Last April, the UConn Huskies joined seven other programs in men’s college basketball to win repeat titles. This year, they will try to become just the second school to win at least three in a row. UCLA sits atop an untouchable throne with 7 straight championships from 1967-73.
But UConn’s first round win over Oklahoma has already tied one record, while building on another. With four titles in 13 seasons, are the Huskies un underappreciated dynasty?
UConn Huskies Making March History Despite Up-and-Down Year
Beating the Sooners put Dan Hurley in rare territory. UConn’s 13th straight tournament win tied the most since Duke rattled off the same number from 1991-93. An upset versus Florida on Sunday would give the Huskies the longest streak since UCLA’s demonic run.
That isn’t all, either. Dating back to last season, the Huskies have been breaking their own historic mark with every victory: they are the only team ever with 10, 11, 12 and now 13 consecutive tournament wins in which they have also covered the point-spread. Favored by 6.5 points against Oklahoma, they squeaked past the line once more, 67-59.
Currently 9.5-point underdogs to Florida, UConn is up against it, but they won’t have to worry about covering the line in victory.
This team, however, is not last season’s dominant squad. The Huskies finished 14-6 in Big East play, third in the conference, and did not earn a spot in the AP Poll. They lost to Creighton in the semifinal of the Big East tournament and were pegged as an 8-seed in the national competition.
As the second round tips off, they hold the 18th longest championship odds. If Hurley wants to three-peat, he will have to do it as a massive underdog.
UConn > Duke in Tournament Success?
Prior to UConn’s net-cutting spree, they hadn’t won a tournament game in five seasons (excluding the March Madness-less Covid year). They missed the action entirely for three years running, then lost in the first round twice before winning it all in 2023.
In the 13 tournaments from 2011-2024, UConn won two games in four appearances outside of the team’s four title runs. Compared to a dynasty like Duke’s, which appeared in 35 of 36 tournaments from 1984-2019 and hoisted four trophies, the Huskies have been atypically inconsistent. Yet for a dynasty championships are the standard, and in that department, UConn has enjoyed a superior win rate.
Owners of more recent success, going back to 1999, the Huskies have climbed the ladder six times in 25 seasons (24%), including four in the last 13 (31%). Beginning with the Blue Devils’ repeat crowns in 1991-92, the program’s first-ever tites, and ending with their last one in 2015, Duke did the same five times in the same time span (20%). Even if Cooper Flagg wields the scissors this April, Duke’s six in 34 would fall short of the Huskies’ mark (18%).
If UConn stuns the Gators, they would have a winnable Sweet Sixteen matchup against Maryland or Colorado State. In the Elite Eight, their most probably opponent would be St. John’s or Texas Tech.
It’s unlikely they will get there, or even out of this round, but UConn’s lack of dominance this season has cultivated other traits valuable in a tournament setting.
“The thing about this team,” Hurley said, “is we’re really battle-tested, and we’ve had to fight so hard all year that we showed a lot of toughness down the stretch to execute some things and make some critical shots and make some critical stops.”
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