Best Championship Season?

[elmcityboy]

2004 because i was 12/13 and just starting to figure out how the game really worked. i remember the SI cover with diana t. & emeka at the beginning of the season and how stoked everyone in my family was during the build-up to the tournament.

2014 because it was my senior year at storrs (i am part of the class that got to experience 2 mbb championships!) and the night it all went down is a truly ridiculous memory.

 

[Scoe]

Their all awesome can't put one over another but I will give my thoughts on each one in chronological order.

1999 Going into the season once I knew Rip was coming back I was fully expecting a FF appearance I didnt even think of a National Championship all year because I was so hungry for this team to get to a FF because of all the times we had come up short I was more nervous in all the tournament games before the FF then I was during the FF, the pressure just felt off, I really wasn't that nervous when we played Duke. I felt like I was flying in air after we beat Duke.

2004 Obviously I was fully expecting a national championship anything less would have been a failure. I was never worried about the team all year really even when they went through a rough stretch of the season, I had concerns about Emeka's back other then that I wasn't worried one bit. The duke game was of course the defacto championship, against Gatech I just sat back and relaxed and had a bunch of cold ones even before the game began

2011 I had no expectations at all really (pre season), I was just hoping we would get an NIT berth.Whats funny was during the thrashing of UK in Maui my brother said to me how crazy would it be if Uconn won it all this year and I was just laughing and was like that would be insane. It was just exciting all year to watch Kemba and the boys winning close games at the end while nerve racking. I paced back and forth during every BE tourney and NCAA game.

2014 I had anger going into the season, anger at the NCAA, media, and the world. People writing our program off, I said to myself man I hope we win it all and wack Emmert off the head with the NCAA trophy. Did I expect a national championship I had my doubts about that but I did keep in mind about 2011 that anything is possible and the more I heard Ollie speak the more confidence I had that we would pull it off. When we won it all I had my fun reading different teams message boards and watching Espin.

 

[Excalibur]

If I had to rank them --

1) 1999 - The only one I witnessed in person, the aura surrounding that Duke team, realizing 1/2 way through the second half that we really were better than they were, the "holy , we're going to win this" feeling when Hamilton's 3 went through to put us up 5, and the end of 9 years of frustration. This will never be topped.

2) 2014 - The most "satisfying" in that many had written the program off after realignment, Calhoun's retirement, and the APR BS. Then we made Mark Emmert hand the trophy to the school that told him to find another job, and Shabazz topped it off with "This is what happens when you ban us." It just felt like we gave everyone a collective "", and it felt great.

3) 2004 -- Loved getting the second one, particularly after SU equaled us in the prior year. Now? They'll never accomplish what we have . . .

4) 2011 -- Someone has to be last . . .

 

[TheChamps990411]

2011 (this was such an incredible run that i still cant believe we pulled it off. It may not be the most popular choice by many of you but without a doubt it was the toughest of road of the 4 titles. I remember when we beat Arizona i turned to my brother and told him we werent going to lose. I was completely relaxed during the FF because i knew we were not going to be denied. We will never see another team make a similar run. This is my favorite)

1999 (If you lived in CT and you were a Uconn fan you laughed hysterically when the point spread for the game was announced. I was nervous as heck but my sisters fiancee at the time said the point spread was the kiss of death for Duke. It could not have been written any better that first was just special. We beat Duke on the biggest stage and exercised all our demons from 1990-98 at once! )Pun intended

2014 (This wasnt the toughest but it was by far the most unlikely. NOBODY thought we had much of a chance going into the tourney and any ounce of optimism to the thought shrunk dramatically after nearly getting knocked off in the first round. I was on the edge of my seat until we beat Fl. I was convinced we would beat UK and actually pulled for UK to beat Wisky because i wanted to have the satisfaction of sending Squid home again.)

2004 (once this team got it together you just knew. By the time the sweet sixteen rolled around i remember Bob Ryan on BSPN calling it "The Uconn Invitational." Im still a little ticked with those bs fouls on Mek in the first half which is the only thing that kept Duke from getting absolutely embarrassed on national television. Id put that team against any team in the last 30 years and i guarantee we beat a vast majority of them. Very underrated team historically. I think they give UNLV 1990 a run for their money. no doubt!)

 

[hoophuskee]

I'm with the OP.

99 -- They were talking of Duke as being among the best off all-time. Not only our first title our 1st final 4 but to beat a powerhouse Coach K even though we were a huge underdog and also - that finals game - the game was played extremely well.

2014 -- After the NCAA screwed us. Then screwed our conference. Our former league screwed us. The media basically screwing us - to wind up beating a former friend but now one of the teams / conferences that screwed us (Nova/Big East) then to beat Mich State (Izzo is great in getting to final fours and nice to knock them off in MSG payback for years earlier losing to them in Michigan), Florida and Kentucky (ESPECIALLY KENTUCKY). - It felt like the Godfather Movie when Michael Corleone was explaining to Carlo how he took care of all the former rivals (NCAA committee was one). "We settled some family business."

2004 -- Winning title number 2 legitimized UCONN as a National beast. Duke - Coach K gave it his best shot -- and we beat the National power who played about as well as they could and had Coach K do his best to try to knock us off. It great to say this: - "Coach K you and your Dookies even with perfect game plan just weren't good enough."

2011 -- Of course loved it and was special and came out of nowhere. Even the Big East Tourney and knocking off the arrogant Pitino in BE finals was special. But man was that title game awfully played or what?

 

[Gurleyman]

I 2011 -- Of course loved it and was special and came out of nowhere. Even the Big Eat Tourney and knocking off he arrogant Pitino in BE finals was special. But man was that title game awfully played or what?

Second half was a thing of beauty. We put on a clinic at both ends. We shot 50 percent after halftime and missed some shots late when we were just stalling for the whole shot clock - or it may have been 60. We picked them apart, they panicked and went zone, and we picked that apart too.

First half was rough when our #2 and #3 options went to the bench midway through it (and #1 went late in the half), but we uglied it up and kept it close. Then Butler just couldn't hang in there against us and were overwhelmed - the first time they got the buzz saw treatment in two years.

I understand neutral observers calling that game ugly, but that second half is up there in the pantheon of UConn awesomeness.

 

[The Funster]

1999 was the best sports related feelings I ever had and then 9 months later my daughter was born which was the best life experience I ever had, lol.

 

[hoophuskee]

Second half was a thing of beauty. We put on a clinic at both ends. We shot 50 percent after halftime and missed some shots late when we were just stalling for the whole shot clock - or it may have been 60. We picked them apart, they panicked and went zone, and we picked that apart too.

First half was rough when our #2 and #3 options went to the bench midway through it (and #1 went late in the half), but we uglied it up and kept it close. Then Butler just couldn't hang in there against us and were overwhelmed - the first time they got the buzz saw treatment in two years.

I understand neutral observers calling that game ugly, but that second half is up there in the pantheon of UConn awesomeness.

As a fan I'm look at the whole game (not saying you aren't - I really don't break it down you did. Great that you did. But if I had 4 tapes right now of each of these games- the 2011 is being played last. I watched the game as we all did -- for 40 minutes so I look at the game as a fan/ a reviewer of 40 minutes. We all like/appreciate different things anyways.

The 1stgame in 1999 vs Duke it was amazing both halves. The game vs Ky in 2014 was amazing both halves. The third game vs Duke in 2004- the refs mucked the game up in 1st half. The 4th game - imo not as good as the other 3. The half was so bad it ruined the 2nd for me as a fan-a bit ergo "an ugly game."

 

[Gurleyman]

As a fan I'm look at the whole game (not saying you aren't - I really don't break it down you did. Great that you did. But if I had 4 tapes right now of each of these games- the 2011 is being played last. I watched the game as we all did -- for 40 minutes so I look at the game as a fan/ a reviewer of 40 minutes. We all like/appreciate different things anyways. The 1stgame in 1999 vs Duke it was amazing both halves. The game vs Ky in 2014 was amazing both halves. The third game vs Duke in 2004- the refs mucked the game up in 1st half. The 4th game - imo not as good as the other 3. The half was so bad it ruined the 2nd for me as a fan-a bit ergo "an ugly game."

I think that's fair. I'd watch the 2011 game fourth too. And maybe just skip ahead to the second half. But that second half was a lot of fun in real time as we beat them into a pulp and they couldn't find a way to get a basket against us.

 

[hoophuskee]

I think that's fair. I'd watch the 2011 game fourth too. And maybe just skip ahead to the second half. But that second half was a lot of fun in real time as we beat them into a pulp and they couldn't find a way to get a basket against us.

Off-topic-- There was a game a long time ago I saw in Ewing's freshman year- they played Denny Crum's mighty Louisville. It was one of those games which no team could really score. To this day I still think back at that game and marvel. What an awesome display of defense. I just found it on youtube. I'll probably watch it one these days.

 

[The Funster]

2011 against Butler was a virtuoso performance.

All of them were special in their own way

Finally getting to the top in 99

2004 was a great, great team that turned in a dominant 6 game run

2011 included the great 5 in 5 run

2014 was a sweet in-your-face performance

We've been blessed, we really have.