Print

Mail

wiki links

Lowly Albany gives UConn a test

Connecticut's Denham Brown drives past Albany's Brent Wilson in the second half during their NCAA tournament game in Philadelphia, Friday. UConn won 72-59. PHOTO: AP

When Connecticut won the NCAA tournament in 2004, Albany finished last in the America East Conference. UConn won 33 against some of the nation's toughest competition; Albany won five against some of the weakest.

Two years later, it took about 35 minutes for the two basketball programs to separate themselves substantially on the court. And Albany nearly made the improbable one-game trip from unknown to unforgettable.

Top-seeded UConn survived a hearty scare from 16th-seeded Albany on Friday night, ultimately emerging with a 72-59 victory after overcoming a 10-point second-half deficit and a crowd hoping to witness history.

Albany provided far more than just a harmless, poke-your-head-around-the-corner "boo" for the heavily favored Huskies. It gave an increasingly anxious crowd at the Wachovia Center and a national-television audience a real sense that it might witness the first loss by a top-seeded team to a 16th-seeded team in the history of the NCAA tournament. And as the first-round game in the Washington Region progressed, the feeling grew in accordance with Albany's lead, which reached 10 with 11 minutes remaining.

But UConn chipped away, getting 5 quick points from guard Marcus Williams on a 3-pointer and a drive. It sandwiched another 5 points around an Albany jumper, tied the score at 52-52 on free throws with 6 minutes 22 seconds remaining, then took the lead for good on a 3-pointer by Williams from the top of the key with 5:50 left.

It was part of a 34-9 run that UConn used to end the game, as Albany melted meekly back into a statistic, one showing that top seeds hold a 88-0 advantage on No. 16's.

As the game ended, Albany Coach Will Brown grimaced as he extended a hand to UConn coach Jim Calhoun, who offered a quick hug and kind words. A sense of disappointment settled in, other than in the small section of UConn fans, until the purple-clad Albany section burst into applause, lifting most of the crowd into a standing ovation.

UConn led, 31-30, at halftime, and the UConn band blared. But it could not drown out the adulation for Albany, as even those with no allegiances began to root for the underdog.

Albany took a 9-3 lead in the game's first five minutes, aided by four UConn turnovers. It slowly surrendered the lead, but regained it with just more than a minute remaining in the half when guard Jamar Wilson spun in the lane and fired a high pass to 7-foot-1-inch Kirsten Zoellner. The ball bounced off the center's hand and fell into the basket.

Williams quickly scored for UConn, silencing the fans swept up in the ultimate underdog story. Part of the allure was how Albany was doing it: not by hot shooting -- the Great Danes shot 41.4 percent in the first half, while UConn shot 65 percent -- but by hustle. Albany had seven first-half steals and forced UConn into 11 first-half turnovers.

On UConn's first possession of the second half, the ball was stripped again. Albany regained the lead with about 18 minutes remaining when guard Lucious Jordan drove the length of the court for a reverse layup. Zoellner's dunk gave Albany a 36-33 lead.

"You can't break us," the Albany section chanted.

Two possessions later, the lead had grown to 40-33. On one seemingly hopeless possession, as Albany continued trying to milk time from the clock, guard Jason Siggers tossed up a shot from the corner. The shot clock, drowned out by the roar of the crowd, buzzed as the ball slipped perfectly through the net.

But it never became any better for Albany or for the memorable, improbable story line that the Great Danes temporarily created.
This story has been viewed 1503 times.