The Storrs to the Summit of the UConn Men's Basketball Team.

By Yohan Varghese

South Windsor High School

When you are a native of Connecticut, UConn basketball is a part of your blood. It is talked over on dinner tables, on Thanksgiving, in gas stations. People wear the merch as a symbol of pride. But how did a small town in the heart of CT become one of the most acclaimed basketball programs in the country?

UConn was a successful New England program until the 1980s, having won just four NCAA Tournament games in all its history. Still good in the region, but not something to make other parts of the country fear. This was all to change in 1986 with the arrival of Jim Calhoun. He famously said that turning UConn into a winner was "doable."

Calhoun led his teams to NCAA national titles three times (1999, 2004, and 2011) and made Storrs a place where real basketball talent could be found. UConn has brought out absolute legends like Ray Allen. Then came Rip Hamilton, who took the Huskies to their first national title in 1999 when they defeated Duke 77-74. Duke. In a championship game. That in itself entitles the UConn fans to boast forever. The title of 2004 was quite another feat. UConn became the top team in the country that year, and the two stars Emeka Okafor and Ben Gordon were 2nd and 3rd draft picks in the NBA. That is not normal. That is a program where each and every gear is turning.

Then came 2011, and in case you have not yet checked out the run of Kemba Walker during the Big East Tournament, then do it right now. The Big East Tournament championship final saw UConn win over Louisville, which was the culmination of an undefeated streak where the Huskies won five tournament games in five straight days, four of which were against a top 25 opponent. During this five game streak, Walker made a tournament record of 130 points. This guy was simply playing a video game on the most difficult level. UConn then went on to win the national title. Things got rocky after Calhoun retired in 2012. Kevin Ollie took over, and though he somehow engineered a miracle in 2014 by becoming the first coach to lead a seventh seed to an NCAA championship, beating Kentucky 60-54, the years that followed

were genuinely rough. Sanctions, losing seasons, transfers. It felt like the dynasty was dead.

Hurley joined UConn in 2018 and slowly rebuilt the program from scratch. A very passionate coach. And if you have ever watched a UConn game, you know pretty quickly that he’s a little crazy. Before the season opener, Hurley burns sage on the court, pacing the free throw and three-point lines trying to ward off bad energy. Then come the spritzes of holy water, and then out come bags of garlic bulbs, which he gets on his hands and knees to place under the home bleachers as offerings to the basketball gods. Just a regular Tuesday night in Storrs. During the tournament, he wears the same suit every single game, and he and his wife actually bring a portable washing machine on the road so they can wash it in hotel rooms between games. Hurley himself admitted the jacket lining has completely fallen apart, with multiple holes every time he sticks his arm through the sleeve, but he refuses to retire it. He also wears a holy beads bracelet that he has had since his days as a high school coach in New Jersey, and his wife once had to run back to the hotel in the rain during a Final Four game just to grab them before tip-off. Oh, and his lucky underwear has dragons on them. The man has called all of this his "armor." Two national championships later, it is very hard to argue with him. The results speak for themselves. With two national titles under his belt, Hurley now holds the second-best winning percentage in NCAA history at .800, trailing only John Wooden's .825.

They won two consecutive titles. UConn was a two time national champion in 2023 and 2024. Consider how difficult that can be. The whole college basketball kingdom is out to get you the second year, all the competitors have marked the game on their calendar, and you still win. It was the first time since 2006 and 2007 done by the Florida Gators. UConn would pursue a goal that no group had accomplished since the legendary UCLA teams of the 1970s, three titles in four years. The Huskies made it to the national championship game for the third time in four years, which is crazy no matter how you say it. They completed the regular season 24-11 and had an amazing run in the tournament, with one moment that no one who watched it will ever forget. With 0.4 seconds remaining, Braylon Mullins made a desperation three-pointer that UConn won a 73-72 game by defeating top-seeded Duke by a point in the Elite Eight. The internet went crazy. Rightfully so.

Connecticut fans, however, did not have it their way in the championship game against Michigan. Michigan defeated UConn 69-63, which not only gave UConn its first loss in a national championship game in its history, but also broke an unblemished streak of 6-0 in national championship games. It hurt. It still hurts. The shooting just was not there, and UConn had foul trouble all night. And to get back to that game in four years, having gone through all this this program has, is truly impressive.

This is the context: UConn has won more national championships than any program since the tournament has been expanded to 64 teams. More than Duke. More than Kentucky. More than Kansas. An isolated school in rural Connecticut has been quietly creating the most successful college basketball program of the modern era. Whether you are a lifetime Huskies fan, or you just started paying attention, you are watching something special in Storrs. The banners continue to be hung, the players continue to arrive and Dan Hurley continues to pace the sideline like a man who has too much coffee in his system and a burning desire to win basketball games.

That is UConn basketball. This is who they are.