HOUSTON — UConn won the 2023 NCAA Tournament on Monday night, defeating San Diego State 76-59. It is the fifth title for the Huskies and the first for coach Danny Hurley. The Huskies’ Adama Sanogo was named the Most Outstanding Player, although there was also a strong case for Jordan Hawkins.
UConn’s most recent championship prior to Monday’s victory was in 2014, when the Huskies won the NCAA Tournament as a No. 7 seed. Only their first title came as a region’s top seed.
Here are the rankings of UConn’s five championship teams.
No. 1: 1998-99
Record: 34-2 (No. 1 seed)
The first of the Huskies championship and still the best team to win one for UConn. Rip Hamilton, Khalid El-Amin and Kevin Freeman led a Huskies team that was dominant all season long to its first national title. UConn finished the regular season 28-2 with regular season and tournament championships in the Big East. They were the No. 1 team in the AP poll for ten consecutive weeks in the middle of the season before finishing the regular season at No. 3.
No. 2: 2022-23
Record: 31-8 (No. 4 seed)
UConn dominated this NCAA Tournament like few others have. The Huskies won this tournament by an average of 20 points per game. They are only the third team since expansion to win the title without defeating a team seeded higher than third. UConn was the fifth team to win the title with double-digit margins in all of its games. The Huskies started the regular 14-0, then lost six of their next eight games to start Big East play, but followed that with nine wins out of their next ten before losing in the semifinal of the Big East Tournament.
No. 3: 2003-04
Record: 33-6 (No. 2 seed)
Ben Gordon and Emeka Okafor led a talented team for the Huskies, six of which would eventually play in the NBA. They started the season 14-1 and were atop the polls for a large part of that time. They lost four games in conference play before winning the Big East tournament. In the semifinals, UConn needed a late 12-0 run to overcome a big Duke lead and win by one. The Huskies then defeated Georgia Tech in the final, avenging a loss to the Yellow Jackets earlier in the season.
No. 4: 2010-11
Record: 32-9 (No. 3 seed)
The 2011 NCAA Tournament was also played in Houston with a most unusual Final Four. Butler got there as a No. 8-seed and No. 11 seed VCU went from the First Four to the Final Four in the first year of the First Four. What we all remember about that tournament though was the remarkable run Kemba Walker had at the end of the regular season and in the NCAA Tournament. After UConn went just 9-9 in conference play, it looked to be in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament entirely, but Walker led the Huskies to the Big East title in a five game run, then the national championship. Walker was named MOP of the NCAA Tournament.
No. 5: 2013-14
Record: 32-8 ( No. 7 seed)
Shabazz Napier led this UConn team to the national championship as a No. 7-seed. Only Villanova’s 1985 champion was seeded lower. This was Kevin Ollie’s second season as coach and the Huskies’ first as a member of the American Athletic Conference. It was a challenging run to a title for UConn. The Huskies had to beat four teams in the AP top 11 on their way to the championship. It was their second consecutive championship game victory over a No. 8 seed.
