoring 42 against the Johnies at quarterfinals of the Big East tournament.

^^THIS^^

 

[mussels]

Kemba in Maui, is next top-of-mind.

Was wondering if anyone would mention this. After the last game, when Kemba got on the bus, the whole team stood up and gave him a standing O.

Calhoun said he had never seen that before.

 

[Stinger92860]

An underrated one for me: Nadav vs. Georgetown on Jan 20, 1990. Georgetown came into that game 10-0, technically No. 2 in the nation but expected to be No. 1 since Kansas had lost earlier that day. It was the first time we'd beaten a team ranked that high, and Mike Gorman called it the best win in program history at the final buzzer. Beating Georgetown then was like beating UK and Duke at the same time.

Nadav had 21 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 5 steals, and every single time Georgetown made a run, he was the guy who pushed us back ahead. This was the first and only time they had the lead all game, and watch what happened:



To this day it's still our biggest regular-season win. I honestly don't think we'll ever have a bigger one.

I remember that game. I watched it at The Brickyard in Danbury. Everyone in the bar thought I was crazy. I said to someone, this is our night, this is our chance, and the boys delivered.

 

[DesertGnome]

Nadav “the Dove” Henefeld scored 21 points in Jan 1990 to defeat Alonzo and Georgetown at the Civic Center. Nadav and Alonzo had words and the crowd went crazy as UCONN became a force in the Big East.

 

[T-Squared]

Ray against UCLA in 1995.

The first one that came to mind.

 

[FlippinCrazy!]

J Cally vs Georgetown last year.

 

[LStudfellow]

An underrated one for me: Nadav vs. Georgetown on Jan 20, 1990. Georgetown came into that game 10-0, technically No. 2 in the nation but expected to be No. 1 since Kansas had lost earlier that day. It was the first time we'd beaten a team ranked that high, and Mike Gorman called it the best win in program history at the final buzzer. Beating Georgetown then was like beating UK and Duke at the same time.

Nadav had 21 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 5 steals, and every single time Georgetown made a run, he was the guy who pushed us back ahead. This was the first and only time they had the lead all game, and watch what happened:



To this day it's still our biggest regular-season win. I honestly don't think we'll ever have a bigger one.

Only underrated by those who did not witness it. Anyone who watched that game, that season and who understands the progression of UConn men's basketball to where it is today realizes that Nadav's performance that night was the first "holy crap, we really can compete with the big boys" moment for this program.

Anyone who points to the Syracuse win 5 nights earlier does not understand that we beat Syracuse every 3rd or 4th game at that time, no matter how individually talented they were, because Boeheim was an average-at-best in-game coach, and his teams consistently under-achieved and would lose head-scratchers. But Georgetown was a whole other kettle of fish. They were THE bullies of the Big East from the time Patrick Ewing pulled on that uniform for the first time right up until then. Georgetown wouldn't just beat you... they would try to take your manhood away. They tortured us for years, beating us in 15 out of the last 16 games played up until that night. You knew that in order to lay claim to any sort of advanced real estate in the conference, you had to beat Georgetown to be legit.

It was arguably the most important regular season game we have ever won... and there is no way we win it without Nadav. He did everything for us that night, but most importantly he made big play after big play after big play every time Georgetown threatened to wrestle the game away from us in the 2nd half. Watch it and you will see exactly what I mean. Up until then we almost always lost those games. We were the little brother who couldn't quite get over the hump. We took our lumps, a pat on the head, and a "see you when you are worthy" dismissal from Georgetown.

Until that night. But not THAT night. Not THAT game.

And everything has been different for this program since then. It can not be overstated the importance of that game to the trajectory of our program since that night. And Nadav's performance was the single biggest reason why. That was the night that started the legend of Nadav Henefeld.

 

[JungleLobo]

Uncle Spliffy winning the NIT

 

[cwh20]

Caron Butlers performance vs Maryland in the NCAA tournament.

He was a warrior. The only reason we were in that game was cause of that dude.

He just never gave up. He left it all on the floor. Maryland just had some ballers. I think they won the tournament that year.

If there's one performance that shows the heart of a warrior, that's got to be one of them.

Caron was incredible against Maryland. In a tight game, Okafor the freshman was called for defensive fouls when senior Baxter kept slamming into him near the hoop. Baxter got the benefit of those calls for sure. If Okafor had the star recognition he had as a junior and the same exact plays take place I don’t think he gets whistled for the fouls. In fact Baxter may have been called for fouling. Also that damn Steve Blake 3 late was a dagger. It really hurt because he didn’t take or make a high percentage during the season. You have to give him credit for making it. That was a long ride home.

 

[IndyLives]

Caron was incredible against Maryland. In a tight game, Okafor the freshman was called for defensive fouls when senior Baxter kept slamming into him near the hoop. Baxter got the benefit of those calls for sure. If Okafor had the star recognition he had as a junior and the same exact plays take place I don’t think he gets whistled for the fouls. In fact Baxter may have been called for fouling. Also that damn Steve Blake 3 late was a dagger. It really hurt because he didn’t take or make a high percentage during the season. You have to give him credit for making it. That was a long ride home.

Incredibly, this Maryland loss was the only Final Four loss UConn has ever had.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

My cousin and I have been going back and forth on this one and we're having trouble coming up with something better than Clingan's game vs. Illinois.

I feel like the folks on this board will have some opinions.

Emeka against heavily favored Duke.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

My cousin and I have been going back and forth on this one and we're having trouble coming up with something better than Clingan's game vs. Illinois.

I feel like the folks on this board will have some opinions.

Let’s not forget freshman Corny Thompson dropping 30 pts and 12 rebounds on heavily favored URI and Sly Williams at the New Haven Coliseum. Uconn won it in OT.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

Incredibly, this Maryland loss was the only Final Four loss UConn has ever had.

That was an elite eight loss.

2009 in Detroit to Michigan St was the one final four loss.

 

[Waquoit]

Caron was incredible against Maryland.

Too bad Calhoun sat him with 2 fouls and let Maryland back in the game.

 

[gsmooth]

Incredibly, this Maryland loss was the only Final Four loss UConn has ever had.

That game against Maryland was in the Elite Eight before the Final Four. The only Final Four loss UConn had was in 2009 against Michigan State. If UConn doesn't go 21-33 at the FT line they probably win that game.

 

[Matrim55]

Emeka against heavily favored Duke.

Duke was not favored in that game. You're mixing it up with the 1999 title game.

 

[Dutch Boyd]

A random one...

Okafor at UNC in 2004. 29 & 13 with six blocks against Sean May, who many people considered the second best big man in the country. May was 3/14 from the floor.

We were #1, UNC was somewhere in the top 10. This was their core that won the title the following season.

Gordon had just broken his nose and was wearing mask. He shot horribly. Okafor and Rashad carried us and brought us back from a sizeable deficit but ultimately we lost on a late three from Rashad McCants.

Okafor was as good as any Husky has ever been that day, dominating both ends of the floor against another elite big.

All these years later I’m still pissed we lost that game. We were better and that would have been an awesome win. This year against Kansas will probably feel like that one down the road.

 

[CONN78SEJ]

Duke was not favored in that game. You're mixing it up with the 1999 title game.

Ok genius

 

[Matrim55]

View attachment 99974
Ok genius

You’re using a link that says we lost to Duke in 1999 & 2004. I think you need better sources.