Favorite NCAAT Game (rd 1-6)

[superjohn]

Honestly, every tournament game from this past season. There's been so many amazing tournament games over the years and so many stress inducing finishes but every game in this past tournament was an "I told you so" for the UConn fanbase.

'99 was incredible because UConn finally broke through, 2004 was satisfying because we all knew we were the best team in the country before the ball was even tipped that season. 2011 because it came out of nowhere and was a run for the ages, 2014 because it felt like a replica of 2011 just with a lower seed. 2023 because it all came together at the end of the season and we blew everyone out...

2024, I'll take every tournament game because it was a coronation. Not only is it the best team I've ever seen but every fan around the country realized UConn is the best program in the country. it's nice being able to kick your feet up, watching beautiful team basketball and not having to stress. Not only did we go back to back in the most dominant fashion, we struck fear in everyone else around the country knowing a three-peat is very much within our grasp.

 

[willie99]

1st round; 1991 over Shaq and LSU. We beat Shaq, bad, as the 11 seed

2nd round; 1990 vs Cal at the HCC. I was there, and the Cal guards were disrespecting our D. They played the Glove dontchaknow. Took them 5 minutes before they got the ball over half court

S 16; Arkansas 2023, that's when I knew we were real

E 8; MSU @ MSG in NYC in 2014. I was there, we owned the building

F 4; Dook 2004, down 8 with < 3 minutes and the Dookies thought it was over. Hence they couldn't breath down the stretch, a classic choke job (and I was there)

Championship; they're all special, but you always remember the first time. 1999 vs Dook


Please forgive me if I remembered something a little differently than you do, I forgive you

 

[Scoe]

1st rd- 1991 beating Shaq, because it's well Shaq the Diesel

2nd rd- 2014 vs Nova, knocking off a big east team after banning us from their tourney.

Sweet 16- 2024 vs Arkansas, seeing total domination and Musselman knowing his team was cooked right off the bat.

Elite 8- 2024 vs Illinois, I was there when I saw tickets priced in the 200s I decided to bite the bullet, was definitely money well spent, no worry of travel expenses and seeing the best team off all time going back to the final four. I'm sure the vast amount of Illini fans knew they were losing this game but they did have a bit of that big ten arrogance thinking they were tougher being from the big ten was enjoyable seeing the 30-0 run then seeing a bunch of Illini fans leave all quite.

Hearing the U C O N N chant echoing off buildings was euphoric, I did hear an Illini fan walking saying "I bet you most of these fans don't even know where UConn is" I just laughed very loudly and said is that really supposed to be an insult. Did Illini fans really think they were gonna outdraw UConn fans in New England.

Final Four- 2004 vs Duke, making the Dukies cry they thought this was their 1999 moment then Rashad and Emeka said not so fast my friend.

National Championship- 1999 vs Duke, how could anything top the 1st title, no amount of video or explanation can describe that feeling in 99. 2014 and 2024 I flip flop from 2nd and 3rd.

 

[UofCT]

Young man. Ya gotta go back all the way.

First round - 2014 vs. St Joseph’s
Second round: 2014 vs Nova
Sweet 16: 1990 vs Clemson
Elite 8: 2024 Illinois
Final Four: 2004 vs Duke
Championship: 1999 vs Duke

lol it doesn’t hit the same. It’s a great problem to have where we all have different top memories.

 

[Hagahulk23]

1st-Boston University 1990-First tournament game of the modern era
2nd-Indiana 1998-Calhoun vs Knight
Sweet Sixteen-Maryland 1995-smacked around that Joe Smith led Maryland team(plus, watched it in a bar in Montreal on spring break)
Elite Eight-Michigan State 2014-The Garden was special that year.
Final Four-Duke 2004-Down 8 with under 3 minutes left, punched and dented a door. 10 minutes later I was happily icing down a swollen hand.
National Championship-Purdue 2024- Reaching heights never felt possible when I was excited about the new coaching hire on May 14, 1986. And on and on we rise.

 

[Sole]

All the 2024 tournament games..I’ve watched each game a couple times already..the team was so dominant,
We just blew out everyone.. our rivals wanted us to lose so bad.. I loved going on their message boards.. last year’s team could very well be the greatest college men’s basketball team ever

 

[husky1bags]

Not after giving away a 17 pt lead

Cmon now I left dorm room in Alsop to get a pizza from quad at halftime. I had my tiny Walkman radio on and was horrified UCONN became passive & Clemson began to chip away at lead in the 2nd half. I thought we were comfortably ahead forgot it was an NCAA tournament game no lead is safe.

 

[formerlurker]

Was on campus for the Dream Season so Scott to Tate will always be #1 in my heart. I was 19 and stupid and had no idea I was watching the second corner stone to a Dynasty being set. (NIT Championship has to be considered the first)

Still stupid 53 yo me has this in 2nd place as we look to build up from the 6th Floor.

 

[mauconnfan]

89-90 vs California after Campenlli said they wouldn’t be afraid of the UConn pressure they’ve seen better during league play. The buzz in the Civic Center was special

04 vs Duke semis and the comeback was special as well.

 

[Kitaman]

This whole thing will come down to age. If anyone puts any sweet 16 game over the Clemson win with “the shot” there is no way they were watching back then. Probably do not even own the “Huskymania” VHS tape.

I remember at the end of the game, I would have to go out and do some yard work (leftover leaves from last fall) and was sulking at the Tourney exit.

Then 'The Shot' happened and I was whistling through my lawn chores on a UConn high.

Just saying I remember that moment to this day.

Not to embellish that moment but I think that was when Calhoun's career took off. The sour taste left after that next game was removed in 99, making Calhoun's revenge so sweet.

 

[rrskyjf]

2011 and 2014 - gifts from Calipari

 

[QDOG5]

UConn beating Duke in the championship in '99 is the most important game in the history of UConn Mens basketball. We had many important wins getting to that point and 5 title since but that game in '99 is when we reached the mountaintop. Any UConn fan who watched that game knows the feeling they had inside with about 5 minutes to go when we realized "hey, we're going to beat these guys". Winning that game is the most joyous sports moment of my entire life.

 

[Waquoit]

89-90 vs California after Campenlli said they wouldn’t be afraid of the UConn pressure they’ve seen better during league play. The buzz in the Civic Center was special

And he cried like a baby when it was over. And he was drummed out of coaching for being such a cheater even though Dickie V. carried his water nightly.

 

[lavuuk153]

Not after giving away a 17 pt lead

I wasn’t sure the amount, but blowing a lead that big as the 1 seed wouldn’t make that a fun game for me. Of course The Shot is iconic and I won’t question anyone who has that as their favorite moment, but it doesn’t seem like a game I would’ve enjoyed live or want to watch again.

 

[mauconnfan]

I wasn’t sure the amount, but blowing a lead that big as the 1 seed wouldn’t make that a fun game for me. Of course The Shot is iconic and I won’t question anyone who has that as their favorite moment, but it doesn’t seem like a game I would’ve enjoyed live or want to watch again.

I enjoyed it live no doubt it was full of UConn fans and the way it went from euphoria to utter OMG what happened, was crazy. Then of course obviously the place was buzzing while Duke and UCLA came out to warm up. They were all watching it from the tunnels waiting to get to the floor it was a special day for fans.

 

[gsmooth]

UConn beating Duke in the championship in '99 is the most important game in the history of UConn Mens basketball. We had many important wins getting to that point and 5 title since but that game in '99 is when we reached the mountaintop. Any UConn fan who watched that game knows the feeling they had inside with about 5 minutes to go when we realized "hey, we're going to beat these guys". Winning that game is the most joyous sports moment of my entire life.

You don't have to tell me twice. I was at that game live in Tropicana Field. UConn had the Ohio State fans, Michigan State fans, and the neutral fans pulling for them. UConn was the sentimental favorite in the country as everyone knew they finally reached the Final 4 after starving so long to reach it while Duke was considered the powerhouse that won all the time as that was Coach Ks 8th Final Four which included 7 in 9 years between 1986-1994.

UConn is no longer the sentimental favorite. They are the best basketball program in the country. UConn is Thanos and the other programs are the Avengers trying to take them down.

 

[Waquoit]

I wasn’t sure the amount, but blowing a lead that big as the 1 seed wouldn’t make that a fun game for me. Of course The Shot is iconic and I won’t question anyone who has that as their favorite moment, but it doesn’t seem like a game I would’ve enjoyed live or want to watch again.

That's too bad. You diminish the incredible joy that came with The Shot going in. Of course, it made the gut punch that came 2 days later even worse. I remember leaving the bar feeling like Steve McQueen at the end of The Cincinnati Kid.

 

[superjohn]

I wasn’t sure the amount, but blowing a lead that big as the 1 seed wouldn’t make that a fun game for me. Of course The Shot is iconic and I won’t question anyone who has that as their favorite moment, but it doesn’t seem like a game I would’ve enjoyed live or want to watch again.

I was just a little kid but I remember it being torture. We blew the game and I was crying and then a minute later I was running around screaming with joy. It was 1 second of amazing but we stunk that game.

Tate's legend would've grown a lot bigger if he just could've held onto the ball against Duke. He'll always have The Shot though.

 

[Taco]

At least for the older people here, the Tate George shot in 1990 has to be the pick for Sweet 16.

If I remember correctly, the good guys had a big lead at half and Clemson took their only lead with a second remaining. I was out of my mind upset that the team had fallen apart and the dream season was over - then the SHOT! Great - I mean GREAT ending but not a fun watch for much of the 2nd half.

As an aside does anyone remember the used to have the shot on a screen at the library ( or maybe the SU) that showed the CBS feed of the shot- must have watched it a thousand times!

 

[WhereistheDove?]

Elite 8 - dismantling the Illini last year when, again, a lot of podcasters inserted their feet into their mouths and were slobbering all over themselves talking about Terrence Shannon

Definitely going to be an all-time great for me. The talk that we couldn’t hang with their offense, hadn’t seen a team as physical (LOL), Hawkins was going to pull Clingan out of the paint and neutralize his impact (double-LOL), to end in an absolutely historic, never been done before drubbing was so sweet. I’ve watched that game a few too many times on replay already.

 

[upstater]

Michigan State elite 8 game in 2014 in that round for me.

I've been watching since the 1970s and this is my favorite game PERIOD outside of the National Championships.

The program was in a deep dark hole prior to this game. We were left behind by the ACC. We were suddenly conference mates with really weird schools. Calhoun was gone. We were banned for a metric which didn't even exist the year it was used against us (a metric which is laughable now in the world of transfer-craziness). The previous year, the Big East coaches decided to toss us out of the Big East tournament. We weren't recruiting well. Absolutely everything was against the program and the players.

When Michigan State clawed back from an early deficit and went into halftime looking good, Charles was talking about how they were going to blow the doors off of UConn in the second half. Michigan State were a veteran team, Magic Johnson was in the audience, as were all the head honchos of the B1G. When MSU grabbed a 33-23 lead at the 16 minute mark of the 2nd half, the announcers started talking about golf.

And then it was Shabazz-time. He went off. UConn went on a 26-6 run capped off with a Boatright 3. The UConn fans were going bonkers when he hit that 3. MSG was louder than it's ever been. Izzo was shown grimacing like he was tied to the tracks in front of a runaway freight train.

The Ancient Greeks invented the word catharsis to describe a clearing of emotion after many traumatic moments. This was the most cathartic moment in program history as all UConn fans and the team let loose with their emotions and Michigan St. and Charles in the studio didn't know what had hit them.

 

[TheHorde]

I've been watching since the 1970s and this is my favorite game PERIOD outside of the National Championships.

The program was in a deep dark hole prior to this game. We were left behind by the ACC. We were suddenly conference mates with really weird schools. Calhoun was gone. We were banned for a metric which didn't even exist the year it was used against us (a metric which is laughable now in the world of transfer-craziness). The previous year, the Big East coaches decided to toss us out of the Big East tournament. We weren't recruiting well. Absolutely everything was against the program and the players.

When Michigan State clawed back from an early deficit and went into halftime looking good, Charles was talking about how they were going to blow the doors off of UConn in the second half. Michigan State were a veteran team, Magic Johnson was in the audience, as were all the head honchos of the B1G. When MSU grabbed a 33-23 lead at the 16 minute mark of the 2nd half, the announcers started talking about golf.

And then it was Shabazz-time. He went off. UConn went on a 26-6 run capped off with a Boatright 3. The UConn fans were going bonkers when he hit that 3. MSG was louder than it's ever been. Izzo was shown grimacing like he was tied to the tracks in front of a runaway freight train.

The Ancient Greeks invented the word catharsis to describe a clearing of emotion after many traumatic moments. This was the most cathartic moment in program history as all UConn fans and the team let loose with their emotions and Michigan St. and Charles in the studio didn't know what had hit them.

The Giffey breakaway dunk followed by the loud U-C-O-N-N chants is one of my favorite all time Husky moments period.

 

[gsmooth]

I've been watching since the 1970s and this is my favorite game PERIOD outside of the National Championships.

The program was in a deep dark hole prior to this game. We were left behind by the ACC. We were suddenly conference mates with really weird schools. Calhoun was gone. We were banned for a metric which didn't even exist the year it was used against us (a metric which is laughable now in the world of transfer-craziness). The previous year, the Big East coaches decided to toss us out of the Big East tournament. We weren't recruiting well. Absolutely everything was against the program and the players.

When Michigan State clawed back from an early deficit and went into halftime looking good, Charles was talking about how they were going to blow the doors off of UConn in the second half. Michigan State were a veteran team, Magic Johnson was in the audience, as were all the head honchos of the B1G. When MSU grabbed a 33-23 lead at the 16 minute mark of the 2nd half, the announcers started talking about golf.

And then it was Shabazz-time. He went off. UConn went on a 26-6 run capped off with a Boatright 3. The UConn fans were going bonkers when he hit that 3. MSG was louder than it's ever been. Izzo was shown grimacing like he was tied to the tracks in front of a runaway freight train.

The Ancient Greeks invented the word catharsis to describe a clearing of emotion after many traumatic moments. This was the most cathartic moment in program history as all UConn fans and the team let loose with their emotions and Michigan St. and Charles in the studio didn't know what had hit them.

It was good payback, too. Michigan State had a home court advantage in 2009 with the Final Four game being in Detroit. UConn without Jerome Dyson, probably should've won that, but the missed FTs killed them in that game. I remember the crowd in Detroit roaring.

It was only right to give Michigan State the same taste in MSG.

 

[CardiacAndre7]

Underrated, but that S16 game in 2014 against Iowa State was a great game. They had so much talent on that team looking back.

Melvin Ejim
Dustin Hogue (Who destroyed us)
Monte Morris (Good NBA player)
DeAndre Kane (Had an immense season)
Matt Thomas (NBA Player)
Naz Mitrou-Long (NBA player)

The 2nd half of that game was insane.

 

[alphasigko]

'99 Championship game #1 for sure

'11 and '14 over Kentucky are pretty close 2nds

 

[CTBasketball]

R64 - St Joe’s 2014 (a classic)
R32 - Texas A&M - 2009 (Stix was showing out this tournament)
S16 - Clemson 1990 (a classic)
E8 - Illinois 2024 (close 2nd is Missouri 2009)
SF: Duke 2004 (2x feeling since 1999)
F: Duke 1999 (the best feeling ever)

 

[Spaceman213J]

For me, the hardest round is the round of 32.
Brimah's rescue against St. Joes-1st
St. Mary's-The 1st half was close until the Ducas injury
Clemson-Sweet Sixteen
Washington-Elite Eight
Duke-Okafor taking over late
Duke-I loved how the coronation and David vs. Goliath narrative changed and how Billy Packer picked up on it pretty quickly when he said he got the feeling UConn appeared more confident it could handle Duke than the Duke players felt it could stay with UConn". And I love the storyline of Ricky Moore who appeared like he could be a star when he first arrived to UConn but was banged up at times and had the maturity and presence to defer to RIP and let El-Amin be the vocal 'face/leader', but really still helped drive things behind the scenes.

 

[UofCT]

R64 - St Joe’s 2014 (a classic)
R32 - Texas A&M - 2009 (Stix was showing out this tournament)
S16 - Clemson 1990 (a classic)
E8 - Illinois 2024 (close 2nd is Missouri 2009)
SF: Duke 2004 (2x feeling since 1999)
F: Duke 1999 (the best feeling ever)

Love how you included multiple 09 games. The FF L was so painful that I don’t think I’ve ever rewatched this tournament’s highlights. I need to fire it up

 

[CTBasketball]

Love how you included multiple 09 games. The FF L was so painful that I don’t think I’ve ever rewatched this tournament’s highlights. I need to fire it up

Missouri 2009 Elite 8 was Kemba’s coming out party. In the 2H he put the team on his back and made some really tough shots.

 

[ucp990411]

I have given this lots of thought and we have had so many great games it is a difficult answer.
First round:
Hofstra 1976. Down by 18 at half. Joe Whelton and Al Weston to the rescue, we win in OT!
Bucknell 2011. Doug Gottleib picked Buckner because we would be too tired.

2nd round:
New Mexico 1999. All American Kenny Thomas looked completely dumbfounded.
California 1990. Lou Campelli said our press won’t bother them. Wonder what he thought when it was 21-2.

Sweet 16:
Iowa 1999. Two teams totally beating each other up.
Maryland 1995. Two great teams. Joe Smith.

Elite 8: So many.
Michigan St 2014. So much credit here goes to KO. 16 and a half minutes to go he calls TO down 8 I believe. From there on out our defense was unbelievable. Great game, great atmosphere.
Alabama 2004. First half may have been the best half we have ever played in the tournament.
Illinois 2024. 30-0 run speaks for itself. Nice adjustments at half by the not too bright Brad Underwood.
1999 Gonzaga. Never been so nervous in my life.

National semis:
1999 Ohio St. Jim O’Brien. Great guy.
2004 Duke. Down 8 with 3:50 to go. Calhoun again out coaches K. Rashad’s 3! Emeka offensive rebound and putback
2014 Kentucky. Always great to beat Calipari. Why foul them, they never miss.

Champs.
1999. The first one!
2023. We are back!These are the 2 after which I cried like a baby.
2024. Pure domination. Back to back! One of the best teams ever.
2014. Who would have dreamt this?
2004. Great team
2011. Kemba and the kids.