NEW YORK — The Connecticut Huskies are just different in March. Plain and simple.

Avenging a 70-68 loss to the Marquette Golden Eagles in the semifinals one year ago, Dan Hurley’s UConn squad is officially 2024 Big East Conference Tournament champions, taking home their first Big East title since 2011.

In their biggest game of the year thus far, Donovan Clingan led the way with a 22-point, 16-rebound double-double performance in a 73-57 Big East Final win over Marquette at Madison Square Garden.

“Just to be a part of the history and tradition of some of the coaches and players that have won championships in this league is an awesome feeling,” Coach Hurley said after the game. 

It's the first time the Huskies have won the Big East tournament since rejoining the conference from the American Athletic Conference four years ago.

“It was a privilege, obviously as a player, a coach, just to be a part of this storied league. And to MSG, Big East Tournament, there's nothing like it. Conference tournament-wise, there's just no comparison anywhere to what this place is like.”

UConn the top overall seed? 

It has been pure dominance this season thus far for the defending champs.

They won 24 of their first 26 games this season on their way to a 31-3 overall record, including 19-2 in conference play.

“We've been the best team in college basketball,” Hurley said. “March Madness next week, who knows what goes on there, but we've clearly been the best program in the country this year.”

With both Houston and Purdue failing to win their conference championships, the No. 1 overall seed could be very likely for Dan Hurley's squad.

With their eighth Big East crown here, the Huskies tie Georgetown for the most ever.

The Huskies had not won the Big East Tournament title since “Cardiac Kemba” Walker and the Huskies shocked the world, winning five games in five days for the Big East crown and riding that momentum into the 2011 national championship.

Donovan Clingan dominates

Clingan grabbed 16 boards, tying a Big East title game record set by Patrick Ewing in 1984 and Michael Smith in 1994.

“To have my name against someone who played — who's a legend really in basketball, in college basketball and even at the next level means a lot,” Clingan said.

Coach Hurley chimed in too: “Donovan, he's one of the two or three most impactful players in college basketball. If your eyes don't — if you don't see that with your eyes, then look at the analytics.”

Clingan has averaged 12.2 points per game and is second on the team in rebounds this season(6.9 per game).

Shaking off a slow start

Playing without their star guard Tyler Kolek for the sixth consecutive game, Kam Jones led the way for the Golden Eagles, finishing with 13 points, eight rebounds, and four assists.

UConn was held scoreless until the 13:29 mark of the first half when junior forward Samson Johnson threw down a ferocious slam off a pass from guard Tristen Newton. The good news for the Huskies was Marquette had only managed two points over that opening stretch. 

“I wouldn't say nervous or really worried throughout the game,” Newton explained. “We knew our offense would click and that's what happened and we ended up getting the win.

Newton, the senior guard from El Paso, Texas, has done it all for the Huskies, leading the team in scoring (15.2 PPG), rebounds (7.1), and assists (5.9) this season.

The Huskies shot just 9-of-30 from the field and 2-of-11 from three-point range in the first half.

Connecticut was 2-0 versus the Golden Eagles in the home and home series this season (81-53 victory on Feb 17th and 74-67 win on March 6th).

UConn ready to defend title

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The Huskies look poised to make another deep run through March Madness, this time as a one-seed and conference champion.

” We run an old-school program with a real culture,” Hurley said in his postgame press conference. “And you can see it by how unselfish this group is in a game on a night where we didn't shoot the ball that great, especially in the first half. Another 21-assist night on a team filled with NBA prospects speaks to just that we've got great people.

Connecticut knocked off Rick Pitino’s St John’s Red Storm 95-90 on Friday night at MSG. The Johnnies were playing in their first Big East semifinal since winning the 2000 tournament. 

The atmosphere at Madison Square Garden was electric from the opening tip. This game had the intensity of a Final Four or National Championship Game.

“Storrs South,” as some would call it, was popping.

It's a precursor for where the Huskies hope to be in a few weeks, defending their title from a year ago.

This UConn team is better than the one that cut down the nets at NRG Stadium in Houston a year ago. Pretty scary, huh? Now the question is whether they can finish the season the same way the 2022-23 squad did. 

Bring on Selection Sunday. 

“We've done a lot of historic things,” Hurley explained. “This guy and the guy next [Clingan and Newton] to me have done some historic things in their two-year run with us. I know we've never gotten a No. 1 overall seed in program history, so this is a group that seems to be making history in a place that it's hard to make history.”

The Madness is officially here.