Posted by Sabrina B. @gametimegirl
Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun had scanned the schedule before the tournament began and winced. For ninth-seeded UConn to win a championship, the Huskies would need to win five games in five days—including four straight against top-25 opponents.
t seemed worse than unlikely. As far as he knew, no one had ever done it before.
But he didn’t count on the historic performance of one of his own players. Powered by Kemba Walker’s record-shattering 130 points across the tournament’s five games, UConn advanced to the finals, then defeated Louisville, 69-66, for its first Big East Championship since 2004. Now both schools will await their NCAA tournament seeds and travel destinations Sunday.
“I’m caught up in the emotion of what happened here,” said Calhoun, who notched his 600th win. “They wouldn’t allow themselves to lose.”
Walker grinned out at the media after the game.
“Now that the tournament’s over, I definitely can tell you that I was tired,” said Walker, who was named the Most Valuable Player. “With about two minutes left, I was gas. I just wanted to win this game so bad that my heart took over.”
Both teams entered the season unranked and largely overlooked. Louisville (25-9) was picked to finish eighth in the Big East and did not receive a single vote in the Associated Press’ preseason poll. Throughout the season, each struggled. Ten Cardinals players suffered injuries that caused them to miss playing time during the year, while the Huskies (26-9) tinkered with 10 different lineups.
But both clawed their way into the polls, though UConn entered the Big East Tournament on shakier ground, ending the regular season on a two-game losing streak and finishing 9-9 in the Big East.
WRITTEN BYÂ SOPHIA HOLLANDER & FULL STORY HERE
